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"taxis" poems
Love is like taxis They're everywhere when you don't need it But nowhere to be found when you do
0
Apr 23, 2019
Apr 23, 2019 at 7:53 PM UTC
Love
Once I undertook a journey, upon the very face of our entire world. To view for myself the many pictures, and written descriptions in all the geography books and History Classes, National Geographic magazines and movies seen. A Quest to see with my own eyes what I had only experienced second hand. In my mid twenties, like a dream, one foot in front of the other, I went about exploring. I sniffed and tasted the scents of foreign lands, Incense, Sage and Frankincense, fish curry, fried snake and even monkey brains. Walked in lush Jungle Bush and Desert sands, Along the shores of Islands and the coasts of many lands. Heard the voices of 30 divergent Dialects and cultures, smiling and laughing with the families and children of all of them. Set beside the fires of primitive tribal men, heard their chants to their gods above, the moon, stars and the sun, the ocean, the land. Clapped my hands and moved my feet in their ancient mystic dances. Drank their tea, Kava or whatever they shared grateful for their offered unselfish brotherhood. Stood on the flanks of the tallest Mountains in the world, on my toe tips, to try to see the face of the God of my youthful teachings, disappointed when I did not see him, or Her. Found instead an inner tranquility, imparted to me by Red robbed Monks from within their chants of Peace and wise earthly enlightenments. Strolled the cobbled streets of two thousand year old Cities. Walked among the ruined remnants of nearly forgotten once great Civilizations. Explored Modern European Citadels' of wealth and learning. Over time rode on planes, ships, buses, backs of open trucks, Horse pulled carts and human drawn rickshaws, taxis, subways, rented motorcycles and cars.  Walked perhaps 1000 miles. In all a journey of the mind and heart lasting three years. And why you might ask, "What qualifies you as a pilgrim of any kind, to travel so far, and wide?" "What was I looking for, what did I hope to find?"   All indeed, fare questions. When a boy, I read a simple five word line, “Seek and thee shall find". Curiosity and Horizon Lust compelled me.   The next obvious question you might ask is, after all that; “What did you find?” That answer is very simple, I found myself.
0
Dec 10, 2013
Dec 10, 2013 at 7:14 PM UTC
. . . . . . . . Seek . . .
Once I undertook a journey, upon the very face of our entire world. To view for myself the many pictures, and written descriptions in all the geography books and History Classes, National Geographic magazines and movies seen. A Quest to see with my own eyes what I had only experienced second hand. In my mid twenties, like a dream, one foot in front of the other, I went about exploring. I sniffed and tasted the scents of foreign lands, Incense, Sage and Frankincense, fish curry, fried snake and even monkey brains. Walked in lush Jungle Bush and Desert sands, Along the shores of Islands and the coasts of many lands. Heard the voices of 30 divergent Dialects and cultures, smiling and laughing with the families and children of all of them. Set beside the fires of primitive tribal men, heard their chants to their gods above, the moon, stars and the sun, the ocean, the land. Clapped my hands and moved my feet in their ancient mystic dances. Drank their tea, Kava or whatever they shared grateful for their offered unselfish brotherhood. Stood on the flanks of the tallest Mountains in the world, on my toe tips, to try to see the face of the God of my youthful teachings, disappointed when I did not see him, or Her. Found instead an inner tranquility, imparted to me by Red robbed Monks from within their chants of Peace and wise earthly enlightenments. Strolled the cobbled streets of two thousand year old Cities. Walked among the ruined remnants of nearly forgotten once great Civilizations. Explored Modern European Citadels' of wealth and learning. Over time rode on planes, ships, buses, backs of open trucks, Horse pulled carts and human drawn rickshaws, taxis, subways, rented motorcycles and cars.  Walked perhaps 1000 miles. In all a journey of the mind and heart lasting three years. And why you might ask, "What qualifies you as a pilgrim of any kind, to travel so far, and wide?" "What was I looking for, what did I hope to find?"   All indeed, fare questions. When a boy, I read a simple five word line, “Seek and thee shall find". Curiosity and Horizon Lust compelled me.   The next obvious question you might ask is, after all that; “What did you find?” That answer is very simple, I found myself.
