untitled (for my wife)
you are sleeping in my arms
as peaceful as a closed flower
the warmth of your breath
diffusing across my chest
like an ebbing tide
dancing away from the sure
i try to match
the rhythm of your lungs
out of phase to minimise
your rise and fall
the warmth of your closeness
a comfort i cling to
it is in moments like these
when i need you least
i treasure you most
19 November 2010
50PoWriMo - XXX
i might get that ...
once there was a girl
with a tattoo on her left cheek
that read
"something this true can never be vain"
her face thus adorned
she made her way through society
leaving in her wake
a trail of doubt and confusion
to what did her bold statement refer?
was it a statement of fact
or a philosophy?
was there a level of irony
or was there a flaw in the logic?
was there an absolute truth?
could there be a comparative truth?
for that matter
was there an absolute vanity?
was it some sort of in-joke?
were they no longer cool enough to understand?
was it real?
did it hurt?
would she live to regret it?
but noone ever asked her
they just stared and wondered
because the sort of girl
who has a tattoo on her face
might be too scary to talk to
once there was a girl
with a tattoo on her left cheek
that read
"something this true can never be vain"
her face thus adorned
she made her way through society
leaving in her wake
a trail of doubt and confusion
to what did her bold statement refer?
was it a statement of fact
or a philosophy?
was there a level of irony
or was there a flaw in the logic?
was there an absolute truth?
could there be a comparative truth?
for that matter
was there an absolute vanity?
was it some sort of in-joke?
were they no longer cool enough to understand?
was it real?
did it hurt?
would she live to regret it?
but noone ever asked her
they just stared and wondered
because the sort of girl
who has a tattoo on her face
might be too scary to talk to
18 November 2010
Stats - Day 18
poems written = 29
poems written per day = 1.6111
poems remaining = 21
required poems per day = 1.75
50PoWriMo - XXIX
i saw her on tv and half my life rolled back
manda rin, manda rin
she sets my hormones in a spin
i barely know where to begin
to talk about sweet manda rin
i love the shouty way she sings
for bis, data panik or the kitchen
she's the teen-c nation's queen
manda rin, manda rin
star of my teenage imaginings
since that photoshoot i'd seen
in melody maker magazine
(you know, where she's tricycling)
manda rin, manda rin
no matter where my heart has been
in all those moments in between
some part has always had her in
manda rin, manda rin
she sets my hormones in a spin
i barely know where to begin
to talk about sweet manda rin
i love the shouty way she sings
for bis, data panik or the kitchen
she's the teen-c nation's queen
manda rin, manda rin
star of my teenage imaginings
since that photoshoot i'd seen
in melody maker magazine
(you know, where she's tricycling)
manda rin, manda rin
no matter where my heart has been
in all those moments in between
some part has always had her in
50PoWriMo - XXVIII
i had a lot of time for introspection because i forgot my keys and had to wander the streets
there's nothing like doing something stupid
to focus the mind on all the stupid things you did
no matter what achievement may balance the scale, you're
only able to dwell on the failures
there's nothing like doing something stupid
to focus the mind on all the stupid things you did
no matter what achievement may balance the scale, you're
only able to dwell on the failures
17 November 2010
Stats - Day 17
poems written = 27
poems written per day = 1.5882
poems remaining = 23
required poems per day = 1.7692
poems remaining = 23
required poems per day = 1.7692
50PoWriMo - XXVII
just some of the many reasons why i have never been successful
i've never had a goal defined with any sense of clarity
i've never worked out how to make motivation
i've never reckoned anything is due to me
i've never shot for things above my station
i've never really not been cruising comfortably
i've never had the courage to commit
i've never mistaken dreaming for reality
i've never worked hard enough for it
i've never had a goal defined with any sense of clarity
i've never worked out how to make motivation
i've never reckoned anything is due to me
i've never shot for things above my station
i've never really not been cruising comfortably
i've never had the courage to commit
i've never mistaken dreaming for reality
i've never worked hard enough for it
50PoWriMo - XXVI
the poet or the marketeer
she would rather date
a successful french poet
than a man who works
in marketing
a reasonable mandate
i thought although it's
not knowledge based, just her
gut feeling
she would rather date
a successful french poet
than a man who works
in marketing
a reasonable mandate
i thought although it's
not knowledge based, just her
gut feeling
16 November 2010
Stats - Day 16
poems written = 25
poems written per day = 1.5625
poems remaining = 25
poems remaining = 25
required poems per day = 1.7857
so that's the half-way mark reached, and only a day behind schedule. i am running very low on ideas and inspiration, however.
