Anecdote and poll!

[conuly]

Today, Ana was sitting in my lap with the baby. (And hugging the baby too tightly, then declaring "MY BABY!" when I forced her to stop, but that's another story.) She requested that I sing "The Wheels on the Bus" (or, as she calls it, "wown an wown"), so I start to sing, only to be stopped. No, she wants me to go directly to the part where the babies on the bus go waa waa waa. So I do... and she leans over to her sister and goes "Eva! Say 'waa waa waa'!" Not very cute, but it got me thinking....

This song has a lot of potential verses. I know we used to drag it out forever in kindegarten if we could (though it was far from our favorite - that was a version of this song. "I went to the city, I went to the fair, to see a senorita, with flowers in her hair (dancing vaguely in the middle of a circle). Oh, shake it shake it shake it, shake it all you can, shake it like a milkshake, and do the best you can (shaking?). Rumble to the bottom (stoop), rumble to the top (stand and stretch), turn around and turn around until you make a stop (spin wildly) S. T. O. P spelllllls STOP! (turn slowly, eyes closed, pointing, and whoever's pointed at at stop goes in the middle and you go out.) But I digress.)

Recently, I've heard all new (to me) verses to that song! It's amazing. And yet, not wholly unpredictable. So, just a quick poll...

[Poll #654526]

Thanks for playing!

Comments

[wodhaund.livejournal.com]

I put "other" because the money on my bus went "ching ching ching" not "jingle jingle jingle".

[conuly]

Fair enough. *makes a note of this*

[ladytalon.livejournal.com]

Old McD also had a donkey. THE MOST FUN NOISE EVER. I also used to add a lot of things, like a car (vroom) and a helicopter (chopchopchop) and anything I happened to see lying around at the time. I loved that song far too much.

[conuly]

I never liked it, so instead I'm teaching Ana "I had a cat" (aka "Bought me a cat" or "Yonder tree").

Iiiiiiii... Had a cat, and the cat pleased me, I fed my cat by yonder tree. Cat goes fiddly-I-fee.

Iiiiiiii... had a hen, and the hen pleased me, I fed my hen by yonder tree. Hen goes chimmny-chuck, chimny-chuck, cat goes fiddly-I-fee.

Iiiiii... had a duck, and the duck pleased me, I fed my duck by yonder tree. Duck goes quack, quack, hen goes chimny-chuck, chimny-chuch, cat goes fiddly-I-fee.

Goose goes swishy, swishy.
Dog goes bow-wow, bow-wow.
Pig goes grinash, grinash.
Sheep goes baa, baa.
Baby goes waaaaah!
Motorcycle (again, thank you, Ana!) goes vroooom.

And so it goes.

[peebs1701.livejournal.com]

Old Mac Donald has anything I can think of on his farm, getting weirder, more obscure, and less farmlike the longer I need to keep it going.

[conuly]

Well, yeah, but what do you *start* with? What's canon?

[leora.livejournal.com]

I never knew wheels on the bus very well; we didn't really do it. So, I put the verses I could recall, but I'm a bad datapoint.

Old McDonald didn't have any set animals - it had a set pattern, but what you filled in was up to you. It didn't even have a set animal to start with.

You may be interested in this old post and the comments from my journal:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/leora/154381.html

One of the things I found was a regional difference between "Miss Lucy" and "Miss Suzie".

[conuly]

Every time I post one of these, I think I should demand people tell me where they're from. Then I realize how lazy I am, and decide against it.

[ganas-de-ti.livejournal.com]

LOLL "shake it like a milkshake"?!? I guess we know where Kelis gets her inspiration!!

[conuly]

Maybe :)

I only remembered that line this week. I had mostly forgotten that song until I just spontaneously started singing it while Ana shook a rattle for her sister.

[velasco.livejournal.com]

I don't believe the question is 'who had the baby and put him in the bathtub' and so on, it's how many years she got for reckless endangerment and child cruelty. In any case, I've never heard that one before.

[conuly]

No?

Heeee... ate up all the bubbles, he ate up all the soap, he something something something, something something something!

Missss... mary called the doctor, Miss Mary called the nurse. Miss Mary called the lady with the alligator purse!

In came the doctor, in came the nurse, in came the lady with the alligator purse. (and on and on)

[chem-nerd.livejournal.com]

We always sang "shake it like a milkshake, and drink it if you can" Ana's motorcycle is just too cute. Our Old MacDonald always had quite the menagerie. I tried to give him a giraffe once, and then realized that giraffes don't say anything.

