Well here's the thing (I really have got to work on my entrance lines; I never can seem to figure out how to start writing): looking back at my posts, I realized that I promised Archy and didn't deliver. Now that, to me, is a punishable offense, especially since there may be people out there who don't know about this continuously-reincarnating-no-punctuation pseudo-Shakespeare. They really don't know what they're missing.

Unfortunately, I don't have a copy of the books with me, so I have to rely on google for this teeny resumè (is that how it's spelled?). From now on, we'll archy our way through this and so disrobe ourselves of all pretenses of punctuation or capital letters stop try to bear with me

archy was a free verse poet at one time
and upon dying and reincarnating into a cockroach
he dedicated himself to writing in the graveyard shift
in the newsroom
at the evening sun
in new york
on don marquis apostrophe s typewriter

don marquis
not having any good ideas for his column
called the sun dial
anyway
started printing archy apostrophe s musings
on life as a poet
trapped in a cockroach
and cohabitating with mehitabel the cat
an eccentric alley cat
who claims she was cleopatra in an earlier life

of course archy was not just about ignoring punctuation so keep in mind that none of this could hold a candle to archy apostrophe s cynical and often hilarious commentary

i wont leave the whole of don marquis apostrophe s column where archy makes his first stellar apperance because it might be a tad too much comma you can find it here at http://www.donmarquis.com/archy/column.html stop i will be content with transcribing a few choice words from the neglected master

most of these rats here are just rats
but this rat is like me he has a human soul in him
he used to be a poet himself
night after night i have written poetry for you
on your typewriter
and this big brute of a rat who used to be a poet
comes out of his hole when it is done
and reads it and sniffs at it
he is jealous of my poetry
he used to make fun of it when we were both human
he was a punk poet himself
and after he has read it he sneers
and then he eats it

i wish you would have mehitabel kill that rat
or get a cat that is onto her job
and i will write you a series of poems showing how things look
to a cockroach
that rats name is freddy
the next time freddy dies i hope he wont be a rat
but something smaller i hope i will be a rat
in the next transmigration and freddy a cockroach
i will teach him to sneer at my poetry then

dont you ever eat any sandwiches in your office
i haven't had a crumb of bread for i dont know how long
or a piece of ham or anything but apple parings
and paste and leave a piece of paper in your machine
every night you can call me archy

this is the page http://www.donmarquis.com/archy/ scroll down and check out the links under the world according to archy
more tomorrow but i think i apostrophe ll try to dose the archy here so you dont suffer from an overdose
yes i know that having given you the link there is not much point in transcribing the whole thing but i know i would be too lazy to look plus i love it so i have fun while doing it

cheers and long live vers libre cockroaches exclamation mark