Tell me something true and real, she says—I
notice her fangs are
a little blunt—you can tell the cat
your dreams.
~ / ~
I came to planet Crypton years ago,
traveled in a sky-blue pod from Earth,
its vaporous madness left behind.
It looks a lot like Earth itself,
more crystalline than you’d expect
and everyone is strangers.
I take glyceric anti freeze,
pneumatic pericardium pills
that stop my heart from icing up,
and when the wind is thick with longings,
I invoke my Sunday superpowers.
Music plays in motors only I can hear,
turning to crescendos
that are not meant for me,
and I run with the Cryptonians
down shaded corridors,
through empty lots and past poetic afterglows.
They’re not like they once were:
transparent, ectoplasmic,
although there’s still a little whining
when the three full moons shape
intimate geometry in the dreaming sky.
Now they gather for turistas,
cover their opaqueness with
designer labels, and pose for holiday snaps.
Have you knelt before the cryptographic shrine?
You really must, or this or that,
and the tourists tick it off their lists
along with never land and instantaneous truth.
~ / ~
She files her canines
mid-morning
in the mirror.
What a lump he is, lying in bed snoring.
He thinks I’m irrefutably invariant,
a mysterious deterministic constant,
three point one four one,
two point seven one eight,
but I’m a weather vane taken by a hurricane,
ceaseless spinning, pointing
to the gods at all infinities.
background
superheroes, approximations to π and e, lunar new year etc.
artwork
crypton landscape
Reblogged this on Smile Circulation.
Thanks Smile Circulation, glad you liked it 🙂 .
“instantaneous truth” hopefully nothing like alternative facts?
As always, seeks the heart with sounds and images. Well done.
Thanks Sascha. Vaguely related. I think that sometimes we know stuff, facts, people, places, and we tick them off, but our truths are too glib, depth and nuance are lost.
Really? I hope not. I’d like to think that the truth of others is too glib. I would like to think that the huge amount of time I actually expend at thinking, while my brain is smoking creating an atmosphere that makes my dog hide under the bed, that I am actually preserving something unique. It’s not always been that way, which give me hope that it’s not narcissism.
Well, of course when I said ‘we,’ I didn’t mean you or I. Admittedly I try to avoid thinking whenever possible, although my hair did catch fire at a party once. But it turned out it wasn’t thinking, just a careless cigarette and flammable hair spray.
For what it’s worth, I’d say your writing’s pretty thoughtful 🙂 .
🙂 you have to watch out for hair spray.
I’m too scared to ask why her fangs are blunt…
Does she mess with your coffee pods?
Well reasoned grasshopper. Yes, sometimes she bites right through and puts the coffee in the drip machine. But mostly it’s just from puncturing my leather gear. Mmm might be a good place to stop.
such a throw away line
the tourists tick it off their lists
along with never land and instantaneous truth.
is— sounds like where i live in a parallel universe perhaps; hilarious though, i wouldn’t actually throw it anywhere except in this poem, you understand Steve.
Thanks Daniel. Yeah I understand exactly 🙂 , and I admit I love them. Mostly I try not to let real-world commentary into my writing, but it sneaked in with that line, as Sascha noticed above .
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Fantasy Sources, thanks for reblogging
I have the urge to travel once again…thanks for a great poem & art!
You’re very welcome, Poet. May the light of the Dreaming Moons illuminate your journey 🙂 .
Excellent! Ditto…
Oy. Another doozie. I try not to dissect them over much. It takes away from the beauty. Just enough to sink my teeth in a little. I think the cat’s fangs must be a little blunted from age. But perhaps I’m projecting. 🙂
Gracias BG. I see your point: a loving rake or two with the talons then discrete incisors in the carotid, retain the beauty and avoid unnecessary mess. I guess it depends on what the cat’s been up to 🙂 .
Guess that’s one way to look at it! I did give it a 2nd swipe for good measure and enjoyed it even more. 🙂
Might have misunderstood what we were talking about there 😉 .
Amazing bright work you have Steve! Love the strong energy in your works!
Thank you Alexis. I’m still experimenting, a bit hit and miss, although I very much enjoy doing it. Your work is very impressive.