Some silly stuff extracted from "The Healing Arts"

Robert Graves
1895- 1985

A Slice Of Wedding Cake


Why have such scores of lovely, gifted girls
Married impossible men?
Simple self-sacrifice may be ruled out,
And missionary endeavour, nine times out of ten.

Repeat 'impossible men': not merely rustic,
Foul-tempered or depraved
(Dramatic foils chosen to show the world
How well women behave, and always have behaved).

Impossible men: idle, illiterate,
Self-pitying, dirty, sly,
For whose appearance even in City parks
Excuses must be made to casual passers-by.

Has God's supply of tolerable husbands
Fallen, in fact, so low?
Or do I alwayd over-value woman
At the expense of man?

Do I?
It might be so.





Dorothy Parker
1893-1967

Unfortunate coincidence


By the time you say you're his,
Shivering and sighing,
And he vows his passion is
Infinite, undying--
Lady, make a note of this,
One of you is lying.