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53
I could take the Harlem night and wrap around you, Take the neon lights and make a crown, Take the Lenox Avenue busses, Taxis, subways, And for your love song tone their rumble down. Take Harlem's heartbeat, Make a drumbeat, Put it on a record, let it whirl, And while we listen to it play, Dance with you till day-- Dance with you, my sweet brown Harlem girl.
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13k
Juke Box Love Song
Katie Price Had a collection Of last season's Brassieres Which she indexed With the help Of a sincere Bilingual reindeer Dressed in spandex Who for some reason Was single. Taxonomy Is so important to me Said Katie. So they were labelled And kept in taxis At disused angle grinder factories Near the Tower of Babel So posterity Would be able To analyse The finer points Of her physiognomy. Quite an unusual praxis And something of an anomaly For someone like me Wouldn't you agree? Cross my heart And hope to die I agree.
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May 9, 2014
May 9, 2014 at 2:42 PM UTC
Katie Price And Her Bilingual Reindeer
inthe,exquisite; morning sure lyHer eye s exactly sit,ata little roundtable among otherlittle roundtables Her,eyes count slow(ly obstre poroustimidi ties surElyfl)oat iNg,the ofpieces ofof sunligh tof fa l l in gof throughof treesOf. (Fields Elysian The like,a)slEEping neck a breathing a ,lies (slo wlythe wom an pa)ris her flesh:wakes in little streets while exactlygir lisHlegs;play;ing;nake;D and chairs wait under the trees Fields slowly Elysian in a firmcool-Ness taxis,s.QuirM and, b etw ee nch air st ott er s thesillyold WomanSellingBalloonS In theex qui site morning, her sureLyeye s sit-ex actly her sitsat a surely!little, roundtable amongother;littleexacty round. tables, Her .eyes
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8.7k
Inthe,Exquisite;
"Have you talked to dad, since you've been at school?" "Nope." "Are you coming home for thanksgiving?" "I don't know." Josephina breathes in a crackle over the phone. New York, a cacophony in the background. A background of cold, and people talking while walking while hailing a yellowcab with a left and slow-rolling heads locked onto the phones in their right. These people enter taxis, not knowing if they're ever going to reach home, or the airport, or union square, just going on the promise that they won't become road-kill. I can't feel it in my yellow apartment. If anything, my yellowcab idles. Through the receiver A squad car rings nervously, then after a lungful of garbage-smelling air, it becomes a full blare. A pause of noise always ensues, just for a second, the entire corner becomes a silent silo of human beings. "How's new york?" "you know, dad called me and asked about how to get on a diet, can you believe that?" Yes, I can dad is a fat **** a pink, white belly of a man. And a few sandbags for chins. "That's good." "So I'm not going to see you?" "Probably not." "Well, you should call dad, talk to him, he loves you." Some conversations, acheive nothing. The same tired, dead things get run over. Road-kill. Josephina believes she is the spatula that will bring back pancake squirrels and pancake relationships. As much as you don't know about me and dad's relationship, I can give you a kodak moment. A snapshot, of a hovering man, pointing at his son's neck, searching for the misplaced vertebrae, the lack of fear for the world --"the right kind of fear, the fear a man should have of himself"-- and a son, hunched, small hands in fists, a heavy haul of muscles pulled into a dark brow right over black eyes. This picture will suffice.
0
Nov 23, 2011
Nov 23, 2011 at 4:59 PM UTC
Pancake Squirrels.
