sparks

that look

across the lobby of a gaudy hotel
on par with the grand Budapest

big and open and yet

reeking of the same stuffy stench
as a small hallway in an old woman's duplex
in somewhere like Cornwall

as if the carpets haven't been cleaned
since the last great war.

that look

that look that penetrates the mire and murk

that look that breaks your pace

forces your pupils to grow big
in an effort to absorb more detail

that look that breaks you

at the end of a long story, that you thought wouldn't end.

at least,

not like that. 

well read

she doesn't want to do anything today.

and no one else does

either.

if her eyes

if her eyes were the same color as yours
would you trust her more
or less?

because you know all the things
your eyes have seen.

would you want her to see the world
like that?

we are made of stuff

i have a few days off.  off from one of three jobs, anyway.  so as far as i see it, i have 35 hours to myself.  in that time i have a few objectives.  one of them, to do a little bit of blogging.  why not, right?

day one:

i made a lot of progress on my jigsaw puzzle while watching season four of portlandia and eating cinnamon rolls.

i watched cloudy with a chance of meatballs 2, and hung out with my three favorite cats.

i made vet appointments for two of those three cats (just routine visits).

i also got my free fitbit in the mail.  i work for weight watchers, and while they don't pay great, they do give their meeting-room staff a few good perks.  so tonight, ryan is going to help me set it up to sync with my phone.  to make the device worth while, i am also going to get a gym membership.  so one of my objectives this week will be to get to the gym a couple of times. 

my objectives for this little bit of time i have off includes four books.  okay, i am in the middle of half a dozen already, but the four pictured are the ones i hope to delve into this week.  i won't finish them, but i will get into them enough to want to continue them.  or, maybe i'll just finish one.

A Brief History of Time by Steven Hawking
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
The Strange Library by Haruki Murakami
and Sharp Teeth by Toby Barlow

some poetry may occur. 

some online shopping may occur.

some sit ups, some episodes of The Cosmos with NDT, some cleaning of the house, some sleeping in...

the leather bound

the leather bound

he writes one page every day
for the rest of his life

the story of his desires
his secrets and regrets

buried with him
years and years later

leather bound by a friend
a lover

every page stitched
and buried

it was green, spetember

today i felt the whispers of september
dying

leaves skipping across cracked new england pavement
when my back was turned

and the noiseless rustling of spiders' webs
blown away by the morning breeze

dew weighing everything down

i am still here

although silent.  still writing.  although silent. 

Drabble #18: Shortbread

short on butter again, the scone sat unfinished on her plate.  a wounded monk in the crossfire of desire and reality. 

she sat pouting, staring at the monstrosity of sweet bread like one might a snoring bedfellow.  not enough butter.  cheap.

overall, she decided, she preferred biscuits over bread.  savory or sweet, didn't much matter the kind of bread, there was hardly ever enough butter.  but biscuits came with built in buttery goodness.

shortbread, she thought, then. 

that is what she would have next time.  yes.  forget the scones and lack of butter.  she'd have a biscuit with her tea.

Ten Reasons NOT to be Sad

I am sad today.  I have a reason to be.  But I also have a lot of reasons not to be sad...

One
Ryan - my amazing and wonderful husband and best friend

Two
Rowdy - my amazing and wonderful and crazy (and secretly affectionate) feline friend

Three
Jack - another amazing and wonderful bag of feline fur who fits himself into tiny boxes and somehow makes it look comfortable

Four
Alli - yet another amazing and wonderful feline who likes to cuddle while we watch tv

Five
the Bike my dad gave me - I finally went out this morning for a bike ride.  I only went out for 25 minutes, but it's in preparation to be able to ride the distance to work comfortably.

Six
my New Watch - it's small and white and has big numbers and it's also water proof.  now I will be able to tell the time in my weight watchers meetings and on my runs and bike rides.

Seven
my Family - although there are occasional rough patches, everyone in my family and my husbands family are loving and caring

Eight
all my Jobs - I have three, and my own business, which means I work a lot, but it means Ryan and I are able to do more.  And I like everything I do.  I hope I can keep doing it all. 

Nine
Online Shopping - and My Husband for letting me get some summer clothes!

Ten
Netflix - because you can watch almost whatever you want these days

Drabble #17: Mercy

mercy grows in the dessert

between the grains of sand
too small to see with even a microscope

mercy grows in between the cracks

and splinters of old shingles
still clinging to the sheds after hurricanes

mercy grows in the heart of the man

who spent his weekend rescuing tiny kittens
after he saw one fall out of a tree

mercy grows in the front seat

of the family car where dad is sat
counting to ten for the tenth time today

mercy grows in.  and out.  and around

in unexpected patterns, just like ivy.
or mulch after a tornado.

