 |
 |
That's true. In my part of North Devon, "grockel" was rarely used and still seems strange to my ears, still seems imported. Furriners as in "them blaidie furriners wish they'd fuck off home" was more the idiom. In East Anglia, they have "incomers" as in ... Roger On 3/10/06, Lawrence Upton <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > furriners > > * > > someone may have said this, I hadnt been paying full attention till i read my own name, but grockel however spelt also means monster as in fabulous monster, dragon, faery thing > > L > -----Original Message----- > From: Cindy Lee <[log in to unmask]> > To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> > Date: Friday, March 10, 2006 6:28 PM > Subject: Re: help--translation query > > > Just to be an anorak: I grew up in Lyme Regis in Dorset, where 'grockel' was > definitely the word for tourist (mind you, we were still being called that > after 20 years...) > > Cindy Lee > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Lawrence Upton" <[log in to unmask]> > To: <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 5:34 PM > Subject: Re: help--translation query > > > There is no such place as the West Country. It was invented by GWR > > [But did you know, they do say tes true, that West Country cheddar is now a > protected EC label but Cornish pasty isn't > > Anyway, my beauty, a tourist is an emmet; a grockle is what you find at the > bottom of your beer glass. Grockle for tourist is Devonian > > But both I believe are English > > Moryon is the Cornish > > L > > -----Original Message----- > From: Joanna Boulter <[log in to unmask]> > To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> > Date: Friday, March 10, 2006 4:39 PM > Subject: Re: help--translation query > > > Splendid pic of grackle, Mark -- how big a bird is it? I'd got the word > muddled with grockle, which is the west-country word for a tourist as I'm > sure Lawrence will confirm. > > That Latin name sounds as though they're saying 'Who the hell, who the > heck'. > > I would support Patrick in plumping for 'fluff feathers' or 'fluffed-up'. > > joanna > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Mark Weiss" <[log in to unmask]> > To: <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Friday, March 10, 2006 2:56 PM > Subject: Re: help--translation query > > > > Australia must hold the record for noisy birds. > > > > I'm more a bird noticer than a bird watcher. Grackles ( > > > > Quiscalus quiscula--isn't google grand?) gather in hundreds and sound > like > > their name. They also shit a lot on unaware walkers. Rather like > starlings > > for annoyance value. Black with dark purple heads. A good photo at > > http://spurr.pls.uni.edu/birds/photos/common_grackle_a.jpg, and lo! it's > > puffed up. Otherwise sleek as a crow. > > > > As to birds and poets, this from my childhood, in the mock-hillbilly > > genre: > > > > "Oh a bird laid some turd on the mountain I hear." > > "That was no bird that was no turd that was me-e." > > > > What's "having a lend"? > > > > Mark > > > > > > > > At 09:37 AM 3/10/2006, you wrote: > >>Hi Mark, > >> > >>First of all, what's a grackle? I assume you're not having a lend. > >> > >>But I would be interested in the correct name for the term as well. > There > >>does seem to be a thing about poets and birds. > >> > >>I'm a lazy bird watcher myself and rarely know the correct word for > >>ornithological things. But I notice them all the same. Tonight, there > was > >>a real racket across the street as I was coming home, ooh, about 7ish. > >>Most likely parrots of some kind. I couldn't see them but they were, > >>obviously, apparent. > >> > >>Cheers, > >>Jill > >> > >> > >>On Saturday, March 11, 2006, at 01:06 AM, Mark Weiss wrote: > >> > >>>OK, I need some feedback from birdwatchers. In the winter birds puff > out > >>>their feathers fro warmth. Is there/are there a term/terms for this? > From > >>>the scientific to the colloquial. > >>> > >>>I realize this question is likely to inspire some general levity, not > to > >>>say tom-foolery (origin?), which I'd appreciate as much as the next > >>>guy/gal, but I really could use the help on this one. > >>> > >>>A tribeof grackles has taken up residence in the park outside my > >>>window--maybe 25 males. Quiet so far--probably waiting for a critical > >>>mass to build up. Oh lucky me. > >>> > >>>Mark > >> > >>_______________________________________________________ > >>Jill Jones > >> > >>Latest books: > >>Broken/Open. Available from Salt Publishing > >>http://www.saltpublishing.com/books/smp/1844710416.htm > >> > >>Where the Sea Burns. Wagtail Series. Picaro Press > >>PO Box 853, Warners Bay, NSW, 2282. [log in to unmask] > >> > >>Struggle and radiance: ten commentaries (Wild Honey Press) > >>http://www.wildhoneypress.com > >> > >>web site: http://homepages.ihug.com.au/~jpjones > >>blog1: Ruby Street http://rubystreet.blogspot.com/ > >>blog2: Latitudes http://itudes.blogspot.com/ > -- http://www.badstep.net/ http://www.cb1poetry.org.uk/