Daily Archives: September 25, 2011

September 25, 2011

You And Ivan Pavlov Are Now Friends

By Tony Brown

Bell?
Yes. Mouth water?
Yes.
Food? Yes…
yes?

Yes.

Screen changes?
Yes.  Red number under
“Notifications?” Yes.
Mouth water?  Yes.
On my status? Yes…
yes?

Yes?

Oh.

More vitirol this time?
Cute puppy pic this time?
Link to controversial article this time?
Yes.  Red number under
“Notifications?”  Yes.
Bigger number? Yes?
YES! More mouth water?
YES! More vitirol?
YES! YES! YES!

Feeling hungry?
Feeling
full of YES! YES! YES! 
like James Joyce?
Like a writer?
Like a person of interest?
Like sitting up?
Like rolling over?
Like fetch? 

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September 25, 2011

War

By Tony Brown

Anywhere you go,
there’s a war.
Military presence
or no,
a war;
craters and
pus and rot or
sweet green fields,
a war;
occupation or 
liberation, ideology
or theology,
a war.  

All you need
for a war to exist
is someone
accepting the existence
of collateral damage —

and
dulling eyes
that no longer wonder
what to call
what just happened.

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September 25, 2011

A Duende Project performance video for you…

By Tony Brown

Thought I’d take a break from posting poems to offer you this:  a video of my poetry and music collaborative effort, The Duende Project, at a tribute to Kurt Vonnegut Jr.  The event took place on September 22, 2011, in Somerville MA and featured a number of wonderful poets, including Charles Coe and Daphne Gottlieb among many other artists, writers, and musicians.

I posted the text of the poem a few days ago if you care to read it.

Hope you enjoy.

For Kurt, On the Other Side, Mowing The Lawn 

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September 25, 2011

Never Stop Improving

By Tony Brown

is the motto 
for a warehouse store
selling lumber and spackle and lights
handyman that you are
you are always paying attention:
it’s time to go to work

rebuilding the shelves
in the bedroom
rebuilding the bedroom itself 
then improving the kiss
the response to the kiss
the response to the response to the kiss

let’s get to work
let’s improve something
this is all
too linear
too many
logical steps

let’s get to work
gapping the frame
inserting the chipped marble
stenciling eagles on the mantels
rotating the architecture
around the range of solutions

let’s improve something
settling the ape
into the new cornerstone
suspending the dove above
charming the octopus into singing
finishing the pain threshhold

never stop improving
long pauses
short breaths
driving of angel nails
let’s get to work
housewarming

 

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