Senator Elizabeth Warren– she won’t allow any snorin’ but neither will she give us our fun; she refuses over and over to run. Friedrich Nietzsche could not be seen with a pee-chee; a notebook guy, clearly it’s true– how else could he pen Zarathu stra Michael Jarmer has become quite the verse farmer, but attempting some Clerihew funContinue reading “#166: A Couple of Clerihews”
Tag Archives: National Novel Writing Month
#159: Listening, Drinking, Watching
(a landay/ghazal hybrid) Last night–I stay up late listening: new records spin in the dark and there’s bourbon to sip. A police car pulls in across the street, lights ablaze, I leave my headphones on and watch. I cannot tell what is happening but there is no indication of violence here so I continue listening, watching as theContinue reading “#159: Listening, Drinking, Watching”
#158: Shopping for Records on the Anniversary of Paul Revere’s Ride
On the 240th anniversary of Paul Revere’s ride, I ride to Music Millennium for Record Store Day. I wait in line for an hour to get inside and while I wait I see a former student of mine whose friend (just along for the journey) is offered $100 by some dude with an ankle injury toContinue reading “#158: Shopping for Records on the Anniversary of Paul Revere’s Ride”
#157: A Spectacular Cat Gif
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”
#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.
#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”
#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)”
#147: Ode to Ears
Ode to Ears They say you only appreciate something once you’ve lost it. I didn’t lose my ears, literally, but rather, the use of them. Because some glob of wax lodged itself deep inside my ears, I have been dizzy deaf now for several days. A horrible experience, but worth it: the doctor reaches inContinue reading “#147: Ode to Ears”
#146: Ode to Pablo Neruda’s Odes
Ode to Pablo Neruda’s Odes The socks, the book, the storm, the fallen chestnut, the watch, the tomato, laziness, Pablo’s odes are tropical fish in a tank, darting back and forth, reaching for sky, coming up for air, going down deep for sunken treasure, the nourishment of the mundane. When the ordinary gets the special treatmentContinue reading “#146: Ode to Pablo Neruda’s Odes”
Forced Creativity Experiences (Only the Bad and the Ugly)
In my last blog entry, I waxed lovingly about the benefits and the necessary prerequisites to submitting oneself to a Forced Creativity Experience such as the National Novel or Poetry Writing Months in November and April, respectively, and my experience in a songwriting circle that does a similar thing in the musical realm. I subtitledContinue reading “Forced Creativity Experiences (Only the Bad and the Ugly)”