"discounting" poems
I lost myself once upon a time
in a place that was only whispered to me in dreams.
Where the fog is thick and threads through the seams
of street lights and street cars with *** fights and brillo bars.
I tell you I lost myself on the tongue of insanity
who swallowed my soul to feed its humanity.
I lost myself
in a city that found me;
San Francisco, 2013
Let me extend two points like two bridges
that begin in separate places but lead to the same thing.
I’m talking the people in both hands with countless art in between.
The people, the people, the people.
What can’t be said about the near million faces
sleeping on warm pillows or cold stones,
wearing top hats or traffic cones
because not every night are people thriving.
But they’re still surviving, getting busy living or getting busy dying.
In their eyes are stories being told
once you wipe those windows into their souls, deep.
You see it all,
Just like every star in the fall when the sun goes to sleep.
I gave a homeless man a dollar who gave it to another homeless man who then gave it back to me
Like we were passing a love note that said, “You need this more than me.”
So which of us was the one without the home?
Home I soon found in the art of every step taken,
one foot in front of the next.
I can’t walk through that city discounting the side effects.
I was drunk,
but not from bottles or cans
I was drunk from the hands
that told tales with graffiti art to camera pans.
and countless other melodies
massaging bricks into the landmarks that spanned.
Culture sprinkling up and down the hills and between the cracks
Painting colors in the sky as the rainbows stacked,
Finding pots of gold by merely lifting my eye lids back.
There is so much to say about this city in the bay,
that is held in place by the people of race
and the vessels of art that encompass in its space
like stories and attitude,
survival and gratitude,
muse and expression
in delight or depression.
I tell you I lost myself in that city.
But I know now that being lost is sometimes the only way to be truly found.
Dec 10, 2013
Dec 10, 2013 at 6:55 AM UTC
The mystery deepens with slow steps
down the drive to that green mystery box
that holds the secrets of the universe within its grasp.
Besides the bills that need attention
invitations to church services
'fresh cuts' from butcher going down
products the clothing store discounts
power bills powering me up
water bills wetting me down
local rags headlining unknown street corners
filled with rage and graffiti
police searching for crims
(not on my street-No)
preachers discounting heaven for a tithe
car license rebirth
warrant remake
local school financial support
what else is new?
I've recently installed another box next
standing beside green box
flip all of the above next box
for recycling.
I only keep the one
which says in small print
No ******* collections on Labour Day.
Author Notes
Do you have the same problem and solution
© Marshall Gass. All rights reserved, 5 months ago
Jun 19, 2014
Jun 19, 2014 at 4:45 PM UTC
Three back and second from the left:
my home for period six,
a desk more scuffed and scratched than its parallel, footprint littered tiles.
Here, three quarters of an hour is a day for every minute,
where the name of the month is Algebra II,
and the year: 2009
multiplied by the square root of x
minus pi.
I have a front row seat to a bird’s eye view
of Josh’s back.
It is a russet landscape of rolling creases,
the ever changing dunes of the Sahara.
Tomorrow is Saint Patrick’s Day (God bless the Irish,
drowning it all in liquid ignorance),
and I hope to muffle the jaded sighs; the irritating pinches;
the variables
with a lush and verdant mountain range
subsiding to grassy plains
as Josh hunches—listening intently to his eraser—closer to his desk
(two back and second from the left)
to write the value of y.
Nov 29, 2011
Nov 29, 2011 at 6:43 PM UTC
The Last Priest smiled his blessing
indiscriminately, bridging, seeding,
building a new priesthood
beyond borders, across tribes,
ignoring gender, discounting class,
blind to race, snubbing rank,
denying privilege and preferring
a new holy nationality for refugees
for stateless souls like mine
- like ours
Oct 5, 2023
Oct 5, 2023 at 5:11 AM UTC
When I stop
I notice your unwavering presence
your persistence surprises me
because I neglect you.
Lovers don’t do that.
In my dreams you are there
passing through my imagination
like a genie yearning to gift me.
Your stories teach me about your desire
to interrupt my ordinary.
I even remember a few of your tales
and try to figure out what they mean
for my dull self.
I know. You don’t like me discounting my self
because when I do so
I discount you my precious one
and the awesome power of your love.
Inspire me today
a day of needed and neglected work.
You are here my love
in every fiber of my body
every impulse of my mind.
I will dive into the river of your compassion
and be refreshed by it.
