Streetplay Discussion Archive

Another version of the “o’lary” or O’Leary rhyme– One,two, three o”lary My first name is Mary If you think it’s necessary Look it up in the dictionary. We would sing this while bouncing an Indian rubber ball, and we would lift our leg over the ball at the end of each line–ie—o’lary, then Mary etc. When we were going to play tag, or hide and go seek we used to put our “dibs” up–(both hands made into fists) and one person would go around the circle and hit each person’s fist with hers, while we all sang “the song”. This was to determine who was “it” at the start of the tag, or hiding-go seek game. One such song was—“My mother gave your mother a punch in the nose. What colour was the blood? The person who’s fist was last hit—on the word blood–would call out a colour–ie-yellow-and the first person would spell the colour out-hitting each fist as she spelled it. When the final letter was said–ie-‘W”-the song would finish—as—“and you are IT. Funny song for kids to sing eh?? Did anyone ever do this type of song. We had quite a few different ones actually. I grew up in Ottawa, Canada–long time ago.