POEM: but you don’t answer

Posted 30 September, 2010 in My poems, Poetry

but you don’t answer

it’s the second song of the night
(the vibraphonist is playing a solo)
when I get that feeling in my stomach

the one you get as the roller coaster
goes over the top of the first hill
right before it picks up speed
but after it’s too late to get off

I can usually lose myself in music
but tonight I’m already lost

the quieter the band plays
the easier it is for me to hear the rush
of blood through my veins

this place is called the Whisper Room
because you can whisper on one side
and someone can hear you on the other

so I whisper your name

and wait

POEM: unlock your heart

Posted 29 September, 2010 in My poems, Poetry

unlock your heart

no,
that’s not what I mean

don’t lock it
in the first place

or if you must, give me the key
I’ll keep it somewhere safe

maybe with the ring
my grandfather gave me

when you decide you’re ready
to come out from under the bed

I’ll give you back the key
trust me,

it will still fit
don’t let the squeaky hinges

throw you off
once the blood starts pumping normally

it’ll be just like new,
maybe better

POEM: single-digit hours

Posted 28 September, 2010 in My poems, Poetry

single-digit hours

while saxophonists play the final set
bartenders announce last call
bleary new mothers quiet newborns with the breast
truckers chatter on radios to stay awake

I write in the moments before sleep
when desire overpowers caution
and what is true holds sway over what is real

I write at the threshold of “tonight” and “this morning”
realizing the new day without relinquishing the old
living in the in-between time, when all things are possible

POEM: Fun with science

Posted 27 September, 2010 in Audio Poems, My poems, Poetry, Science

Listen to this song using the player above.

Fun with science

You are my superheated ball of gas
        in the center of the solar system
My only superheated ball of gas
        in the center of the solar system
You cause endorphins to be released
        into my brain
When the refractive properties of water in the air
        are overcome by cloud cover
You’ll never know, dear, how much certain
        visual, olfactory and auditory cues
        suggest you as a suitable mate
Please don’t remove my superheated ball of gas
        in the center of the solar system

POEM: bullet train

Posted 26 September, 2010 in Audio Poems, My poems, Poetry

Listen to this poem using the player above.

bullet train

faster than a decision
        more powerful than a kiss
able to leap tall buildings
        in a moment of clarity
the bullet train flies down the track
        you can’t jump off
but you can choose a different station

Walt Franklin at Pine Hollow Arboretum

Posted 25 September, 2010 in Poetry, Random Musings, Travel

From 100925 Pine Hollow Arboretum

Here are photos from my trip to Pine Hollow Arboretum in Slingerlands, NY. I took a tour of the grounds and then heard Walt Franklin read his poetry and travelogues. What a wonderful afternoon (with a nice bike ride there and back, too). At the bottom of this post is a video of Walt reading an excerpt from one of his longer poems about trees.

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