"Have you talked to dad, since you've been at school?" "Nope." "Are you coming home for thanksgiving?" "I don't know." Josephina breathes in a crackle over the phone. New York, a cacophony in the background. A background of cold, and people talking while walking while hailing a yellowcab with a left and slow-rolling heads locked onto the phones in their right. These people enter taxis, not knowing if they're ever going to reach home, or the airport, or union square, just going on the promise that they won't become road-kill. I can't feel it in my yellow apartment. If anything, my yellowcab idles. Through the receiver A squad car rings nervously, then after a lungful of garbage-smelling air, it becomes a full blare. A pause of noise always ensues, just for a second, the entire corner becomes a silent silo of human beings. "How's new york?" "you know, dad called me and asked about how to get on a diet, can you believe that?" Yes, I can dad is a fat **** a pink, white belly of a man. And a few sandbags for chins. "That's good." "So I'm not going to see you?" "Probably not." "Well, you should call dad, talk to him, he loves you." Some conversations, acheive nothing. The same tired, dead things get run over. Road-kill. Josephina believes she is the spatula that will bring back pancake squirrels and pancake relationships. As much as you don't know about me and dad's relationship, I can give you a kodak moment. A snapshot, of a hovering man, pointing at his son's neck, searching for the misplaced vertebrae, the lack of fear for the world --"the right kind of fear, the fear a man should have of himself"-- and a son, hunched, small hands in fists, a heavy haul of muscles pulled into a dark brow right over black eyes. This picture will suffice.
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98
first date conversation: research on lemurs and taxis without floors because the city is too poor for upscale renovation and we exchange backgrounds and drug stories and some-day-soon kind of musings /a southern peach and a sour stiletto; the man in corner singing slowly Nobody's Child/ and eventually we write our names in chalk on the ceiling (and the wall because I'm tired of places appearing as if I'd never been there at all) and later still we write our names in heat against the cloudy window (twice because the steam keeps swallowing up our evidence of existence) but it's easy to write again and again because our names are the same and I'm starting to believe in this idea of genuine permanence
0
Nov 9, 2014
Nov 9, 2014 at 12:35 PM UTC
Southern Peach and a Sour Stiletto
Easily Tux Laxity Use Laxity Sue Taxis Yule Taxi Yules Tau Sexily Axe I ***** Yea Xi **** Yea Xi Lust Aye Xi **** Aye Xi Lust Ail Yes Tux Sail Ye Tux Ails Ye Tux Italy Ex Us Laity Ex Us Taxi Lye Us La Suety Xi Talus Ye Xi Lax Yeti Us Lax Suety I Lax Ye Suit Lay Exit Us Lay Suet Xi Lay Tuxes I Lay Ex Suit Sat Yule Xi Taus Lye Xi Sax Yule Ti Sax Yule It Say Lie Tux Say Lei Tux Say Lute Xi Say Exult I At Yules Xi At Yule Xis At Yule Six Tau Lyes Xi Tau Lye Xis Tau Lye Six Tax Yules I Tax Yule Is Ax Lieu Sty Ax Yules Ti Ax Yules It Ax Yule Tis Ax Yule Its Ax Yule Sit Ax Lye Suit Ya Isle Tux Ya Lies Tux Ya Leis Tux Ya Lutes Xi Ya Exults I Ya Lute Xis Ya Lute Six Ya Exult Is Ay Isle Tux Ay Lies Tux Ay Leis Tux Ay Lutes Xi Ay Exults I Ay Lute Xis Ay Lute Six Ay Exult Is A Lyes I Tux A Lye Is Tux A Ex I ***** A Ye Xi **** A Ye Xi Lust La Yes I Tux La Yet Xi Us La Ye Is Tux Las Ye I Tux Lax Yet I Us Lax Ye Ti Us Lax Ye It Us Lay Ex Ti Us Lay Ex It Us As Lye I Tux Say El I Tux At Lye Xi Us Tau Ex I Sly Tax Lye I Us Ax Lye Ti Us Ax Lye It Us Ax Ye I **** Ax Ye I Lust Ax Ye Lit Us Ya El Is Tux Ya Let Xi Us Ya Ex I **** Ya Ex I Lust Ya Ex Lit Us Ay El Is Tux Ay Let Xi Us Ay Ex I **** Ay Ex I Lust Ay Ex Lit Us
0
Oct 25, 2015
Oct 25, 2015 at 12:38 PM UTC
Sexuality
I'm No born free I tasted the dust of apartheid My mother was hiding behind the trees screaming for help No one was there No time to sleep We were cursed for struggle My father never smiled when my mother would say "the baby is kicking" Cause he knew,it wasn't the kick of joy It wasn't a sign of being a soccer star It was the struggle! 1990 Mandela was out of prison 1993 I was born 1994 the Dom's were free No more Dom-pass,but not uhuru still Innocent souls were lost What was the fighting worth for? I can forgive but never forget When De klert called black fools He said they do nothing but barking We turned to dogs now This is for Steve Biko Chris Hani Hector Paterson Raymond mhlaba Let not my skin define who I am Let not the earth describe me I know my future because of my history I was raised in a town of fallen angels Where blacks were deceived Whites felt free Turn the lights off we all the same colour Don't turn them on I want my son to know the history But to not repeat it. They say follow your leader How can you follow corruption? Zuma this zuma that Its all illusion I'll only follow u twitter I want you to retweet all the ish I'll be posting about you,the Raping,The Nkandla part,The Cheating,The Art and the bunch of wives Yes I voted,I still don't know why I voted Helen Zille only speaks xhosa in time of elections Jacob Zuma gives free taxis only to the voting station Julius Malema will bring apartheid back it is said on radio stations Mandela spent most time in hospital All of a sudden his dead Was he even in jail before? Oscar Pistorius ran to **** His now a criminal. Mandela note on my hand But valueless Our economy is dying Our world is dying My Dear South Africa..No Power!
