Talk too much, you might croak! he he..

CROAK CROAK CROAK

Sue, Lilie and Ollie

Good Morning...Croak
Thank you for the post...croak

Love
Vicky croak...croak

Hehehe...such fun to see everyone croaking

Now get this for a short reply...CROAK

ONCE upon a time there was a frog called Mr. Jeremy Fisher; he lived in a little damp house amongst the buttercups at the edge of a pond.

The water was all slippy-sloppy in the larder and in the back passage.
But Mr. Jeremy liked getting his feet wet; nobody ever scolded him, and he never caught a cold!

He was quite pleased when he went out, and saw large drops of rain, splashing in the pond -

"I will get some worms and go fishing and catch a dish of minnows for my dinner." said Mr. Jeremy Fisher. If I catch more than five fish, I will invite my friends Mr. Alderman Ptolemy Tortoise and Sir Isaac Newton. The Alderman, however, eats salad."

Mr. Jeremy put on a macintosh, and a pair of shiny galoshes; he took off his rod and basket, and set off with enormous hops to the place where he kept his boat.

The boat was round and green, and very like the other lily-leaves. It was tied to a water-plant in the middle of the pond.

Mr. Jeremy took a reed pole, and pushed the boat into open water. "I know a good place for minnows," said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

Mr. Jeremy stuck his pole in the mud and fastened the boat to it.
Then he settled himself cross-legged and arranged his fishing tackle. He had the dearest little red float. His rod was a tough stalk of grass, his line was a fine long white horse-hair, and he tied a little wriggling worm at the end.

The rain trickled down his back, and for nearly an hour he stared at the float.
"This is getting tiresome, I think Ishould like some lunch," said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

He punted back again amongst the water-plants, and took some lunch out of his basket.
"I will eat a butterfly sandwich, and wait till the shower is over," said Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

A great big water-beetle came up underneath the lily leaf and tweaked the toe of one of his galoshes.
Mr. Jeremy crossed his legs up shorter, out of reach, and went on eating his sandwich.

Once or twice something moved about with a rustle and a splash amongst the rushes at the side of the pond.
"I trust that is not a rat," said Mr. Jeremy Fisher; "I think I had better get away from here."

Mr. Jeremy shoved the boat out again a little way, and dropped in the bait. There was a bite almost directly; the float gave a tremendous bobbit!
"A minnow! A minnow! I have him by the nose!" cried Mr. Jeremy Fisher, jerking up his rod.

But what a horrible surprise! Instead of a smooth fat minnow, Mr. Jeremy landed little Jack Sharp the stickleback, covered with spines!

The stickleback floundered about the boat, pricking and snapping until he was quite out of breath. Then he jumped back into the water.

And a shoal of other little fishes put their heads out, and laughed at Mr. Jeremy Fisher.

And while Mr. Jeremy sat disconsolately on the edge of his boat - sucking his sore fingers and peering down into the water - a much worse thing happened; a really frightful thing it would have been, if Mr. Jeremy had not been wearing a macintosh!

A great big enormous trout came up - ker-pflop-p-p-p with a splash - and it seized Mr. Jeremy with a snap, "Ow! Ow! Ow!" - and then it turned and dived down to the bottom of the pond!

But the trout was so displeased with the taste of the macintosh, that in less than half a minute it spat him out again; and the only thing it swallowed was Mr. Jeremy's galoshes.

Mr. Jeremy bounced up to the surface of the water, like a cork and the bubbles out of a soda water bottle; and he swam with all his might to the edge of the pond.

He scrambled out on the first bank he came to, and he hopped home across the meadow with his macintosh all in tatters.

"What a mercy that was not a pike!" said Mr. Jeremy Fisher. "I have lost my rod and basket; but it does not much matter, for I am sure I should never have dared to go fishing again!"

He put some sticking plaster on his fingers, and his friends both came to dinner. He could not offer them fish, but he had something else in his larder.

Sir Isaac Newton wore his black and gold waistcoat.

And Mr. Alderman Ptolemy Tortoise brought a salad with him in a string bag.

And instead of a nice dish of minnows - they had a roasted grasshopper with lady-bird sauce; which frogs consider a beautiful treat; but I think it must have been nasty!
THE END

Beatrix Potter

< !--graemlin::yinyang:--> < !--graemlin::hat:--> croak...croak......hahaha....

