Irish Fact of the Day #8.......

Limericks

The limerick packs laughs anatomical

In space that is quite economical,

But the good ones I've seen

So seldom are clean,

And the clean ones so seldom are comical.

In the 18th century, poets met at a festival in Croom, County Limerick, Ireland. They would challenge each other to create humorous, off the cuff, off color 5 line verses. These little poems were called Limericks.
The earliest known use of the name "Limerick" for this type poem is an 1880 reference, in a St. John, New Brunswick newspaper.
Poets were treated like rock stars. They were the historians, news media and gossips of their day.

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There once was a sculptor named Phideous

Whose sculptures by most were thought hideous

He carved Aphrodite

Without even a nightie

Which shocked all the fussy fastidious

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There Once was a Man called Reg

Who Went with a Girl in a Hedge

Along came his wife

With a big Carving Knife

And cut off his meat and two veg

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A macho young swimmer named Dwyer,

Really liked playing with fire.

One night in the dark

He swam with a shark,

And his voice is now two octaves higher.

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The incredible Wizard of Oz

Retired from his business becoz

due to up-to-date science,

To most of his clients,

He wasn't the Wizard he woz.

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