The Crooked Man's House, Norfolk Botanical Garden
(Click pictures to enlarge)
Don't Let The Rain Come Down
"There was a crooked man and he had a crooked smile
Had a crooked sixpence and he walked a crooked mile
Had a crooked cat and he had a crooked mouse
They all lived together in a crooked little house
Uh-huh, oh no, don't let the rain come down
Uh-huh, oh no, don't let the rain come down
Uh-huh, oh no, don't let the rain come down
My roof's got a hole in it and I might drown
Oh yes, my roof's got a hole in it and I might drown
Well, this crooked little man and his crooked little smile
Took a crooked sixpence and he walked a crooked mile
Bought some crooked nails and a crooked little bat
Tried to fix his roof with a rat-a-tat-tat
Now this crooked little man and his crooked cat and mouse
They all live together in a crooked little house
Has a crooked door with a crooked little latch
Has a crooked roof with a crooked little patch
Uh-huh, oh no, don't let the rain come down
Uh-huh, oh no, don't let the rain come down
Uh-huh, oh no, don't let the rain come down
My roof's got a hole in it and I might drown
Oh yes, my roof's got a hole in it and I might drown."
~ Written & Performed by The Serendipity Singers (1964)
Crooked windows, crooked man, crooked cat and mouse doors.
This is the second in a series of playhouses built for the children who visit the botanical gardens this summer. Each is based on a piece of children's literature or poetry. The first we visited was Jack's House. Now we are focusing on a crooked man... or his house that is. From a distance you see a tall purple pipe sticking up from the very crooked roof of this house. Then it moves and moves again and the sun glints off of a shiny surface up top. What could it be? A periscope disguised as a stove pipe!
The house is crooked, the windows odd shapes and the front doors.... bright orange with the shadow... or silhouette of the crooked man. The siding is made wood shingles of different sizes and colors; cream, purple, bright green and ORANGE! On closer inspection, kids were hovering around the periscope... it really worked! And look there.... little doors in the wall cut especially for the crooked cat and the crooked mouse!
Up periscope!!!
As with all the playhouses, this one will be auctioned off at the end of the summer and a lucky boy or girl will have this in his/her backyard. It is bright and colorful and perfectly fitting for the Saturday PhotoHunt ..... "orange".
Oh! Yes! This poem always reminds me of the song written and first performed in 1964 by a group of folk singers, The Serendipity Singers. I believe Trini Lopez also performed it later as well.
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