In Darkness
In darkness my body
feels less exposed.
It crumbles in daylight
with low self-esteem.
If things were different,
I would hold a ceremony
or a great party for this
body that is in hiding.
I send you my deepest
regret in self-imposed
exile. It is the pain in
my heart that keeps me
torn apart and in darkness.
It is not you, it is me.
~Luis Cuauhtémoc Berriozábal~
*
15.
Note
the sun breaks through
chunks of obsidian
in a stormy vaporous
burst
immaculate exception
of some dreaming
otherness
that speaks in
stupendous
ennobled
images--
Olympian vistas
to house the
gods.
~Wayne F. Burke~
*
14.
Art Groupie
I am standing at the window of a restaurant across the street from a white church on a neon-green lawn. I used to live in this village. A first floor efficiency, mattress on the floor, 12-inch black and white television. My name then was No One. More alone then, at twenty-one, than ever, I could not stand my own company, and used to call my grandmother long distance just to hear a familiar voice... An art group I belonged to met at the house of a girl who called me "Duane". Her boyfriend made drip paintings, drop by drop, from off the top of a bunk bed, canvas on the floor. A heavy-set girl in the group invited me to her apartment to look at her drawings of flying penises. I wondered afterward if it was a come-on--maybe I would have responded if she were thirty pounds less...Maybe not. The star of the group was Arthur, a small guy with glasses, a tuft of hair always under his nose, where he failed to shave. He had published a book--a car manual, but--still, no one of the rest of us had published anything.
~Wayne F. Burke~
*
13.
L'Inferno
~MISH~
*
12.
Sawing a Woman in Half
Where’s the magic in that?
What’s the trick of some
meddlesome man fiddling
with his toothy saw—
steel teeth chewing through
her tender center eagerly
eating away at her
metal smile awash in
her spurting blood
while she is expected
to smile through it all—
As if there is beauty
in a death that denies
its own pain. No
There is no magic
in sawing a woman
in half. The real trick
would be making her
whole again. But no man
is capable of such magic.
~Kathryn Burkett~
*
Art Groupie
I am standing at the window of a restaurant across the street from a white church on a neon-green lawn. I used to live in this village. A first floor efficiency, mattress on the floor, 12-inch black and white television. My name then was No One. More alone then, at twenty-one, than ever, I could not stand my own company, and used to call my grandmother long distance just to hear a familiar voice... An art group I belonged to met at the house of a girl who called me "Duane". Her boyfriend made drip paintings, drop by drop, from off the top of a bunk bed, canvas on the floor. A heavy-set girl in the group invited me to her apartment to look at her drawings of flying penises. I wondered afterward if it was a come-on--maybe I would have responded if she were thirty pounds less...Maybe not. The star of the group was Arthur, a small guy with glasses, a tuft of hair always under his nose, where he failed to shave. He had published a book--a car manual, but--still, no one of the rest of us had published anything.
~Wayne F. Burke~
*
13.
L'Inferno
~MISH~
*
12.
Sawing a Woman in Half
Where’s the magic in that?
What’s the trick of some
meddlesome man fiddling
with his toothy saw—
steel teeth chewing through
her tender center eagerly
eating away at her
metal smile awash in
her spurting blood
while she is expected
to smile through it all—
As if there is beauty
in a death that denies
its own pain. No
There is no magic
in sawing a woman
in half. The real trick
would be making her
whole again. But no man
is capable of such magic.
~Kathryn Burkett~
*
11.
She Sails Beyond the Stars
She Sails Beyond the Stars
Her motionless body on the bed
not lifeless—not yet
Chemical cocktail coursing through her bloodstream
poisoned river raging in her quivering heart
She sees stars behind shaded eyes
covered orbs twitching like fidgeting planets
She approaches the door to infinity
shut tight and painted black
ouroboros emblazoned over the peep hole
One knock and the door implodes exposing
the magnificent cosmic mythology of time
haunted hollow tugging at her fraying threads
threatening disintegration into permanent emptiness
Sudden inexplicable bolt of light pierces the void
she convulses in pools of sweat and vomit
a sickening christening, a godless rebirth
She gasps, floating on transparent waves of air
spinning on a giant ball tossed around the sun
The nothingness slips into the distance
she sighs, desiring dreamless sleep
resigned to the idea of waking again
The void will always be there
forever waiting
but not now. Not quite yet.
