BARBARIA, MY POOR LAND,
I MOURN 'CAUSE THERE'S NO AMEND
(Sixty Six Humorous Sextets) — English Adaptation — Cut To About 10 % — Excerpts!
Jotata-Atatoj, 2020
Known also as Ivancho Jotata, Ochnavi Atatoj, Ivan Bugarow, Jotabash Giaurgi, Nostradamus Buladamus, and other cloning names
[ Abstract: This is English adaptation, what means translation of translatable, i.e. of prosaic part, of one unexpected poetical impromptu of mine, written in the end of corona and protest for Bulgaria 2020 year, which I have never thought to write before, but when our people continue to protest (for half an year) then how can Jotata stay silent? This time these are sextets of type ABABBA, which begin like usual 4-lines rhymed by a line and then reflecting the last 2 lines in a mirror, so that we get 2 triple rhymes. These miniatures in the most shameless (yet deserved) manner spit at our democratic "achievements", that put us at the rightful last place in the European Union. Here in sense of sarcasm the colleague Botev remains far behind the author (thinks the latter). If you like the democracy, our and generally, then do not waste your time in reading of such vomit works (is the advice of the author). ]
[ Idea for illustration of the cover: Hm, in the original is meant some lectern, (the title says that "I cry from the lectern"), on which in the churches are put the important books, the annals, but in this case this stand has to be state's one, with a pair of lions ahead, or which support it, and behind it has to stand the modest Jotata (who, being a midget, may have even stepped on a podium). Yeah, but it will be better if the lion here is one, and to be ridden by Jotata, and the stand can be fastened over his mane, in this way it will be more intriguing. And it will be even better if the artist depicts the lion … standing on his hind legs, as if a horse. What concerns Bulgarian barbarian public, it is better if it will be shown from the back (as symbol for its reluctance to listen to this lion-rider). And even better if there will be little arrows which come out of bubbles, where is written, respectively: "Jotata", "lectern", "Bar-bar-ia". That's it, and as picture in a frame, with dimensions 450 x 450 pixels, under the author and the title. ]
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CONTENTS
Foreword
Word (sixty six humorous sextets)
Afterword
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FOREWORD
Sirs, this book I had, naturally, no intention to write, but when, for one thing, our people protest, raise noise not knowing what exactly they want, yet make noise (because now is the moment), and, for another thing, I have gained momentum in this jubilee for me year (I made 70), having written one after another (well, under different name) 5-6 poetical collections with various foolish things, by a month for a book and then the next one, and decided to produce something also under this name, and, for a third thing, I continue to have grudge against the entire Bulgarian public for this, that it, as we say, does not count me even for a plum, so that I meet every occasion for spitting with open arms and joy in my heart. And there, of course, are reasons to spit at everything and everybody in my country, because we, since the coming of this damned thing, the democracy, either sink further down, or stick to the mud, but there is no escaping it! Now we are absolutely a bit better than before some 30 years, but relatively, compared with other near and far, post- or non- communist countries, we are always at the end, worse than in the third world, really!
Let me give you at least one comparison: I personally, scientific worker, ancestral intellectual, with more than 2 tertiary educations, got in 3 different countries, and having in the time of my "sunset" good command over 3 foreign languages (plus my mother Bulgarian), having written only under this pseudonym for 3 years more than 30 different papers with valuable observations and propositions, which I have by my hand translated in 4 languages, still receive pension in amount of 4 (going to 5) ... bus tickets daily for all expenses (and these are all my earnings). Or otherwise put, my pension equals 1/3 MMS (Minimal Monthly Salary), what is 7 times less than the average one (if we take it for 2 and 1/3 minimal ones), which is roughly 7 times worse than the average situation in Europe, or till here only 50 times lower income than the minimal, yet I, after all, am not some nincompoop, so that I can with reasons say, that receive at least 100 (hundred) times less than this what I deserve (because I continue to work before the computer at least 6 hours daily, and twist verses in the nights)! Well, such like me have remained probably about hundred persons in the country, at most thousand, but these who live below whatever limits of misery (poverty is a nice word, dignified), despite the integration money that they receive [we have introduced for some years even such wonders — because have done everything possible to disintegrate the nation], plus their pension (or have not even the latter), so these people are of the order of 1 million souls, gentlemen!
