A few things I noticed about this party

Broken glass in the sink = party foul.
We know who you are. One of these days, there will be broken glass in your sink. Count on it.

Hard to relax when you're worried about people having fun.
How does Ron do it? I'll never know.

Argh!
This is heartfelt. But I really have to keep it to myself.
--
Actually, in retrospect, 'Argh' is too much. Some people are just like that. You know? You have to expect it of them. Just relax.

a non-emo poem for once

Yep, I am so happy I wrote a non-emo poem I'm going to break my rules and write them down in reverse order of how they were written - the positive poem goes first, even though I wrote it afterwards.


Oyster

The world is my oyster.
What does that mean?
Roll it over in my hands,
Admire the shell.
The world is turning
At my command.
Feel ridges on the palms of my hands.
Watch the blue-green shimmer in the light.
Open it carefully.
Touch it where it glistens.
Trace the liquid on the surface.
Bring it to my lips
Sip salty-sweet water
Taste the world slowly.
Move my nails around the edges.
Grasp it firmly.
Tear it from the shell,
Brutally.
Swallow it.
I am chewing on the continents,
Drinking the oceans, I consume it.
Pry the suckers from the shell,
Clean it; wash it; drill holes in it.
Wear the world for earrings as a sign.
I have it on a chain;
The world is mine.


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This thing (won't honor it by calling it a poem) is something I wrote in Workshop. We had to pair objects with actions.

Whipped cream drips down the cup.
The napkin absorbs the drop.
She holds it up in her hand.
I trace coffee on my mug.
She complains about the coffee here.
I watch ladies tracing paper.
She smokes her Marlboro Red.
I smoke my ultralight.
She flicks it in the street.
We walk along the street.
She looks in storefronts.
I watch her shirt collar.
I'm drinking Shinerbock.
She drinks her Magic Hat.
The river's cold and still.
My car echoes with chill.

A couple more to do

I wrote this one up last night, kinda cheesy I guess. Well got to get it out anyway.

--------------------
Nothing like the night in a strange house
To make your mind turn in circles;
Nothing like the night to clarify
Your thoughts, your life
Nothing like the night to see
Where you are and have been
Nothing like the night
For feeling pain.
Tomorrow I can wake and say
"Here's a new day
Here's a sun rise"
But in the night I see the mirror
In the empty dark, in the strange house
Nothing but chill air against my skin;
Nothing like travel to see again.
--------------------------------

Hey, this one's actually positive, so there. Take that!

For J and G

You were drunk, I was driving
Singing with the radio
Offhand I said I'm done with music
And you said together, "no
What a shame to lose your voice."
I dropped the subject, reached the store
And as it does the night went on
And we never heard that song
Again; but when time's dust sifts
Into my throat, numbness grips,
I cling so gently to the thought
That two good friends once loved my voice.

Some thoughts on personals

Here are some personal (ha!) thoughts on the personals.

------------------------
Dear blonde girl at CVP
I still see you there facing me
Tables away I see your face
So delicate, the red lips
Raising the longneck and sipping
All evening;
I said "excuse me," all
I said when we passed in the hall.
And hours later when we left I saw
A man beside you, leaning back
And like the coward I am I went
On; not knowing the score
I quit the game. Someday
I want to see you again
And say 'hello' - what will you say
But I know that day will never come.
Ron didn't remember you
We looked the same way all night
Why do I see that face, those lips?
My chest is tight, mind gripped
Teeth ache, can't sleep
You're all I see
Blonde girl at CVP.

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OH yeah, this gets worse.

--------------------------

My Personals Ad

"Damaged only need apply here
Is a half shell, a discard
Come for service
You're welcome; don't scratch
The surface, there's nothing there
To reach - Living in foyers and entrances
Eying the door inside, Kicked out I
Slink back again.
Closet romantic, I keep it
Beaten half to death, starved, locked
In its room under a landfill
No exit; no chance."

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Having fun yet?

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Me: posing, unsure. Afraid.
Nothing left there to give. Witty.
A fat pig.
You: confused, secure. Marking
Your time; until you meet someone who
"blows your mind."
Me: cat-scared, careful. Nervous
of loud noises, glasses, emails,
phone calls.
You: too young, too old. Waiting
for the right one, right time. Love,
wine.
Me: lost on the path. Freezing
outside, looking at your back door.
You: hurt, scared. Worried
You'll let in the wrong one, like
Before.

Boston Poems

Girding my loins and writing these up before they get any older.

You know how it is. I can't let them sit.

Not the phone
I thought I felt it in my breast
Pocket; but it's not the phone
The tremble in my chest -
The face is blank; it's not the phone.

---------------------------------------------------------

Ambulatory
Shuffling, they meet at the pass
Don't look each other in the eye
He swam every morning then,
Said he'd handle everything,
Now he's a fast fish in this sea
Of slow walkers, ladies years his younger.
When he said to my little cousin
"Don't worry, I'll handle it,"
I almost broke down there and then
We've exhausted him. Exhumed it;
Thin white and dried, rough as his cheek.

I've been drinking

Well, I went to Boston and all I brought back was some stupid poems.
Some of which are too personal to put in here, some are not ready.

-----------------------
People I called today
Every woman I know, seems like
John. He answered. We may hang out later
My boss at work
People that called me
A friend of mine from work
My wife's psychiatrist
My housemate

Stuff I like to do while drinking vodka
Work
Ogle women
Get red in the face
Go outside for a bit
Write bad poetry

some doggerel

Well here's some doggerel.

On Waiting

Waiting for your call is such
Delicate agony; I thought
"Why not wait for two or three?"
A job, contract, a role or two
And thus building anxiety
Avoid the thought of calling you.

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Thanks Pal!

How cryptic people are
They want to say
"Avoid mistakes I made!"
Trying too hard
Couched in a careful phrase -
My friend, just tell me what to do;
You'll feel more honest though
I'll still end up ignoring you.