Mar 25, 2024
Mar 25, 2024 at 2:18 PM UTC
Net Present Value
**NPV can be described as the “difference amount” between the sums of discounted future inflows and outflows. It compares the present value of something today to the present value of that thing in the future, taking into account, "discounting" for inflation and returns into account.
Something now is more valuable than later on, because it can invested to make more.**
the value today of your self,
the future discounted for all
you have
yet to learn,
yet to earn,
the mistakes,
the losses,
yet to be incurred.
netting the modest successes
now past, of long ago,
against the sum of
too many failings as
father and son,
poet and man.
time is short now,
nearer to the end than
many streams of new inflows.
the discount rate:
looking in the mirror,
this presence,
this who I am,
the what I be,
adding in, subtracting out,
the inflation of dreams,
+ / -
the deflation of disappointments.
yet, compelled to do,
iterate daily,
the calculation of who,
never-ending,
continuously solving
for my own
net present value.
http://www.mathsisfun.com/money/net-present-value.html
Nov 1, 2013
Nov 1, 2013 at 5:46 AM UTC
Poetry ought to do things right
and document reality
but modern muses lose the fight
celebrating diversity.
Out-doing themselves, our leaders all
legitimize perversity.
Who gave them this satanic call
to demonize normality ?
The Washington nobility
who build a babel here on earth
display a versatility
for showing all their dubious worth.
They can't go One-World fast enough
discounting Christianity.
The matriarchy's mom is tough,
enforcing femininity...
Milk of mammalian global beast
(humanist animality)
From Nanny's withered poison breast
infects us biologically;
maintaining infantility.
Nov 25, 2016
Nov 25, 2016 at 5:08 PM UTC
The poet sees the line,
Before it’s been read.
It has already been written,
Somewhere in his head.
An idea that settles,
To shape and to mould.
Something reused,
That is no longer old.
Repeatable rhyme,
Or overworked verse.
Through low timbre tones,
Let critics converse.
Discounting so many,
Is judgement a whim?
Tell me dear poet,
When did you begin?
In answer unknowing,
Thought, though not sure.
This is not the first time,
I have written before.
On deeper reflection,
All ages, all minds.
There is no criteria,
All patterns, all kinds.
So why do I bother?
I have need to say more.
I think, so I am,
And I am, so therefore.
Oct 21, 2017
Oct 21, 2017 at 5:39 AM UTC
In my room
Ruminating
Counting all my misses
Discounting all my blessings
Swinging from moods
like happiness is my spouse
Versus the rest of my emotions
In a Vegas hotel
Where other room keys are being grabbed for
With great trepidation
i'm still waking up alone
I'll find her somewhere raging in my veins with
My darling madness and her trigger finger itch
While I'm balling my fists
Divine intervention decides who wins
In the summertime I become more manic
The sun becomes my touch of fire
Prometheus rising out of panic
Doctor doctor,
Thanks for the chemicals
But I wanna feel more than just "ok" all the time.
Detox to make me God some of the time
while the rest of the time
I'm just running on empty
From a routine
Back to my room
ruminating.
Jul 12, 2013
Jul 12, 2013 at 11:30 PM UTC
I want to make you real
I want to write you into being,
teach you how to feel.
Can I be the song you sing;
can my every keystroke heal?
Let my touch reach beyond fiber and cord,
to reach you where you cry alone
so you know that you're adored.
Discounting the distance we'll both be home;
though apart we have found a sweet accord.
This is my conspiracy
to speak to you so sweetly
that you forget life's maddening pain
and in your heart let self-love reign.
Mar 19, 2016
Mar 19, 2016 at 6:53 PM UTC
White snow, gray ice,
Upon the dry, cracked earth.
A quilt lies on top -
A city in the loop of the road.
Above the city, clouds float by,
Blocking the light of the skies.
Above the city, yellow smoke.
The city stands for two thousand years
Under the light of the star that we call the sun
For two thousand years there is war,
War for no particular cause.
War is in the hands of the young,
Medicine against wrinkled skin.
The blood, the red, red blood,
In an hour is simply earth,
In two it holds grass and flowers,
In three it is once more alive
And warmed by the rays of the star that we call the sun
And we know that it has always been so,
That those who are loved by fate
Are those who live by laws not our own,
Those who are doomed to die young
He can't remember the word "yes," the word "no,"
He can't remember the ranks or the names.
