I can't tell you Sandy, the terms and conditions won't allow it here


Good grief - just as well I'm house-bound

Is Poetry a Dead Art?

Do you think the many views
And each long-running thread
Somehow confirm poetry
Is doing well or dead?

Poetry in motion is a notion so yes, it's doing well.

Agreed Sandy

I have two new poems to post - one of them at the idea stage, the other written down but incomplete. However, since last night I've had go back on the pain-killers and my concentration's not good. Recovery's going to be slow I think. Luckily I have a good friend nearby who's doing the shopping for me, bringing in essentials like milk and butter. Once the tablets kick in I should be able to contribute again. Please forgive my absence and any further ones though I've posted this to explain the situation.

Drat, just when the thread was starting to rock again. At least the weather's rotten, so I'm not missing much outside

Sorry to hear that your recovery is slower than expected Musty - nothing to do but sit it out. However, look on the bright side - the pain will go in time. How irritating can I be?

Good to know that you have a friend in your time of need, so that you won't starve. Also good to see Sandy's continuing presence.

I hope you won't be out of sorts for too long. Keep warm too.

You could never irritate me Biz The friend I've mentioned is very nice - she has a copy of The Designer and some other poems of mine on print-out sheets. She doesn't have a car and I've given her many lifts in the past when needed. I think it was John Lennon who wrote Instant Karma


Thank you Sandy I've just tried walking to the computer, that's why I'm on here I had to read Just For Tea again, as it does something to my imagination. Time to log off now and have a cuppa - keep smiling everyone

Excellent arrangement. One good turn deserves another - I told you I was cliché-ridden.

Cheers for the comments. Glad you liked them.

Evening all. Haven't read or written much, but thought I'd burden you all with a couple which came to mind recently (I've not been well).

They're a bit depressing, so skip them if you prefer.

Hoping you're fully recovered soon Musty.


Deepest down.

The black black depth of deepest down.
The self defeating angry clown.
Face painted with a wicked smile.
No trace of character or style.

World wide web of adversary.
Diatribe of very scary
things that never should be thought.
Depression has you truly caught.

So much to do shall not be done.
No time for family, friends, or fun.
Just contemplating all the worst.
Premeditating outburst.

Song bird dying in the snow.
I'll hear you again I know.


Fellow Man.

Hooked on a finite substance abuse
Jobs created by demand
Standing proudly to accuse
Impoverished fellow man

Upstaged ancestry by God
Believers bide their time
Pitying the worthless sod
Expecting the sublime

Slow boat loads of plastic toads
As cheap as poverty
Pot holes in all the roads
Between you and me

Global warming ice storming
Here it comes now
Latest idea forming
Time to take a bow.

Archiver I wondered if you'd gone for good this time - great to see you again as I've missed your thought-provoking poetry. Thanks for the kind wishes too Deepest down seems to be about depression and swipes at it accurately. As a past-sufferer any poems about depression interest me. I enjoyed the poem throughout but I thought the final lines were outstanding:

Songbird dying in the snow.
I'll hear you again I know.

That's such a moving illustration of hope in any situation. Fellow Man brought to mind the march of progress. 'Time to take a bow' sums up how I feel about most of the new technology I'll be posting a new poem later - I have a lot of time on my hands for writing now

I Who Have No Alibi

I who have no alibi
In a world re-built,
Sparking off disasters here,
Can’t deny my guilt.
I swayed Pilate and the priests
To send Jesus down,
How I laughed to see the cross
And his painful crown.
When the fools believed in me
I was far from vague;
O what joy to send the rats
With fleas for the plague.
And when they rejected me,
Darwin’s book and fame
I avenged but not until
Nineteen-fourteen came.
Then I did it all again
With a cunning plan,
Hiring someone mad enough,
Hitler was my man.
Boredom meant at certain times
Shocks were fun to do,
Both the Kennedys were mine
And Diana too.
Nine eleven kept the fools
Occupied with war,
I who have no alibi
Won’t stop, that’s for sure.


©

So sorry to hear that you haven't been well Archiver. In your poems the pain is palpable - and educational for those who have not had those experiences, but are open minded enough to want to understand.

Like Musty, I'm pleased to see you back and hope your writing has been therapeutic.

Aaaargh! Speak of the Devil.

If I could get hold of him, I'd give him a clip over the ear and lock him in back in Pandora's box with a gigantic unbreakable padlock. Then destroy the key.

[quote=mr. mustard;64945381]You could never irritate me Biz The friend I've mentioned is very nice - she has a copy of The Designer and some other poems of mine on print-out sheets. She doesn't have a car and I've given her many lifts in the past when needed. I think it was John Lennon who wrote Instant Karma

Hello Musty hope you're better. Did you know the reference to John Lennon here is a live link to a commercial for Amazon has it possibly been hacked?
By the way that no alibi chap, is it Gideon Osborne?

Thanks Musty. I always appreciate your thoughtful comments. Your new one is brill (the G. Osborne one lol). The way you tell it reminds me of James Brown's King Heroin. An old favourite.


Thanks Biz. I do find writing to be therapeutic, but the friendly comments received after submitting always work wonders.

.

That's good to know Archiver. You should pop in more often.

But remember Biz, the one thing left in Pandora's box was hope ( I think ).


Thanks Frank, recovery's going to take two to three weeks at least Shame about the JL link. I'd find it hard to write about any politicians Frank I'm surprised no budget headlines went with 'Gideon's Way'

Ta Archiver I've made a note of King Heroin which I've never heard of - hopefully it's on YouTube By the way I missed the bit in your post about being unwell; I hope you're through the worst of it

You're right, I'd forgotten that. However the evidence is that when Hope saw what was happening in the world she made it her business to spread herself around, so with any luck, the Devil would find himself in solitary confinement. It can't happen too soon.................. Hope springs eternal.

Been listening to The Stones?

Thanks for the extra information Biz 'Hope is a good thing' - to quote The Shawshank Redemption


Well sussed Skazza Alibi was inspired by Sympathy For The Devil. I tried omitting as many of the big events in the Stones' classic as I could. But I couldn't avoid Jesus, war and the Kennedys

I'm not a big lover of poetry. I adore two poems - Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, Robert Frost and The Lady of Shalott by Tennyson. Apart from those, none I have read have really "spoken" to me. Recently I was encouraged to have a read of Sophie Hannah's poems and I liked them, so maybe I should try some more.

But I would say, the art of poetry is definitely not dead

Hi Lizzy, welcome to the thread I also love Robert Frost's Stopping By Woods, but The Lady of Shalott I struggled with. It's lengthy and I know I should have stuck with it I've found that reading more poetry allows more of it to speak to you. There are so many great poets and all tastes are catered for

No new material from me today I'm afraid - the Catholic poem's historical and needs a lot of research. Thank god for Antonia Fraser, one of our best writers on the relevant era in my opinion. I have quite a few of her books. It's taking so long that I managed to knock out the Devil poem along the way I may post an oldie tomorrow.

Where's Sandy? I wanted to tell her something