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May 13, 2014
May 13, 2014 at 11:30 AM UTC
Not yet uhuru
I'm No born free I tasted the dust of apartheid My mother was hiding behind the trees screaming for help No one was there No time to sleep We were cursed for struggle My father never smiled when my mother would say "the baby is kicking" Cause he knew,it wasn't the kick of joy It wasn't a sign of being a soccer star It was the struggle! 1990 Mandela was out of prison 1993 I was born 1994 the Dom's were free No more Dom-pass,but not uhuru still Innocent souls were lost What was the fighting worth for? I can forgive but never forget When De klert called black fools He said they do nothing but barking We turned to dogs now This is for Steve Biko Chris Hani Hector Paterson Raymond mhlaba Let not my skin define who I am Let not the earth describe me I know my future because of my history I was raised in a town of fallen angels Where blacks were deceived Whites felt free Turn the lights off we all the same colour Don't turn them on I want my son to know the history But to not repeat it. They say follow your leader How can you follow corruption? Zuma this zuma that Its all illusion I'll only follow u twitter I want you to retweet all the ish I'll be posting about you,the Raping,The Nkandla part,The Cheating,The Art and the bunch of wives Yes I voted,I still don't know why I voted Helen Zille only speaks xhosa in time of elections Jacob Zuma gives free taxis only to the voting station Julius Malema will bring apartheid back it is said on radio stations Mandela spent most time in hospital All of a sudden his dead Was he even in jail before? Oscar Pistorius ran to **** His now a criminal. Mandela note on my hand But valueless Our economy is dying Our world is dying My Dear South Africa..No Power!
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54
I know I didn't treat a lot you right I'm a closed book with a big bad padlock on it maybe you could say trust issues but **** it I love you guys no **** (maybe a little) because no matter where or how I have been I have had some great people there for me to keep me walking along that tight rope without the fear of a body full of broken bones We climbed hay bales in Drax and ran away from the farmer in his combine harvester we let everybody's tires down and we went to the club and stayed until closing time until after there were no taxis left walking four miles home at four in the morning we had a laugh mate And to my Yankee friends The rest of the world may hate you but I don't (much) video games all night ding **** ditch homecoming and prom and smoking cigarettes behind best buy whole days spent on a couch laughing harder than we were high the bowl we bought together aptly named Willem Defoe Marathon movie nights post virginity loss high fives telling me you were proud of me for how I handled my parents' almost divorce And I'm a cynical, ******* introvert and at times I never want to see a human being ever again but when that feeling fades you guys are the first people I text
0
Jan 12, 2014
Jan 12, 2014 at 2:22 PM UTC
All My Friends
Changing buses at Flamingo and Decatur, a Sister ogles my comped leather jacket, while braceros mill about across the street, awaiting any drive-by job offer. This is the Vegas never seen from the Strip; a town of cheap gifts and off-the-books labor, where paychecks disappear in Dollar Loan Centers, every cranny packing a local's casino. A hundred taxis queue outside the Palms, like pilot fish seeking ectoparasites upon a shark. Inside the thousand dollar escorts hustle overextended gamblers busting hard 16's at the tables. I told the Sister I'd won the jacket. Impressing her that anyone would ever be a winner, watched her intentionally cross the street to invite a bracero out to breakfast. The 103 bus downtown ran late. Leaving my losing parlay tickets on the bus, I walk through the parking lot of despair, the casino's glass doors awaiting me.