50PoWriMo - XXV
the russian czar and the aztec goddess
she kept a list of all her lovers
carefully created curlicued calligraphy
in gold glitter gel pen
writ bold on her bedroom wall
a timeline of trysts
a chronology of consorts
a history of hookups
a lineage of liaisons
she never knew the name of number one
nor several of his successors
and most of the monikers were missing from her memory
but she never forgot a face
or a quirk
or a characteristic
or a body
so she knew noone was missed from her list
her suite of suitors sobriquets
starting with "the silent shadow"
(a teenage trembler
at a party she should never have attended)
who she had climbed on a cupboard
to inscribe close to the cornice in the corner
she liked to lie and let her eyes
rest on members of the castlist of her memories
each nickname an episode title
in the show she wished she was making
some were classics like "the impossible dreamer"
"lullaby" or "all the invisible things"
relationships that had ebbed and flowed
story arcs that delineated chunks of her past
some still gave her chills just to think of them
like "ironman", "the perfect flaw" or "constant gift"
she still got a laugh from that time
starting at about the middle of column two
where she was choosing partners
so their names fitted with their predecessors
"new man" and "bad eel"
"the black saint" and "the sinner lady"
"vodka" "lime" and "soda"
"benji" "zax" and "the alien prince"
it's a cliche about regret
but she never regretted anything she had done
there were two names on the wall, however
that she only saw with sorrow
the lovers she should never have let leave
"the russian czar"
she met in a bar
drinking vodka and kahlua
he had perfect hair
and a regal air
she wanted to topple him then and there
he was the biggest of shots
and she knew that she ought
to barely have given him a second thought
but she wanted to please him
nearly did her knees in
working hard to thaw his heart that was freezing
til he left one october
without word it was over
and it was after new year's before she was sober
"the aztec goddess" was one quarter mexican
didn't speak much spanish - except bedroom lexicon
like tlazolteotl she brought purification
and a sense their relationship brought recreation
each one redefined in reference to the other
intimately intertwined living as lovers
closer than they ever could have imagined being to a person
one coin with two sides, two different versions
of the same earth-child entity
but that was only their private identity
they hated each other's family and friends
the real world conspired their inevitable end
back in her boudoir bedecked with gold letters
as she takes up her pen to chalk up her new lover
there's always a pause to think "would it be better
if the list was just those two and i forgot the others?"
many thanks to the lovely @Heilewelt who suggested the title to me on the twitter - not convinced this rambling mess does her justice, but at least it's not for lack of effort.
she kept a list of all her lovers
carefully created curlicued calligraphy
in gold glitter gel pen
writ bold on her bedroom wall
a timeline of trysts
a chronology of consorts
a history of hookups
a lineage of liaisons
she never knew the name of number one
nor several of his successors
and most of the monikers were missing from her memory
but she never forgot a face
or a quirk
or a characteristic
or a body
so she knew noone was missed from her list
her suite of suitors sobriquets
starting with "the silent shadow"
(a teenage trembler
at a party she should never have attended)
who she had climbed on a cupboard
to inscribe close to the cornice in the corner
she liked to lie and let her eyes
rest on members of the castlist of her memories
each nickname an episode title
in the show she wished she was making
some were classics like "the impossible dreamer"
"lullaby" or "all the invisible things"
relationships that had ebbed and flowed
story arcs that delineated chunks of her past
some still gave her chills just to think of them
like "ironman", "the perfect flaw" or "constant gift"
she still got a laugh from that time
starting at about the middle of column two
where she was choosing partners
so their names fitted with their predecessors
"new man" and "bad eel"
"the black saint" and "the sinner lady"
"vodka" "lime" and "soda"
"benji" "zax" and "the alien prince"
it's a cliche about regret
but she never regretted anything she had done
there were two names on the wall, however
that she only saw with sorrow
the lovers she should never have let leave
"the russian czar"
she met in a bar
drinking vodka and kahlua
he had perfect hair
and a regal air
she wanted to topple him then and there
he was the biggest of shots
and she knew that she ought
to barely have given him a second thought
but she wanted to please him
nearly did her knees in
working hard to thaw his heart that was freezing
til he left one october
without word it was over
and it was after new year's before she was sober
"the aztec goddess" was one quarter mexican
didn't speak much spanish - except bedroom lexicon
like tlazolteotl she brought purification
and a sense their relationship brought recreation
each one redefined in reference to the other
intimately intertwined living as lovers
closer than they ever could have imagined being to a person
one coin with two sides, two different versions
of the same earth-child entity
but that was only their private identity
they hated each other's family and friends
the real world conspired their inevitable end
back in her boudoir bedecked with gold letters
as she takes up her pen to chalk up her new lover
there's always a pause to think "would it be better
if the list was just those two and i forgot the others?"
many thanks to the lovely @Heilewelt who suggested the title to me on the twitter - not convinced this rambling mess does her justice, but at least it's not for lack of effort.
