Friday, August 26, 2005

Senatus Populusque Romanus: the song

I have never liked the song "Y.M.C.A." Ever. There was one exception, when it was done rather well in the film "Wayne's World 2," but other than that, there are no exceptions. I find it most undignified that humans would find it amusing to twist their bodies into representations of capital letters. What are you people thinking? You can't even lift your foot to scratch your ear.

That said, I have a confession to make. Last night, as I was working on some tricky Latin declensions, I was forced to admit that there had been some lyrics jingling in my head to that ubiquitous Village People tune. I put down my copy of Harrius Potter et Philosophi Lapis and Brutus and I jammed for a bit. We came up with this ditty:


The Senate said, “This is our Rome,"
And the people said, “It’s also our home.”
They said, “Romans, we're the best in the town
In the Eternal City"--

“Romans, (neither women nor slaves)”
They said, “Romans, let’s all go for a bathe!
And right after, we’ll all shower and shave
For the games at the Coliseum—"

It’s grand to have our own S.P.Q.R.
It’s great to have our own S.P.Q.R.

“We’ve got togas and grapes, we can drink a few beers,
But watch out for young Caesar"--

It’s grand to have our own S.P.Q.R.
It’s great to have our own S.P.Q.R.


P.S. My landlord and landlady say that not too far away from the fountain pictured, you can find some of the best coffee in all of Rome. Every time someone ships them a kilo of San' Eustachio coffee, they cheer and dance. When the last bean is gone, they cry into their empty coffee mugs. It's rather embarrassing.

4 comments:

Melangell said...

Hmmmm. Brad, you are just trying to be provocative.I love "YMCA." But I refuse to be drawn into a power struggle over this. Instead, I will try to come up with interesting motions for "SPQR."

Melangell said...

OK - Actually, doing "SPQR" is easier for me than doing "YMCA". Although first one must decide, "Am I going to do the letters so that someone looking at me can read them, or are they for myself?"
I will describe them as for myself, and you can reverse them if that please you more.
S = Left arm curves over the top of the head, right hand curves under the Dan Tien (or solar plexus, or belly.) I am not sure of the transliteration there.

P= the left hand drops to the side, the right arm curves up in an arc beside the head.

Q = both arms arc up over the head, as if creating the sun. The right leg angles out to the side.

R - The right leg remains angled, the right arm drops a bit and arcs out about the head, and the left arms drops to the side. (in otherwords, a P with the right leg angled out to the side.)

I hope, Brad, that this meets with your satisfaction.

Melangell said...

PS - I figured this out on the way to CHURCH this morning. Where were YOU this morning??????

Brad the Gorilla said...

Melangell,

You were busy, I see.

I was in bed this morning, after partying all night with Gabe and Phil. We played "Karaoke Revolution." I won each round. My landlord and landlady had to go home before the games started. Their daughter had a poopy diaper and the landlady had neglected to bring the bag of supplies! Hah. I'm so glad to be single and unfettered, with no responsibilities to anyone or anything except my guitar. Bradley Enterprises practically runs itself. All I have to do is go into the office and shout at everyone once in awhile.