He is capable of reaching the stars,
Discounting that this is a dream
And fall down, singed by the star that we call the sun
Viktor Tsoi
Jan 30, 2013
Jan 30, 2013 at 4:14 PM UTC
I really need to be doing things right now.
I have an application and two scholarships that NEED to get done.
But I simply CANNOT think straight.
My last poem, written 24 hours prior to this one, is driving me insane.
During the day, I know that all these poems are nothing more than my own mind rambling about nonsense.
"I realize that I was being dramatic, and all of those feelings are now dead."
I find myself editing my poems, because I can't let people believe that I actually believed my words at some point in time.
But as the dark of night sets in, I am alone.
I don't have others' thoughts to cloud my judgments.
All my thoughts creep back to my naive curiosity.
Naive, but not dangerous.
In regards to "Can I Glue my Eyes Forward?",
I just want to KNOW him.
Talk, laugh, play, hang out.
Am I romantically interested but masking it with curiosity?
Or I am just so interested in people in general that when I take extra interest in someone, I misinterpret my own feelings as a crush and do my own version of "damage control"?
Either way, this roller coaster is driving me crazy.
I can't stand this battle between putting validity to my feelings and discounting them all together.
I can't even send a message saying "hello" without feeling like I'm doing something wrong...
Jan 5, 2014
Jan 5, 2014 at 4:13 AM UTC
The Last Priest
smiled his blessings
indiscriminately
bridging
seeding
building
a new priesthood
beyond borders
across tribes
ignoring gender
discounting class
blind to race
snubbing rank
denying privilege
and preferring
a new holy nationality
for refugees
for stateless souls
like mine
- like ours
Nov 3, 2017
Nov 3, 2017 at 4:37 AM UTC
My mission, Chanel St. Marc Love every women as my sister negating all ****** desire and my appetite of lust. Regard every man compatible, my brothers, similarities or differences----- no two seeds from the same garden are identical. Yet we are formed in same soil. My attempts to covet godschild are countless to ****** grace from rushing temptations. Prostituting my body for notoriety, Not committing everything to heart .I believe in love but help me in my non-belief. Help me when I ignore friendship for ****** encounters. Discounting the meaning of trust I raise my eyebrows high whenever *** walks by. Lord oh lord it’s the vamp in her, the beast in me. Fire attracts fire burning as we sin openly. For the time being I repent and relapse back in to action. The devil focuses my eyes on the worst decision I will make for days to come. I took back my life for my own and shared it with my demons. Control was given to the worst, my blood is now deadlier than poison and impairs my soul. Free my feelings from filth. Fear of being forsaken before death. My mission, Chanel St. Marc Love every women as my sister love every man as my brother.
Dec 19, 2014
Dec 19, 2014 at 10:01 PM UTC
I like to end the game with my shields up
And my hero buffed
And enhancement stuffed
But sometimes that isn't enough
Sometimes I kick the loser while they're down
So they can join me below the ground
In this mentality where I drown
Life is a test
And I gave up
In this game I'm the best
So it's here I'm stuck
In a world of fable
A developer's tale
Where I prevail
And find validation
By achieving victory
Then causing agitation
Because of my misery
Victory means I'm better
Victory means I'm smarter
Once your flag is fettered
I call you a starter
Thinking I'm somehow harder
Discounting my partners
In this digital harbor
With all my bickering
There's no mystery
Why the result starts differing
I hear the enemy team snickering
As my team starts whimpering
I feel my fortune shifting
Once luck isn't with me
And the match starts drifting
From a victorious gifting
To quite laborious indeed
I put all my time into this game
And nothing else
So I feel immense shame
From digital welts
This individual hell
Of a darkened cell
Is where I fell
Convinced my ability
Is proof of some secret potential
I give my life willingly
To prove to gamers I'm special
Mar 5, 2021
Mar 5, 2021 at 4:51 PM UTC
Discounting my fears
Makes me feel more alone
I'd have thought that was obvious
May 10, 2022
May 10, 2022 at 5:56 PM UTC
God needs no defending
God is love
God is good
What is good is evident
It feels good
God needs no defending
God loves in spite of evil
God chooses us even if we don't choose God
To light The Christ in all of us
To destroy in God's name is defiling
God can love even through this misguided attempt
God needs no defending
All is done through love
For every emotion stems from it
or the lack of it
We are not separate from God
We are collectively God
We can only turn away from ourselves
Placing our faith and trust in man
and the here and now
and you zombies don't know what it means
and you keep on keeping on
believing a fake reality
As if nothing else exists
while discounting the truth in your soul
In the aether, in your heart,
God needs no defending
To do so is to believe that we are greater than the collective
That God is weak
God is enlightened consciousness
Only the blind Christ maims in its own honor
God needs no defending
God only requires choice
The choice to love inspite of evil
To choose us even if we don't choose God
To reveal the Christdom in all of us
God requires no defending
Only choice.