50PoWriMo - XXIV
impossible
you can't have a quagga as a pet
they haven't unextinctioned it yet
you'll want one when they do, of course
it's so much cooler than a horse
you can't have a quagga as a pet
they haven't unextinctioned it yet
you'll want one when they do, of course
it's so much cooler than a horse
15 November 2010
Stats - Day 15
poems written = 23
poems written per day = 1.5333
poems remaining = 27
poems remaining = 27
required poems per day = 1.8
50PoWriMo - XXIII
herschel's birthday
he discovered uranus
which is nothing to be sniffed at
he discovered infrared radiation
which is less frequent than you can see
he discovered that coral is an animal
and passed it on
but most of all he was a musician
a composer and orchestra director
a professional artist and a scientist for fun
and he didn't live to be two hundred and seventy-two
so he doesn't have to read this
he discovered uranus
which is nothing to be sniffed at
he discovered infrared radiation
which is less frequent than you can see
he discovered that coral is an animal
and passed it on
but most of all he was a musician
a composer and orchestra director
a professional artist and a scientist for fun
and he didn't live to be two hundred and seventy-two
so he doesn't have to read this
50PoWriMo - XXII
job satisfaction
anyone who says they love their job
is lying
a universal truth we work hard at
denying
think about it too long you won't keep yourself
from crying
on the days i like it most i might describe mine as
stultifying
the rest of the time it's just a slow method
of dying
anyone who says they love their job
is lying
a universal truth we work hard at
denying
think about it too long you won't keep yourself
from crying
on the days i like it most i might describe mine as
stultifying
the rest of the time it's just a slow method
of dying
14 November 2010
Stats - Day 14
poems written = 21
poems written per day = 1.5
poems remaining = 29
poems remaining = 29
required poems per day = 1.8125
50PoWriMo - XXI
silent prayer
give me calm
give me peace
give me patience
give me skill
give me confidence
give me sensitivity
give me wisdom
give me humility
give me help
give me focus
give me time
give me fortitude
give me perseverance
take all i have
give me calm
give me peace
give me patience
give me skill
give me confidence
give me sensitivity
give me wisdom
give me humility
give me help
give me focus
give me time
give me fortitude
give me perseverance
take all i have
13 November 2010
Stats - Day 13
poems written = 20
poems written per day = 1.5385
poems remaining = 30
poems remaining = 30
required poems per day = 1.7647
50PoWriMo - XX
i dreamt i worked in faerie hr
these are tough times in our industry
the melodramatic might call it tragic
but a greater dependence on technology
has led to less demand for magic
factor in the global recession
and days lost last year to snow
these are tough times in our profession
we're going to have to let some of you go
many of you highly skilled faerie
each of you a faithful servant
many of you have young families
i wish i didn't have to make you redundant
but there are some wishes
it's not within our power
to grant
these are tough times in our industry
the melodramatic might call it tragic
but a greater dependence on technology
has led to less demand for magic
factor in the global recession
and days lost last year to snow
these are tough times in our profession
we're going to have to let some of you go
many of you highly skilled faerie
each of you a faithful servant
many of you have young families
i wish i didn't have to make you redundant
but there are some wishes
it's not within our power
to grant
12 November 2010
Stats - Day 12
poems written = 19
poems written per day = 1.5833
poems remaining = 31
poems remaining = 31
required poems per day = 1.7222
50PoWriMo - XIX
paul chambers
he wrote
one joke
to his friends
and it ends
up with a long and bitter fight for justice
let's go up
and blow up
with indignation
at misinformation
used to convict him - the fight's not just his
anyone
could have done
one tweet
whose conceit
and comedic mores
were ignored
perverted
misinterpreted
made an example
systematically trampled
we should never have needed to have discussed this
he wrote
one joke
to his friends
and it ends
up with a long and bitter fight for justice
let's go up
and blow up
with indignation
at misinformation
used to convict him - the fight's not just his
anyone
could have done
one tweet
whose conceit
and comedic mores
were ignored
perverted
misinterpreted
made an example
systematically trampled
we should never have needed to have discussed this
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