~Kathryn Burkett~
*
10.
At Mom's Party
the plane
of the Milky Way
surges and recedes
while I’m tangled up
with my invisible-but-
evil
twin,
who keeps insisting in a
whisper:
I know a way
to get us out of here
faster than
the speed of light–
No, you don't.
We don't do drugs no more,
remember?
Drink
your sugar-free
non-alcoholic
vegan
eggnog.
~MISH~
*
9.
At Mom's Party
the plane
of the Milky Way
surges and recedes
while I’m tangled up
with my invisible-but-
evil
twin,
who keeps insisting in a
whisper:
I know a way
to get us out of here
faster than
the speed of light–
No, you don't.
We don't do drugs no more,
remember?
Drink
your sugar-free
non-alcoholic
vegan
eggnog.
~MISH~
*
9.
The boater
He’s got a secret fishing hole,
which he currently can’t get to
because the boat motor
is broken down.
Meanwhile, he fishes off the pier
where he has to “catch & release.”
He bought the battered blue boat in better times
after he got out of the Navy.
It’s his way of disappearing.
He doesn’t even like to eat fish.
~MISH~
*
8.
Yo-Yo Remix
~MISH~
*
7.
Strange utterance of futures from mute dreams__
Flagrant parades of fake news & now the
World following suit becoming in some
Sense fake
The culturally relevant now like pink
Elephants & clowns
Laughing at the futures being obliterated
In the name of instant progress
Instant any thing seems strange &
Ridiculous
Unless beverage or food
What if we had instant eternity
Or instant whatever we wanted
Would it save us from ourselves
Would it make our lives more meaningful
Would it give all purpose
Or would we just be unhappy with that too
Never happy with anything
Always self/or otherwise victimized
Simply by thought
Altering any future in unknown deplorable
Proclamations we forget is projective magick
Spoken in crowds applauded & revered
As each syllable devours bits of tomorrow
------
~Merritt Waldon~
*
6.
ONCE UPON A TIME/IN THE RIVER OF OUR YOUTH__
Once upon a time an all American boy was i
Groomed for farming, Baseball, & war
Groomed for smooth talking & panty dropping jive
Once upon a time an all American boy discovered
There was another never nurtured yet also passed
On through DNA gift once desired then forgotten by combat
& alcohol now grown to fullness
In the now
Once upon a time a fathers dream to write killed by certain
Sense of duty
Passed on, and now a living fire in the hands of son
A reborn gift mutated
& distorted through war
& chemicals
& lostness
Generations of mad children
At once in full bloom
Here in this
Singular body
Vibrating with muses
On the edge of midnight
Laughing and watching the Heron
& fish play in the river
Of our youth
-----
~Merritt Waldon~
*
5.
We the Muses the Ohio the Willows & i __/ode to connection_
Remembering the sandy bank
The thin limbs & thin flame shaped
Leaves of the tiny Willows
Along the edge between water
& land where i would sit for hours
As a child as a teen growing up
Just east of Madison Indiana
On a bend in the Ohio river
Where state highway 56 passes
Like an artery along the bottom
Of the state
Those days of hearing clearly the Muses
Voice as i sat for many hours many years
Next to the flowing mother of my dream
Vision song desire
Next to the river of my soul heart
The river from whence the secret
Music of my living movement
We the Muses the Ohio the Willows
& i then still life innocent
Then still unstained by harsher choices
& plan Bs
Then still untouched by obsessive ambition
& over confidence
We the Muses the Ohio the Willows
& i
In a multidimensional multireality
Multiconsciousness dream of the future
Becoming realized visions
Becoming incarnated mystery
Animated truth
Dancing bodies celebrating
The rebirth of wonder
-----
~Merritt Waldon~
*
4.
