Ano Nuevo

the end

always

becomes the beginning

of a new

or continued path.

so we sit,

drink,

talk

and plot the course

of the world.

Green

Green always

tastes like Green.

It goes down slow with a steady unease.

You always gag a little

before you choke it down.

it burns a hole

right through you.

Green always

tastes like Green,

you always feel better

when it has seeped

into your blood.

The Lords House

blanket wrapped around your body,

you could be a human burrito.

hard pavement

is as soft as any hard surface

has a right to be.

resting

on your side

the cold creeps

as you sleep.

resting beneath

the doorway

of his home,

the irony

isn't lost on me.

rest my brother

rest.

An Age Past

descending the staircase

gown flowing like

a velvet wave.

each step paced in perfect

time.

gentle tranquility

time immobilized

a moment

too perfect

to ever see again.

advice giving asshole

advice giving asshole

you can't wait.

your impatience always gets the better of you.

you should slow down.

I would

but thats just me.

you should work on that.

Collective Non Sequiturs

What is the voltage of life?

Minds Unbound.

I spend this time

sitting thinking

about you Its not

hard to do thinking

of you can't help it

wouldn't want to

thinking thinking

about you spending

this time thinking

thinking about you.

you sing too sweet

your words turn to molasses

stuck in it with you

they bunch together

all too sticky sweet

stuck in it with you

sitting silently in the dark

it flows out collecting in a

pool head resting to one side

black curtain falls on everything

Great Heights

we look down from great heights

wondering how

we got here

in the first

place.

The Experience Of Expectation

It wells up inside

like the carbonation inside

a liter of soda

thats been shaken.

The pressure expands

like the belly of a starving child.

It waits for the hand brave enough

to let the pressure out

all over the floor,

wall and your clothes.

Afterwards?

Bliss.

Glass Heart Sitting In A Jar Of Glycerine

Illusion Of The Mind

hours wash up on the shore.

stranded on the sand

they languish under the sun.

flies gather as they

dry out,

the minutes wash up

never far behind.

we watch,

we watch

and wait.

The Awkward Mute

What do you say

to all the pretty ones

after years spent

mutilating yourself?

I've Been Missing You

They were meeting up at the top of the hill overlooking the city. He got there

before she did (he was usually early to rendezvous'). He didn't mind waiting

too much, he was used to it in fact. Hands were firmly tucked into the

pockets of his coat for warmth. Restless feet served to keep him pacing,

his breath clearly visible in the air. The chill crept down his spine whenever

it touched one of the few patches of exposed skin.

She was bundled up in layers. Her feet covered in suede boots lined in

fuzzy warmth,legs covered in jeans, two layers of sweaters enclosed

within a faux fur lined jacket. The long and flowing scarf she was fond

of wrapped her neck and mouth. Her dirty blond hair securely tucked

beneath a beanie with a fluffy pompom at the top. She walked within

kissing distance and pulled down the scarf that had been shielding her

face. She smiled as her breath materialized in front of her. Her blue eyes

had always been one of her most striking features.

"Didn't think you'd make." That was a lie, he knew she would. She gave him

a slight punch in the chest, not enough to hurt but just enough for a playful

shove. He grabbed her hand to pull her close. A tight body embrace, their

heads rested on each others shoulders. "You know I've missed you," she said

as she held him tighter, "I can't help it."

That closeness was all the truth or warmth they needed.

Isn't Anything

What is left is just a shadow

of what was. What it was is

not what it is. What is, what

isn't is always up to debate.

What is it? What's wrong?

What's right? What isn't?

Is it? Isn't it? Not anymore.

The Boogeyman Inside

it creeps up on me, lays its hand

on my shoulder. I wonder

what took you

so long?

Home

Won't you

come home?

Won't You

Come

Home?

Come here.

Come with me.

Won't you

come home?

with me

here.

Won't you

come home?

Home,

here with

me.

Winter

A refrigerator more full of alcohol than food. A ruined blanket.

Stains mar the un/seen. The season breathes down your neck,

runs electric down the small of your back. Proximity often mistaken

for intimacy. Lives changed with one question followed by one word

replies. Empty roads symptomatic of a season. Heart beats steady,

head filled with nothing. Where are they? Where are they? Gone.

The emptiness fills in a way only it can. After this the old routines

resume. Rotating along its axis we hardly ever notice. Winter now.

Merry Christmas Tyler

Merry Christmas Tyler

I remember those mornings,

the wait,

the excitement,

the hope,

the joy.

small hands ripping through

colorful paper.

Smiles that could burn

through the sun itself.

Now I watch

your small hands tear through paper

as my heart leaps for joy

for you.

W(on)e

W(on)e

You have won

the damage is done

You have won

the damage is done.

Now everyone

can come

Now everyone

can come.

I am one

between everyone

I am one

between everyone.

Damage is

Damage is

Done.

Circumference

Circumference

the circumference to our lives

widens over time. we hold on

to past life memories, bringing

them in,brushing off the dust

from time to time. we recall

our past lives and grade them

against the ones we lead now.

parallels and divergences abound.

it is necessary from time to time

to remember the paths taken

as we continue along the one chosen.

