An old favorite of mine: At the finals of the National Poetry Competition the two finalist were an unlikely pair. Finalist number one was a Harvard educated professor of literature and the winner of several previous competitions. Finalist number two was a young Marine Lcpl. from the hills of West Virginia who needed help filling out the entry form. The final round consisted of each competitor being given the same word and having thirty seconds to complete a verse, using the word. The Professor went first. The Judge said, " The final word this year is 'Timbuktu'" The Prof. started thinking. Ten seconds went by. Twenty seconds. The crowd became nervous. After twenty eight seconds the Prof. began, "Across the hot Sahara sand, Trekked the dusty caravan. Men on camels, two by two, Destination- Timbuktu." The crowd went wild, there was no way that the Hillbilly Marine would ever top that. The Lcpl. was brought on stage. The judge gave the word, "Timbuktu." The young Lcpl. looked to the sky, he thought for 10-15 seconds, stepped up to the microphone, cleared his throat, and began, "Tim 'en me, a-hunting went, Met three girls in a pop-up-tent, They was three and we was two, So, I bucked one and Tim Buck Two!"