Because I, as "learned" (according to the anecdote [we have a series of anecdotes about the learned people, where the most representative is that: The learned is capable of everything — you close him even in the water closet and he will find what to … eat there!]), can manage well with some 2 to 3 times less money than the others, I am for the moment also kerngesund, where the others spend a heap of money for medicaments, so that all incomes below even one whole MMS (600 lv [or 300 Euro] roughly in 2020) per person are taken for poor earnings, and 1/2 MMS is already miserable income for the major part of Bulgarians. And this is consequence only of our democracy, of the bad model of it, not of one or another political party but of all of them taken together, yet nobody, from the top to the bottom of population, cares about this, the people just don't know what to do, everybody looks to grasp as much as he can and while he can, what is unmoral according to every religion! Glad are only the young ones, because they have no basis for comparison and nobody scolds them that they want only to screw, some 10 percents or so small tradesmen and workmen, who work for nothing and wipe each other's … #sses, so to say, and are able to pay to other colleagues for some things, with money taken from the same other persons yet for something else, and some 3-4 % business and political oligarchy, who run big money, but their offspring are nearly all drug addicts. Add to this also the lack of whatever morality in a country of unbelievers, the absence of families as building block of the society, the blossoming of homosexuality, the decline of civilization worldwide, and some other details, and it turns out that now we are leading, definitely, much more dissolute life than our parents and grandparents!
But enough moralizing, gaudeamus igitur, or let us rejoice a little with funny verses addressed at people, who are far from the troubles of ordinary Bulgarians. Because in this situation of national protests each one takes part in his own way, or like the poet [Ivan Vazov] has put it, and in my paraphrasing:
[The rhyme is of the type AABBCCDD and I think that have bettered the rhyming and the rhythm, yet drastically changed the meaning (to make it sound up to date). All verses, as said, are not rhymed, and as near as possible to the original, where are used many untranslatable jargon words.]
Every different age, class, gender, and occupation,
has taken part in this activity,
only the wealthier has secluded himself and scratches his … prick;
and there is no learned left, the shipment is in the West.
All girls have become cashiers,
all boys go crazy with heads like flasks,
and he, poor, naked, barefooted, without money,
rummages in … garbage cans, and threads verses like beads!
And it can be even said that this is one new "Epopee of the forgotten", only that while Vazov has meant forgotten by the people heroic personalities, Jotata means forgotten by the masses obvious reasons for our messes, that are reduced chiefly to lack of accord and unity on basic questions of our reality, to shifting of the accents of the politics, and, ultimately, to the barbarity of a nation of unbelievers, which has lost whatever morality it has had, because it was pro-communist one. In this situation there are only two future tendencies before is, and we are making bold steps on both paths. On one hand this is the moving of everyone who can do this abroad — saving of the rats from the sinking ship, yet the rats are brave and intelligent animals, they are not to be despised —, and on the other hand, this is the increasing of non-Bulgarian ethnicity, which ethnos, as a rule, is more moral than us! When moving of not big amount of (barbarian) Bulgarians amidst civilized nations we manage good and fast to do well there, and also better the gene in those countries, they accept us probably because of this. And when increasing of ethnical Turks and Arabs by us we also became more composed and respectful to the others, which qualities we usually lack. Id est, these both ways are not only unavoidable, but also natural and right, from this win all, both we and the others, yet this under condition that we can not or want not to search some coalition with Slavonic nations, that we reject the traditional for us Russophilia from the Revival times [of freeing from Turkish yoke in the end of 19-th century)]. Yeah, but nobody shows the things in such light.
Now something about the very verses. Well, they are sextets, how it is said in the subtitle, and when so I have decided that they have to be exactly 66 (sixty six), and they begin like usual 4-line couplet with alternating rhymes, of the type ABAB, yet later the last 2 lines are reflected like in mirror and give ABABBA, where are 2 rhyming triplets, what is not so easy for writing, but Jotata searches difficulties (he also with the girls looks that they have it smaller, right?), and also using pretty crazy words here and there this turns not to be very difficult. As in this zero number couplet, for acquaintance [without rhymes]:
* * *
Let us now try this here sextet
with pretty strangely mixed six lines.
It's suitable for every single poet,
and how I look now at it,
I can foresee the next advancement
of my poetical … shabby cart.
So that, on the road, my not many readers, 400 poetical lines await you.
[ And let me add at the end that the original Bulgarian title says literally "My Barbary Land, Cry I From The Lectern (Sixty Six Humorous Sextets)", but I found the current title as more suitable in English. Also all verses here are 34 %, i.e. 1/3 of the whole volume and they are somehow translated, you will get the basic idea, while 2/3 are translated exactly, plus that on many places are given additional explanations, so that you will lose not much, in this way the material is perfect for initial acquaintance, if you don't know Bulgarian language.
Ah, and because I use a heap of jargon words I will explain them more or less, but for the citing of Bulgarian words I will need to use one widely met, in the old and the new languages, vowel, which is like in your "girl", and which I will mark as 'y'; also with single quotes I will give the reading; then 'j' will be used for softening of the consonants, while 'h' will be for hardening, and together with this 'j' will be used for making of diphthongs (like in may-'maj'), and 'h' for prolongation of vowels; plus that the usage of 'ch, sh, zh' must be obvious. ]
Nov. 2020, Sofia, Barbaria (given usually as Bulgaria, for euphony)
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Etc. …
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END
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