Don't play dumb
nor pretend to be interested,
nor brag to me what you
have never been.
Poor little monkey,
I've had you for four months,
well dressed and well groomed,
in a petticoat made of pure silk.
And patent-leather shoes
and ha hai, it even makes me laugh,
and I roar with laughter,
and ha hai, because of this monkey.
How unfortunate,
and even a mouthful now
gets stuck
at the thought of the cost
of the dresses and the fittings
and the patent-leather shoes.
Little monkey, would you look at that?
Now you don't want to go to the movies
that charges a cent
because you say that that's
where broke people go.
Poor little monkey,
if you're really annoyed now,
don't you remember
scrubbing the kitchen,
being someone's maid?1
And ha hai, it even makes me laugh,
and I roar with laughter,
and ha hai, because of this monkey.
How unfortunate,
and even a mouthful now
gets stuck
at the thought of the cost
of the dresses and the fittings
and the patent-leather shoes,
they taste of me.
1. lit. 'the boss' cat'.