[conuly]

Actually, we think they do, just not at a range humans can hear.

[sparkofcreation.livejournal.com]

Daddies said something, but I forget what. "Sit on down," I think.

No idea what you mean about the "a animal/some animals" thing. Old McDonald had a farm (EIEIO) and on that farm he had a cow (EIEIO), with a moo, moo here and a moo, moo there ... the word "animal" doesn't figure into it.

Can't remember who had the baby called Tiny Tim. Miss Lucy had a steamboat, the steamboat had a bell. (Miss Lucy went to Heaven and the steamboat went to—hello Operator, please give me number five...) Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack all dressed in black, black, black. Nope, neither of those.

Miss Sue, Miss Sue, Miss Sue from Alabama, her name is Susy-anna ... I think that's the Tiny Tim one, isn't it?

[conuly]

1. Okay.

2. Well, did he have *a* cow, or did he have *some* cows?

[rho]

The wheels on the bus I'm fairly sure I never encountered first hand, but only know of through seeing it in television or films, or reading of it on LJ, or whatever. Old MacDonald I do know, but I certainly can't remember any set animals. The other one, I'm fairly sure I've never heard of at all.

[conuly]

You never sang wheels on the bus? I like it, because it's one of the few children's songs that specifically isn't in a rural area.

[grammaravenger.livejournal.com]

In my bus, rather than money, I think it was "the change on the bus goes clink, clink, clink." We also had the "(someone) says sit on down."

And with Tiny Tim and all, it was Miss Susy. And *thank you* for that question, because I could not remember how the one about the doctor, the nurse, and the lady with the alligator purse started, and it was driving me crazy!

[adiva_calandia]

He had a sheep!

And it was Miss Suzy. Same Miss Suzy, I presume, who had a steamboat, which had a bell . . .

[conuly]

Who has just one sheep?

[l33tminion]

Old MacDonald:

Animals- Whatever the kids choose. (Someone raising their hand is chosen to shout out an animal after "had a".)

Sounds- Whatever the largest portion of the crowd knows. (If no one knows what to say, there is a pause after "with a" and the song continues as soon as someone shouts out something that makes sense.)

In general, it's actual animals that are mentioned. At the very least, it's object with associated sounds that could plausibly be found on a farm. (If the kids involved are young, cute, and/or enthusiastic, both of those criteria are often loosened significantly.)

[eofs.livejournal.com]

Wheels on the bus...
- wheels go round round round
- wipers go swish swish swish
- women go chatter chatter chatter
- babies go wah wah wah
- children do something unknown
- conductor does something unknown

Old MacDonald had a dog but some cows.

And until the rest was mentioned in comments I couldn't even remember the Tiny Tim one. Still don't know who had the baby though. But I know Miss Polly had a dolly *nods*

[eofs.livejournal.com]

Oh, and shouldn't it be Anacdote *grins*

[tsukikage85.livejournal.com]

You forgot "I don't know that song" and "I don't remember". I didn't remember what all the animals on the farm were, and I never heard the Tiny Tim song, so I left those blank.

[tsukikage85.livejournal.com]

Ah, and about your above comment, I'm from the Twin Cities (St. Paul/Minneapolis, Minnesota).
I have to ask, did you ever sing "There's a Hole in the Bucket"? I absolutely loved that song! (Still do.)

[absurdixie.livejournal.com]

I botched the Tiny Tim answer, I meant to say nobody. Sorry about that, mental-poll-mistake, somewhat like a mental typo.Though, I'm sure I've heard/seen it once and I recall it being Lucy. The only Mary I know of was the one with the garden.

I don't remember much about 'Wheels on the Bus', just the wheels, doors and the bell, I really didn't sing it that often.

Old McDonald was any animal we wanted, so I voted for the animals I personally always tried to add into the song. I wasn't happy if cats were ignored. Hee.

[conuly]

You can edit it - go to "view answers" and then, um, whatever it is that obviously means "take this poll". You'll be able to change only what you want, without having to remember what else you put down.

[wodhaund.livejournal.com]

I put "other" because the money on my bus went "ching ching ching" not "jingle jingle jingle".

[conuly]

Fair enough. *makes a note of this*

[ladytalon.livejournal.com]

Old McD also had a donkey. THE MOST FUN NOISE EVER. I also used to add a lot of things, like a car (vroom) and a helicopter (chopchopchop) and anything I happened to see lying around at the time. I loved that song far too much.

