Tuesday, May 16, 2017

Elk Fishing



image from pinterest.com


Elk Fishing

“There is no abstract art. You must always 
start with something.”--Pablo Picasso.

Woke up curious four times
this morning, 
before I escaped my dreams,
or I think I did, as I gleefully
partook the rites of urination.

I brewed up some Earl Gray.
spiked with toenail jam,
stirred with an owl feather;
sipping it beneath my deck,
squatting on pancakes, listening
to the argument between rain
and my fiberglass roofing, sounding
like thousands of angels using the
deck cover as a toilet, filling the wetness
with the smell of Mandarin oranges,
allowing my mind’s crust to
wander & wonder--

Does yellow snow taste like 
    it looks? Does a metal fan blade
         ever get indigestion? Are the creaking 
    hinges on my screen door proof
of a secret hinge code? What

                             does liberty smell like? Now 
                      that watches can talk, do they
              switch languages as you travel? 
          Does smog have the texture
of elm bark? Can thick fog sing
          credible rap lyrics? When a heart
               breaks alone in the forest,
                         can the ants hear it? Yes.
                                acid rain enables rust, but
                                can it tan skin? 

                                When does
                              anger look pink?
                           Do cold--blooded crea-
                       tures like to drink antifreeze?
                    What specific odor is associated
              with genius intellect? If you stroke a car’s
                     hood, does it become aroused? 
                          Does insanity have a 
                                theme song?

Does jealousy smell like fried
green tomatoes? Is stupidity
always dark brown & sticky?
Is a check legal if it is filled
out in frog’s blood? If you
habitually wear your sunglasses
on your posterior, do they finally
become aspects?

Hope sings anthems, and
red sells cars, but glass hammers
fear nails of all sorts.
                     

Glenn Buttkus

Posted over at dVerse Poets Pub  

15 comments:

indybev said...

Oh, Glenn, this is beyond clever. I was smiling all the way through it, but I have to admit it took me a bit to understand the glasses on the posterior ... DUH! lol

Anonymous said...

Sensational...this would work to music I think Glenn.

Grace said...

Love the questions which brings all the senses to play ~ My favorite is about watches and the heart breaking in the forest ~ You rock the prompt with flying colors Glenn ~

De Jackson said...

Heavens. So much to love in this. You're channeling some Edie Brickell, and beyond. Wonderful.

hyperCRYPTICal said...

A beyond clever from me too! I wonder about things, all life and of course inanimate objects, just wonder...
Anna :o]

Waltermarks said...

That's way ahead of the pack. Soooo many questions. I don't know if I've ever thought of most of them but, they were very funny. Thanks

said...

I love that opening:

"Woke up curious four times
this morning,
before I escaped my dreams"

"I brewed up some Earl Gray.
spiked with toenail jam,
stirred with an owl feather" ... Ha! That's hilarious. :)

"squatting on pancakes" ... Man, you are cracking me up!

"listening
to the argument between rain
and my fiberglass roofing" ... Okay, I'd better stop. I'm just going to quote the whole damn thing. I LOVE this piece, Glenn!

But good Lord, this is gorgeous: "listening
to the argument between rain
and my fiberglass roofing"

"does liberty smell like? Now" ... That is a fantastic question/line break.

"Can thick fog sing
credible rap lyrics?" ... Smiles.

"When a heart
breaks alone in the forest,
can the ants hear it? Yes." ... Awww, I love this!!!

"Does insanity have a
theme song?" ... A whole lot of them, I think. :) Excellent question, though.

Frank Hubeny said...

I can't get out of my mind the idea of those angels using your fiberglass roofing as a toilet. Nice new perspective on angels.

Delaina said...

I love the way you played with the images but seriously the glass hammer afraid of nails is brilliant!

brudberg said...

This is so many brilliant questions that I just want to scream yes yes yes.. you must had fun penning it.

Kim M. Russell said...

That's a great quote to start with, Glenn, and Early Grey is a good tea to start the day!
I love the phrase 'listening / to the argument between rain / and my fiberglass roofing' - I'm listening to rain at the moment; I think it's set in for the rest of the day and its not even eight o'clock yet. I can't answer most of those questions but I'll have a go at one: as Frank Zappa sang, 'Watch out where the huskies go and don't you eat that yellow snow'!

Nan Mykel said...

Squatting on pancakes? Eating toenail jam while angels are pissing Mandarin juice? You must have had a heck of a ball writing this! I did reading it.

Kathy Reed said...

Your awakening was a result of your dreams plus the urgent need to pee..very creative, Glenn.
You conjure up some amazing pairings and make me want to answer the questions. Free verse is the way to go with this. I like the questions, especially 'toenail jam' and 'does insanity have a theme song', and the spectacle of glasses on one's behind ;) We can take lots of liberties with writing. A nice respite from the confounding news.

Mish said...

A spectacular flow! I could feel the energy of a creative mind with no barriers, taking senses out of the norm. So entertaining to read, wondering what you'd come up with next.

Sascha Darlington said...

I love the questions and thoughts here.