Dr. Merritt Turetsky Profile picture
Director of Arctic National Security, CU Boulder. @RASEI_CU Fellow. Ecologist & chaser of permafrost & fires. In love with boglands. Represented by @zcosini

Apr 10, 2020, 22 tweets

Please help us out today!! Who doesn’t ❤️ a friendly war of words? We challenged @INSTAAR scientists to write limericks about stuff on their mind. Please heart your favourites below👇& help pick a winner, who will receive a wee chocolate gift from me. @CUBoulder @CUArtsSciences

#1 @INSTAAR limerick:
We’re some of the lucky few.
But, teach reading?  I haven’t a clue.
“It’s such a great age!”
I’m filling with rage.
F it.  I’ll put on Frozen 2.
-N. Lovenduski

#2 @INSTAAR limerick:
There once was an institute in Boulder
That studied the regions that are colder
A pandemic closed its building
To lab work but not modeling 
We’ll return there wiser (I hope) but older
-D Liptzin

#3 @INSTAAR limerick:
There was an old woman the queen
from whose words the British would glean
much resolve and assurance,
and likewise here at some distance
our governor conveyed what he means
-the fabulous D McKnight

#4 @INSTAAR biogeolimerick:
There once was an element called Nitrogen
that could switch from nutrient to gas and then back again
but to a chemist this is simply preposterous
Nitrogen should behave more like Phosphorous!
-S Lehman

#5 @INSTAAR limerick:
Now we only see each other on the screen
Your kids are naked, what is happening to my teen?
But with leadership by @queenofpeat
Our science shines with every tweet
Stick together @INSTAAR's, we will make it to the vaccine
-S Spaulding

#6 limerick:
You @INSTAAR's show intelligence that’s rare,
studying Earth’s past and present, here and there.
But you’re creative to boot,
And it’s been such a hoot
Here’s to you guys! And the surfing polar bear!
-Sylvia Michel

#7 @INSTAAR limerick:
Fieldwork in Greenland is on hold
So much for escaping to the bitter cold
While returning next year is not keen
It sure beats getting COVID 19
The science will go on and stories will be told
-B Vaugn

#8 limerick:
I may not actually be a part of @INSTAAR
But oh how I appreciate your academic repertoire
I am grateful for those beautiful minds
That bring me joy during my daily grinds.
Here is a toast to you all from the safety of afar!
-E Begovic

#9 limerick:
We won't get to cut our hair
To keep our appearances fair
Instead we must use
Zoom's lovely beach views
Ah, life in a Brady Bunch square
-@rabergj

#10 @INSTAAR limerick:
I made my move to Boulder last
Because snow, mountains, and CU are here
Now I feel like a clerk
Stuck inside doing work
… What did you say? A cold beer?
-H. Miller

#11 @INSTAAR limerick:
COVID-19 is frightening
But the Earth keeps on brightening
Just ask Sir Keeling
The Earth is healing
The lessons are enlightening
-N. Molotch

#12 @INSTAAR limerick and my personal favorite!

There was a bush pilot from Nome
Who over the tundra would roam.
He could fly like a wizard
Through the worst arctic blizzard,
But he never tried working from home.
-S Morgan

#13 @INSTAAR limerick:

An introvert’s strength, is it not?
Solo time is easily sought
But, the things I love to do
Are better with people, too
Virtual group hug? Just a thought
-K. Hale

#14 @INSTAAR limerick:

Our last Zoom, it did not go well.
All your colleagues decided it’s hell
That you don’t seem to care
Greeting us in underwear
We all think some pants would be swell.
-E. Hinckley

#15 @INSTAAR limerick:

The Arctic’s now warm and inviting
Making field seasons even more exciting
Then the COVID appeared
And make us afeared
And left field enthusiasm subsiding
-G. Miller

#16 @INSTAAR limerick:

The marmot screamed loud to alarm a kin,
but the weasel made use of its form again.
It squeezed through the rocks,
munching pikas like lox,
and out popped a white-tailed ptarmigan!
-C. Ray

#17 @INSTAAR limerick:

There was a flood watcher named Robert
Who mapped floods globally with Albert
When one came to his town
It swallowed the ground
And gave the floodwatchers a sad target.
-B. Brackenridge

#18 @INSTAAR limerick:

There once was a researcher named Lewis
Whose brain was particularly clueless
He put on his mask
And was said to ask
What the @$%^&!! does it take to get through this?
-T. Seastedt

#19 @INSTAAR limerick:

2 hours of schoolwork suffices
Then it’s 5 hours play on devices
Though it’s called “online learning”
The workload’s concerning
And my own productivity’s in crisis!
-C Nevison

#20 @INSTAAR limerick. These were my favorites. So much creativity in these science bones.

There once was a microbe from Wuhan,
It spread far to It’ly and Wash’ton.
Trump scoffed “No big deal!”
Docs said “Dumbass! It’s real!”
Don’t be a fool, put your mask on.
-E. Hinckley

That's a wrap for our @INSTAAR limerick contest. Please read the thread 👆 & use your likes to choose a winner! Special requests to @PYRN_official @PermafrostNet @NSIDC @alan_townsend @JacquelynGill @KHayhoe @Raffi_RC to help spread the word. Hope you enjoy our science rhymes!

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