Changing Tack

Enrolling as a pirate is much harder than it seems, You’ll need to speak in present tense and chase your wildest dreams. Well, once you’ve trained a parrot and been measured for your hook, You have to plough through pages of the health and safety book. The pointed end’s the bow, whilst your rudder’s near the aft, Our crow’s nest has no greenery - that struck me as pretty daft. We share the seas with submarines, with shipwrecks and blue whales An’ there be umpteen ropes and pulleys with which to hoist our sails. If we earn a jug of rum, we treat that as a gift. The winds are strong and variable, I hopes you get my drift, You’ll need to bring some cutlery and a deep enamel dish If you want to get your ration of vegetables and fish. You’ll have to learn to tolerate some rough-and-ready chaps, Forget those childhood stories about chests and treasure maps, You need to wield a cutlass to acquire the upper-hand, So there ain’t much time for paddling, or playin’ on the sand. You have to act as look-out when you’re sailing through the mist But once you’re down the gangplank there are lassies to be kissed, So be somewhat suspicious when they tries to hold your hand They might be agents for The Revenue and want your contraband. We hate the swarthy merchantmen, the Spaniards and the Danes, We hate them water companies spillin’ sewage from their drains, The noise of heavy cannon-fire plays havoc with our ears, But that’s a strong tradition amongst us buccaneers. Every job has downsides - it’s always been that way But we get to see the sun go down almost every day, And when you leave your hammock you may catch the sun a-rising So sign-on as a pirate and your life will be surprising!