# Silly rhymes your parents told you **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 11, 2013, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751 "2013-06-11T21:03:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2013, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/41 "2013-06-14T20:31:04Z")
_In days of old when knights were bold and toilets weren’t invented You left your load beside the road and walked away contented_ _Hasten, Jason, get the basin Urp, slop, get the mop_ Just a little scatalogical humor from me dear mother. She also used to sing _Mairz Doats_ and the _Hutsut Ralson_ and some goofy song that went “_Cement mixer, putty putty_” ---
**Author:** ![vontsira](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/51bf81/32.png) [@vontsira](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vontsira)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2013, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/42 "2013-06-14T20:40:17Z")
Not exactly a rhyme; but a fine-sounding bit of “foreign gibberish” treasured in our family and recited by parents to kids (as, by my mother to me) over pretty-much the past hundred years. It runs as follows: trying to spell as phonetically as possible. “Dummocka-dummocka-okendoran, allowee-hand und off-tand, und lartsen. Khris-teen, shtu-pan, ay-nay-nay-nay-nay.” Nobody has any idea what it means, if anything – or even what language it’s supposed to be. Some suggest that it might be Swedish; others, that it originated in Belgium – my grandparents (we’re in the UK) took in Belgian refugees in World War 1. ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2013, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/43 "2013-06-14T21:14:35Z")
> [@WOOKINPANUB](#): > > - > > She also used to sing _Mairz Doats_ and the _Hutsut Ralson_ and some goofy song that went “_Cement mixer, putty putty_” Wow! I thought _my_ mom was the only one who sang “Cement Mixer Putty Putty”! I recently remembered it from my childhood and looked it up YouTube, and damned if it wasn’t [there](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb2XEA5xkyc)! 😛 Reminds me of another one Mom used to sing, to the tune of “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore”: _Missed the toilet last night. Went all over the floor. Cleaned it up with my toothbrush… Don’t use my toothbrush anymore._ ---
**Author:** ![Tethered\_Kite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a5b964/32.png) [@Tethered\_Kite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tethered_Kite)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/44 "2013-06-16T00:29:10Z")
Aw, you guys. Your heads are full of useless stuff. Something else my mother used to say. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/45 "2013-06-16T01:30:52Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > To the tune of The Star Spangled Banner. As sung by marching air cadets at the base she worked at during The War. It’s to “Stars and Stripes Forever,” actually. The version I recall is: Be kind to your web-footed friends, For a duck may be somebody’s mother. Be kind to your friends in the swamp Where the weather is very, very domp. Now you may think that this is the end. [spoken:] And it is. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/46 "2013-06-16T01:36:51Z")
_Shut up, Or I will fuck you up._ Well, okay, it was said more with body language than verbal expression. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/47 "2013-06-16T02:33:39Z")
> [@Sam\_A.Robrin](#): > > It’s to “Stars and Stripes Forever,” actually. The version I recall is: > > Be kind to your web-footed friends, > For a duck may be somebody’s mother. > Be kind to your friends in the swamp > Where the weather is very, very domp. > Now you may think that this is the end. > [spoken:] And it is. Of course you’re right. Who would use the Star Spangled Banner tune for anything else–it’s too hard to sing… ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/48 "2013-06-16T04:02:14Z")
My dad had two, add-ons to rhymes everyone seems to know. I’ve never heard them outside our family. > [@](#): > > How much wood could a woodchuck chuck, > If a woodchuck could chuck wood? > _A woodchuck would chuck all the wood he could chuck, > If a woodchuck could chuck wood._ > [@](#): > > Good night, sleep tight, don’t let the bedbugs bite. > _And wake up bright, > in the morning light, > to do what’s right, > with all your might._ ETA: [QUOTE=Bridget Burke] Of course you’re right. Who would use the Star Spangled Banner tune for anything else–it’s too hard to sing… [/QUOTE] You know that’s an [old English drinking song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8KcHg5ZOIgU), right? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 10:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/49 "2013-06-16T10:48:54Z")
“When a string gets in a knot, Patience can untie it; Patience can do many things, Have ever tried it?” ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/50 "2013-06-16T13:38:35Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > Who would use the Star Spangled Banner tune for anything else–it’s too hard to sing… _Oh say can you see Any bedbugs on me? If you do, pick a few! They’re delicious to chew!_ ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/51 "2013-06-16T13:55:33Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > _Oh say can you see > Any bedbugs on me? > If you do, pick a few! > They’re delicious to chew!_ I had always heard the last line as: _'Cause I got them from you!_ ---
