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The Daily Squee
Don't miss Spooning kitties.
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be
...is the only place I want to be
Historical literary squee
A lovely poem scribbled by an 8th century Irish monk on the margins of a text he was writing which proves that cats and writers have been an irresistible combo for centuries (Pangur was a common cat name - bán is the Irish word for white)
Pangur Bán
I and Pangur Bán my cat,
Tis a like task we are at:
Hunting mice is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night.
Better far than praise of men
Tis to sit with book and pen;
Pangur bears me no ill will,
He too plies his simple skill.
Tis a merry thing to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.
Oftentimes a mouse will stray
In the hero Pangur's way;
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.
'Gainst the wall he sets his eye
Full and fierce and sharp and sly;
'Gainst the wall of knowledge I
All my little wisdom try.
When a mouse darts from its den
O how glad is Pangur then!
O what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love!
So in peace our tasks we ply,
Pangur Ban, my cat, and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine and he has his.
Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.
(And for anyone who wants to read the original Gaelic as well)
http://www.sky-net.org.uk/canals/pangurban/name
Pangur Bán
I and Pangur Bán my cat,
Tis a like task we are at:
Hunting mice is his delight,
Hunting words I sit all night.
Better far than praise of men
Tis to sit with book and pen;
Pangur bears me no ill will,
He too plies his simple skill.
Tis a merry thing to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.
Oftentimes a mouse will stray
In the hero Pangur's way;
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.
'Gainst the wall he sets his eye
Full and fierce and sharp and sly;
'Gainst the wall of knowledge I
All my little wisdom try.
When a mouse darts from its den
O how glad is Pangur then!
O what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love!
So in peace our tasks we ply,
Pangur Ban, my cat, and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine and he has his.
Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.
(And for anyone who wants to read the original Gaelic as well)
http://www.sky-net.org.uk/canals/pangurban/name
- MLE (Emily Cotton)
- Bibliomaniac
- Posts: 3566
- Joined: August 2008
- Interest in HF: started in childhood with the classics, which, IMHO are HF even if they were contemporary when written.
- Favourite HF book: Prince of Foxes, by Samuel Shellabarger
- Preferred HF: Currently prefer 1600 and earlier, but I'll read anything that keeps me turning the page.
- Location: California Bay Area
[quote=""Misfit""]This one'sfor MLE.[/quote]
Thanks, Misfit! But FYI, those are alpacas-- bred for for wool and meat. I specialize in working llamas--less wool, more brains.
They might be huarizos--a cross of the two breeds. Nice-tempered enough, and they have the hybrid vigor, but not built to carry a load, and the wool quality/quantity is poorer.
Thanks, Misfit! But FYI, those are alpacas-- bred for for wool and meat. I specialize in working llamas--less wool, more brains.
They might be huarizos--a cross of the two breeds. Nice-tempered enough, and they have the hybrid vigor, but not built to carry a load, and the wool quality/quantity is poorer.
Woof with the Wind
At home with a good book and the cat...
...is the only place I want to be
...is the only place I want to be
- michellemoran
- Bibliophile
- Posts: 1186
- Joined: August 2008
- Contact:
- LoveHistory
- Bibliomaniac
- Posts: 3751
- Joined: September 2008
- Location: Wisconsin, USA
- Contact: