Some six-word lines I wrote 10/30/12, the day after Hurricane Sandy hit

Hurricane Sandy Six Word Poem Special

Storms could be the world's vengeance
I watch as my hometown floods
Loses power, water, and sewage systems
What happened that we deserve this?
More concern for property than life
Irreverance? but this is no analogy
The high winds are angry indubitably
No control, we sit and wait
Living in a basement feels safer
Watching bad TV while we can
Looking for Law & Order marathons
But we knew it would happen
Everything died in a short span
First internet, then cell, then power
No light but we have candles
Eating non-stop because fridge is dead
Fuck, let's have a hurricane party
Drinking wine and smoking out windows
Scrabble tournament under influence of Klonopin
Calm alcohol and drug induced sleep
The next day we survey damage
Hundreds of trees uprooted by wind
Ground saturated by water couldn't hold
No one can get to anywhere
The street lights are signalling nothing
I can't call anyone, no service
I miss the pointless internet routine
Maybe we should cherish the break
Text messages are going through intermittently
Taking showers in the dark rules
Wasting my laptop battery for music
It's too dark to even read
Sitting in the car for light
Power might be out for days
Thankful to have a gas stove
At least I have instant coffee
At least I am not alone
How long before the fun ends?
Apocalypse mode is exciting for now
I guarantee we get tired soon
Maybe all the candles will melt
Maybe the food will go bad
Maybe the quiet gets too quiet
Yes, we're grateful for days off
Avoiding real life while we can
When will the world start again?
Soon this must all be done
And we'll do business as usual
We'll forget, like nothing even happened
Having learned nothing, I don't think
But what was there to learn?
Before we find it, it's gone
We will start everything over new
Start it over, out and over

Yeah. I'm bringing this back.

the sunlight burns into my eyes

maybe I prefer to be alone

lie and say you love me

I miss you when I remember

your image comes to me fleetingly

hard to live in present tense

the sound of my own voice

sing to me in evening hours

you are steady to hold onto

I want to know your dreams

in sleep we return to ourselves

I'm always navigating complex twisting houses

when lost I know I'm alone

please can you tell me everything

please can I tell you everything

leave me here with my amnesia

I promise I'll never forgive you

for you I have kept quiet

don't tell me what to do

I am ripping out the stitches

lay my wounds out for display

I'm stronger since I drowned myself

just try to shut me up

strange little girl falling and flailing

i totally forgot about this thing

11-25-09

everything starts to feel the same

small spaces with nothing to say

can't stop fiddling with my keys

dig the lighthouse before it's extinct

no five word poems, george!...duh!

listening to albums from high school

forget having to wake up early

eternal, maternal, fraternal! the colonel kernal

these curtains are really very nice

two people here wear striped shirts

what is the point, you fuckers

red and yellow hat groovy groovy

today was a very good day

this poem has only six words

that poem has only six words

- kitty, jesse, george, & joyce

10-10-09

play me something really fucking loud

don't remember what control feels like

always hanging out under the surface

I hate when clothes stretch out

who told you to stop eating

I have no problems with you

who are these people near me

dropping existentialism too much in conversation

I fear forgetting meanings of words

someone help me buy new boots

I want concise economy of words

while talking it's like you're vomiting

how many songs can I write

name emotions like pointing to them

somehow the wine glasses become empty

drink more when you don't think

I am tired of helping people

maybe I don't ever help people

pronounce words weird when you sing

might be squirrels in the walls

how do you get squirrels out

there's so many fucking squirrels everywhere

squirrels are cute sometimes I guess

but not inside the fucking walls

- joyce

monday morning narrative

every morning I play the radio

I appreciate my morning jacket songs

yawning during second cup of coffee

like two would ever be enough

early bedtimes don't seem to work

wonder if my hemoglobin is low

my boss often disappears for hours

eating mrs. fields butter toffee popcorn

I eat whatever free gifts come

just spend $150 on office supplies

I think you have bipolar disorder

or maybe you're just on drugs

cried last night watching a documentary

it was about a 15-year-old kid

jumped out a window; committed suicide

after composing pros and cons list

the score ended up being even

they had taken him off lithium

I do not think it's fair

wish every day we started over

- joyce @ work

August 4, 2009

I am Hank Williams' bristled beard