Pretend, for a moment, this poem is a spectacular cat gif, and you like it. You like it very much. You like your liking it, and you share or reblog, perhaps you’ll even tweet, instagram, or vine; you’ll repost in every imaginable format and your friends will follow and follow, like and like, to theContinue reading “#157: A Spectacular Cat Gif”
Author Archives: michaeljarmer
#156: The Desire to Write a Terzanelle
The desire to write a terzanelle runs smack dab up against too much shit to do as well. I don’t want to feel incensed, about constantly fighting time, running smack dab up against the incessant daily grind and all of my complaining about constantly fighting time. The afternoon is waning and pretty soon it will be darkContinue reading “#156: The Desire to Write a Terzanelle”
#155: The Poet Addresses His Poem in Crayon on a Napkin at a Restaurant
Poem, why the firetruck are you written on this napkin? You think you can just show up any old place? Have you no self-respect? What will people say, your lines and stanzas just hanging out like this in the open air? You’re disgusting.
#154: A Dialogue?
Student: This class sucks. It’s boring. All we do in here is read and write and talk. And I have no idea why I’m failing. I can’t find my pencil. Could I borrow a piece of paper? When can we watch a movie? Oh my god, I just got a text and I have toContinue reading “#154: A Dialogue?”
#153: My Son Loves Cows
My Son Loves Cows He used to love hamburgers, but now he loves cows and is experiencing his first serious moral dilemma in his 9 years on Earth. The last time we fired up the grill he wept through the whole meal. You don’t have to eat it, son; on this occasion we WILL makeContinue reading “#153: My Son Loves Cows”
#152: Gertrude Stein on the Beach
Writing, and doing something like research for the new novel, I spend the weekend with Gertrude Stein at the Sylvia Beach Hotel. My character had been there before me, learns that Stein was against the question mark on principle, enjoyed a view as long as her back was turned against it, wrote a novel, called it anContinue reading “#152: Gertrude Stein on the Beach”
#151: Mistakes Are Made
Publishing on the fly is like this: I make premature postings, find typographical errors, inappropriate emoji, or worse, one or two times I’ve accidentally liked myself. While attempting a poem with my phone, mistakes are made and become immediately public– my dumb ass on display for the whole world, or, at least, the tiny fraction of it that’s actuallyContinue reading “#151: Mistakes Are Made”
#150: Sick Dog (an Abecedarian)
At 3 in the morning, no Barking, but an old dog fails the attempt to Climb the stairs, Drops back down: Early, the dog is sick. Fuck. Shit everywhere, God awful stench, Holding back my own retching, In every room of the main floor, I’m Juggling paper towels, disinfectant, Kitchen linoleum scrub, Livid, trying not toContinue reading “#150: Sick Dog (an Abecedarian)”
#149: Unspeakable
Unspeakable I’m trying to find words to describe how I feel when, during a reading from Elie Wiesel’s Night, I look up and see students looking at their phones. One student, in particular, looks at me, and without irony, without hesitation, and without, I would say, consciousness, says, as if it were a legitimate explanation, that sheContinue reading “#149: Unspeakable”
#148: I’ve Got To Write A Poem
I’ve Got to Write a Poem The boy says, daddy, come play with me, and I say, no son, I’ve got to write a poem. A pitfall of national poetry writing month: potentially bad, or at least neglectful parenting. Oh, damn, that’s right, he says, it’s April. You never play with me in April. AndContinue reading “#148: I’ve Got To Write A Poem”
michael jarmer 