[alto]

"Me" is the speaker (human), the one doing the staring is the mouse.
Reworked into normal syntax the poem would state:

A poisoned mouse does quietly stare at Me out of the floor, who, still alive, is asking, "What have i done that You wouldn't have."

When was the poem written (vs published)?

I've always assumed it was political (re use of poisonous gases in WWI) & the mouse is, well not a mouse ...

[axl]

2dogs come back! Slinking makes me sad Let's share some popcorn and a nice merlot! Then we can figure out what to do with all our power

[ezduzit]

I was banned from udbb and came here under an alter. Apparently I have no sense of humor so ezduzit...relax.

[SarahandSam]

Ah, e e cummings. That would explain why I have had trouble making sense of that user name.

Disclaimer: My name isn't dressagetraks. Though I do ride dressage and do have Trakehners.

I am an English major and really have extensively studied literature, poetry included. However, e e cummings never really lit my fire. I'm a Shakespeare kinda gal.

Tsk, I love e e cummings. Also, when I met meupatdoes in person for the first time, I am pretty sure the first thing that I blurted out to her was "OMG, I know that poem!" in exactly the same tone that Buddy the Elf used to declare his intimate familiarity with Santa Claus.

[Calvincrowe]

Is Grataan an Oregon resident, like the OP? Is the OP? I guess locations are relative in COTH Land, too... I ask because they would both be "local" to me (and many other posters here) and I wonder if I've met either of them IRL...

I agree, this is sad, if true. I enjoyed Grataan's posts for the most part.

[prairiewind2]

When was the poem written (vs published)?

I've always assumed it was political (re use of poisonous gases in WWI) & the mouse is, well not a mouse ...

For sure the mouse is not just a mouse...

Liz

[JoZ]

I have met very few COTHers IRL. The first and most memorable was the original Fugly blogger when she moved to my farm (several years ago now). My first thought was "OMG I'm screwed!"


I met a few others as a result of the huge flood in January 2009 that forced my barnmates and me to evacuate. That whole process unearthed some VERY kindly and delightful folk.

[kari]

I do love ketchup though.

Bahahaaaaa!

[Miss J]

Mice in the barn a couple of years ago. I killed one - turned out to be a momma. Then the babes started coming out looking for food and (mostly) water. Didn't have the heart to kill them, so I fed and watered them. *sigh*

Liz

Hey don't feel bad Liz! Same thing happened to me a couple years back.

I pulled open a drawer that was in my garage, and since the drawer was wooden and a little warped I always had to give it a good yank, so to hear a 'squeak' when opening wasn't unusual. But that last squeak made me stop. I kneeled down to look in the drawer and here is a mouse wedged in-between the back of the drawer and the top of it. So I pulled the poor little thing out, and then just got this gut feeling that I should look in the drawer. Yup a nest of little pinkies.. They still had their eyes sealed. So I handed them to a sad looking vet tech, who just sighed and thanked me.

I asked if I could hand feed them, but se said there are no nipples that small.

[Gnalli]

how DO you spell it? Oh... Xena???

Oh wait, am I supposed to get all grumpy about folks correcting my spelling? Well, then I'll never tell you how I read Viola! for the longest time...

No no no ---I'm sorry. I was playing and it didn't come across that way to you. I meant no harm or offense, just playing.

I think I read Viola the same way...comes from having a grandmother named that.. I thought viola! was WAAA_LAHHH for the longest...shoot me now.

[Gnalli]

So, color me curious. Grataan is still giving advice...is someone going to step up and out her...if it's true? I've had enough drama in the last couple of weeks...it won't be me.

http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/sh...99#post6701999

Vet or not, it seemed like sound advice to get to the vet and have those tests done. A layperson could have given that advice.

[meupatdoes]

When was the poem written (vs published)?

I've always assumed it was political (re use of poisonous gases in WWI) & the mouse is, well not a mouse ...

The poem is just a statement that we are all part of the human condition and the lines between us are not so great after all. Fundamentally what have other people done that you wouldn't have if you were in the same situation as them. Homeslice is killing the mouse but if homeslice were in the mouse's shoes wouldn't he be scuttling around the foyer looking for crumbs too?

The line between good and evil is drawn much more tenuously than most people tend to actively recognize, imo, but then again my ethical thinking was also deeply influenced by the Milgram and Stanford Prison experiments.

And, not to be pedantic or anything but I do not think that "who the narrator" is is a negotiable point. The narrator ("Me") is the human. Yes poetry is open to interpretation but when it gets to the fundamental syntax of the piece, it just is the way it is If even the narrator is negotiable nothing has meaning.

Note as well that the narrator references (Me, You) are always capitalized and the mouse references (mouse, who, i) are always lower case. The one thing arguably in the mouse's doman that is capitalized is "Stare," which is the action that crossed the boundary and made the narrator consider the mouse's pov.

[Anne FS]

I don't get why everyone has gone off the rails about usernames (except for holiday giddiness starting early). Nobody thinks that usernames are real names, that's not the issue at all. Grataan;s user name is not GrataanDVM. The issue is IF a poster claims to be an equine veterinarian and posts accordingly, that's utterly not okay. It's not the same thing at all as usernames like (making them up) LiveFromTN when you've never been in TN for instance.

Grataan's user profile clearly states under Occupation "Dairy Veterinarian," and I think telling people you're a doctor when you're not is much more serious than telling people you go to 200 horse shows a year and win at all of them.

