Best Brig Poems
It’s thirteen thousand miles from Boston to
San Diego around far Cape Horn’s way.
Ship needs to sail to that distant quay.
The Cape is a hard challenge for the crew
It’s where the Atlantic and Pacific
Oceans meet and the waves are horrific.
The number of ships lost are not a few.
With good sailing San Diego can be
reached in three months from Boston’s fine dock
in hope of returning with rancho stock.
Condition of hides rest upon the sea,
if hold remains ever dry and shipshape,
The wetting of hide they hope to escape.
No fear Brig Pilgrim’s hold is danger free.
Hide house at the Mexican harbor’s berth
cures hides vaqueros bring from distant field
hoping to gain a goodly peso yield.
Their agents bargain for true values worth
Profit will give major-domo much peace
He’ll thank the Virgin for worry’s surcease
At hacienda there will be much mirth.
One morning, when I was stationed at base operations in Subic, I had a
telephone call. A Filipino shipyard worker had died during the night-shift,
on the job at the navy repair facility, apparently of natural causes. But to
cover our backsides, the shipyard wanted to fly the body to Clark Air Force
Base for autopsy by a pathologist. Just to make sure.
So I called one of the many helicopter pilots I had become acquainted
with to set the flight up. The pilot said “No problem, just put the body in
a body bag, and we’ll strap him into one of the UH-I’s seats (the helicopter
workhorse of Vietnam), call it a training flight, and do the deal.” So, I called the
shipyard, told them what to do, and went back to my morning cup of coffee.
A few minutes later, the admiral’s Aid called, to tell me that the admiral’s
driver, a marine corps sergeant with three Purple Hearts from combat in
Vietnam, was going to be charged with some minor legal offense by his
Philippine girlfriend, in order to keep him in the Philippines, instead of
returning to his wife in the US. The admiral wanted to get him to Clark and
en route home ASAP to avoid bi-lateral US-Philippine embarrassment.
So I called the pilot to tell him he would have a second passenger. No
problem, I went back to my coffee.
A few minutes later, I got a call from the marine corps captain who was
in charge of the brig. He had a soldier stressed out from combat in Nam,
high on unknown drugs, and violent. He wanted to get him out of the brig,
and send him back to the US.
So I called the helicopter pilot again to inform him of his third passenger.
He agreed to take him, if he was put in a straight jacket and leg irons, and
accompanied by a an armed guard. A reasonable requirement, because
passengers had access to the pilots in UH1 “Hueys”.
I still wonder what the air force airman thought as he slid open the door
of that Huey when it landed at Clark.
Awa' oan the Firth of Forth,
high oan the famous brig',
a laboring lad toils tirelessly
in the cauld and bitter wind.
Awa' aff the river shore,
a braw lassie waits for him,
scourin' and roastin' tatties
in a bonny wee but and ben.
The carls would hae him drinkin',
The cummers would pay him 'ahind the door,
but he oany has wan thing oan his mind
and she's awa' aff the river shore.
*Translation*
Away on the Firth of Forth,
high on the famous bridge,
a laboring lad toils tirelessly
in the cold and bitter wind.
Away off the river shore,
a braw lassie waits for him,
scouring and roasting tatties
in a bonny wee but and ben.
The carls would have him drinking,
the cummers would pay him behind the door,
but he only has one thing on his mind
and she's away off the river shore.
Glossary of terms:
* the Firth of Forth is the estuary of the River Forth in Scotland
braw means fine looking
tatties are potatoes
bonny means pretty or handsome
a but and ben is a modest two room cottage consisting of a kitchen and a main room
a carl is a laboring man
a cummer is a woman of questionable moral character
to pay behind the door is to engage in sexual activity as a form of 'payment' for favors, services, or goods.
Peter purchased a cute 'micro pig'
Over time it grew ever so big!
It cannot be denied
That the seller had lied
If he’s caught he’ll end up in the brig!
01~02~16
Photo by US Navy WestPack Album—Gorelick 2nd top right
“Not Squared-Away”
Crawling and sliding through slimy debris
Knees scraped raw on the gritty hanger bay
We’re sailors on the carrier Coral Sea
Crossing the equator this bright April day
Our shellback ordeal-just good-natured hazing
A navy tradition; great nautical fun
Like pagons, it’s old King Neptune we’re praising
Great Zeus, let this filthy business be done!
Now shellbacks! We’ve made it unscathed, more or less
We toss our soiled clothes out to the ocean breeze
But I find myself in one hell of a mess
For I left my wallet in my dungarees!
Now drifting away is my navy ID
A grave offense if it’s lost or misplaced
It will no doubt be captain’s mast for me
Where I’ll be demoted! Denounced! Disgraced!