Pacific Bop
Draw a finger, a line in the sand
zig whimsically through the surf
that struts and zags
with hot percussive jazz
of seagulls
wind and
solar saxophone
notation in thick bands of algae strands
moving with the groove of the ocean in motion
the curling suck of long tuba toes
the honk of sunshiny flesh and sassy grained elbows
castles anointed appointed with gates and turrets
gatekeeping foam while bodies sleep
on beach blankets, tented blue dimensions
the slap and snap of a volleyball game
or perched over a book
dreamily cooked
as the long shadows crawl
and the tide comes in
and moonlight blows its yellow
melting horn
over everything
~Alex S. Johnson~
*
3.
Pyramid Head
And we were walking down a
busy sidewalk in
downtown Pasadena
I've got tunnel vision and miss it
the guy with the pyramid head
When I swing around to see what
the legend of Splatterpunk fiction is
on about, pyramid head is gone
swallowed up in the geometry
of arms and legs, window displays of
hats and books and jewelry
To this day I've always wondered
if it gave him extra oomph
some special energy
did it fuel sex with intensity
did his dreams crackle with
pyramidic ozone as
liminal skies
streaked with pharaohonic light
But I guess I'll never know
what happened to the man
with the pyramid dome
now will I
~Alex S. Johnson~
*
2.
Roxxi Superstar
Between us we bore her,
birdweight, dark, smashed,
all Cherokee cheekbones and
spider lashes,
skimming the pavement on
nine inch heels
like an actress in a
fetish demo reel
And Japanese tourists asked for
photographs, laughing and smiling
as we swept down Sunset Boulevard
towards the Whiskey a Go Go
for Roxxi's pay to play show
Maybe some rock and roll legend
and this is how she traveled,
with her crew,
her entourage,
aloft, lighted, light as a
last breath
So we set her down
and she faceplowed, to their squealing delight,
flashbulbs popping in the Angeles night
A tale for back home:
this is how they do it
in Hollywood,
all strange parades
of weightless flesh
packed in black vinyl,
shooting stars
that fall,
and fall
and fall
and
fall
~Alex S. Johnson~
*
1.
Down Now
Fall on your knees
Fall on your knees
The whole world should fall on its knees
The load on your shoulders till you cannot stand
Go ahead, down, assume the position.
For all the others are damned
Nobody knows your name nor will speak it
Or speak to you without show of annoyance
No more ancestors
No descendants
We’ve all been poisoned
The antidote forgotten
Made from plants extinct
In a language no one speaks
Words of righteousness and mercy
No one remembers
No point
Only down.
~E. Martin Pedersen~
He’s got a secret fishing hole,
which he currently can’t get to
because the boat motor
is broken down.
Meanwhile, he fishes off the pier
where he has to “catch & release.”
He bought the battered blue boat in better times
after he got out of the Navy.
It’s his way of disappearing.
He doesn’t even like to eat fish.
~MISH~
*
8.
Yo-Yo Remix
~MISH~
*
7.
Strange utterance of futures from mute dreams__
Flagrant parades of fake news & now the
World following suit becoming in some
Sense fake
The culturally relevant now like pink
Elephants & clowns
Laughing at the futures being obliterated
In the name of instant progress
Instant any thing seems strange &
Ridiculous
Unless beverage or food
What if we had instant eternity
Or instant whatever we wanted
Would it save us from ourselves
Would it make our lives more meaningful
Would it give all purpose
Or would we just be unhappy with that too
Never happy with anything
Always self/or otherwise victimized
Simply by thought
Altering any future in unknown deplorable
Proclamations we forget is projective magick
Spoken in crowds applauded & revered
As each syllable devours bits of tomorrow
------
~Merritt Waldon~
*
6.
