«There once was a man by the name of Semyonov. / And Semyonov went out for a walk and lost his handkerchief. / And Semyonov started looking for a handkerchief and lost his hat. / And looking for a hat, he lost his jacket. / He began to look for a jacket and lost his boots. / – Yes – sa...»
«I love my country, but with a strange love — / stronger than reason!.. / Neither the fame that blood can buy, / nor the calm pride of confidence, / nor the time-honoured gifts of ignorant days / can stir my soul with dreams of happiness. But what I love — for some strange reason — ...»
«Choke all week in the fumes and air stinking / of fear, for the bare means of life; / spend the Saturday dozing and drinking, / with your arm round an unlovely wife. Then on Sunday by train for an outing, / with a rug to spread out on the grass, / just to doze off again, never doubting, /...»
«The stars glow blue. The trees are swaying. / A routine evening. Routine winter, too. / All is forgiven. Nothing’s forgiven. / Music and gloom. We are all heroes, we are all traitors; / all words are worthless, each and every one. / My dear contemporaries — / having fun?»