Drabble #16: Juxtaposition

http://www.artisticmoods.com/art-print-by-lieke-van-der-vorst/

please don't be so sad. we are all the same.
we fix our selves against imagination and the selves of others.

squatting between look and touch, the smooth of the cool light blue on white with a matching saucer and the warmth of the tattered soft black fur around our paws.  the sweet insides of this one and the burning bitterness inside the other. 

we juxtapose our selves and each other.  the exterior calm against the coal fires burning inside.

we want to be the white porcelain tea cup, but we're really a big black bear.  and we are lost. 

Drabble #15: Wrinkled

betty sat, legs dangling over the edge of the dock, as she consumed her second ice cream. she watched her friends diving into the sea. they would appear out of the sky like angels before splashing into the ugly water. the cast on her arm kept her from joining in. so she ate vanilla ice cream instead.  afforded by asking all the boys she knew if they could spare her a penny or two.  those who wrinkled their nose at her were rewarded with a shinny shoed kick to the shin.  how do you think she broke her arm, anyway?

Drabble #14: Stretch

stretch
st re t ch
s t re t c h
s t r e t c h
s  t  r  e  t  c  h

br eath
br e a th
breath
br e a th
br eath

s  t  r  e  t  c  h
s t r e t c h
s t re t c h
st re t c h
stretch

stretch arms
legs stretch
muscles and mind

bre ath
br e a th
b r e e e e a a a th
in
breath out

stretch
st re t ch
s t re t ch

Oulipost Exit Interview, nearly one month late

Oulipost Exit Interview: Oulipost Ends Where the Work Begins


Question 1: What happened during Oulipost that you didn't expect? What are the best (or worst) moments for you?

I bought printed newspapers.  I enjoyed reading through them.  That surprised me. 

There were a lot of tired moments.  The only times I really didn't like the project was when I allowed a build up of two or three and had to do multiple poems in a day.  That was much less enjoyable then finding myself engrossed in the news of one day.

Question 3: What does your street look like?

My home street is changing.  Our neighbor has just built a new garage.  They don't have any grass.  There is enough grass on my lawn for them.  If I lease it out, do you think they'll mow part of my lawn for me?

Question 4: Who is your spirit Oulipostian?

um... I honestly haven't read very many of the poems by other oulioposters... I suppose I read more of Nicole's poems than anyone else.  And she is a wonderful human, so I chose her. ^_^

Question 5: What are the top three poems you wrote during this project?

Here you go:  http://somethingkaty.blogspot.com/2014/04/oulipost-round-up.html

Question 2: What questions do you have for your teaspoons? What questions do your teaspoons have for you?

If I could ask them, I suppose I would ask them if they like honey.  Do they like the way it feels?  They never seem to want to let it go.

My teaspoons would probably not ask, so much as demand not to be used to scoop out wet cat food.  Maybe they would ask "Why can't the forks do it?"

Question 6: What will you do next?

 I have been failing to write a drabble every day in may. 

Drabble #13: Bruises

the market stretches out for miles. actual miles.  you read it in the brochure. all manner of produce and local fare.  and girls in high heels and summer dresses with little belts synched around their little waists smelling figs and checking for bruises on the skins of white peaches.  their baskets filled with fresh roses and flour from the mill to take home to make bread for their husbands who never get to see them just like this, like you see them, out in the sun.  smelling fruit, smiling at you, and winking at each other like they know something.

Drabble #12: Leaping

from the back of the plane it was all i could do to keep my breath from escaping, from leaping out of my chest through my lips and away from me forever the way she had just... just now.  from the back of the open cargo loft she rolled out, rolled away for the last time. 

i had to hold on.  she couldn't.  she should have been strapped in around all four limbs, but the brackets gave way and she's... gone.  we're 30,000 up making tracks across the indian ocean and my car just rolled out of the f*ck*ng plane.

Drabble #11: Steel-toed

we don't talk about fashion because we're victims of it, we talk about fashion because it gives us power. we wear steel cages around our hearts to protect us against love we cannot control.  we wear steel-toed shoes every day.  we wear stripes to distract them and polka-dots to attract them.  we wear spats and straps and roses behind our ears as lures for the weaker ones, then we tear them away. the ones we can only wash with like colors and cool water.  we don't talk about it because we have to, we talk about it because we can.

Drabble #10: Cheddar

"stop saying 'orange'" he said as they walked home after lunch
"stop complaining" she said back
"if you'd stop complaining about the color of it, i'd stop complaining about you complaining" he argued
"if you'd stop making cheddar the wrong color, i'd stop complaining altogether" she argued back

they walked the rest of the way home side by side in silence.  every now and again he could feel her red trench coat brush against his bare arm.  he wished he hadn't asked her to stop complaining.  now she wouldn't say anything at all.  not to him.  not for a while.

Drabble #9: Influenza

transmitted through the air

transmitted by direct contaminated

Airborne absolutely clear

viruses by sunlight,

 

disinfectants and detergents

inactivated by soap, washing r

isk of infection can occasionally

lead pneumonia, direct viral

 

or secondary, even for persons

who are usually very healthy 

In particular it is a warning

sign to be getting better

 

and relapses with Another warning

to have trouble breathing

No benefit Influenza

spreads around the world

 

about three to five

about millions in three occurred,

existing human animal species,

birds or pigs. concern of people.