**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/52 "2013-06-16T13:59:11Z")
A whistling woman and a crowing hen always come to a no good end! If you sing at the table and dance at your bed the devil’s gonna get ya by the hair of your head. Those two came from my grandparents. When god was passing out brains you thought he said “trains” and said, “no thanks I’ll catch the next one.” When god was passing out looks you thought he said “books” and said, “yeah give me a scary one” Those came from my uncle 🙂 The only rhymes I remember from my parents were You’re cruisin’ for a bruisin’! (Not always said in jest I’m afraid ☹ ) ---
**Author:** ![freckafree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/freckafree/32/3050_2.png) [@freckafree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/freckafree)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/53 "2013-06-16T18:06:13Z")
My mother used to sing a song that I can only remember a snippet of: _Oh, we bathed his head in glue Just to see what it would do, But 'twas then we seen our efforts was in vain. Like a dream he passed away On the 41st of May And we’ll never see our blue-haired boy again._ My dad always used to tell me the adage about the whistling girl and the crowing hen. ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [June 16, 2013, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/54 "2013-06-16T20:54:28Z")
Here’s a version I picked up somewhere: _Ladies and gentlemen, hoboes and tramps, Bedbugs and cockroaches and bow-legged ants. I stand before you and sit behind you To tell you a story I know nothing about. In 1942 Christopher Cucumber said up the Mississloppy River And discovered Peanut Butter Rock. He ate the Grapes of Wrath and the Star-Spangled Banana Split, Signed the Constipation, The Bill of Wrongs, And the Declaration of Indigestion._ He said that there would be movies for the blind, Music for the deaf, speeches for the mute, And dancing for the crippled. The admission is free, so pay at the door, There’s plenty of seats, so sit on the floor.\* \*The second “i” pronounced long as in “ice.”: ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/55 "2013-06-17T04:39:55Z")
> [@Bridget\_Burke](#): > > Of course you’re right. Who would use the Star Spangled Banner tune for anything else–it’s too hard to sing… “O-oh say, can you see Any cooties on me? If you do, Take a few, 'Cause I got 'em from you…” I’m so glad I got that expensive private-school education…! Oh, now I see I was scooped on that one. Of course, at the same school, I also learned a parody from someone who is now a very famous musician: This land’s not your land, This land is my land. If you don’t get off, I’ll blow your head off. I’ve got a shotgun And it is loaded … This land was made for me alone! ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/56 "2013-06-17T12:12:46Z")
Did anyone else hear this on the playground? On top of Old Smoky All covered in blood, I found my poor wolfman, His face in the mud. A knife in his belly, An axe in his head, I just to conclusions: My wolfman was dead! ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/57 "2013-06-17T14:01:22Z")
My mother would sit me on her knees and bounce me up and down while saying Trot trot to Boston Trot trot to Lynn Be very careful that you don’t fall innnnnnnn… She’d open her legs at the very last word and dump me on the floor. I still do this with young child I know. They love it. ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/58 "2013-06-17T14:13:37Z")
Spider spider on the wall Ain’t you got no sense at all? Can’t you see the wall’s been plastered? Get off there you dirty… spider. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/59 "2013-06-17T14:25:17Z")
> [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](#): > > Did anyone else hear this on the playground? > > On top of Old Smoky > All covered in blood, > I found my poor wolfman, > His face in the mud. > A knife in his belly, > An axe in his head, > I just to conclusions: > My wolfman was dead! Yo! That sounds awfully familiar. ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2013, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751/60 "2013-06-17T14:26:34Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > My mother would sit me on her knees and bounce me up and down while saying > > Trot trot to Boston > Trot trot to Lynn > Be very careful that you don’t fall innnnnnnn… > > She’d open her legs at the very last word and dump me on the floor. > > I still do this with young child I know. They love it. My dad would dandle me on his knee and sing Pony Boy: Pony Boy, Pony Boy, won’t you be my Pony Boy; Don’t say know, here we go, ride across the plains. Marry me, carry me, ride away with you, Giddyup, giddyup, giddyup go! My Pony Boy. Of course, he bounced me much faster on the giddyups. I loved it, so did my sisters, and when I became a dad, I did it with my daughter, and since then with my grandson. You’re right, it’s just such fun. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/silly-rhymes-your-parents-told-you/660751.md?page=4)