ONCE UPON A TIME/IN THE RIVER OF OUR YOUTH__
Once upon a time an all American boy was i
Groomed for farming, Baseball, & war
Groomed for smooth talking & panty dropping jive
Once upon a time an all American boy discovered
There was another never nurtured yet also passed
On through DNA gift once desired then forgotten by combat
& alcohol now grown to fullness
In the now
Once upon a time a fathers dream to write killed by certain
Sense of duty
Passed on, and now a living fire in the hands of son
A reborn gift mutated
& distorted through war
& chemicals
& lostness
Generations of mad children
At once in full bloom
Here in this
Singular body
Vibrating with muses
On the edge of midnight
Laughing and watching the Heron
& fish play in the river
Of our youth
-----
~Merritt Waldon~
*
5.
We the Muses the Ohio the Willows & i __/ode to connection_
Remembering the sandy bank
The thin limbs & thin flame shaped
Leaves of the tiny Willows
Along the edge between water
& land where i would sit for hours
As a child as a teen growing up
Just east of Madison Indiana
On a bend in the Ohio river
Where state highway 56 passes
Like an artery along the bottom
Of the state
Those days of hearing clearly the Muses
Voice as i sat for many hours many years
Next to the flowing mother of my dream
Vision song desire
Next to the river of my soul heart
The river from whence the secret
Music of my living movement
We the Muses the Ohio the Willows
& i then still life innocent
Then still unstained by harsher choices
& plan Bs
Then still untouched by obsessive ambition
& over confidence
We the Muses the Ohio the Willows
& i
In a multidimensional multireality
Multiconsciousness dream of the future
Becoming realized visions
Becoming incarnated mystery
Animated truth
Dancing bodies celebrating
The rebirth of wonder
-----
~Merritt Waldon~
*
4.
Pacific Bop
Draw a finger, a line in the sand
zig whimsically through the surf
that struts and zags
with hot percussive jazz
of seagulls
wind and
solar saxophone
notation in thick bands of algae strands
moving with the groove of the ocean in motion
the curling suck of long tuba toes
the honk of sunshiny flesh and sassy grained elbows
castles anointed appointed with gates and turrets
gatekeeping foam while bodies sleep
on beach blankets, tented blue dimensions
the slap and snap of a volleyball game
or perched over a book
dreamily cooked
as the long shadows crawl
and the tide comes in
and moonlight blows its yellow
melting horn
over everything
~Alex S. Johnson~
*
3.
Pyramid Head
And we were walking down a
busy sidewalk in
downtown Pasadena
I've got tunnel vision and miss it
the guy with the pyramid head
When I swing around to see what
the legend of Splatterpunk fiction is
on about, pyramid head is gone
swallowed up in the geometry
of arms and legs, window displays of
hats and books and jewelry
To this day I've always wondered
if it gave him extra oomph
some special energy
did it fuel sex with intensity
did his dreams crackle with
pyramidic ozone as
liminal skies
streaked with pharaohonic light
But I guess I'll never know
what happened to the man
with the pyramid dome
now will I
~Alex S. Johnson~
*
2.
Roxxi Superstar
Between us we bore her,
birdweight, dark, smashed,
all Cherokee cheekbones and
spider lashes,
skimming the pavement on
nine inch heels
like an actress in a
fetish demo reel
And Japanese tourists asked for
photographs, laughing and smiling
as we swept down Sunset Boulevard
towards the Whiskey a Go Go
for Roxxi's pay to play show
Maybe some rock and roll legend
and this is how she traveled,
with her crew,
her entourage,
aloft, lighted, light as a
last breath
So we set her down
and she faceplowed, to their squealing delight,
flashbulbs popping in the Angeles night
A tale for back home:
this is how they do it
in Hollywood,
all strange parades
of weightless flesh
packed in black vinyl,
shooting stars
that fall,
and fall
and fall
and
fall
~Alex S. Johnson~
*
1.
Down Now
Fall on your knees
Fall on your knees
The whole world should fall on its knees
The load on your shoulders till you cannot stand
Go ahead, down, assume the position.
For all the others are damned
Nobody knows your name nor will speak it
Or speak to you without show of annoyance
No more ancestors
No descendants
We’ve all been poisoned
The antidote forgotten
Made from plants extinct
In a language no one speaks
Words of righteousness and mercy
No one remembers
No point
Only down.
~E. Martin Pedersen~