 

strain and The World officially

the outbreak to be spread actually having a rate.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Influenza

Drabble #8: Treble

the stairs creak wildly under foot
of even the tiniest beast

and the sounds seem louder
in the dark of night than it does under sunlight

because our ears grow stronger
when our eyes can't manage in the depth

of lack of light on nights when the moon
doesn't reflect even a shiver of light

but the treble still rumbles
through the dumbs nestled inside our heads

so we can hear the heart beat in our own chest
as the little beasts climb the creaking stairs

and the rhythm of their chaotic scuffles
down the corridor towards our locked door.

Drabble #7: Measure

he only weighs seven pounds, but the mass of his purr lifts my mood no matter how heavy the burdens of the day's trials resting on my back like barnacles, harsh and sticky and old.  small and soft and sweet, he greets me with his tail in the air and a meow on his little orange lips. his whiskers the measure of happiness. he shares that happiness in his own little ways; nestling onto your lap for a tv show and purring so loud, you have to turn the volume up to 46. he fits just perfectly, lightening the world.

Drabble #6: dew

it would have been a Tuesday
by the calendar created at the start.

the sun collapsed against the horizon
in a hundred different strands of color

pleated against the ocean like fabric
on a young girl's first, best dress.

while a spider watched as the world ended,
colorless it stayed dangling by a silken thread

in the cool of a wind swept beach,
as life slipped beneath the earth.

the last sunset, the last settle of dew
on the last strands of crab grass

at the last place where the sun was seen
by the last spider that ever lived.

Drabble #5: indigo

your hair is a mess, big and brown, ruffled against a night of vibrant dreams, running and jumping and falling freely through miles of uncharted airspace, ruffled against the pillows, the static building up from the friction of hair versus fabric, yours eyes are stuck shut with the residue of rapid eye movement, deep dreaming, memory building, reformation of the neural passage, your feet are sticking out from under the indigo and green patched duvet you tossed around all night, the light shining in against your pink wrinkled cheek where the creases from your pajama sleeves left their wicked marks.

Drabble #4: threaded

the flannel is worn away at the elbows on the shirt you've worn for 14 years.

it smells just like you, even after a wash. 

soft as skin to touch, i pet the sleeve against your forearm and imagine what you would look like if your skin were flannel patterned.  it wouldn't be very different.

you take my hand in yours.  we're at the movies.  or an arcade.  or one of your friend's parents' house on a Thursday night.  you take my fingers and thread them through yours.  threaded tighter than the fibers holding the elbows of your shirt together.

Drabble #3: Worrisome

the thump thump thump

my heart, when the lights go out

 

it starts with heavy

sounds like thunder and earthquakes

 

rumble my guts and echo my heart's

thump thump thump...

 

we're trapped.  stuck in this

until the end.  bitter or sweet.

 

exposed to clouds and sad songs

 

thump

 

the crashing down of

heavy limbs and the screeching

 

the sound of monsters

from the deep

 

thump, my heart stops,

thump, my heart starts,

 

thump thump thump... 

the audience screams

 

some worrisome tremor

this heavy burden of suspense,

 

the sound of souls losing

their grip on tangible

 

hearts. they go thump... thump...

Drabble #2: Simple

the sun was peaking in through the gap in the blinds.  he needed to go back to the hardware store to get the correct sizes. 

moving in was too much work.  too many boxes that he neglected to label.  no clean clothes, because he packed all his clean and dirty clothes together.  biggest mistake he'd ever made.  even bigger than the wrong size blinds. 

so he showered with dirty clothes on.  another mistake.  how was he ever going to dry them?

he sulked out of the bathroom and out onto the deck.

there enjoyed the simple warmth of the sun. 

Drabble #1: Vaster

what comes to mind first
when you say "did you see that thing on the news?"

is that the mass of all the termites on earth
outweigh the mass of all the humans.

but that wasn't what you were referring to.

you mention a car crash, and i imagine the probability
of two cats with the exact same stripes.

or the complexity of mitochondria,

and the way some plants grow better in sand.

"hello?" i watch your hand wave before my eyes
"are you listening to me?" and ponder the vaster nature

of every day, reoccurring.
like a hand waving.

 

drabdaymomay... on the way!

From the Curator of DrabDayMoMay...

"Dear Drabblers,

You've heard the old saying "April showers bring May flowers"? Well, today I'm introducing you to a new saying. "April showers bring DrabDayMoMay". It's sure to catch on in the general vernacular.

Because here we are. April less than two hours away from her demise. May just around the corner, ready and waiting for us to arrive.

You know the rules. A drabble is a piece of writing exactly 100 words in length. My challenge to you is to write one every single day in May. They can all be a cohesive story. They can be wildly different from each other. Or some sort of in-between state. It's all good.

