When I was a poet, a straight-designed wordsmith
When I was syntax and sin in one one in one nine
When we rhymed like a like in the letter u
rotton slimy things we made were turning, turning into east street
and eggs and golden dirty, leathered motorcycling in the rain
When I was another immortal
bearing my name.
If I was loved, then I was known,
I was dancing in the avenues like cats in ravished
rave reviews, like plastic hat conventions with some guy
a free pen twirling in his fingers, used
beneath his teeth for letters drowned in seas of
chanting voices, all immature and wide eyed lonliness
that never was amount to much.
Like walking in a parking lot and staying there till three
with magazines in hand and greasy kicking soles--
if I was known, then I was quiet by
the things I'd always been
I was knowledge, love and tenderness
Never smiles but in the state of perpetual stoic lonliness between grins.
While I was young, unbrushed in every evening
folding up my miseries in origami, speaking squares of truth
Waiting out my youth
If I was finding good things tempting I was
having germs for treason perched beneath the yellow flood
a cigarette in my blood a floating pair of colors
mining snow, a floor of unkept promises
Promised in precious gems with dandelion stems
The earthy color dirty motto herbal green inflation
infestemptinfatuation
It is easy in my room to dream of elsewhere what
with lords and ladies dancing
in my ears, the weather stopping by,
not stopping by, not stopped, nightly
crept like ruined classical divine divine
Another in my room, a noise, an unexpected
a noun of adjective impartial, repulsive, aghast, a
full thread out of area saucy childhood engaged
shoulder willing dying sulpher brained intrusive water everywhere
A half can per day, wrapped messily
wasted once on crying
Toys: a splurge on decoration a la chaos, archaic anarchy
an acorn ascetic ancestric aristocracy
One curving motion in my motion finger,
ocean silent sprunk together lately
Can I see your mist, sir, mister,
did you see your shadow somewhere? take it when you leave
So what a thing forgotten, as chance enthroned by
lamplight, no daylight majesty entomber mon affection nights
by woman whirl to outburst and wet-looked sheen atop you
finding choruses of sound in my heart shutting up in
horror. Palette smeared Chicago cut straight to my
vampire roots, upstream, from whom I love in secret.
... read every other letter searching for patterns like in pi
eyore skies were kindly tinted sadly by a
fine impersonation bible hobble stubble poppy seed
about a gleaming blade
The earth is precious, hairy, nocturnal elevator music box
thrashes hard pounding beauty inherent in your silence
Where it's found, I can be there.
When I was old and writhing in my new midsummer writing
I could never find why everything was changing by the molecule
and simply never missing missing notices in sunlight
The angels differed, darling, on whether I existed
creaming all I had imagined
thereby written with kitten
how witty, how wry
the transcendental obverse twenty pages
raining ashes from the sky.