Jan 4, 2017
Jan 4, 2017 at 4:08 AM UTC
Ask me how my life is and
I'll tell you it's hard,
when three feet don't make a yard
but you struggle on
and it's hard.
My life is diamond as well,as
rough cut as hell
but bright and the light shines on through.
I see today, not from some distance or
some listless indifference and now I'm a part of it,the ******** and strife but isn't life good?
hard but good and not as hard as it could be,luckily I have family and friends,not to be used as a means to an end,
but those who would lend an ear,allay a fear,be here for me,give me sanctuary and the will.
Ah yes,
the will,that reason we have to climb up a hill because it's there,because we want a share in the majesty of this life,I'd be a mountaineer because you were here for me.
What has gone is lost,no good counting the cost it won't bring things back,waiting for one more heart attack does not make any sense,living past tense,too intense.
Ask me how my life is and
I'll tell you it sparkles
like sun on a stream,like one of those dreams that you don't want to end but you want to awake and take more of a part,
at the heart of it discounting the ******** and strife
life is
good.
May 28, 2014
May 28, 2014 at 5:17 AM UTC
i’ve written this so many
different times, usually scrawled
in half fading ink, blood droplets
scattered. this time, for the first time,
i am writing it addressed to You.
you left months ago, left without
a closing goodbye. you left three days
after i last tried; i didn’t even bother
writing anything then. i barely had
the energy to even hold the metal
much less explain my disdain
for the life i have always lived.
my room still reeks of cigarettes
and i wonder if you’ve quit.
i only chainsmoke when i’m
falling back in love with all
the danger, discounting how
unfairly i was treated.
i want to know how many times
you’ve lied to me, because
i watched you wiggle your
way out of glue traps that
were sure to ensnare you.
i am writing this because
i think people deserve closure,
not to leave without a word
or explanation. my reason is
simple: i have no interest
in life. i have no connection
to the world anymore.
i have no connection to
my emotions anymore.
don’t blame yourself
but don’t flatter yourself either.
Nov 27, 2017
Nov 27, 2017 at 7:51 PM UTC
the pattern of the ferns transparent leaf
backlit courtesy of the august sun
caused me pause, left me wary
of the moments construction
it was not the leaf itself or its summer surroundings
the outline design of the radiant green held form
there are few things that truly exist
how could life ever be one of them?
from the burning miracle that is our sun
light and heat escape through emptiness
such a powerful force is softened gently
to lie upon a delicate creation
this led to my eye to construct an emotion
that remains palpable to this very morning
the will to explore all that is around my pinpoint self
requires carrying questions and discounting others
October 4, 2013
Oct 4, 2013
Oct 4, 2013 at 7:45 AM UTC
Numbers are weird; I'm telling you friend;
they start here at zero and go without end
and if that means one thing, one thing at all,
it's no number is big and all numbers are small.
Take the number of atoms in Yellowstone Park,
exponentiate that every tick of a quark
'til the neutrons decay and the photons go dark
and you've still got no number; it's not big at all;
as I told you before, every number is small,
but invert the numbers and don't flip your wig;
discounting zero, all numbers are big.
Sep 20, 2016
Sep 20, 2016 at 7:52 AM UTC
The Last Priest smiled his blessings
indiscriminately, bridging,
building a new priesthood
beyond borders, across tribes
ignoring gender, discounting class
blind to race, snubbing rank,
denying privilege and preferring
a new holy nationality
for refugees, for stateless souls
like mine
- like ours
Jan 24, 2025
Jan 24, 2025 at 3:31 PM UTC
The aptly named place Bellevue
At the time of writing contains
Eleven beating hearts
Nine, discounting my own
And that of a canine
Three, gaze out to where clouds meet
Peaks in a conspiring huddle
One, seated, inhales her clouds
Burning down from peak to basecamp
One ignores a dog with clear attachment issues
Two stroll in tandem, occasionally comparing screens
Two have wandered off in a
Calculated effort to avoid the
nosy parker on the next bench
Aug 16, 2017
Aug 16, 2017 at 6:14 AM UTC