On Thursdays, I'll post the title for Super Saturday. Saturdays, you post the drabble that goes with that title. You don't have to do it but it's always intriguing to see the different stories that come from the same title.

If you are drabbling on your own blog, that's fine. If you'd like to post your drabbles on this blog, let me know and I can give you access. When posting here, remember to tag your name so that it's easy to read the drabbles by author. And feel free to add other tags as well.

The point is to write. 100 words. 31 days.

Let's do this.

Best of luck,
The Curator "

Oulipost Round-Up

April is over.  Get ready for lots of drabbles!  (Nicole provided word prompts this year, so there may be fewer cat poems than the last two or thee drabble months.)

but before i let April go... someone on facebook had a splendid idea that i chose three of the ouliposts that i like the best for myself.

here they are...

There are the Memories: Oulipost #21

There are the Cranberries: Oulipost #14

There are the Definitions: Oulipost #3


and to wrap it all up officially...

a sleeping cat...

on a pile of newspapers...

Oulipost #30: Patchwork Quilt

Prompt: Conclude the project by writing a poem that incorporates words and lines from all of your past 29 poems.

source: http://somethingkaty.blogspot.com/search/label/oulipost

a mansion is frozen in lime juice
on the beach, in the deep water,

especially on the coastline
where, the next day (despite emotional drama),

herring urged the hobo to drive the ocean,
damn the heroin, and school the whale

like a car (they go by) to join with similar fruit.
real pie.  Punch the injury of the funded hard whale

the two men who could fit between these
caught the duet and released it

to a tragedy of scallops, lobster and oysters
employed by organisms for specified

front of faces at fenway park
where any several soft-rayed food fishes

in front of the famous family of fishermen
from all kingdoms of life can be found and remain.

Oulipost #29: Canada Dry

Prompt: The name of this procedure is taken from the soft drink marketed as “the champagne of ginger ales.” The drink may have bubbles, but it isn’t champagne. In the words of Paul Fournel, who coined the term, a Canada Dry text “has the taste and color of a restriction but does not follow a restriction.” (A musical example is Andrew Bird’s “Fake Palindromes.”)  Be creative, and write a poem sourced from your newspaper that sounds like it’s been Oulipo-ed, but hasn’t.

Source: Cape Cod Times, Wednesday, April 30, 2014

family rapidly of rising than
 prices dozen are cod putting will
no squeeze branches of limes
on a Tuesday.

when animal league boston
Mexican truck low-cost
and surgeries who aren't
the lime juice spike
and shore dog inching towards
a cat who came home
procedures, told local clinics.

visit the combination waggin'
Tuesday has taken big parked
in the tire lot no restaurants
unplanned margarita
which be average burden
owners animal league say.

Oulipost #28: Melting Snowball

Prompt: A text in which each word has one letter less than the preceding one, and the last word only one letter. From your newspaper, select a starting word, and then continue adding words of decreasing length from the same source article or passage. Challenge yourself further by only using words in order as you encounter them in the text.

Source: http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/28/25154-searching-autumns-forever-home-spring

 

I would like to dedicate this poem to Autumn, the pretty kitty pictured above.  I hope she finds a forever-home soon!




For Autumn

characteristic tortoiseshell
(appointments) contentedly expressive
attention (previous equally loving years)

 more fur do a.

Oulipost #27: Irrational Sonnet

Prompt:  Create a 14-line sonnet sourced from lines from your newspaper that is divided according to the first five digits of the irrational number pi – that is, into stanzas of 3, 1, 4, 1 and 5 lines. As with the preceding sonnet assignment (see April 14) you may interpret “sonnet” as formally or as loosely as you wish.

Source: Cape Cod Times, Saturday, April 26th, 2014, the Real Estate Section

set nicely on the edge
and just walk through
some of the best...

peace and tranquility.

(gain) access to the
knowledge of the
keepsake of the canal
over two weekends.

 - it's time.

we're with you
every step of the way;
on the beach,
in the city,
deep water boating.

Oulipost Interlude

Jack is helping me catch up on my Oulipost poetry. 

Oulipost #25: Larding (line stretching)

Prompt: Aka “line stretching.” From your newspaper text, pick two sentences. Add a new sentence between the first two; then two sentences in the new intervals that have become available; and continue to add sentences until the passage has attained the length desired. The supplementary sentences must either enrich the existing narrative or create a new narrative continuity.

Source: Cape Cod Times, Saturday, April 26th, 2014

Days after finishing
the Boston Marathon
in her mother's memory,
an Osterville woman
discovered that she was not
the only one who crossed
the finish line wearing
her bib number. 

Males of most species of birds migrate north earlier than females.

The nonprofit group
started renovations
at its Dennis farm
this week
and hopes to open
a new retail store
there late this summer.

Police are investigating
after a 40-year-old woman
was found dead
in a homeless camp
on Yarmouth Road
on Friday night.

