Old MacDonald had a mbrglcock

We are off to the 7-Eleven for stamps.

We amuse ourselves by singing as we travel. We worked through Three Little Monkeys Swinging in a Tree, and Three Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed (busy little monkeys, aren’t they?), and we’re well into Old MacDonald, and only halfway there. (It’s not really all that far, probably no more than a km, tops, but Malli and Nigel are walking, which puts us at about, oh, 2 km an hour. Maybe less.)

Good thing Old MacDonald can go on FOR-EEEEEEE-VER.

“Old MacDonald had a farm,” I start. “E-I-E-I-O. And on that farm he had a… What did he have?”

“SHEEP!” Malli is quick on the draw. We baa-baa our way down another block. With the next verse, Nigel picks “COW”; then Anna picks “CHICKEN”, and Timmy wants “HORSIE!!”

“How about you, Emily? What animal do you want?”

Pause.

“…and on this farm he had a… ” I attempt to prime the pump.

“COCK!”

Uh. Well, then. “Do you mean rooster, sweetie? Cock-a-doodle-doo?”

“No. mbrlmCOCK.”

“I didn’t hear that, love. Try again.” Call me demented for getting the child to repeat this three times in succession, but I get the feeling she’s really trying to communicate something. Something non-PG rated, even.

“Peeflgcock.”

Ah. See? (You don’t? You weren’t listening carefully enough.)

“PEAcock. Can you say that? PEAcock.” Because good enunciation makes for good communication.

“MrfhCOCK.”

“PEAcock.”

“MDVGcock.”

Once more, with feeling.

“PEEEEcock.”

“Pee-pee-cock!”

It will do for now.

“So, PEAcock? Do you know what kind of a noise a PEAcock makes?”

Silence from the assembly. They haven’t a clue.

It just so happens that I do. I once visited this amazing place routinely, and I’ve been serenaded auditorally assaulted by their song hideous shrieks.

“Peacocks go like this.” And, after a quick glance up and down the street, I throw self-consciousness to the wind and open my throat in as close an approximation as I can manage.

The children are delighted. Open season on shrieking! We squawk our way up the final block.

I’m thinking that Mr. Peacock is going to be a permanent addition to Old MacDonald’s farm. I just hope they remember MY version of his name…