A n d r e w s G u m W o r l d

IMAGE: Kauwgomballenboom by
Dutch artist Willemijn van der Spiegel

Earlier today, we posted a video featuring the early 1970’s Dutch hit Kauwgomballenboom (or, The Gum Tree) by Elly Nieman and Rikkert Zuiderveld. I realize that you may not readily understand Dutch (as is the case with me)….so here is a rough English translation of the lyrics (with some modest paraphrases, where appropriate) courtesy of Googletranslate and then the song, as it was originally written, in Dutch — if you don’t need help with translation (Dutch lyrics courtesy of musicfrom.nl):

Right in the garden of my silly old uncle
(There is a) gum tree, gum tree, a real (gum tree)
With a hundred thousand balls for a penny and a penny
They just (look) down (to see) if you’re awake
They are all together from the branches of the tree
Right in the garden of my uncle

And every Monday (there) is the party in the street
Then all the children sing and no one comes too late
Because my uncle then climbs to the top of the tree
As he shakes the branches
And the (gum)balls stick,
But he (thows them) down
That we may (take them)
Until we (are chewing) and smacking
Right in the garden of my uncle

You know what is best in your case
Take a gum, a big gumball
You do not have to buy for a penny and a penny
Just (take) a walk when you’re awake
Then (just) look (for) the gum tree
Right in the garden of my uncle

Because every Sunday is the party in the street
Then all the children sing and no one comes too late
Because then my uncle (shakes) all (the gum)balls from the tree
Why are you still moping
Get your Bulls and your piping
(Don’t) let your jaw freeze
Because what do you have to lose
(Other) than your teeth and your choice
Long live my crazy old uncle

—

Midden in het tuintje van mijn oude malle oom
Staat een kauwgomballenboom, een echte kauwgomballenboom
Met honderdduizend ballen voor een stuiver en een cent
Die zie je zomaar zitten als je uitgeslapen bent
Ze vallen met z’n allen uit de takken van de boom
Midden in het tuintje van mijn oom

En elke zondagmiddag is het feest in de straat
Dan zingen alle kinderen en niemand komt te laat
Want dan klimt me oom naar het topje van de boom
Daar schudt ie aan de takken
En de ballen die daar plakken
Laat ie naar beneden kwakken
Die mogen wij dan pakken
Tot we smikkelen en smakken
Midden in het tuintje van me oom

Weet je wat het beste is in jouw geval
Neem een kauwgombal, een hele grote kauwgombal
Je hoeft hem niet te kopen voor een stuiver en een cent
Gewoon een stukje lopen als je uitgeslapen bent
Dan kom je zonder zoeken bij de kauwgomballenboom
Midden in het tuintje van mijn oom

Want elke zondagmiddag is het feest in de straat
Dan zingen alle kinderen en niemand komt te laat
Want dan schudt mijn oom alle ballen uit de boom
Waarom zit je nog te kniezen
Pak je bullen en je biezen
Laat je kaken niet bevriezen
Want wat heb je te verliezen
Dan je tanden en je kiezen
Leve me ouwe malle oom…

D+H, originally uploaded by meighan w..

IMAGE: Brisbane Times

Friday morning’s Brisbane Times features a review of Cartier’s newest scent, “Roadster” (pictured above), a cologne targeted at both men and women.

The scent was created by Mathilde Laurent, who left Guerlain to become Cartier’s bespoke perfumer in 2005.

The review notes that in her work at Cartier, Laurent’s goal has been to make perfume “worthy of Cartier’s clientele and not for the sake of publicity.”

As the review goes on to note (again, emphasis ours):

Roadster, her first non-bespoke fragrance for Cartier, bears the symbols of a watch of the same name, down to its cap that mimics the crown of the Cartier timepiece.

Marketing aside, Laurent has mingled a mint of awesome proportions with earthy vetiver, warm resins and soft vanilla. Her mint isn’t strident like toothpaste or hygienic like chewing gum but sultry and sophisticated. Think antebellum American plantation, not ante-room waiting for the dentist.

Speedway, originally uploaded by JTWilcox.

Today’s Hometown newspaper from suburban Detroit reported on a gum related burgalry at a local Speedway gas station.

As the local crime watch article reports, under the heading “Sticky Fingers”:

Twenty-one boxes of chewing gum — containing 244 packs of assorted varieties — with a retail value of $339 were reported stolen Aug. 28 from a Speedway gas station on Sheldon Road. The theft occurred between 9 p.m., Aug. 27, and 6:30 a.m. the next day.

A police report said a security video shows two different men standing by the gum display, at different times, during the period the theft occurred. One appeared to have an accomplice who was distracting the attendant near a Lottery machine, police said.

il est interdit de manger des chewing gum dans la classe,
originally uploaded by _aurore_.

Arithmetic, originally uploaded by kunja.

We’re always fond of research that shows chewing gum makes you, well, smarter.

Earlier this year, the Los Angeles Times reported on a research project funded by Wrigley at the Baylor College of Medicine. Those who took part in the study either chewed sugar-free gum during math class, during math homework, during math tests, or they didn’t chew gum at all.

After 14 weeks, the students took a math test and had their math grades assessed. As the Times reported:

Those who chewed gum had a 3% increase in standardized math test scores and had final math grades that were significantly better than the other students. Teachers observed that those who chewed gum seemed to require fewer breaks, sustain attention longer and remain quieter.

While the research didn’t fully explain what the relationship was between gum chewing and math improvement, the lead researcher on the study, Dr. Craig Johnston, said that “there is research demonstrating an increase in blood flow in the brain during chewing.”

The study was presented at the Annual Meeting of Experimental Biology 2009 in New Orleans this past April.

IMAGE: Enfield Independent.

Ben Wilson, a British artist who turns discarded gum into artwork (we’ve featured him before in AndrewsGumWorld) recently lost his jacket in Enfield, Middlesex and the local newspaper, the Independent published a plea last week for its return:

Ben Wilson, 45, of Muswell Hill, was devastated to discover he had walked off without his fluorescent jacket when touching up unsightly underfoot deposits at the base of the fountain in the market square.

“That jacket has been keeping the rain and snow off me for the past four and a half years and has people’s tags and signatures on” he said.

Anyone who finds the jacket is encouraged to contact the reporter of the article, Hannah Crown.

IMAGE: Sail-World.com.

Three Texas fishermen were rescued this past weekend after being lost at sea for a week. The three boaters were found 180 miles from land after a Coast Guard search that covered nearly 86,000 square miles. They were discovered while still with their capsized catamaran, Affordable Fantasy.

An ABC News report on the rescue detailed how the men stayed alive until they were found (emphasis ours):

The Coast Guard officials said they survived because they stuck with the boat. The men also rationed bubble gum and crackers and used a hose to suck fresh water out of the internal “washdown” tank. Fishermen often keep such a tank to wash fish slime off their boat when they are out in the salt water.

IMAGE: Media.

Clemenger BBDO, an ad agency in Australia, has helped Wrigley plunge into the world of social media by creating The 5 Feed, a website designed to help the gum company “connect with young people who increasingly demand digital involvement and greater creativity; ‘an audience that is seeking, sharing and remixing culture.’”

In a piece earlier this summer in Media, it described the agency’s creation of The 5 Feed site, “a social platform that invites the public to download and remix works from commissioned Australian designers, artists and musicians.”

 You can explore that site, and do your own remixing of culture, here.

ps Wrigley 5 gum flavo(u)r translation guide from the Land Down Under:

Pulse (Australia) = Lush (North America)

Electro = Rain

Cobalt = Cobalt