Birds are on the move everywhere this season.

A group of local
anti-casino advocates
is backing Boston
Mayor Martin J Walsh
as he calls into question
the state's process
for licensing a casino
in its eastern region.
 
Sox beat the Toronto Blue Jays 8-1 on Friday night.

The farm stand
in Dennis
sells herbs
and produce grown
at the Dennis
and Marstons Mills farms.

The big bad Bruins have made lots of goalies feel sick this year.

Half of all jobs
 in science,
technology,
engineering
and math require
some form of computing
expertise,
according to US
Bureau of Labor
statistics from 2010.

The situation is becoming untenable, Scudder said.

Manning says
she was unsure how
her bib number
was stolen, but
she did say that
she posted a picture
of it on facebook
on the Saturday
before the race.

Chance favors the informed observer, especially along the coastline.

Oulipost #24: Homosyntaxism

Prompt: Homosyntaxism is a method of translation that preserves only the syntactic order of the original words. To give a rudimentary example, if N=noun, V=verb and A=adjective, the outline NVA could yield solutions such as “The day turned cold,” “Violets are blue,” “An Oulipian! Be wary!”)

Option 1: Choose a sentence from your newspaper source text and write as many homosyntaxisms as possible based on that same variation.

Option 2: Complete a homosyntaxism of an entire paragraph or article found in your text.


Source: tonight, i decided to take my news from the past.  from one hundred years in the past, in fact.  the picture was printed in late April of 1914 about the Cape Cod Canal. 

the image comes from capecodtoday.com. 

the sentence i think i'll play with tonight is... "This does not mean that the canal is open for shipping."  And i'll be using option 1.

i don't usually divulge much of the processes, but i find it really fascinating (enough to point out) how drastically different the vernacular and syntax of journalism between then and now.  one hundred years is a mighty long time. 


This does not mean that the canal is open for shipping.
Pronoun / negative auxiliary verb phrase / verb / conjunction / article / noun / auxiliary verb / verb / preposition / verb.

He shouldn't leave but a man does want to love.
She couldn't love fore the days would hurt.
They don't live because a wound needs to heal.




 

Oulipost #23: Inventory (with Shakespeare, yo)

Prompt: Inventory is a method of analysis and classification that consists of isolating and listing the vocabulary of a pre-existing work according to parts of speech. Choose a newspaper article or passage from a newspaper article and “inventory” the nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, conjunctions, articles, etc. Bonus points for creative presentation of your final lists.

Mr David Tennant as Hammy.  Stolen from NewScientist,com

Sources: http://www.newscientist.com/special/Shakespeare  (more specifically: http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22229654.800-shakespeare-did-radical-astronomy-inspire-hamlet.html?full=true&print=true  and i only used the first few paragraphs until i got enough to play with...)


Bernardo - Guards

middle night ghost king
it one they all

castle guards prince friend
is comes tells

arrival light heavens output
bright full astronomical medieval new

allusions narrative devices
traditionally heavenly often

bodies musings turn
of when of to as by

the Bernardo, the Guards

Oulipost #22: ANTONYMY

Prompt: In Oulipian usage, antonymy means the replacement of a designated element by its opposite. Each word is replaced by its opposite, when one exists (black/white) or by an alternative suggesting antonymy (a/the, and/or, glass/wood).

Original: To be or not to be, that is the question.
Antonymy: To not be and to be: this was an answer.

Select a passage from your newspaper source text to complete this exercise.

Source: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140421/NEWS/140429961&cid=mostclicked

The garage was fully engulfed
in flames within five minutes
of the first loud bangs
The garage was burned
to the ground leaving only
a few charred beams still
standing


BIG FREEZE

a mansion is minimally dug out
out of water

without a thousand years
of a last silent slow motion

a mansion is frozen
to a sky coming together

the lot extinguished frowns
agitated and lying down.

Oulipost #21: Confabulation

Prompt: Craft a conversation poem using “he said/she said” quotes that you find in newspaper articles.

sources: http://www.capecodtoday.com/event/24674-life-after-stroke-latest-treatments-and-technologies
http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140421/NEWS11/140429989


"there are," she said "the memories".
"we're on the second floor," he said.

"these treatment options," she said
"the next day, that night, i was ready to go again."

he replied, "yes, despite the emotional drama."
and she, "because of my experience."

Oulipost #20: Lescurean Permutation [plain]

Prompt: Select a newspaper article or passage from a newspaper article as your source text. Switch the first noun with the second noun, the third noun with the fourth noun, and so on until you’ve reached the end of your text.

Source: http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/20/25029-let-go-your-legos-yarmouth-public-libraries


the public clubs
are looking to launch libraries

this collection (to get their summer started,
they are asking for your unwanted and unused month)

through the remainder of April
and during the library of May

the children's room will be
available in the donation bin

Oulipost # 19: SESTINA

Prompt: This will be one of your most challenging Oulipost prompts! A sestina is a poetic form of six six-line stanzas. The end-words of the lines of each stanza repeat those of the first, but in a differing order that in each successive stanza follows the permutation: 615243. The entire sequence of end words is thus: 123456; 615243; 364125; 532614; 451362; 246531. All words and phrases must be sourced from your newspaper text.



