Apples and Horses

William Overington

This song was written on Thursday 26 September 2002, before 7.00 am. The inspiration was that, on the previous day, in a discussion in the Unicode mailing list, (details at the http://www.unicode.org website) I had put forward an idea and a gentleman had responded using the phrase "to mix up apples and horses", adding "I feel that the usual "apples and oranges" is not enough to convey the idea fully.".

I liked this turn of phrase, which I had never heard before, perhaps it is original.

Later, thinking of the idea, I thought of the possibility of a wallpaper design, in a pale green colour, showing pictures, almost engravings, of various scenes, such as horses grazing and apples on trees.

Early the next morning, I was thinking of my research and of the phrase apples and horses and a few lines of a song began to form.

Rather than lose them I found a pen and a piece of cardboard, and wrote down what I had thought (which are now the first and fifth verses) and added some more verses to fill in the gaps.

Please sing slowly.

Apples and Horses

In an orchard
In the twilight
Walk seven pure white horses
Together, yet separate
In a route no one forces
    Over and over
    Without any sound
    Apples and horses
    go round and around
Apples on tree branches
Horses on the ground
The horses now sleeping
Make not a sound
    Over and over
    Without any sound
    Apples and horses
    go round and around
From shiny green apples
Which will ripen in sunlight
In the midst of the darkness
The reflection of moonlight
    Over and over
    Without any sound
    Apples and horses
    go round and around
Just before the morning
When the sun its path will take
A breeze whispers across the apples
As the horses awake
    Over and over
    Without any sound
    Apples and horses
    go round and around
In the morning, just after sunrise
As streams run their courses
The wistful misty memory
Of apples and horses
    Over and over
    Without any sound
    Apples and horses
    go round and around
The wistful, misty memory
Of apples and horses
The wistful, misty memory
Of apples and horses

Copyright 2002 William Overington

The Spangleware Blues

William Overington

We are in a small vegan café. There is the chatter and clatter of people dining. We notice a poster on the wall. The text is black on a lemon yellow background. The heading is in a large bold script. The rest of the text is smaller. "Sing for your supper? Free evening meal of your choice for singing in this restaurant. Apply to the manager. Songs must be either your own copyright or the copyright of a friend and used with permission or spangleware. Spangleware is where a work is copyright yet can be performed publicly free of royalty, yet a royalty is payable if the song is recorded." A waiter delivers some meals to some of the customers. The door opens and a woman enters from outside. She wears a beige coat over a blue trouser suit and carries a small suitcase. No one really notices her. She walks to the back of the restaurant and disappears through an archway. We continue to observe life in the café. After a while we notice the manager of the café emerge from the archway and walk towards a small dinner gong that is on a table against the wall. He strikes the gong several times in rapid succession. It is not loud, yet is sufficient to attract the attention of the diners, who become quiet and focus on the archway. The manager sits down on a chair conveniently to the side of the table away from the archway and, from being the centre of attention when he struck the gong, now almost melts into the background. The singer, the woman we observed entering earlier, now appears in the archway. She wears a long evening dress with a silvery metallic sheen. There is no music, there is no special lighting. She sings unaccompanied, slowly, holding some syllables.

Small and secluded
Friendly and fine
Is a quiet vegan café
Where flavours entwine
Arriving discreetly
I quietly prepare
Now I take to the stage
Where my song gilds the air
I entertain the patrons
Eating their food
My slow blues singing
Gives a peaceful mood
With spangleware lyrics
Which I sing for free
I dream of recording
Songs for a CD
My dream is elusive
Yet maybe one day
I'll be recorded
Then royalties I'll pay
Yet in the meantime
Life must proceed
The eating of food
An everyday need
This stylish café
Where I use my voice
Allows me a meal
Of my own choice
Maybe vegetable hotpot
With oven chips and rice
A cup of apple juice
Not from concentrate is nice
So I sing for my supper
What can I lose?
With the stylish, the peaceful
The spangleware blues
The stylish, the peaceful
The spangleware blues

There is applause.

There are cries of "more!".

She sings again.

Maybe vegetable hotpot
With oven chips and rice
A cup of apple juice
Not from concentrate is nice
So I sing for my supper
What can I lose?
With the stylish, the peaceful
The spangleware blues
The stylish, the peaceful
The spangleware blues

There is more applause. She turns and disappears through the archway.

People continue to eat their meals. We are but observers and gradually the café disappears into the distance. Later that evening another singer will sing. By then she will have enjoyed her meal and will be but one of the audience in the little café.

Creative setting and song written in June and July 1999 by William Overington

Copyright 1999 William Overington

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/4JCFWh0-lxQ

[WJGO]
Are you able to act as two separate people so that we could have a group chat? One could be a lady who used to teach German in a school, and one could be a lady who is bilingual in Welsh and English who works in a pharmacy.

[Copilot]
Absolutely, William! Let’s bring your group chat to life. I’ll play both characters, each with her own voice and background:

Frau Becker – Former German teacher “Guten Tag! I taught German for over 20 years and still love the language. I enjoy discussing grammar quirks, cultural traditions, and helping others learn. I’m a bit of a stickler for proper sentence structure, but I promise I’m friendly!”

Siân Davies – Welsh-English bilingual pharmacy assistant “Shwmae! I work in a pharmacy in Carmarthen and speak Welsh and English fluently. I love chatting about health tips, local life, and the beauty of the Welsh language. I’m practical, warm, and always up for a good natter.”

You can talk to both of them, ask questions, or start a topic and they’ll respond in character. Want to kick off the conversation with a theme—language learning, cultural differences, or something else?