In Which I Utterly Betray My Principles and Get a New-Fangled Portable Music Device

Dusty D is not hopelessly behind the times. Even way up here in the Township, knee-deep in my giant pumpkin vine, I've heard tell of those new musical- boxes all the kids are totin' around. I may spend my time pickin' beans, bakin' bread, and hoein' the corn, but I ain't totally oblivious to them-there youth trends, nosir. I'm pickin' the pea-pods, but I know others are pickin' them eye-pods.

So Dusty D turned this over in her head one day in the tomato patch. "I can't lose sight of the youth demographic," she mused. "Then that-ere blog I gots goin' will be hopelessly fogeyish to the young generation. I know I'm dead set agin' all these new shiny gewgaws they have in the store these days...lotta foolishness if you ask me. But I have to keep that finger of mine on the pulse of th'zeitgeist. Sometimes you cain't let the perfect be the enemy of the good."

Guided by this tomato-patch philosophizin', Dusty Diary finally broke down and acquired, via a far more urbane and "with-it" friend, her new portable music device. She runs real good. Just crank 'er up and you can play "Swingin' On A Star," the 78 rpm record that came with it, till she runs down a bit. Sounds like this:

scritchityscritchityscritchityscritchity
Would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a mule?

A mule is an animal with long funny ears
Kicks up at anything he hears
His back is brawny but his brain is weak
He's just plain stupid with a stubborn streak
And by the way, if you hate to go to school
You may grow up to be a muule

Or woould you liike to swing on a starrr
Carrrry moooonbeams hoooome innn.. aa.. jaaaaar..
Annnnnd.. beeeeeee..... beeeeetterrr.... oooooooooooofffff.....

Dusty D thought them eye-pods were maintenance-free, but I think I'll try to scare up someone who can give this one a li'l tune-up. There's also a wee crack on the tone arm, there. It's all fixable. Have to say this li'l doodad is growin' on me. The more I look at it the more I like it. Worked the first time I tried it. And that song's been runnin' through my head all day.

Not too proud to say I was wrong--these portable musical-boxes are all right. Pretty nifty, in fact. You could say totally delightful and wonderful. Might even say ol' Dusty D is kinda swingin' on a star.