It's a shame if COH has indeed become like other boards and is now just full of liars. Old lady rant here: it didn't used to be this way. The liars were few & far between and the majority of posters were helpful, kind, and informative, which is what made this board miles above any other.

[PaintPony]

I hope Lex won't mind me posting this...but someone asked and I think it's a fairly benign story....

So here's how I met Lex. I had spoken and PM'd with Lex for a few years when I lived in MI. So I know his voice.

I went to a dog park (in VA) a few weeks ago that he had recommended. I was a little flustered at one point because my lab wasn't being very polite--read, humping every dog he thought he could--embarassing. I was rounding them up to head home and this nice young man started chatting w/ me and was walking me out.

There was something "familiar" about him but I couldn't put my finger on it.

As we were walking and chatting, I was just SURE it was Lex, but I didn't want to sound like a total creeper by asking "Hey, are you Lex from COTH? I'm Roo."

But once I got to my car, I texted him. "Did I just meet you in the dog park????"

Anyway, it WAS him and he was just trying to help out as he saw I was frazzled and was pretty sure it was me. I mean, who else shows up in riding clothes, tall boots, and has a black lab and a black standard poodle and just arrived in this region of VA? LOL

So. I met Lex.

Random question for you - does your license plate have B-Roo on it? If so I saw you today!

[EquineJunky]

I knew I had read something recently that gave me the impression Grataan was a vet. Page 2 of the thread below. I guess 'she' could be using the metaphorical 'me' but I read it as she is a DVM and if you asked her opinion....
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/sh...se#post6577632

Wow, that takes some nerve! I personally do not care for treeless saddles, but unless you asked me my opinion as a DVM or experienced horseman about your saddle and how it fits and how I feel about them in general I would keep my fat yap shut and just enjoy having a competent riding buddy!

Couple of other threads I found while looking for this one. A Mr. was referenced and supposedly is a Dr. himself.
http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/sh...09#post6677909

http://www.chronofhorse.com/forum/sh...-liability-end

[BuddyRoo]

Nope, it doesn't. LOL.

I don't even own a car anymore!

[PaintPony]

I don't get why everyone has gone off the rails about usernames (except for holiday giddiness starting early). Nobody thinks that usernames are real names, that's not the issue at all. Grataan;s user name is not GrataanDVM. The issue is IF a poster claims to be an equine veterinarian and posts accordingly, that's utterly not okay. It's not the same thing at all as usernames like (making them up) LiveFromTN when you've never been in TN for instance.

Grataan's user profile clearly states under Occupation "Dairy Veterinarian, and I think telling people you're a doctor when you're not is much more serious than telling people you go to 200 horse shows a year and win at all of them.

We are all just being ironic. We do understand the difference.

[mkevent]

This thread does bring up some good points about ethics. What do you do when someone is lying? Do you call her out on it? Ignore it? What if it is something that could cause harm?

Way back, I used to sell veterinary pharmaceuticals. The company I worked for had a rabies vaccine that was IM only. Two competitors had a rabies vaccine with a sub q(subcutaneous) indication. We were told one of those competitors had only a provisional subq indication, which meant that after 3 years, if the titers weren't sufficient, all the veterinarians who vaccinated animals with that particular brand would have to revaccinate all those animals. I doubt that company went to any lengths to really let vets know of the provisional indication. Since I didn't have any "proof" about the provisional indication, I didn't tell any of my customers. I felt that it would just look like a sales rep knocking the competition. I did want to warn those customers, but I didn't want to give out any unsubstantiated claims. Lo and behold, that companies vaccine did not have good enough titers after 3 years to get the sub q indication, so all the vets that used that vaccine had to go back and revaccinate all those animals. Needless to say, it was a mess. To add insult to injury, my company and the offending company were then merged!

It's a hard call. I've known people that I've wanted to warn others about. The problem is that people will always question your motives. I"ve run into this with problem boarders in the past. Even if you do ask for references, people often don't want to upset the applecart by being truthful. People are worried about being sued, or they are so glad not to deal with that person anymore that they want to put it behind them.

By "minding your own business" are you adding to someone elses problem?

[see u at x]

I've met several people on here IRL via a COTH get-together several years ago, and all of them are exactly who they appear to be online - awesome, nice, and really fun people.

A couple of other people I know on here from boarding at my most recent barn - they are both really nice and good people. There are a couple of people on here, or who used to be on here, who I boarded with at a barn several years ago. Even though they were always kind of in their own "clique," I tried to reach out to one of them a few years back to offer help with something she had posted about on here, but she wasn't overly receptive, which is fine. One other person, I met at a friend's party several years ago, and when I joined COTH, I realized who she was by photos posted in her signature.

One person I know on here happens to be one of the most vile and repulsive people I've ever met, but I'm not getting into that right now.

Oh, per my username, yes, I do tend to mostly practice and show dressage, but I've done some hunter stuff, too, and am planning on getting into eventing next year. For the most part, I just like to have fun, better my own riding, make my horses the best they can be, and do whatever they happen to be good at.

[candyappy]

I think if you were going to post this you should have come out under your usual posting name. This whole place is filled armchair vets, riders, trainers, horse owners psychologists, whatever.

Any advice given or taken on here should be at the discretion of the reader and be taken very, very lightly. I read here for entertainment usually.