SONGS IN A SHOWER BATH

 Man in shower

 

 

HOT WATER

 

 

Gently, while the drenching¹ dribble²

Courses down my sweltered form,

I am basking³ like a sybil,

Lazy, languorous⁴ and warm.

I am unambitious, flaccid,

Well content to drowse and dream:

How I hate life's bitter acid—

Leave me here to stew⁵ and steam.

Underneath⁶ this jet so torrid

I forget the world's sad wrath⁷:

O activity is horrid⁸!

Leave me in my shower-bath!

 

 

COLD WATER

 

 

But when I turn the crank

O Zeus!

A silver ecstasy⁹ thrills me!

I caper¹⁰ and slap my chilled thighs¹¹,

I plan to make a card index of all my ideas

And feel like an efficiency expert.

I tweak Fate by the nose

And know I could succeed in anything.

I throw up my head

And glut¹² myself with icy splatter...

To-day I will really

Begin my career!

 

 

ON DEDICATING A NEW TEAPOT

 

 

Boiling water now is poured,

Pouches¹³ filled with fresh tobacco,

Round the hospitable¹⁴ board

Fragrant¹⁵ steams Ceylon or Pekoe.

 

Bread and butter is cut thin,

Cream and sugar, yes, bring them on;

Ginger¹⁶ cookies in their tin,

And the dainty slice of lemon.

 

Let the marmalade be brought,

Buns of cinnamon adhesive¹⁷;

And, to catch the leaves, you ought

To be sure to have the tea-sieve.

 

But, before the cups be filled—

Cups that cause no ebriation—

Let a genial¹⁸ wish be willed

Just by way of dedication¹⁹.

 

Here's your fortune, gentle pot:

To our thirst you offer slakeage;

Bright blue china, may I not

Hope no maid will cause you breakage.

 

Kindest ministrant to man,

Long be jocund²⁰ years before you,

And no meaner fortune than

Helen's gracious hand to pour you!

 

 

THE UNFORGIVABLE SYNTAX

 

 

A certain young man never knew

Just when to say whom and when who;

"The question of choosing,"

He said, "is confusing;

I wonder if which wouldn't do?"

 

Nothing is so illegitimate

As a noun when his verbs do not fit him; it

Makes him disturbed

If not properly verbed—

If he asks for the plural²¹, why git him it!

 

Lie and lay offer slips to the pen

That have bothered most excellent men:

You can say that you lay

In bed—yesterday;

If you do it to-day, you're a hen!

 

A person we met at a play

Was cruel to pronouns all day:

She would frequently cry

"Between you and I,

If only us girls had our way—!"

 

1 drenching   

n.湿透v.使湿透( drench的现在分词 )；在某人（某物）上大量使用（某液体）

参考例句：

• A black cloudburst was drenching Siena at midday. 中午，一场天昏地暗的暴风雨在锡耶纳上空倒下来。 来自辞典例句
• A drenching rain poured down and the rising hurricane drove it in sheets along the ground. 一阵倾盆大雨泼下来了，越来越大的狂风把它顺着地面刮成了一片一片的雨幕。 来自辞典例句

2 dribble   

v.点滴留下，流口水；n.口水

参考例句：

• Melted wax dribbled down the side of the candle.熔化了的蜡一滴滴从蜡烛边上流下。
• He wiped a dribble of saliva from his chin.他擦掉了下巴上的几滴口水。

3 basking   

v.晒太阳，取暖( bask的现在分词 )；对…感到乐趣；因他人的功绩而出名；仰仗…的余泽

参考例句：

• We sat basking in the warm sunshine. 我们坐着享受温暖的阳光。
• A colony of seals lay basking in the sun. 一群海豹躺着晒太阳。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 languorous   

adj.怠惰的，没精打采的

参考例句：

• For two days he was languorous and esteemed. 两天来，他因身体衰弱无力，受到尊重。 来自辞典例句
• Some one says Fuzhou is a languorous and idle city. 有人说，福州是一个慵懒闲淡的城市。 来自互联网

5 stew   

n.炖汤，焖，烦恼；v.炖汤，焖，忧虑

参考例句：

• The stew must be boiled up before serving.炖肉必须煮熟才能上桌。
• There's no need to get in a stew.没有必要烦恼。

