A Pirate's 12 Days
Posted at 6:00 AM on December 22, 2009
by Dale Connelly
(36 Comments)
Filed under: Captain Billy
Radio Heartland has tickets to give away to a show at the Cedar Cultural Center tomorrow night - a much anticipated Holiday Special featuring Roma di Luna and Eliza Blue!
We'll take entries until 1 this afternoon.
Enter the drawing.
Obey the rules.
Good luck!
Here's a note I found stuck to my desk this morning with some mysterious goo, surrounded by the multi-colored feathers of a tropical bird -
A fine holiday to all you landlubbers an' yer kin.
Me an' the boys is far away ridin' th' warmer currents, but we's a-thinkin' of our long lost homes an' th' emotional warmth of bein' with family an' you can rest assured we's singin' carols an' songs of th' season, includin' "The Pirates 12 Days of Christmas." You all knows the tune an' how it plays out. I'll spare th' details, other than to list our version of th' famous litany o' gifts.
Twelve Pints a Groggin'
Eleven Peg legs Poundin'
Ten Cowards Creepin'
Nine Plankers Walkin'
Eight Maids a-Bilkin'
Seven Sailors Swarmin'
Six Boys Belayin'
FIVE GOLDEN THINGS!
Four Falling Swords
Three Wench Friends
Two Cannon Balls
And A Parrot Perchin' on Me
Sing it yerselves, if that be yer inclination. An' Merry Christmas!
Capt. Billy an' the crew of the Muskellunge.
Have you ever spent Christmas in the tropics?
Comments (36)
Ahoy - good to hear Capt. Billy's Pirate's version of 12 days. we've never been any place warm for the holidays - my Mom went to Hawaii and kissed Don Ho. so maybe Mele Kalikimaka by Bing Crosby? or the Beach Boys have a goofy one - "Mele Kalikimaka is merry christmas in Hawaiian talk-a" or do you have any Don Ho, Dale? :-)
Now that I think about it, and I wonder how odd this may be, I have spent every Christmas at "home," my parents home and or our home, that is at least a major part of Eve or Day there.
Let's start our own Haertlanders list. I'll start
12 Carloses Courting
11 goats ableatin'
(you expected something else??)
ten Comments posted
10 comments posted.
Greetings! We never get to go anywhere warm in winter.
8 Minnesotans freezing.
Good Morning to All,
My fingers don't seem to be working well today. Sorry about the double post. I was trying to be fast to keep the list going.
At our house we have joked about going away, probably to a warm place, for Christmas to avoid all the work. However, we never do it. We are not like Capt. Billy who seems to be free to do what ever he wants to do.
I am so lame .... 9 Minnesotans freezing.
8 Barbs a milkin
Let's not forget that Alan Sherman taught Cap'n Billy to adapt the 12 days!
Dale: maybe this group is too-blue Minnesota, too homey, or too cheap to travle to the tropics.
Hate to introduce this right now; but just read Cam Waters died. Did that get mentioned yesterday and I missed it?
7 sage replies.
Clyde,
I just found out about Cam Waters late last night. In the next hour I'll play some of his music and we'll hear part of an interview Jim Ed and I did with Cam in 2006.
This is very sad news - he was generous with his talents and I'll miss him.
Sorry to interrupt the Trial Balloon "12 Days" parody - how about:
Six JASPERS Jukin'?
Christmas has always happened in Minnesota for me - and I'm okay with that.
6 funny funky songs!
Sorry, my meter was a bit off - guess it should be:
6 funky, fun songs
Oops - perhaps I should be 4 instead of 6...I'm not sure if I should take 5 (I think my post crossed yours, Dale).
Maybe this for 5:
5 Golden Throats?
5 Golden Posts?
5 Gold-tipped strings.
I managed to keep it together while reading the Cap'n's version until "3 Wench Friends" and then burst out laughing... glad I didn't have a mouthful of coffee.
The warmest place I spent Christmas was 1971 in San Francisco, which isn't really TROPICAL but let's count it, hey? I lived in a 4 bedroom flat and my roommates had all flown home to the midwest, so it was like a free hotel for my parents and sister who joined me. Everyone loved it!
