I bounced it, I twanged it, I gave it a stretch

I span it around on a small wooden bench

And I thought of the possible joy it might bring

To other such folk on a June day in spring

So with little more thought I turned back to the man

And said ‘okey mc dokey’ I’ll go with your scam

He looked very chuffed and he gave me a wink

Just you stick with me kid, and we left in a blink

The next thing we’re sitting in a very large office

Of Simmons Carmicheal Hemingway and Prognosis

Thinking ‘out of the box’ on placement and concept

And of how many units we’ll shift from the outset

All seemed to be going remarkably well

When a creative spoke up with the question from hell

‘Just what exactly does this stringy thing do’

And the team looked at me, and I turned a quite blue

Then I looked for the man and I noticed right then

That he’d gone in a whisper, leaving note pad and pen

As my mind went quite blank and I started to tremble

I remembered the pitch and got up on the table

It’s a whirly blocktastic spring action machine

It’s a gizmo a gadget a flingamy string

It’s a digeri do do a flam jam a boingy

And if that’s not enough then it’s also a twoingy

Well they all looked at me and I stared them right back

I was checking for exits when the atmosphere cracked

The creative directors began to applaud

Then they offered me shares and a seat on the board

So, If ever your walking on a June day in spring

And you see something glisten that catches your eye

Then give it a name, call it Boris or Dimple, Jimbo Confetti or the Great Serengetti

It is really quite simple to reach for the sky.

Richard Lee November 2005

I’m walking along on a June day in spring

When I notice below me a small piece of string

As pulling the twine it recoils with a shlock

On the end of the string is a small wooden block

So happy the fact I’ve discovered a find

I proceed on my journey, not much on my mind

Till this man pulls up sharp in a jet black sedan

Pursuing such questions like ‘who is it I am’

I try to persuade him I’m no one he knows

And if who I am bothers him maybe he’ll go

He is evidently taken by what I have here

And he’s not for the going and says ‘lend me an ear’

Well just out of politeness I listen intent

And he starts telling me he’s in advertisement

Not sure whether this is a good or bad thing

I tighten my grip on the block and the string

He pulls me up tightly with ‘what do we have here’

It’s a block on a rubberized string I infer

‘It’s not just a block,’ he begins to turn red

Then a strange whirring noise seems to come from his head

It’s a whirly blocktastic spring action machine

It’s a gizmo a gadget a flingamy string

It’s a digeri do do a flam jam a boingy

Are you hearing me son you’ve discovered a twoingy

I’ll invest in this fantastic newfangled gizmo

It’ll be a new trend from Southampton to Soho

We’ll get lots of action on prime time tv

You’ll see it on Parky and Oprah Winfrey

So I sat for a while as he calmed himself down

And I mulled the thing over and around and around

Then I thought of the fortune my discovery might bring

Just a small wooden block on a rubberized string