6 underneath   

adj.在...下面，在...底下；adv.在下面

参考例句：

• Working underneath the car is always a messy job.在汽车底下工作是件脏活。
• She wore a coat with a dress underneath.她穿着一件大衣，里面套着一条连衣裙。

7 wrath   

n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒

参考例句：

• His silence marked his wrath. 他的沉默表明了他的愤怒。
• The wrath of the people is now aroused. 人们被激怒了。

8 horrid   

adj.可怕的；令人惊恐的；恐怖的；极讨厌的

参考例句：

• I'm not going to the horrid dinner party.我不打算去参加这次讨厌的宴会。
• The medicine is horrid and she couldn't get it down.这种药很难吃，她咽不下去。

9 ecstasy   

n.狂喜，心醉神怡，入迷

参考例句：

• He listened to the music with ecstasy.他听音乐听得入了神。
• Speechless with ecstasy,the little boys gazed at the toys.小孩注视着那些玩具，高兴得说不出话来。

10 caper   

v.雀跃，欢蹦；n.雀跃，跳跃；续随子，刺山柑花蕾；嬉戏

参考例句：

• The children cut a caper in the yard.孩子们在院子里兴高采烈地乱蹦乱跳。
• The girl's caper cost her a twisted ankle.小姑娘又蹦又跳，结果扭伤了脚踝。

11 thighs   

n.股，大腿( thigh的名词复数 )；食用的鸡（等的）腿

参考例句：

• He's gone to London for skin grafts on his thighs. 他去伦敦做大腿植皮手术了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The water came up to the fisherman's thighs. 水没到了渔夫的大腿。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 glut   

n.存货过多，供过于求；v.狼吞虎咽

参考例句：

• The glut of coffee led to a sharp drop in prices.咖啡供过于求道致价格急剧下跌。
• There's a glut of agricultural products in Western Europe.西欧的农产品供过于求。

13 pouches   

n.（放在衣袋里或连在腰带上的）小袋( pouch的名词复数 )；（袋鼠等的）育儿袋；邮袋；（某些动物贮存食物的）颊袋

参考例句：

• Pouches are a peculiarity of marsupials. 腹袋是有袋动物的特色。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Under my eyes the pouches were heavy. 我眼睛下的眼袋很深。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 hospitable   

adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的

参考例句：

• The man is very hospitable.He keeps open house for his friends and fellow-workers.那人十分好客，无论是他的朋友还是同事，他都盛情接待。
• The locals are hospitable and welcoming.当地人热情好客。

15 fragrant   

adj.芬香的，馥郁的，愉快的

参考例句：

• The Fragrant Hills are exceptionally beautiful in late autumn.深秋的香山格外美丽。
• The air was fragrant with lavender.空气中弥漫薰衣草香。

16 ginger   

n.姜，精力，淡赤黄色；adj.淡赤黄色的；vt.使活泼，使有生气

参考例句：

• There is no ginger in the young man.这个年轻人没有精神。
• Ginger shall be hot in the mouth.生姜吃到嘴里总是辣的。

17 adhesive   

n.粘合剂；adj.可粘着的，粘性的

参考例句：

• You'll need a strong adhesive to mend that chair. 你需要一种粘性很强的东西来修理那把椅子。
• Would you give me an adhesive stamp?请给我一枚带胶邮票好吗？

18 genial   

adj.亲切的，和蔼的，愉快的，脾气好的

参考例句：

• Orlando is a genial man.奥兰多是一位和蔼可亲的人。
• He was a warm-hearted friend and genial host.他是个热心的朋友，也是友善待客的主人。

19 dedication   

n.奉献，献身，致力，题献，献辞

参考例句：

• We admire her courage,compassion and dedication.我们钦佩她的勇气、爱心和奉献精神。
• Her dedication to her work was admirable.她对工作的奉献精神可钦可佩。

20 jocund   

adj.快乐的，高兴的

参考例句：

• A poet could not but be gay in such a jocund company.一个诗人在这种兴高采烈的同伴中自然而然地会快乐。
• Her jocund character made her the most popular girl in the county.她快乐的个性使她成为这个郡最受欢迎的女孩。

21 plural   

n.复数；复数形式；adj.复数的

参考例句：

• Most plural nouns in English end in's '.英语的复数名词多以s结尾。
• Here you should use plural pronoun.这里你应该用复数代词。