Another poetry installment

I'm in Eugene, Oregon right now for Spring Break. Today I went to the Smith Family Bookstore which is huge, overstuffed with used books, indie bookstore. It is fun to hunt for the diamonds in the rough. I stumbled upon the poetry section and bought several poem books: two love poetry books; a poetry book by Barbara Kingsolver (who knew she wrote poetry?); poems by Rumi; poems by Rilke with the German on one side of the page, English on the other; and another titled 100 Poems to Lift Your Spirits edited by Leslie Pockell.  Here is a silly poem I found within, by the publishers of Mad Magazine. Apparently they were making fun of the William Wordsworth poem Daffodils. That poem starts, I wandered lonely as a cloud. Here is the MAD magazine version of the poem for your enjoyment today?

I Wandered Lonely as a Clod

I wandered lonely as a clod,

Just picking up old rags and bottles,

When onward on my way I plod,

I saw a host of axolotls;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

A sight to make a man's blood freeze.

Some had handles, some were plain;

They came in blue, red pink, and green.

A few were orange in the main;

The damndest sight I've ever seen.

The females gave a sprightly glance;

The male ones all wore knee-length pants.

Now oft, when on the couch I lie,

The doctor asks me what I see.

They flash upon my inward eye

And make me laugh in fiendish glee.

I find my solace then in bottles,

And I forget them axolotls.

From MAD magazine #43, 1958.

Here is what axolotls look like, in case you wanted to know. 

I didn't even know such a thing existed until today. Ha!

Photo from National Geographic

Doesn't this photo just make you want to laugh?

I hope you enjoy this poetic moment.