'Twas brilling.

Bill Brandt was inspired to write a parody of Lewis Carroll's "Jabberwocky." As he explains: "When I came across a parody called 'Jabber-Whacky' by Isabelle DiCaprio in the January 1964 issue of Mad Magazine, I was inspired to try and write a more current day parody called 'Jabberhackey'. I am sending it to you for Kickshaws. I have also included the parody by DiCaprio and the original by Carroll so you can see how things have evolved." Unfortunately, the Mad parody would require copyright permission. Carroll's version can be found by doing a Google search. However, it couldn't bother the copyright lawyers too much if I were to pull a "fair usage" and include the first stanza of DiCaprio's as well as Carroll's, following Bill's version here ...

Jabberhackey

   'Twas byte-ing, and the cookie coding
   Did ROM and RAM-ble on the LAN;
   The downloads had the spyware checking,
   And all the applications ran.

   "Beware the internet, my son!
   The worms that bite, the spams that catch!
   Beware the motherboard, and shun
   The java memory patch!"

   He took his memory stick in hand;
   Long time the password key he sought--So
   rested by the firewall core,
   And sat awhile in thought.

   And, as in router thought he sat
   The internet, in its domain,
   Came uploading through the memory chips,
   With graphics as it came.

   One, two! One, two! Through binary code
   The memory stick went double click!
   He left it dead, and with its bits
   Programming he went back.

   "And hast thou slain the internet?
   Come to my website by bug free boy!
   Oh Acer day! Sony, Gateway!"
   He networked in his joy!

   'Twas byte-ing, and the cookie coding
   Did ROM and RAM-ble on the LAN;
   The downloads had the spyware checking,
   And all the applications ran.

from Jabber-Whacky
(on dreaming, after falling asleep watching TV)
by Isabelle DiCaprio

   'Twas Brillo, and the G.G. Stoves,
   Did Procter-Gamble in the Glade;
   All Pillsbury were the Taystee loaves,
   And in a Minute Maid.

from Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll

   'Twas brillig, and the slithy toves
   Did gyre and gimble in the wabe;
   All mimsy were the borogoves,
   And the mome raths outgrabe.

DAVID MORICE

Iowa City, Iowa