"ratcheted" poems - Hello Poetry

Eternity's cogs geared and ratcheted to the chain of time We settle for the simple ignore and refuse to witness the obvious glory of this world insist on a miserly view a pinched token Then the night closes in an embolism erupts into silence I take a different view hold out hope for far horizons settle for nothing and struggle to drive a hard bargain with one who holds all the cards In the end I expect beauty a bright light and a chilling plunge into the grey Pacific I hope for more of course a taste of watercress a glass of wine and an epiphany All paid for by grace.

0

Jun 22, 2017

Jun 22, 2017 at 9:32 PM UTC

jeff-stier

Bicycle Poem

Eternity's cogs geared and ratcheted to the chain of time We settle for the simple ignore and refuse to witness the obvious glory of this world insist on a miserly view a pinched token Then the night closes in an embolism erupts into silence I take a different view hold out hope for far horizons settle for nothing and struggle to drive a hard bargain with one who holds all the cards In the end I expect beauty a bright light and a chilling plunge into the grey Pacific I hope for more of course a taste of watercress a glass of wine and an epiphany All paid for by grace.

32

I can't see fast enough to catch the light. Over and over, the blur escapes focus. The air is viscous, visceral. Heavy water presses on me, weighs on my lungs. If only I could figure out which wall is the ceiling, I think I'd be OK, but I can't move my head. It's tethered. To a bench, or a table, or the floor - the straps at my forehead and chin ratcheted, ratcheted down leaving me no choice. No choice. I have to open my eyes and face what's in front of me, or close them and face what's inside my head.

0

Mar 19, 2010

Mar 19, 2010 at 8:07 PM UTC

rachel-mize

So I'm stuck in this dream.

I can't see fast enough to catch the light. Over and over, the blur escapes focus. The air is viscous, visceral. Heavy water presses on me, weighs on my lungs. If only I could figure out which wall is the ceiling, I think I'd be OK, but I can't move my head. It's tethered. To a bench, or a table, or the floor - the straps at my forehead and chin ratcheted, ratcheted down leaving me no choice. No choice. I have to open my eyes and face what's in front of me, or close them and face what's inside my head.

13

I’m just twirling in the center of my room. I’ve got way too much to do. Has that ever happened to you? I’m assailed, derailed and impaled by indecision. I can’t find my lucky pencil and I have a final in 90 minutes I have lab results to qualify and a term paper to finish. I have two problem-sets due and I must arrange movers. Despite my burn-out, I should start packing for move-out. In order to get our reservations and tickets in hand, we’ve got to finalize our summer plans. On my theoretical schedule - I’m behind - oh, and there’s a mountain of laundry to climb. In finals week everything is ratcheted up. and there’s the weighty and unavoidable demands of sleep. I’m just a girl about to pass out in her room, over-caffeineed, from chugging a large, iced coffee after 3 hours of sleep. I’ve read that stress can affect valuations. I think it’s true. I twirl. . . Down In the Seine by The Style Council I Want You Back by Trijntje Oosterhuis Make a Rainbow by Benny Sings Let Her Go Into The Darkness by Johnathan Richman

0

May 3, 2024

May 3, 2024 at 10:15 AM UTC

anaisvionet

twirling

I’m just twirling in the center of my room. I’ve got way too much to do. Has that ever happened to you? I’m assailed, derailed and impaled by indecision. I can’t find my lucky pencil and I have a final in 90 minutes I have lab results to qualify and a term paper to finish. I have two problem-sets due and I must arrange movers. Despite my burn-out, I should start packing for move-out. In order to get our reservations and tickets in hand, we’ve got to finalize our summer plans. On my theoretical schedule - I’m behind - oh, and there’s a mountain of laundry to climb. In finals week everything is ratcheted up. and there’s the weighty and unavoidable demands of sleep. I’m just a girl about to pass out in her room, over-caffeineed, from chugging a large, iced coffee after 3 hours of sleep. I’ve read that stress can affect valuations. I think it’s true. I twirl. . . Down In the Seine by The Style Council I Want You Back by Trijntje Oosterhuis Make a Rainbow by Benny Sings Let Her Go Into The Darkness by Johnathan Richman

25

merciless genocide slaughter of native peoples wrought with (super) wanton zeal feeble ability to thwart "discoverers" rapine wicked onslaught merely ratcheted wrecked webbing wrenched tribal unity, violently rent asunder vibrant indigenous linkedin weave rendered sacred weltanschauung decimated "noble savage" woke wretched nightmare, sans pock marked worsted weal the Native American holocaust shrouded in whitewashed veil tragedy trampled truces triggering tearful trail scoped scattered remnant snuffed out via surveil futile sympathetic remonstrances, viz rant and rail hermetically sealed ***** deeds done dirt blunted, cheapened, and deadened lance armstrong to quail most definitely coloring faces of captive American Indians deathly pale into figurative coffin got hammered rusty nine inch nail subpar critical population mass for survival, plus storied "red man" bereft of ample potent male off limits to original proprietors forced to hightail happy hunting grounds o'er hill and dale becoming desiccated bleached bones devoid of awful, pitiful, and sorrowful fait accompli and roaming spirits like banshees bewail grievous shadow a blot doth cause me to ail!

0

Apr 29, 2018

Apr 29, 2018 at 6:16 PM UTC

matthew-scott-harris2p

primal beat

merciless genocide slaughter of native peoples wrought with (super) wanton zeal feeble ability to thwart "discoverers" rapine wicked onslaught merely ratcheted wrecked webbing wrenched tribal unity, violently rent asunder vibrant indigenous linkedin weave rendered sacred weltanschauung decimated "noble savage" woke wretched nightmare, sans pock marked worsted weal the Native American holocaust shrouded in whitewashed veil tragedy trampled truces triggering tearful trail scoped scattered remnant snuffed out via surveil futile sympathetic remonstrances, viz rant and rail hermetically sealed ***** deeds done dirt blunted, cheapened, and deadened lance armstrong to quail most definitely coloring faces of captive American Indians deathly pale into figurative coffin got hammered rusty nine inch nail subpar critical population mass for survival, plus storied "red man" bereft of ample potent male off limits to original proprietors forced to hightail happy hunting grounds o'er hill and dale becoming desiccated bleached bones devoid of awful, pitiful, and sorrowful fait accompli and roaming spirits like banshees bewail grievous shadow a blot doth cause me to ail!

44

In summer, there was a bloom of tadpoles in the bathtub against the pasture fence, the sludge at the bottom of the cracked trough seething with bodies the size of my nails. I hauled out the old fish tank, dumping net after net full into the dark water, until I had dredged up every last one. I watched them teeming against the glass while the cicadas’ keening ratcheted up, then poured them all back. But it was too late; not a single one lived, smothered beneath the press. In love with the glisten, they pour until they trip over their vestigial tail, enthusiasm trumping better sense.

0

Dec 16, 2015

Dec 16, 2015 at 7:28 PM UTC

emily-overheim

**** Your Darlings

In summer, there was a bloom of tadpoles in the bathtub against the pasture fence, the sludge at the bottom of the cracked trough seething with bodies the size of my nails. I hauled out the old fish tank, dumping net after net full into the dark water, until I had dredged up every last one. I watched them teeming against the glass while the cicadas’ keening ratcheted up, then poured them all back. But it was too late; not a single one lived, smothered beneath the press. In love with the glisten, they pour until they trip over their vestigial tail, enthusiasm trumping better sense.

14