8-word poem

Making do until
The real mess
Gets here.

I FELL IN LOVE WITH SAN PEDRO

they go for your lungs
you'll keep them honest
she don’t leak at the seams
keening the way babies scream
yes I do and I won't
unworthy like a limp hand
a gown soiled by the rain
I hope it's your last
grown up shoes in black
forgettable scratched singles
systems in decline
bay area anonymous
last chance to make plans
she could make a flower from the rain
company man out in the cold
yours is a mess look at mine
I miss the bells
tomorrow we should

8-word poem

All roads
Eventually lead
Right back
To eternity.

8-word poem

Daily hassles
Meet my
Luxury problems;
Hilarity ensues.

8-word poem

Didn't it rain
On us
In Père Lachaise?

GRACE

you get to be fussy
I'm your worst customer
haircut or full service
happy trails
happy ending
happy happening
that mirage sure looks real
to me enough
the village invites
interiors left out in the rain
it's a thing
not much of a sentimental side

8-word poem

Che Guevara's hair
May fetch thousands
At auction.

Presidential Candidate. Red Sox Supporter. Asshole.

8-word poem

Want
To be good,
Is that not
Enough?

8-word poem

Yours
Is a mess?
You should see
Mine.

Slipshod Sonnet #7

teetotalers are crushing bores
freedom means a field of soy
beans sans deputies a hotbed
of mental health not at what
age is the child no longer
one of us two issues here:
rambunctious and the question
of anonymity are we up for a
discussion anyone can add color
if you like closed means closed
period daughters are like that
with their friends every Saturday
I contracted the flu brother you've
let your face go on far too long

8-word poem

Looking forward
Versus
Glancing back:
A better view.

8-word poem

I can't.
He can.
I will let
Him.

YOU WILL HAVE GIFTS, AND THEY WILL BREAK YOU WITH THEIR BURDEN

is bright with new paint this summer
brothers are fighting with the mules
or they worry about the rabbits
says he can fix watches
when the bell rings
one or two will stand around in a doorway
and wait for something to happen
will make a lot of mistakes
who has brought us here together
the sterility of contemplation
superior to action
the mixed life
that is how esoteric the question is
are they anything else?
experimental knowledge of God
de jure if not de facto
will to see enkindled
the soul appears to be doing nothing
in another sense we have already arrived
leave all things and follow me
making a noise like a bank
I am beginning to understand
hate makes everything better

iTuneage - recent baker's dozen

1. "Somebody's Crying" - Chris Isaak
2. "Simple Twist of Fate" - Bryan Ferry
3. "Fire On High" - Electric Light Orchestra
4. "Do Anything You Wanna Do" - Eddie & The Hot Rods
5. "20th Century Boy" - T. Rex
6. "Love Is Surrender" - The Carpenters
7. "The Seventh Seal" - Scott Walker
8. "Death Is the Road to Awe" - Clint Mansell (soundtrack to The Fountain)
9. "Mama Told Me Not to Come" - Three Dog Night
10. "Space Trucking" - Deep Purple
11. "Hair of the Dog" - Nazareth
12. "Elephantasy" - Don Cherry
13. "To Sir, With Love" - Lulu

8-word poem

My question:
What are you
Getting away
With?

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* * *

Unedited hotel marquee in NYC.

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Teacher,

Thought of Rome,
Thought of you.

—Student

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It's over,
Johnny!
(Who the fuck
Is Johnny?).

POEM BEGINNING WITH A LINE FROM ED McMAHON

HIYO!!!

No excuses for how long it takes—
we’ve heard it all before, and that’s the end of it.

Unforgiven is just plain stingy:

Your friend has recommended you—
It’s scary accurate to see what celebrity you are—

nothing more.

Soaking it all in, and I don’t mean maybe:
the museum is clear most nights but mad on Mondays,
locks broken long ago by a knight with trashy manners.

I don’t care what kind of armor you wear:
people judge around here, so don’t forget it.

Shrunken head wreckage and bastard shenanigans
give me pause—this is the world we have chosen
(right, just business, right).

Some people call it a stone, not a pit.
Well, it ain’t you, babe,

I don’t care how much you wish.

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Pressure of a pedestal
Standing on your heart.

Dylan & Costello

October 6th, 2007
Times Union Center
Albany, NY

Personal highlights: "Oliver's Army" and "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright."

Dylan's lead guitarist, Denny Freeman, was on fire all night long.

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Don't you
Hate it
When that
Doesn't happen?

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Living
In the solution
Sure beats
The alternative.

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She relapsed.
Her name is
Crystal.
Case closed.

8-word poem: THE PROCOL HARUM STORY

A whiter shade
Of pale
Equals less green.

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When hearts
Are made of
Ice,
Iced tea!

8-word poem: THE JUNK MAIL VARIATIONS

Do you have
Low self-esteem?
Change that today.