0
Feb 21, 2012
Feb 21, 2012 at 10:21 PM UTC
Drowning in the Squonk's Tears
I miss the Norwesters I miss the heavy rains I miss hurrying to catch a bus Completely drenched Oh Kolkata! Without you I am Like a fish out of water I miss the olden buildings I miss the bustling streets I miss riding the tramway With a song playing on repeat Oh Kolkata! Without you I am But a fish out of water I miss the winter sunsets I miss evenings by the lake I miss Maharaja's kachoris And jalebis on a steel plate Oh Kolkata! Without you I am Just a fish out of water I miss the yellow taxis I miss the hawkers' stalls I miss the political graffiti Adorning the walls Oh Kolkata! Without you I am Still a fish out of water Now I'm so far But yet so near My heart can't shelter These hopes and fears Rejection, reduction I feel choked once again Within your walls of nostalgia Maybe I'll be safe Oh Kolkata! Show me a way To return to the water
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Feb 24, 2019
Feb 24, 2019 at 7:19 AM UTC
Ode to Kolkata
Fickle in self and in nature at least Winter is giving me a stir. I'm already seeking daffodils and snowdrops going to impossible  lengths trains and taxis just to glimpse the glory of those shortened days where my irises softened by the mild hue gives a wide credit to the prevailing next month
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Jan 8, 2015
Jan 8, 2015 at 5:29 PM UTC
Planning February
The Empire State Building is a giant middle finger Concrete is broken, NYPD, taxis racing, red light green light I enter the hand of the city through it's capillaries breaking mad concrete Warm gusts of **** grime, and transportation swallow me The city feeds off dreams and hope which we personally, willingly give up We all somehow learn to accept this fate  The passerby no longer human but broken mirror  The hand inundates my eyes from breezes of tomorrow The spacy apartment, and the affluent career and the acquantanceship Of the handful of New Yorkers that run the hand: all questionable plans today It's as if the hand's grasp, although sharp and brick, would venerate your intellect, guaranteed If that's the case, I see wizards of wisdom everyday snoozing on concrete and cardboard and plastic Bearded, black with dirt and skin, threads ripped by a world inferrior than the one in thier minds Empire "Middle Finger" State  of intellect, scrapping billion dollar clouds Sardine can subways, escalators, elevators, high on crack **** speed of sound The cash nerve system meltsdown into golden chips to feed the pigeons Glass and steel craft spaces for modernity to be sold like a Washington Heights ***** You can feel the growth of the hand at the end of your intestines It's a warm, uncomfortable vibration revealed in your ******** Foreign tongues buzz through the air, through your hair for 19.95 New York needs a haircut, some profound discipline so we wake up from this bizzare life of welcomed pain You once charmed me with hopes of culture, open minds, connections, real connections, love and laughter Yet, Today I am hungry in Murray hill I am cold in Chelsea I am broken in Union Square I ***** in SoHo I have fallen in the East River And I bleed on financial monoliths  Someone have mercy on my wills It is an intention trying to be fulfilled But failed when it became self-aware
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Nov 4, 2010
Nov 4, 2010 at 11:44 PM UTC
The Empire State Building is a Giant Middle Finger
The Empire State Building is a giant middle finger Concrete is broken, NYPD, taxis racing, red light green light I enter the hand of the city through it's capillaries breaking mad concrete Warm gusts of **** grime, and transportation swallow me The city feeds off dreams and hope which we personally, willingly give up We all somehow learn to accept this fate  The passerby no longer human but broken mirror  The hand inundates my eyes from breezes of tomorrow The spacy apartment, and the affluent career and the acquantanceship Of the handful of New Yorkers that run the hand: all questionable plans today It's as if the hand's grasp, although sharp and brick, would venerate your intellect, guaranteed If that's the case, I see wizards of wisdom everyday snoozing on concrete and cardboard and plastic Bearded, black with dirt and skin, threads ripped by a world inferrior than the one in thier minds