Nov 122010
 

By Tom Shepherd.

Wee drookit, soaking, rained on lassie
Fit wye d’yae nae tak yer coat wi ye?
Yer soakit tae yer skin an’cauld
An’ affae sniffly.
Yer dolled up fine fer clubbin’, aye
But worse off now.

Doun Union Street an’ Windmill Brae
Ye totter wi’ a partial sway.
Aw glammed up fae a grand night oot
Wi’ pals an’ fellers.
But wind an’ rain or hail an’ snow
Aren’t strangers tae us.

Ah’d feel sae sorry for you freezin’
But you can’t feel it ‘cos yer bleezin’.
The morn you’ll nae doubt wake up sneezin’
Wi’ a hangover.
Oh, to be young an’ hack the weather
With nae jersey!

Oct 222010
 

With thanks to Grace Banks and Jenny Watson.

The launch of new book by Sheena Blackhall will serve as a warning to anyone thinking of taking a packed lunch beyond their own front door!

Millie is the tale of a beloved Dalmation dog who loves to steal sandwiches! She travels round the North East of Scotland stealing goodies from unsuspecting fishermen, golfers and posties.

Illustrated by Bob Dewar and edited by Bill Burnett, the book is written in Doric, with an English translation, and is published by the Reading Bus. (www.readingbus.co.uk)

The Reading Bus is a city-based service which delivers a highly innovative, motivating and successful literacy programme in the St Machar, Northfield and Torry Communities.  This ground breaking project has succeeded in promoting reading as a lifelong pleasure, raising attainment and achievement of children at risk of early failure and involving and empowering parents in their children’s learning.

The multi-coloured Reading Bus visits schools and community locations and welcomes onboard youngsters and families for a wide literacy programme including storytelling, author visits, read together sessions, poetry and puppet work.  The project also includes a film animation and radio programme as well as having its own in-house publishing company called ‘Bus Stop Press’.

Millie will be launched on Thursday 4th November 2010 and will be available in all good bookshops near you, at the bargain price of £5.99.

A Millie website, full of resources to complement the book will soon be launched. There will also be a Millie Tour onboard the Reading Bus with Sheena Blackhall which will take place in Aberdeenshire in November and December and Aberdeen City in January and February.

Watch out for Millie appearing near you!

Sep 172010
 

By Bob Smith.

It’s sad ti see fit’s goin’ on
In North-east pairts jist noo
Fowk are being threatened by
A mannie fa’s a business guru

The Trump lot an their supporters
Some wid see as a bunch o cyaards
As they try their best ti oust fowk
Oot their hames an ain backyards

There are a fair fyow greedy fowk
Fa are teen in by aa his spiel
Thank heavens there are ither eens
Fa see his ideals as bliddy feel

He tries ti stap doon oor throats
We’ll aa benefit throwe his ideas
He’d dee weel ti hae a thocht
Ti see oorsels as ithers see us

Lauded by the cooncil lot
As a man o great foresicht
Praised by oor local press
As the only mannie fa’s richt

A danger ti aa democracy
This bliddy chiel dis pose
He wid hae us aa believe
That fit he says aye goes

Bit Menie fowk are bein’ thrawn
The mannie’s nae affa pleased
Fowk’ll nae be forced ti sell
Or brocht doon on ti their knees

Mr Trump yer nae mair Scottish
Than Donald Duck or Mickey Moose
Yer mither left afore ye war born
Fae her bonnie island hoose

Fir aa yer bluff an bluster
An the millions ye possess
We’ll nae see ye bully fowk
An fae their land wid dispossess

So Trumpy min awa hame ye ging
Wi aa yer forelock touchin band
Jist leave aa us gweed Scots fowk
Ti enjoy oor dunes an sand

©Bob Smith “The Poetry Mannie” 2010

Sep 032010
 

Voice’s Dave Watt regales us with a tale of new found local nuclear might!

Shock waves reverberated around the globe this week as it was announced that Banff and Buchan had become the world’s latest nuclear power.

Grampian TV revealed that the region had concluded a trade deal with the ex-Soviet republic of Kazakhstan with the region’s huge surplus tattie mountain being exchanged for a dozen SS-20s. The missiles and their targeting equipment were delivered by a fleet of trawlers to Fraserburgh on Saturday morning and are fitting out at present. Whilst most are in the process of being installed in missile silos in Rosehearty and Whitehills it is rumoured that several are to be deployed on deep sea trawlers in a similar fashion to the Trident system presently employed by the UK government.

Defence Councillor for the region, Bob ‘Hermann’ Kahn, previously Councillor for Sanitation and Waste Disposal, confirmed the council’s stated policy on first use of its nuclear arsenal, “We will definitely not be advocating a first strike ag’inst onybody iv a’. Nae even ag’inst toonsers or yon orra tinks fae West Aiberdeenshire an’ Kincardine – well, nae unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

On being questioned as to whether or not the region’s actions were in contravention of last year’s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Mr Kahn said that prepared statements delineating the council’s position had been sent to Washington, Beijing, Moscow and Woodhill House and if anybody wanted to argue the toss they were welcome to send him or the council an e-mail – preferably with their home address and GPS grid reference for their house attached.

The council has also issued a public statement on Northsound outlining the stages for the launching of its nuclear weapons, ranging from the relatively peaceful ‘Defcon 1’ up to the immediate pre-launch condition red ‘Defcon 5’.

Defcon 1 Aye, aye min, fit like?

Defcon 2 I hinna seen you aroon here afore.

Defcon 3 You’re nae fae roon here, are ye?

Defcon 4 Hemmin, fa are you lookin’ at, eh?

Defcon 5 Right, toonser – ootside. Noo!

Although the majority of governments have expressed their concern at Banff and Buchan’s nuclear sabre-rattling, the US, Russian and Chinese governments said they were unable to formulate a response until the following phrases from the region’s message had been clarified:

1. Who or what is an ‘ill trickit vratch?’and why should this object’s actions ‘gie fowk a fleg’?

2. What form of locomotion is ‘knyppin’?

3. Does the expression ‘Fit’s a dee?’ have any connection with the river in the North East of Scotland?

4. As the nuclear warheads in the SS-20 are MIRVed (ie with multiple warheads) how many warheads is ‘a pucklie’? We also notice in your communication that you refer to firing off ‘a puckle warheids into Ibrox and Parkheid in Weegieland for a lauch’. We require to know if ‘a puckle’ is the same as ‘a pucklie’ and where Weegieland is, as we cannot find it on any of our maps. In addition, is ‘a lauch’ a misprint of ‘a launch’?

Jul 232010
 

By Dave Innes and Ross Cunningham.

What on (or below) earth are The Gothic Dorics, – a name evocative of a hellish hybrid ancient monochrome architectural structure lost in a bewildered modern world – and furthermore, what is their version of reality?

They have already staked their claim as the NE’s – and the world’s – first Doom-Tekno outfit. Three Aberdeen souls who have triumphed, despite the handicap of being too slothful to get things together, in creating an album due for release – or perhaps that should be escape – on Saturday 24 July when they debut at the city’s Moorings Bar. Aberdeen Voice discussed with the band its somewhat ‘interesting’ approach to lyrics and music. Continue reading »