[conuly]

I never liked it, so instead I'm teaching Ana "I had a cat" (aka "Bought me a cat" or "Yonder tree").

Iiiiiiii... Had a cat, and the cat pleased me, I fed my cat by yonder tree. Cat goes fiddly-I-fee.

Iiiiiiii... had a hen, and the hen pleased me, I fed my hen by yonder tree. Hen goes chimmny-chuck, chimny-chuck, cat goes fiddly-I-fee.

Iiiiii... had a duck, and the duck pleased me, I fed my duck by yonder tree. Duck goes quack, quack, hen goes chimny-chuck, chimny-chuch, cat goes fiddly-I-fee.

Goose goes swishy, swishy.
Dog goes bow-wow, bow-wow.
Pig goes grinash, grinash.
Sheep goes baa, baa.
Baby goes waaaaah!
Motorcycle (again, thank you, Ana!) goes vroooom.

And so it goes.

[peebs1701.livejournal.com]

Old Mac Donald has anything I can think of on his farm, getting weirder, more obscure, and less farmlike the longer I need to keep it going.

[conuly]

Well, yeah, but what do you *start* with? What's canon?

[leora.livejournal.com]

I never knew wheels on the bus very well; we didn't really do it. So, I put the verses I could recall, but I'm a bad datapoint.

Old McDonald didn't have any set animals - it had a set pattern, but what you filled in was up to you. It didn't even have a set animal to start with.

You may be interested in this old post and the comments from my journal:
http://www.livejournal.com/users/leora/154381.html

One of the things I found was a regional difference between "Miss Lucy" and "Miss Suzie".

[conuly]

Every time I post one of these, I think I should demand people tell me where they're from. Then I realize how lazy I am, and decide against it.

[ganas-de-ti.livejournal.com]

LOLL "shake it like a milkshake"?!? I guess we know where Kelis gets her inspiration!!

[conuly]

Maybe :)

I only remembered that line this week. I had mostly forgotten that song until I just spontaneously started singing it while Ana shook a rattle for her sister.

[velasco.livejournal.com]

I don't believe the question is 'who had the baby and put him in the bathtub' and so on, it's how many years she got for reckless endangerment and child cruelty. In any case, I've never heard that one before.

[conuly]

No?

Heeee... ate up all the bubbles, he ate up all the soap, he something something something, something something something!

Missss... mary called the doctor, Miss Mary called the nurse. Miss Mary called the lady with the alligator purse!

In came the doctor, in came the nurse, in came the lady with the alligator purse. (and on and on)

[chem-nerd.livejournal.com]

We always sang "shake it like a milkshake, and drink it if you can" Ana's motorcycle is just too cute. Our Old MacDonald always had quite the menagerie. I tried to give him a giraffe once, and then realized that giraffes don't say anything.

[conuly]

Actually, we think they do, just not at a range humans can hear.

[sparkofcreation.livejournal.com]

Daddies said something, but I forget what. "Sit on down," I think.

No idea what you mean about the "a animal/some animals" thing. Old McDonald had a farm (EIEIO) and on that farm he had a cow (EIEIO), with a moo, moo here and a moo, moo there ... the word "animal" doesn't figure into it.

Can't remember who had the baby called Tiny Tim. Miss Lucy had a steamboat, the steamboat had a bell. (Miss Lucy went to Heaven and the steamboat went to—hello Operator, please give me number five...) Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack all dressed in black, black, black. Nope, neither of those.

Miss Sue, Miss Sue, Miss Sue from Alabama, her name is Susy-anna ... I think that's the Tiny Tim one, isn't it?

[conuly]

1. Okay.

2. Well, did he have *a* cow, or did he have *some* cows?

[rho]

The wheels on the bus I'm fairly sure I never encountered first hand, but only know of through seeing it in television or films, or reading of it on LJ, or whatever. Old MacDonald I do know, but I certainly can't remember any set animals. The other one, I'm fairly sure I've never heard of at all.

[conuly]

You never sang wheels on the bus? I like it, because it's one of the few children's songs that specifically isn't in a rural area.

[grammaravenger.livejournal.com]

In my bus, rather than money, I think it was "the change on the bus goes clink, clink, clink." We also had the "(someone) says sit on down."

And with Tiny Tim and all, it was Miss Susy. And *thank you* for that question, because I could not remember how the one about the doctor, the nurse, and the lady with the alligator purse started, and it was driving me crazy!