Empire "Middle Finger" State  of intellect, scrapping billion dollar clouds Sardine can subways, escalators, elevators, high on crack **** speed of sound The cash nerve system meltsdown into golden chips to feed the pigeons Glass and steel craft spaces for modernity to be sold like a Washington Heights ***** You can feel the growth of the hand at the end of your intestines It's a warm, uncomfortable vibration revealed in your ******** Foreign tongues buzz through the air, through your hair for 19.95 New York needs a haircut, some profound discipline so we wake up from this bizzare life of welcomed pain You once charmed me with hopes of culture, open minds, connections, real connections, love and laughter Yet, Today I am hungry in Murray hill I am cold in Chelsea I am broken in Union Square I ***** in SoHo I have fallen in the East River And I bleed on financial monoliths  Someone have mercy on my wills It is an intention trying to be fulfilled But failed when it became self-aware
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31
Creased lines in your cancer bed sheets and red wine spills still remain from that time you celebrated your chemotherapy success. Drug-blue cocktails were swapped for beers from cans, needles for straws and hospital-stock- comfortable-armchairs for the advertised sofa in your part furnished floor. Friends came with warm welcomes prepared in the back of taxis coming from the city, they came in wide eyed staring, holding wine bottles remembering your once real wig of hair.
0
Jan 29, 2014
Jan 29, 2014 at 9:50 AM UTC
Red Wine Cancer
concrete shades the yellow-lighted symphony. The peso-heavy take taxis; security valets motors steaming castle gates. I ask, which way is the 158? Indifferent, they say, walk straight neath the freewaythere is a bus stop two blocks away. **** **** **** Clocktower hands transpose Cindarella-brick to embers of electricity, a factory aside scrawled graffiti; fingers timidly ricket pitchfork fences. Palermo is 11 km north. Where is the north star? I look straight ahead, repeating what the travel blogs said like, Be lost, don’t look lost; flappy plastic maps scream vulnerability. Be lost, not rich; iPhones in gotham alleys are batman signals. Walk fast. Don’t pay attention to the eyes that pass. Careless ponytails and brass hair attract glances back. Two blocks deep into the homeless shelter beneath freeways, blankets in shopping carts toppled over, cars screaming away the symphony into shadowed silence between heels striking. Tunnel breath emerging on the other side, gasping past stacked Jenga towers, wired with antennas and empty clotheslines; families and crack ****** sleep inside. Safety’s herd thins as  couples dart left down cobblestone tributaries that either lead to bus stops or parked cars. I walk straight ahead with sleeve-covered hands that swing like sticks in the wind. The symphony turns to heartbeats and footsteps plucking quickly; fearing the 180 behind, to zombies with sunken eyes, thirsty for a thirty-cent high.
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Sep 5, 2014
Sep 5, 2014 at 8:45 PM UTC
cultural corridor
Is a happy accident predictable? Could I prophecy that red is romance And that we'll meet in the Tunnel-of-Love That is part of London's skeleton? Will the Central Line tie us up, When happiness is accidental, Like a red ribbon following 'destiny'? Am I able to sit on full buses Without a new fated friend sitting On that one empty seat? Dearest Who-Knows-Who Will I trip and drown you in tea And stain your ears with words; Will it be the start of a beautiful Work-but-never-social relationship? Can I foresee the strike of chance that Has two hands reaching for the same Bottle of milk only to then be locked Into a battle of politeness with my Defeat being an exchange of dairy for Kind ears? Or is our shared liquid desire Made by a patient and the soon to be Doctor in, say, seven accidents time? Perhaps a publisher engages in this war Of intrinsic social conduct, perhaps my poetry Is destined for pages because of this bottle, Perhaps I become a helping hand. Perhaps perhaps perhaps. Not all of this is an exercise in futility; I look out from my window and see a city Filled with cracked pavements or missed trains Or shared taxis or dropped books or...or.... Or, perhaps, that ever so unpredictable, Wonderful, accidental serendipity.