Source: http://boston.cbslocal.com/2014/04/19/rare-bowhead-whale-sighting-reported-in-cape-cod-bay/
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/19/25026-crosswalk-violation-leads-three-heroin-arrests-Falmouth
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/19/25024-whats-happening-state-government
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/19/25023-dull-week-beacon-hill


Massachusetts is the keynote whale
for annual budget debate set to charges
representatives will spend time next to an officer
the second time in route
the center said the whale is like bombers
which is the next stop for heroin

researchers have identified heroin
charged with possession of a whale
past and present top federal bombers
confident about pulling off charges
1,000 miles outside of its normal route
to separate themselves from their officer

police did not elaborate on the officer
and being present where heroin is heroin
three were transported along a route
the driver of a car was a whale
The center said the animal was not on charges
to police release bombers

chief justice of the high bombers
was killed a year ago by the suspected officer
even sightings in the colder waters off charges
discovered the 21-year-old heroin
and urged cooperation from the whale
speculation about making another route

bowheads typically inhabit the route
identified during an aerial survey of bombers
first responders killed in the whale
as it fed alongside officer
they discovered heroin and arrested the heroin
all eyes are on the charges

some of the developing charges
over for a crosswalk route
ramps down activity for heroin
according to bombers
the animal has been seen by an officer
now three Falmouth people face the whale

Oulipost #18: HOMOCONSONANTISM

Prompt: Choose a sentence or short passage from your newspaper to complete a homoconsonantism. In this form, the sequence of consonants in a source text is kept, while all its vowels are replaced. For example:
ORIGINAL: To be or not to be: that is the question.
CONSONANTS ONLY: T b r n t t b t t s t h q s t n
FINAL PRODUCT: As burnt tibia: it heats the aqueous tone.

Source: http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/18/25007-bowhead-whale-spotted-cape-cod-bay

Original Sentence: "A relative of the right whale, bowheads have thicker blubber best suited for the arctic waters they typically inhabit."

Consonants only: r l t v f t h r g h t w h l b w h d s h v t h c k r b l b b r b s t s t d f r t h r c t c w t r s t h t p c l l n h b t.

Final product:


real tv fat
hear go hit,

while be we hide
- shove to huck -
re-blob by re-blast.

stay defer,
their cat caw trust.

he top call
no hobo too.

Oulipost #17: HAIKUISATION

prompt: The haiku is a Japanese poetic form whose most obvious feature is the division of its 17 syllables into lines of 5, 7 and 5 syllables. Haikuisation has sometimes been used by Oulipians to indicate the reduction of verses of normal length to lines of haiku-like brevity. Select three sentences from a single newspaper article and “haiku” them.

source: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140417/SPORTS/404170321


herring. they go by.
jumping, pooling, and schooling.
damming of rivers,

by many names, but
habitat degradation,
anadromous fish.

And what eats herring?

Everything reported,

fighting hopeless odds.

 

Oulipost #16: CHIMERA

prompt: The chimera of Homeric legend – lion’s head, goat’s body, treacherous serpent’s tail – has a less forbidding Oulipian counterpart. It is engendered as follows. Having chosen a newspaper article or other text for treatment, remove its nouns, verbs and adjectives. Replace the nouns with those taken in order from a different work, the verbs with those from a second work, the adjectives with those from a third.

sources:
foundational: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140416/NEWS11/140419786
nouns: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25418-t-rex-didnt-need-proper-arms-thanks-to-its-neck.html#.U06EnMJOWM8
verbs: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140416/NEWS11/140419787
adjectives: http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25418-t-rex-didnt-need-proper-arms-thanks-to-its-neck.html

)silly spacetime banned by worried kang(

 

kang byung-kyu (a terrifying light) said two

of the ripples  have become silly spacetime 

(and a giant discovery) he took a third star

banned (also tended to be that of a possibility)

researchers wear a fourth (evidence) but cover

no powerful waves about it (kang worries)

164 things were shamed of whom 55 were

embarrassed (20 per cent) (said 292) dics were

posted.

 

Oulipost #15: Prisoner's Constraint

Prompt: Imagine a prisoner whose supply of paper is restricted. To put it to fullest use, he will maximize his space by avoiding any letter extending above or below the line (b, d,f,g,h,j,k,l,p,q,t and y) and use only a,c,e,m,n,o,r,s,u,v,w,x and z. Compose a poem using only words that can be made from these letters AND which you source from your newspaper text.

sources: http://www.capecodtoday.com/event/24879-thoreau-beach-walk
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/15/24695-over-decades-cape-cod-real-estate-closings-have-become-much-more-complex



some one sure,
mean sure,
now some as near one
as ocean as can move
more over common,
over sure.