I stand at attention, rigid and straight
The captain shouts: You are not squared-away!
Sweating bullets, I ponder my dire fate
I’ll surely be thrown in the brig today
A lost ID at sea is close to a crime
A gross dereliction, stupid but rare
On just bread and water I will do my time
As I topple down the steps to despair
In solemn dread I now report to the chief
With a churning stomach and anguished mind
But now all fear lifts and I sigh in relief
As he snaps: Get to work; were falling behind
Written 9/11/22
"Have you called Brigit yet?" A friend to bawl and
Here she is, in times or tales of plight and fight,
peace and flight.
One year for every finger on each hand,
one to hold and one to rend.
Will you send me to the brig? To serve is
My only, gaols please? At ease Deedee!
Have I given ten years, ten tours, twin yours?
To win, Towing a boat, about the great blue
Blew sea, Ya so? The windy, windy day.
He, she, it knows by nose, line by line.
Tortured me, then? Shall I, aye, aye capt'n!
Anything else? De rein! The rain, knows things.
Deaf, dumb, and blind, am I.
Have I bought the illusion of chi-says?
'Bolt is the fastest, I am the slowest and the lowest.
There is de rein to due, except for all my debts.
Before I knew it, I signed on the dotted line- lye on.
Mortar and lye built this house, my love is a mouse.
I am a polyglot, fully human and humane, and animal
at best, and person without rest. Call on me, pourquoi?
A lifetime of slavery have I, et de rein. Ecoute!
Without the accent, I asked the Law'd to save my
Rave'n.
Hear tell the state of Texas is freaking big
Almost the size of Canada, holy frig
Why not form your own country
Have your own funny money
With The Wulfman riding herd from the brig
© Jack Ellison 2015
While sailing out on morning’s tide
A mermaid on a rock I spied
She was a lovely half-fish girl
With a necklace made of whitest pearl
She smiled and blew a kiss to me
Then disappeared into the sea
She surfaced back behind the boat
And lazily began to float
I grabbed my friend and pointed aft
He thought that I was truly daft
For mermaids don’t exist, you know
My friend quite plainly told me so
No sooner had he walked away
The mermaid came again to play
She sunned herself upon some rocks
And combed her flowing silken locks
I hailed the Captain of our ship
But she had given me the slip
The Captain answered to my call
But saw no mermaid there at all
The Captain thought me quite insane
As my wondrous tale I did explain
When he returned back to his duty
I saw again my ocean beauty
She floated there upon a wave
A subtle wink she slyly gave
And then she flipped her lovely tail
Swimming along as we did sail
I called all of my sailor friends
To show them her curvaceous fins
They asked if I was feeling well
When my story I began to tell
I pointed to the mermaid fair
But when they looked, nothing was there
They thought that I had lost my mind
No mermaid out there could they find
They left and shook their weary heads
And sleepily went to their beds
My head was in a dizzy whirl
I saw the ocean waters swirl
Then once again she came in sight
Swimming in the pale moonlight
I yelled and danced a frantic jig
As they hauled me off into the brig
“He’s lost it” I did hear them say
As they sadly went upon their way
Through the port of my little cell
I watched the sea waves rise and swell
Then suddenly next to the glass
I saw the little seaward lass
She took the pearls off of her neck
And tossed them up onto the deck
Then off she swam into the deep
As I wearily slipped off to sleep
When came the early light of dawn
I stretched my arms and gave a yawn
Then my good friend upon the ship
Ran down with pearls fast in his grip
"You won’t believe the sight I saw"
He said to me, face filled with awe
Last night while I was by the rail
I heard a voice give me a hail
Next thing I knew, here came these pearls
From underneath the ocean swirls
"Quite right you were", he said to me
"A mermaid threw these from the sea"
I winked and said “I don’t think so”
For mermaids don’t exist you know
Jobless Jack, a real jerk, dances a jig,
He juggles, smuggles jewels in backpacks,
jawbreakers, jump ropes, jelly rolls and crack.
~~Jig be up, Jack'll jiggle in the brig.~~
Junk jingles and jangles, squeals like a pig
jerked and jacked from joints on his pickup routes.
Amid crates of jackets, jeans, and jump suits,
Jobless Jack, a real jerk, dances a jig,
Jack jimmied the Jaguar trunk of some prig;
now Judge Judy’s searching Jack's jalopy.
“Jumping Jehoshaphat, what’s this jersey?"
~~Jig be up, Jack'll jiggle in the brig.~~
Jobless Jack, a real jerk, dances a jig,
her missing jersey was what the judge found.
