OT: 'coons

[Joel S. Berson]

Two 'coon stories from the wilds of Arlington, Mass., the second
suburb out from Boston (if you follow Percy's path over the Neck and
onto the "Road to Menotomy").  From the late '80s.

1)   One dark night I was returning from a trip out of town.  Driving
past the front yard toward the garage, I saw some shadows moving on
the lawn.  After parking, I got a flashlight and went out, to shine
the beam on an adult and two or three young 'uns.  The adult turned
around, looked at me disdainfully, and then waddled slowly off with
the brood under the hedge and into the street.  I did not follow.

2)   It was a dark and stormy night when I awoke to hear some
rattling sounds from a bedroom window that faced out over the porch
roof.  I raised the window shade to find a raccoon staring in at
me.  He was not startled.

Joel

At 2/5/2010 11:19 AM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:
>We got 'coons 'round here, and lemme tell ya, those boogers are sly!  Can
>balance on a rail and lift the lid off a plastic trash can, eat what they
>want, and leave you to try to clean the mess up in the few seconds before
>the garbage men get there.
>
>JL
>
>On Fri, Feb 5, 2010 at 11:11 AM, Joel S. Berson <Berson at att.net> wrote:
>
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> > -----------------------
> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       "Joel S. Berson" <Berson at ATT.NET>
> > Subject:      Re: coony
> >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > Mark, sounds like a cunning raccoon to me -- making the 'possum do
> > all the work!  For example, the chorus (spoken by the 'coon?) may be
> >
> > "Th[r]ow them 'simmons down, possum, thow them 'simmons
> > down...sweetest sound I ever heard...thow them' simmons down."
> >
> > OTOH, just how badly does the 'coon end up?
> >
> > BTW, "'possum up a 'simmon tree" sounds familiar to me too -- one of
> > the '50's folk singers?   Banjo -- Pete Seeger?
> >
> > Joel
> >
> > At 2/4/2010 10:42 PM, Mark Mandel wrote:
> >
> > >OTOH...
> > >
> > >Possum up a simmon tree
> > >Raccoon on the ground.
> > >Raccoon says, "Mister Possum,
> > >Won't you shake some simmons down?"
> > >
> > >(CHO:)
> > >Unca Reuben got a coon, dang-GON'T (chick-a-chick),
> > >dang-GON'T (chick-a-chick), dang-GON'T (chick-a-chick),
> > >Unca Reuben got a coon, dang-GON'T (chick-a-chick),
> > >And left me here behind.
> > >
> > >(That is, "dang-gonnit" and a voiceless repeated mouth sound that really
> > >doesn't have any vowels.)
> > >
> > >Here the raccoon doesn't seem more skillful at all, and ends badly.
> > >
> > >I learned the song off a record (LP? 78?) as a kid in the 50s. I may be
> > able
> > >to track it down if anyone cares.
> > >
> > >m a m
> > >
> > >On Wed, Feb 3, 2010 at 8:40 PM, George Thompson <george.thompson at nyu.edu>
> > >wrote:
> > > >
> > > > Raccoons are reputed to be very clever.  A folksong as old as 1822
> > begins
> > > >
> > > > Opossum up a Gum Tree
> > > > Tinkey none can follow;
> > > > Him damn quite mistaken,
> > > > Racoon in de hollow.
> > > > Opossum him creep softly,
> > > > Racoon him lay mum,
> > > > Pull him by de long tail,
> > > > Down opossum come.
> > > > Jinkum, jankum, beaugash,
> > > > Twist'em, twin'em, run:
> > > > Oh de poor opossum,
> > > > Oh de sly racoon
> > > >
> > > > GAT
> > > >
> > > > George A. Thompson
> > > > Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre", Northwestern
> > >Univ. Pr., 1998, but nothing much lately.
> > > >
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>
>
>--
>"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
>
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