Songs My Father Nearly Sang Me

When I was a kid, every once and a while my father would burst into the one happy little ditty I think he knew (his other favorite song was the Russian dirge "Happy Birthday".)

He'd get this far:

Last night I slept in a hollow log

With the girl I love beside me;

When my mother would make him stop.

This drove me crazy because I just KNEW the lyrics would be delicious and probably a bit naughty.

I was talking about this the other day with my friend Jane and so she said the obvious "Let's google it." A moment later the lyrics were up on the screen in front of us and when we found the familiar verse I thought "huh...that's not so bad."

It went like this:

Last night I slept in a hollow log

With the girl I love beside me;

Tonight I sleep in a feather bed

And she's right there beside me

This morning I sent the entire song with its lyrics off to my father. It was found in a link from the SCA (Society of Creative Anachronism) in a document titled "Songs unsuitable for children...and small dogs." It is full of songs I think my father would love. It was while sending this email to my father that I noted the verses that followed and I finally understood my mother's concern.

Last night I slept in a hollow log

With the girl I love beside me;

Tonight I sleep in a feather bed

And she's right there beside me

She jumped in bed and covered up her head

And said I couldn't find her

But she knew damn well she lied like hell

So I jumped in bed beside her!

I diddled her once, I diddled her twice,

I diddled her once too often.....

I broke a spring, or some damn thing

I diddled her to her coffin......

My mother was probably right not to let him finish the song because I would for sure have remembered it and sung it for someone - and not knowing what "diddled" meant, likely would have done it in church where I sang most often.

All that said, it is now clear to me that I come by my love of Bawdy English Drinking songs quite honestly.

Thanks Pop! I love you!

NL

Hi! I see you've met my cat.

Buzzzzzzz.....

6:17 am this morning my phone rings. Fortunately, I'd woken up at 6:15 am all on my own so I wasn't completely startled awake.

I knew before I answered it what it was.

I was right.

"Hi, I'm sorry to call you so early but this is the number on the cat's collar" said a sweet voiced young man in my ear. I glanced over at Chris quickly, thinking that tenor sweet had it's advantages but remembering that from the moment I first heard it, Chris's baritone rumble had me at hello.

"I'll come get him, what apartment are you in?" I offered, wondering just how fast I could get dressed.

I am not a pretty sight in the morning. Gone are the days when a boyfriend would greet me with "You really are beautiful in the morning." Now my hair sticks up, more in the grayer places, and my cat allergies show up in my eyes.

I throw on a bra and a house dress and run down the hall in my bare feet. I knock and the door to 408 opens up. He's a nice guy clearly, and way ahead of me in his morning routine. He is obviously okay with his surprise visitor.

"It's okay, we're cat friendly and he's a great cat."

"He loves people" I explain "and he's discovered that by walking the balcony he can meet more of them. He's been visiting other people regularly. I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay" he offers back "we don't mind. He's a really nice cat. What unit are you in?"

I shove my thumb to the left and tell him. He looks surprised, tells me that he thought for sure he came from above and that explains why there were no injuries when he checked for them.

This entire time I have my purring fluffy big boy of a cat in my arms and he is perfectly happy to be in the center of two talking adults. Thanks to him, I've met 3 of my floor neighbors - only one of which wasn't particularly pleased to find him on her balcony. The other two have discovered that he is perfectly content to be petted, held, and chatted with.

Meanwhile, I've decided that I really like my neighbors. I think it might be a nice chance to get to know the people I live next to beyond just a wave in the hallway. Arlingtonians are typically a pretty good lot and I know that already.

But I have to find a way to stop meeting like this!


NL