4 Pups and a Worm!

Having a child brings so much joy into one’s life. It also brings a lot of music you had forgotten about, hadn’t known about, or had hoped to forget about. I don’t want to mention a bunch of lyrics that will get in your head, because I know how hard they are to get out once they are in (I may need a surgical procedure). Two words: Sesame Street. Certain books’ rhymes and rhythms similarly get into one’s head. Eric Seltzer’s “4 Pups and a Worm” is written like an advertisement, a catchy one. I find myself thinking “When you cannot tie your tie — no matter how you try. . . when your chopper will not fly— and you feel you want to cry. . . [ . . .] call 4 pups and a worm. They tie. They fly.” while I am cleaning, trying to prepare class, talking to friends, and other activities. When I have finally had enough distance from the reading experience that my brain can be completely occupied by other things, my daughter makes me read it to her again, which I enjoy, I just fear the aftermath.

Say what? From Fox in Socks

Rhymes sometimes result in pictures or sayings that I find more confusing (and occasionally disturbing) than fun. Why does Luke Luck have a strange moustache? What is up with moustaches in children’s books more generally? Why does Luke Luck like taking licks in the lake duck likes? What relationship do Luke Luck and the duck have? Why are their eyes closed? Is Luke Luck lucky? What do they do when they aren’t taking licks? Or is that all they do? Does this lake in particular have some special qualities besides the regular hydrating ones? Please stare at this picture for five minutes and let me know if you have any answers.