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May 11, 2013
May 11, 2013 at 4:11 PM UTC
Serendipity
I'm              drowning                          in light,                 In blinding light: Lights on cars; and buildings; and lit up trees lining lit up streets;              Houses with sills all lined in gold And diamond; silver glitter glued onto mould; Street lamps; and laser pointers; and Towers; neon lights dotted with flowers Of plastic sun; hoardings and billboards, With bright teeth and skin and red words Everywhere you turn, Telling you what you want And never knew you wanted; Shop windows; chandeliers; Presents for that time of year; Cell phone pylons with twinkling, Bright lights on top, like Christmas trees; Christmas trees, with stars and angels Speckled, Frosted, Dusted on the tops; Disgusting glare on sunglasses, And a smiting gaze along the arms; Bridges and fountains with gold poured on; Platinum bands in every size, laying all forlorn; Bedside lamps; and taxis; and taxi stands; Every window, but the ones Being jumped off of; TVs and refrigerators, opened Thoughtlessly at night; Screens shooting onto impassive glass That used to be faces; Cameras, going off in quick succession, Quicker than you can keep up; I'm drowning. We are taught desire, in light, We learn to read in light and scarlet letters of fluorescence We are blind, Now that the road is paved for us, To the light that was before.
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Apr 5, 2016
Apr 5, 2016 at 10:20 AM UTC
Shards of Light
SOMEBODY'S little girl-how easy to make a sob story over who she was once and who she is now. Somebody's little girl-she played once under a crab-apple tree in June and the blossoms fell on the dark hair. It was somewhere on the Erie line and the town was Salamanca or Painted Post or Horse's Head. And out of her hair she shook the blossoms and went into the house and her mother washed her face and her mother had an ache in her heart at a rebel voice, "I don't want to." Somebody's little girl-forty little girls of somebodies splashed in red tights forming horseshoes, arches, pyramids-forty little show girls, ponies, squabs. How easy a sob story over who she once was and who she is now-and how the crabapple blossoms fell on her dark hair in June. Let the lights of Broadway spangle and splatter-and the taxis hustle the crowds away when the show is over and the street goes dark. Let the girls wash off the paint and go for their midnight sandwiches-let 'em dream in the morning sun, late in the morning, long after the morning papers and the milk wagons- Let 'em dream long as they want to ... of June somewhere on the Erie line ... and crabapple blossoms.
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2.2k
Crabapple Blossoms
I want to go to New York City with you And stand hand in hand in Times Square It sounds like it would be nice To be blinded by the lights But I suppose that whispering clumsy words would become tiresome The hum in the air is not the lazy bliss of summer It is the impatient growl of taxis And we would not just be surrounded by lovers melting into each other’s arms But also by people whose mothers have just died Diners at midnight always seemed romantic With my arm stretched across the table so I could entwine my fingers with yours But it is important to remember that the lights in cheap diners always flicker And the bags under the waitresses’ eyes will remind us of reality every time we ask for another refill And yes, I know what drinking alone will do And still, I’ll stick to what I know
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Oct 21, 2012
Oct 21, 2012 at 8:06 PM UTC
Untitled 5
He is who you want to see at the airport, half asleep, pastel sweatshirt half zipped. Half length shorts ending just above the knees. Eyes matching the green and blue abstract swirls patterned into the carpet to hide passenger sick-up. The background to travelling japanese circus photos, they’ll look back in their scrapbooks, past the ponies on the baggage carousel, see him waiting for the delayed international arrival. Stiff legs tread quietly down grey hallways, stringing a stickered suitcase along moving walkways, thoughts caught between continents, in escalator’s teeth. Tiptoeing over the hot coffee spilled like oil, the taste of morning breath clinging to the back of the throat, chalky as chilled ashes, abandoned and unswallowed. When the taxis are cold and the day’s been worn out, before it’s even begun; patchy fabric stretched over toes rubbing thin on the inside of your shoes, he’ll circle your head like a daisy crown. To hold the tiny scars on his broad shoulders, traces blemishes like a mine sweeper, would be like orange juice at 40 000 ft. Intimate in a way only TSA agents know how to be, looking for explosives behind the ribcage, to the left.