~~Jig be up, Jack'll jiggle in the brig.~
written 1/31/2018
a villonet
Sponsor Constance La France
Contest Name ''J'' Contest, New or Old
Ghost Ship
Benjamin Briggs a master, with three previous commands
Took over the ill fated ship, which was to prove to be his last stand.
The ship originally named the Amazon, was 103 feet long
She was listed as a half-brig, and everything seemed to go wrong.
She had a lot of accidents and passed through many owners hands,
Eventually she turned up in New York, for sale and a new command.
She was sold and refitted; the owners bought her for a song.
Then they had her re-registered, to maybe help right the wrongs.
Captain Briggs his wife and child, in eighteen seventy two
Set sail on November the seventh, plus an extra seven man crew.
The cargo was seventeen thousand barrels, of raw American alcohol
They set off for Genoa Italy, not forgetting his daughters’ toys and doll.
On December the fifth half way between the Azores and Portugal
The Dei Gratia spied a brigantine, but it didn’t look right at all.
He watched it for two hours because he recognised the ship
The brig, that he had been in dock with, and he knew Ben commanded it.
It was sailing all wrong, it was yawing on the sea.
Captain Moorhouse knew Captain Briggs, was the captain he should see,
They took a boat out to the ship, and boarded her when they could,
On climbing aboard they found the ship to be empty, but all sound and good.
There was plenty of food and drink, but all the ships papers were gone
The ships clock was not functioning, but of the compliment*, there was none.
There should have been a lifeboat, but that was not there now
Just a frayed rope hanging in the sea and they didn’t know why or how.
Captain Moorhouse was perturbed knowing his friend Briggs to be in distress
He took the ship into to tow, it was named the “Mary Celeste.”
~GG~ 2011©
Compliment The number of crew on board a ship*
Jean, Jean wis young an' alive till Ah gied her tatties and neeps;
Noo she's bein' seek as a dug, it fairly gies me the creeps.
Bonnie Mary O' Argyle took a trip tae the Brig O' Doon,
She took a dook oaf the parapet, ended up nearly bein' drooned!
Wee sleakit, cooerin', timorous beastie, ye must think it a sin!
Aw the lassies a' ever kent, wanted tae stab me wi' a pin.
Blythe Hae a' Been on Yon Hill, where a Tippling Ballad ah Wrote;
Gude Ale Keeps the Heart Aboon, when ye drink an awfy lote.
Big Politician
Chris Christie
Not known to be nifty
Warned New Jersey National Guard Brig. Gen. Michael Cunniff to slim down.
This from such a big clown.
Captain Bligh was his name,
he ruled his ship with an iron cane.
The Bounty was the ship,
sailing to Tahiti, via Cape Horn was the trip.
At Cape Horn, after tacking back and forth,
eastward, was set the course.
It was the long way round,
but they were still Tahiti bound.
After many long months at sea,
one morning the lookout shouted, "Tahiti."
Wine, women, and song for the crew,
it was a paradise, the like of which they never knew.
When the ship was fully laden with breadfruit trees,
once more the Bounty put to sea.
Three weeks later, the trees began to die,
"Give them the crews water", said captain Bligh.
The crew complained most bitterly,
"silence" said Bligh," or in the brig you will be."
Very early in the next morn,
the mutiny was born.
Over the side went Captain Bligh,
into the long boat, and left to die.
So back to Tahiti sailed the crew,
to the island paradise, that they loved and knew.
After more than a year of island bliss,
they decided, we had better get out of this.
For the British navy, will surely come,
then they will string us up, one, by one.
So once more the Bounty put to sea,
but this time the crew, took their families.
When Pitcairn Island came into view,
they said, "this is home, it will do."
Stripping the Bounty of everything of use,
she was set on fire with a fuse.
So if to Pitcairn Isle you go today,
the mutineers descendants, You will find, fishing in the bay.
Since Brig Copenhagen was only four
days out of Liverpool, there remained some
distance to cover. Because it was more
nearer winter bad weather had to come.
Ship needed to reef sails before they tore.
The menace of icebergs was always strong,
This consignment of tea to Halifax
by its English owners must not go wrong.
Then carrying passengers out of Boston,
such trade was good reaping much after tax.
Provided this battle could now be won
Around the Horn to California where
gold had been discovered now by the ton.
passengers hoping to get their fair share,
Tip, tap,
toes rowing
across the blue
surface of the sea-
breezes play with my hair,
tangly messes of blond rope
form for the salty air to climb-
Sun shining bright on his throne of Noon
[The moon in her brig, in chains, wrought with stars]
My skin, dry with erosion from
wind blowing to my white gown; Sails-
In blue hallucinations,
In southwest oceans,
I come to you,
I see you,
In dreams.