Try Whistling This
I was at the bus stop this week, reading a book, minding my sweet own, when the guy next to me started whistling.
He didn’t go into song, but every half minute he would whistle the same set of notes about four or five times in a row, without a pause.
I didn’t say anything, because I’m too English sometimes. I don’t know why I was being so typical then; it might have been because I was standing in a queue at the time.
I lowered my book a little and looked up and around with a confused weariness. It’s the look my cats have when they hear the rattle of their cat boxes, which never heralds good news.
If cats had blogs, no happy post would ever start off with: “So I got into my cat box…”
You’ll have to trust me.
The opening four notes were the same ones of “What Shall We Do With A Drunken Sailor”
“What shall we doooo…” Like that, only repeated and whistled. “What shall we doooo…” “What shall we doooo…” “What shall we doooo…”
Maybe it was morse code. It was V. I know three letters in morse code: S ( . . . ), O ( _ _ _ ), and V ( . . . _ )
This hardly ever comes in handy, unless you need to send out an emergency in a situation where you can contact your potential rescuers but can’t talk or write, or if you want to tap out the opening notes of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. You know: Ba-ba-ba-BAAAAA.
Churchill picked it out during the war to proceed his broadcasts because it rapped out V for victory. Also, five in Roman numerals used in music scores is V. Clever, hey? Not really, it was just a coincidence because Beethoven died in 1827 and the electric telegraph wasn’t even invented until 1836, with the code following in the 1840s some time.
The man whistles again.
“What shall we doooo…”
I don’t know, OK? I don’t know “what shall we doooo…” You’re annoying! Keep you’re involuntary outbursts in check OK? Like me, just now.
Or keep them private, like me, just now.
February 26th, 2008 at 12:44 am
It coulda been that they made the code for V because it was a roman numberal V which stood for 5 which made them think of Beethoven’s…
oh never mind.
What would you do?
February 26th, 2008 at 11:20 am
I am a compulsive whistler, for which I am not sorry in the slightest.
I am also not sorry in the slightest at replying “Naff off” to someone who asked “Is that Liza Minelli?” to something which clearly was not.
February 26th, 2008 at 11:35 am
I don’t mind whistling, as long as it’s
- an actual tune, which more than 2 notes
- not done through teeth. Urgh.
February 26th, 2008 at 11:51 am
I’m imagining that the chap concerned was perhaps a contestant on “Name That Tune” back in the day and he was having some flashbacks to an wrong answer that cost him in the “Bid A Note” round. Just perhaps he was hoping that you’d interject with a similarly incorrect answer therefore providing him with some solace and comfort from his bitter experiences.
Or he was just a nutter. It’s possible.
February 26th, 2008 at 1:23 pm
I’ll fire my proof reader first thing in the mronign.
February 27th, 2008 at 9:42 am
They’re fried.