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Oct 1, 2013
Oct 1, 2013 at 3:48 AM UTC
International Airport
she sat next to me near the window at starbucks on 41st and madison with a journal covered in pastel lines and a black backdrop. on the top center read “2011 was the year i screamed **** life’ and **** me” as a running header. she ran through my head, tilting this little snippet of her brain towards me and i swear that she looked at me but all i could do was make the sign of the cross hoping god heard my muffled voice, drowned out by the sounds of yellow taxis on the crosswalk and whispers of angels on the corners asking for my pockets. i’ve never tasted sixty miles per hour but i can imagine it’s the same as when she writes “your shirt looks like my thoughts”; i’m falling in love too easily. i want to read every inch of your body; your arms have the bible etched in your veins and a fifth of my poems are scribbled on your aortas; my mother’s wedding vows are in my right eye and my father, my father just takes care of himself. i don’t think my eyesight is getting any better, you slid the note two spaces down and i think i shed a tear but i can’t remember whether you were smiling for joy or the fact you missed my hand.
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Jun 6, 2014
Jun 6, 2014 at 11:54 PM UTC
she drank a venti vanilla chai latte
(I) So concretey, these jungles but not like this Glass shards shoot up 45 stories only to have tarp covered markets populated by shouters Oh, Powerpuff Girls on backpacks one green one purple one pink And 10 dollar Gucci bags these people have it made Four blocks from the world stock exchange these people have it made (II) You ain't had won ton noodle soup Or chicken feet Or shrimp stuffed eggplant Or food from Chinese franchise Pizza Huts which happens to be an escargot joint What does that say about US? hopefully not much (III) Red taxis between every other car Double decker busses more common than city pigeons Still the city finds time for trees whiskery ents rising out of ancient volcanic soil You would think it's a city full of sin Seven million souls, what- that's higher than I can count It's not Everyone here is cute and wrinkly Confucian except for the young These people have it made (IV) In this city, you're expected to stay home with mom and dad As they get cute and wrinkly you're to return the love Confucian these people have it made 11 seated dinners these people have it made (V) Here in this ancient city the gravestones dot the hills coat the hills And then the cremation jars bury the hills (yes, they're dead) cough Here's how a Chinese name is structured: [family name] [given name] Confucianism and then these names fade too These people have it made but it's alright.
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Dec 9, 2013
Dec 9, 2013 at 8:18 AM UTC
Hong Kong
My feet hit the street eyes down cast on the ground trying not to be distracted by the soldier with a gun on the corner now I reacted. Turning my head in circles to the burning sky, the noises of confusing cars wrestle by. I hope I can safely cross for I was warned there is chance of a loss. While Tegucigalpa taxis fight for a ride, I patiently wait for an ebbing tide. My feet again hit the pavement, as I wonder what a flower vendor's words meant. I made it to the other side, but my time I cannot bide. For before the first bell rings, in front of a classroom I will be standing.
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Oct 3, 2011
Oct 3, 2011 at 4:31 PM UTC
Morning Walk
There is no dusk in this city penetrated by the raging Potomac, Night just crams itself in and rapes the day dry - lays her flat against the horizon. Mothers and children run for covers and put each other to sleep; in a few hours harlots and nighthawks will do the same. Sweet Siren You are this city Petticoated and pretty, Cunning and stunning Winking and blinking Red Yellow Green eyes popping open like sunken headlights, Ready for the night. I hear your wailing red-flashed and flaming like an open heart, piercing the black with it's plea. I feel your pulse-pumping red corpuscles thrusting me deep into lusting for things forbidden and hidden Somewhere inside this neon wonderland. Sweet Siren, Sing your teasing tunes for me Deliver me from your shelters and streets, Where infidels and angels Fall at your feet. Sweet Siren, Deliver me to the Trembling shelter of your sheets. Liars and their lies roam this concrete jungle begging for love and razors and other disposable items. You go screaming passed them though, determined to save at least one numb drunk *** in some rain cleansed back alley of vices; only to fool your own conscience with the lithium laced smile of charity. Sweet Siren Quiet your angry shrill to a hush The tarmac and taxis are tired of us And your princes and saviors have fled this town. Sweet Siren, It's time for us to burn this city down And leave the ashes For the thieves and the clowns.
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Aug 14, 2013
Aug 14, 2013 at 1:58 PM UTC
Sweet Siren