THE FOOLISH FROG - By Pete Seeger

(Whistled introduction)

There was once a farmer, walking down the road whistling a tune to himself. He said, Dog-gone, I wish I had some words to that tune. But all I've got is the melody.
Just then he came to a little bridge, and he leaned on the railing looking down at the brook. There was a big old bullfrog, hopping from bank to bank. (Sound effects). Well, the bullfrog looked up and saw the farmer and decided to show off. He took an extra special big hop - z-z-z-z-tt! He landed, splash! in the water and got himself all wet. The farmer laughed and laughed and started singing :
Way down south in the yankety-yank, a bull frog jumped from bank to bank, just because he'd nothing better for to do! He stubbed his toe and fell in the water; you could hear him yell for a mile and a quarter, just because he'd nothing better for to do.
Now the farmer went walking down the road feeling mighty proud of himself for making up a song. He went down to the corner store, bought himself some groceries, a pair of work gloves and a plug of chewing tobacco, and said; Oh, before I go, I have to sing you my new song.
Go on home, says the storekeeper, I'm busy here, can't you see all these customer?
I won't pay you any money unless you let me sing you my song!
Well, sing it and get it over with then, said the storekeeper.
The farmer began to sing and the man in the store cried out; That's a w-o-o-nderful song, gather round everybody, we'll have a party. And he passed round the free Coca Colas and the free soda-crackers, and everyone was stamping on the floor.
Meanwhile, all the wives and children back home were sitting down to supper, and - where's father?
The mother said; Children, you better run down to the corner store and fetch your old man. He's probably down there wasting his time as usual.
So all the children run down the road. They run inside the corner store. You know, they heard all that music, they forgot about coming home. The children started singing (Song is repeated in a higher voice) And they were passing around the free Coca-Colas and .........
Now, in every farmhouse it was the same situation. The mother said to themselves; This has gone far enough. Supper's getting cold. 'Spect us to work all the day nobody show up?
They reached over on the stove and grabbed some heavy frying pans and start down the road with a mad look in their eyes. Somebody's going to get beaned. Well, they get near and they hear all that pretty music, and they forget all about being mad. They drop the frying pans in the gutter, walk into the store, and the mothers start singing! Way down yonder in the yankety-yank, a bullfrog jumped from bank to bank .......... And they're passing round the free Coca-Colas and the free soda crackers, and everybody is stamping on the floor!
Meanwhile out in the barns all the cows started talking; Where is everybody? We're supposed to be milked and it's getting mighty uncomfortable! So the cows left their stalls, they wobbled out of the barn, and down the road right into the corner store. And the cows started singing; Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo moo, moo, moo, moo, moo. (To tune). And the cow's tails were swishing out the windows, and they were stamping on the floor, and drinking the free Coca-Colas and eating the free soda .......
Out in the barnyard all the chickens said; Where is everybody? We're supposed to be fed and we're getting hungry! So the chickens hopped over the fence, hopped down the road, hopped into the store, and the chickens started; (Chicken imitation to tune). And the chicken were stamping on the floor and drinking the free Coca C ......
Meanwhile all the barns started talking to each other. We feel mighty lonely, they said, without any cows or any chickens. I guess we'll have to go find them. So the barns picked themselves off their foundations and galumphed down the road, and s-q-u-e-e-z-e-d themselves into that corner store, believe it or not. Did you ever hear a rusty hinge on a barn door? That's the way the barns sang; Eeeee, eeeeeeeeee.
Out in the fields all the grass says; Where is everybody? The cows are supposed to come and eat us. I guess we'll have to go find them. And the grass picked itself up and swished off down the road, and swished right into the store and started singing; Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh. Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh.
Of course, when the grass was gone, the fields were gone, so the brook didn't have any banks to flow between. It said; I've got to go someplace, so it bubbled down the road. It bubbled right up into the corner store and the brook started;
Bubbl-bubbl-bubbl-bubbl-bubbl-bubbl-bubbl.

The brook was bubbling up and down the stairway! The grass was growing out the chimney! Feathers flying through the air! Cows tails swishing through the windows! Everybody stamping on the floor and drinking the free Coca-Cola and eating the free soda-cracker!

Meanwhile, there's the bullfrog in mid-air!

He looks down, there's nothing underneath him. He looks over and there's no bank to land on. He says; Where am I? And he starts hopping down the road. Hop! Hop! Hop! Hop! Hop!
Hey, what's all that racket down at the corner store? says the frog.
Why ........ they're singing! They're singing about ME! And he was so proud he puffed himself up with pride.
And he puffed,
and he puffed,
and he puffed,

and he
BOOM!!!!


He exploded. Cows, barns, chickens, farmers, the whole corner store went up in the air, and everybody floated down and landed right where they were supposed to have been all the time. They all sat down eating supper again, feeling kind of foolish for themselves.
Next day they went out to find the frog. They looked high, they looked low. Coca-Cola bottles and soda crackers in all directions. But no frog.
So all there is left of the frog is the song. We might as well sing 'er once again.
Way down yonder in the yankety-yank.........
(Whistle for conclusion)

Here's a link which has a sample from the Seeger story.

http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/store/artist/album/0,,195040,00.html

I've always been a big fan of Beatrix Potter. If you like anthropomorphism it doesn't get any better than her wonderful illustrated characters.

I have a night table copy of Petris Cuniculus in Latin. It has Flopsa and Mopsa as well as Cauda Linea, Petris, as you'd expect in a Latin version.

"Nolite ire in hortum Domini MacGregor."

I'd forgotten Jeremy the Frog. I thought you'd all like Pete Seeger's frog since we got on this "ribbiting" subject.

This is quite the post...CROAK...will spend more time here later.

I need to rush to my doctor's appointment
and hear him CROAK...

Sincerely,
Gisele