PHRASES USED IN YESTERYEAR

Thinking back when I was young
And of words and phrases that we used,
I think if young ones heard them used today,
They would be very much bemused.

I was raised up in the sticks
And I remember as a boy,
That if Mum was short of melon jam
She filled us up on cocky’s joy.

Milking cows in the early morn
We had to make an early start,
Dad made sure we were on the ball
And was up at sparrow f-rt.

For breakfast we would start the day
With a good plate full of burgoo,
Then we’d have to think about
How we’d earn our next razoo.

Often when tea-time come around
We’d have quangers stewed or raw,
Mum filled us up till we were stonkered
And couldn’t eat no more.

If we were certain of some fact,
We’d say it was dinky-di
And if something else was hard to get,
Scarce as hen’s teeth was the cry.

If someone was dumb or a shingle short,
Then they had white ants in the billy,
It was just one way to explain
That they were really rather silly.

When you’d see a gang of men at work,
There’d be one on the government stroke,
Some duckshoving bludgin’ loafer,
Most usually the township soak..

If some bonzer bird should pass us by,
Nearly everyone would take a geek,
But it was nearly always wasted time
For you finished, up the well known creek.

If we couldn’t go to the local dance
Then that was really on the nose,
As we thought of all the missing fun
With the sheilas birds or crows.

Larrikins were a common sight
And the John Hop caught the spielers,
For if they were getting short of brass,
They started poddy dodging vealers.

Underground mutton was the usual dish,
It referred to the humble bunny
And with too much bunghole down your gob,
You had a delayed stay in the dunny.

Fair dinkum, there’d be some tear-a-se twit,
Trying to put the moz on some shifty wowser ,
And the boss’s lacky, spilt the beans
About pinching petrol at the bowser.

Yes things were rather different then,
A rip-snorter was very good,
And if you could beat someone at cards
Then on him you had the wood..

Sook and nork and punce and squib,
Well you wouldn’t want one for a mate,
But you’d be troppo to put up your dooks
But I suppose it’s what circumstance dictates.

Some words I’ve used are slightly coarse
And perhaps should not be used by gents,
But that’s what we’ve been asked to write,
So I hope no-one takes offence.


Lindsay P Wilson