Oulipost #14: COLUMN INCHES

prompt: Refer to the advertising section or the classifieds in your source newspaper. Create a poem by replacing all of the nouns in your chosen ad segment or classified listing with nouns from one article in the same newspaper. You may use multiple ads/classifieds, presented in the order of your choosing.

Source: The Cape Cod Times, Sunday edition (because I didn't buy a paper today, oh no!), April 13th 2014 Section E

The Cranberries

SALES MOONSHINE
Looking for a full time, year
round  sales distillery (super market).
Must be self motivated, fruit
service oriented, and have a strong
moonshine in summer sales.  If you
possess these cranberries and want to
join a rum with similar fruit please
forward your deal to set up a
business.

Oulipost #13: EPITHALAMIUM

Prompt: An Oulipian epithalamium, or marriage song, is one composed exclusively with the letters of the names of bride and groom (bride and bride, groom and groom, etc). Visit the engagement or wedding announcements section of your newspaper and select a couple. Write a poem using only words that can be made with the letters in their name. You may choose to use first names only if you prefer anonymity or full names if you’re desperate for more letters.

source: names are Victoria Whipple & Andrei Ciobanu from Cape Cod Times Online/Legacy




an auto victory road car lead the race
ended period career - he had to win with white led title

union won without center capped
title three tied enter earned care

nine winner other where without
point at center race car

Oulipost #12: SONNET

Prompt: Write a sonnet sourced from lines found in newspaper articles. You may choose your own sonnet type ( Examples here) and should feel free to be creative with the rules. One known Oulipo variation is “sonnets of variable length,” in which one must compose a sonnet in which the lines are either as short as possible or as long as possible.

Sources:
 http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/12/24921-opposite-loneliness-marina-keegan
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/12/24925-tea-party-vs-baker-brouhaha
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/12/24910-state-boaters-mind-feasting-right-whales
http://www.capecodtoday.com/article/2014/04/12/24929-two-killed-bourne-crane-accident


The Whaling Incident on the Line

The incident is under investigation, I’m grateful and thankful to have found.
While businesses wait to see what becomes, the rough and tumble world of conventions,
State and federal law dictates that boaters debate about certain local aid levels or welfare.
But from a different vantage point to the entrance to the Cape Cod Canal,

one of those areas that could be, my good friend and colleagues,
Vulnerable and Dangerous for someone with who she shared a bed!
An understanding that spending Right Whales could once again be seen,
they debated and passed a local aid, holding the line on candy and soda.

Meanwhile a research vessel collided with a feeding whale, that might stir an uprising among the populace.
The injury to the whale was hard; much of the tragedy lies in her promise.
Two men killed were doing the line work, far more than could fit between these covers.
Her mourning process is full of anxiety. Location provides native stone, sand and gravel.

Something to do with the fact that they kept true to his word by keeping out,
When asked about the predictable rejection, he said "be on the lookout for feasting whales."

Oulipost #10: Snowball

Prompt: This procedure requires the first word of a text to have only one letter, the second two, the third three, and so on as far as resourcefulness and inspiration allow. The first word of a snowball is normally a vowel: in English, a I or O.

From your newspaper, select a starting vowel and then continue adding words of increasing length from the same source article or passage. Challenge yourself further by only using words in order as you encounter them in the text.

Source: Bragg, Mary Ann. "Ill will over shellfisherman license." Cape Cod Times. Wellfleet. Thursday, April 10, 2014 Published: Page A10.



a in has vote
night marina allowed
revoking shellfish commercial
considering continuation investigation
shellfisherman

Oulipost #11: Univocalism

Prompt: A univocalic text is one written with a single vowel. It is consequently a lipogram in all the other vowels. If he had been univocally minded, Hamlet might have exclaimed, “Be? Never be? Perplexed quest: seek the secret!” All words used must be sourced from your newspaper.

And this is how I chose which vowel to use...

Source: Front page of the Mashpee Enterprise, Volume 15, Number 30, April, 11th, 2014




punch fund Pub!!

- shut up -  
- run up  -

50+Club
but run full up by us

Oulipost #9: HEADLINES (variation of Jean Queval’s “Cent Ons")

Prompt: Compose a poem whose body is sourced from article headlines in your newspaper.

Source: http://www.newscientist.com/
and http://www.capecodonline.com/

Man arrested after ...

Cannibal tadpoles
eat the fourth state of matter,

London mayor Boris fights robot cars
for federal Monomoy ice skating, and

Hilltop's Championship fiberglass cows
find home in Sandwich town meeting.