So Far
12 Carlo's Courting
11 goats ableatin'
10 Comments posted
9 Minnesotans freezing
8 Barbs a milkin
7 sage replies
6 JASPERS Jukin'
5 funky, fun songs
So Far
12 Carlo's Courting
11 goats ableatin'
10 Comments posted
9 Minnesotans freezing
8 Barbs a milkin
7 sage replies
6 JASPERS Jukin'
5 Gold-tipped strings
4 funky, fun songs
Three pledge drives
Any changes to offer?
12 Carlos’ courting
11 Goats ableatin'
10 Comments posted
9 Minnesotans freezing
8 Barbs amilkin’
7 Sage replies
6 JASPERS jukin'
5 Gold-tipped strings
4 funky, fun songs
3 Pledge drives
2 Guys in hats
And Dale keepin’ us care-free
love that song, Dale - Joni M - pretty and sad. thanks
I was going to end it with, "And a Connelly in Studio 3."
...or 'C'...but i have no idea how the studios are organized or if just first-come/first-served and Dale & Mike are always on the air just because they get there so early.
Believe it or not, TGITH, the Radio Heartland studio has TWO names, due to some crossed signals when the addition was built on the MPR building in downtown St. Paul. When we moved in, it was called 443. A few months later, the nameplate changed to N4C. Oddly, Guy, both names fit your rhyming scheme, but just like a St. Paul street map - confusing.
Thanks to everyone for writing A Heartlander's 12 Days, and especially to Clyde for encouraging and consolidating.
12 Carlos’ courtin’
11 Goats ableatin'
10 Comments posted
9 Minnesotans freezing
8 Barbs amilkin’
7 Sage replies
6 JASPERS jukin'
5 Gold-tipped strings
4 funky, fun songs
3 Pledge drives
2 Guys in hats
And Dale and Mike in Studio 3
Take your pick of endings.
Barb: when I was about 12 we had a winter that feeezes septic systesm: light snow and very cold. We kids would walk down to the Knife River. We would skate 1/2 mile to a road one way and then 1 mile to a road the other way, a 3 mile round trip through the woods, no signs of humans in sight. That is a rare memory that Joni M's song always evokes.
May all have a good holiday however you celebrate it.
12 Carlos’ courtin’
11 Goats ableatin'
10 Comments posted
9 Minnesotans freezing
8 Barbs amilkin’
7 Sage replies
6 JASPERS jukin'
5 Gold-tipped strings
4 funky, fun songs
3 Pledge drives
2 Guys in hats
And Dale and Mike in N4C
I spent one Christmas in Costa Rica with my son and his in-laws. It was fun, but...not Christmas.
I love the creative verse makers on this blog.
So sorry to hear about Cam, hugs to his familty.
I have never spent Christmas farther south than Sheboygan WI. The weather forecast is predicting a major winter storm for western North Dakota tomorrow, which is really inconvenient, given I have to drive to Bismarck and back. That's 200 miles round trip. My daughter's orthodontist appointment may not happen. I would welcome a little tropical weather until I could make it there and back home tomorrow. Love the 12 days of Radio Heartland, by the way.
I spent a few Christmases in Florida after my parents retired there. A number of people there had Poinsettia shrubs growing in their yard, making our little greenhouse grown three-branch plants looking kinda puny. One neighbor hung a decorated snow shovel on their front door, and I expected to hear people saying, "What is that thing??" But overall, it didn't seem right..something about the decorated palm trees, I suppose.
Several times in my family, someone has received "The Twelve Days of Christmas"--one of something on the first day, two of something else on the next, and so on. One year I did this for my lovely bride. I started by wrapping a videocasette with a small, plastic leafless tree from a model railroad shop. It was, of course, a cartridge and a bare tree.
And, no, I was not divorced on the spot.
Yes, Don.
Lovers of cheap puns should be grateful that "on-the-spot" divorce isn't possible in this state. Although if such a thing were possible, the Hotel Transom would be full most nights with guys like you and me.
Aw gee, I missed out on a good time this morning. I was cleaning out the fridge since my kids are coming - raise your hand if you missed me.
Great verses you wacky kids! Thanks for putting Carlos in there, Clyde. We'll keep you in mind for a groomsman.
Reponse to Jim from yesterday - yes, good man, all in fun - ALWAYS (fun for me at least)!
My hand is raised for missing you Donna . . . . .and Cynthia.
hand raised, for all those missed; Donna remembers their names.
Now that's what I call 'holiday karma' when those kinds of rhymes work with only guesswork.
Donna - At some point, I'll have to try and re-do my description for you of Carlos Augustus Devereaux.
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