Oulipost #8: BEAUTIFUL INLAW

Prompt:
Select a name from one of your newspaper articles, famous or not. Compose a poem using only words that can be made from the letters in that person’s name. For example, if you selected “John Travolta,” you may only use words that can be made from the letters A, J, H, L, N, O, R, T and V.
The use of web-based tools is highly encouraged to help uncover different words that can be made from your letters of choice. One tool you might consider is the Scrabble Word Finder.

source: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140408/NEWS11/140409750
http://www.scrabblefinder.com/solver/

read: deval patrick,

earl diva, dial a vicar;
eat red pita;

replicate tea
at la cardia palace atria

via vertical detail.
caviar cartel die epical.

crepe carp diver,
par pear ape vita rite.

real pie.  real deal.

Oulipost #7: N+7 (released it into a nearby poodle)

Prompt: You’ll want a dictionary for this one! Select a passage from one of your newspaper articles. Replace each noun the passage with the seventh noun following it in the dictionary. A hard-copy dictionary will make the exercise more varied and fun; however, you can also use the online N+7 generator to create your text.

source: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140407/NEWS11/140409774

Massachusetts homily inventor turns out to be a duet

Politico in Massachusetts responding to reprieves

of an inventor in a woodcutter's homily

quickly quacked the casino.

A Nosey-parker

Reaper woodcutter called politico

Saturday from her upstairs beefburger

to reprieve that she heard loud banging

 

nonsenses downstairs and feared someone

had broken into her homily.

Ohms who responded

found no signpost

of a breakwater-in.

But during a quick seat

 of the homily, politico found

a soot-covered woodwind duet.

Politico say it appears

the duet got in through the chiropodist.

An ohm caught the duet

and released it into a nearby poodle

 

 

random... thoughts...

occasionally, i feel the need to reflect in order to feel better.  better... than... whatever i am right now.  not sad.  maybe, more, lonely.

yeah.

i am in the office all by myself for the next two weeks.  there's a lot to get done, and i really shouldn't be on my laptop, but i feel like i need to reach out a little.

i have npr on in the background, purple tulips hanging out of an oversized vase on my desk, hot tea, and more work to do than i think i will be able to get done on time.  nevertheless, i have to try, and i will. 

everything is good.  it is quiet.  and although i can be quite productive when i'm on my own, it is a little lonely. 

mou'sif

Oulipost #6: BLANK VERSE AMIDST THE PROSE

Prompt: Compose a poem using unintentional lines of iambic pentameter found in your newspaper.

tacos, ceviche and locally grown
seafood served at the university

bringing more local seafood to
part of a six-week pilot program

about local fishers and undiscovered

scallops, lobster, and oysters
open to the public for a change


source: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140406/NEWS11/140409792

Oulipost #5: Tautogram

Prompt: Compose a poem whose words — or at least the principal ones — all begin with the same letter. The words must be sourced from your newspaper.

F-words from the Front page of the Cape Cod Times, April Fifth, 2014

five, four, fenway park
we found a few in front of the faces,
in front of the famous family fisherman,
,
following PHillip,
the father's first afterthought,
forever,
,
found under flexible floors
from faces of surfcasters
and 10-Foot fishermen,
,
from fisherman's families,
from Friday to the future
to a five to 0 vote on fishing,
,
funding fundraising fund,
first in front of,
then found in a file
,

Oulipost #4: Fibonacci (variation)

Prompt:
In a Fibonacci sequence, each term is the sum of the two terms immediately preceding it; typically with 1 as the first term: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5,8, 13, 21, 34, 55 and so on.
Select an article from your newspaper and create a poem using the words that correspond with the numbers in the sequence. Your poem will take the form of first word, first word, second word, third word, fifth word, eighth word, thirteenth word, etc. You can continue until you’ve run out of words in your article or until you’re happy with the poem’s conclusion.

(kiss kiss
those cool nights)

games and...

... to more

... a technologies...

Source: http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20140404/NEWS/404040322

Oulipost #3: Definitional Lit

Prompt: Select a single sentence from a newspaper article. Replace each meaningful word in the text [verb, noun, adjective, adverb] by its dictionary definition. Repeat this treatment on the resulting sentence, and so on, until you’ve had enough! Note that after only two such treatments with a relatively compact dictionary, even a two-word sentence can produce an accumulation of 57 words.

My beginning sentence: "All donated blood remains on Cape Cod for use at Cape Cod Hospital and Falmouth Hospital." from:  http://www.capecodtoday.com/event/24737-blood-drive
Definitions from: http://dictionary.reference.com/

the whole quantity of
a gift (a contribution of something)
that circulates in the principle
vascular system of human beings (
consisting of plasma in which red and white
cells and platelets) (a suspended fluid)
is to continue in the same state.

it continues to be specified so as to remain
(or be suspended from)
a piece of land jutting out into the sea (
where any of several soft-rayed food fishes
(of the family Gadidae) can be found in the cool,
North Atlantic waters).

the whole quantity of a gift (
intended to belong
or be used in connection
with some purpose) (as in put to service)
continues to be specified so as to remain
at an institution in which sick or injured persons
are given medical or surgical treatment.



BONUS PIC:  this is what i looked like this morning while composing this piece.  give me a little leeway.