Warmth

we use each other so carelessly.

bodies mend more easily than

the heart. we do this over and over.

is this all?

it seems to be.

we sleep beneath warm blankets

alone

or

together,

what's the difference?

sometimes

there isn't.

Devils & Angels

The devils tear you from the earth,

your grasp loosens,

your fingers freed.

watching the dead scene unfold

you rise above it,

pulled away from the flesh.

succumb to the light,

the endless hallway.

you can never go home again.

Dusty

Dusty

I can't help but wonder

what

it must have been like to

hear your voice

in the flesh.

The time has passed but,

I watch and listen.

Boundless soul

spreads into the air,

your heart speaks

through your voice.

Blue Eyed Soul.

Black Out

Black Out

Empty Space

feeding on itself

over and over again.

A distinct darkness

growing in measured leaps

until it

embraces everything,

remembers

nothing.

Ballet

Ballet

Writing in long hand

on a blank piece of paper

seems almost quaint now.

Ink streaming black like a ballet dancer

looping beautifully

back and forth,

over and through.

This pen writes thoughts

not of its own mind.

A creature subject

to letters willed forth.

It dances

beautifully

in the clutches of its partner.

It dances

in the only way

it knows how.

Dawn

Dawn

There is a certain stillness before dawn.

The sound of life resting,

rejuvenating.

Seeing night melt away

by the growing flame of day,

a gentle reminder

of constant flux.

She breathes slowly

as she wakes.

Lamp posts flicker off

as morning takes hold

and begins.

Old West

Old West

Noose tightens with every breath.

Hands bound behind your back.

Ankles roped together.

Back drenched in sweat.

Eyes squint at the sun overhead.

He walks up,

face hooded black.

Trap door drops,

gravity murders,

vertebrae snap free

of lifes cord.

Collapsing Tower

I break words

like bricks on blocks.

Red dust fills the air,

ears hear

crumbling,

strength breaking

bonds forged in pressure.

Words break a part

in t o lett e r s

s ome mor e

odd tha n ot h ers.

S o

t h e y

f a l l a p a r t , a l l

o

v e r

t h

e

p

ag e.

Ciudadanos de la Ciudad (The City)

Ciudadanos de la Ciudad (The City)

They sleep like puppies in a pack.

Bodies spread on couches and floors

once bedrooms are full.

They can never wait to relieve

themselves of the burdens they bear.

Relief is bought by the case

and found by the can.

The fight comes on,

as they pour

relief down thirsty throats.

Home is always so far.

Home is always so far away.

Mothers, Brothers & Sisters

Worry and Pray

as Fathers wonder.

Guadalupe will watch over them.

Ella les cuida,

sus hijos del Sol.*

*She cares for them, her children of the sun.

Our Lady (The City)

Our Lady (The City)

She seizures

from time to time.

Her body tosses,

releasing stress.

She can’t help it.

We cower

in those moments,

terrified by her strength.

She offers no apology,

none is needed.

We have always known

her condition,

we just look the other way.

We always need the reminder.

She keeps us close

as we return to the

comfort of the controllable.

Casey's (The City) Draft 2

Casey's

Beneath her green awning

(down a flight of stairs)

you can hear the glasses clinking.

Survivor of a forgotten age,

her memories gather dust

on these city streets.

Monument to a time

that exists in dust covered novels,

history peers through wood paneling.

Taps pour amber.

Glasses fill quickly,

empty almost as fast.

Her walls could be

history books speaking

through yellowed pictures.

Cars pass in the rain

beneath streetlight.

Inside, glasses clink.

She warms us from the inside..

The Resting Heart (The City) Draft 2

The Resting Heart

She glows in torrential darkness.

Her streets desolate in the downpour.

She rests

while she can.

It comes down

comes down

down

dow

n.

Relief and frustration

by the drop.

She slows down

slows down

down

dow

n.

She shows a side of herself

we rarely ever see.

Go to sleep.

Sleep

slee

psl

ee

p

.

Night & Dawn in the Heart (The City) Draft 2

Night & Dawn In The Heart

The heart beats slowly

as night wears on.

A flow of redillumination

pumps in through her.

Platelets pass through

with unusual ease.

Residents rest until

sun cracks across the sky.

She warms slowly

in her farthest reaches.

Her camera eyes

open wide their gaze.

The pace quickens as

blood rushes in

once more.

Forgotten Architecture(The City)

Forgotten Architecture

Beneath the glittering glass and steel,

her art deco face remains

hidden from view.

Buildings stand

like snapshots of youth

before she was criss-crossed in concrete.

Fante and Bukowski

would recognize

the face that haunted them.

Dreaming of Bunker Hill,

riding rail cars,

times left behind.

She still remembers,

still dreams of lost

and forgotten things.

Her eyes gaze to the heavens,

the ocean and desert,

and glisten with a promise

not yet realized.

Beaches (The City)

Beaches (The City)

They bask on her shores

beneath golden rain.

Children laugh contagiously

in their play.

Water laps the shoreline

as bodies bathe.

Wind blowing breath on burning skin.

A hum

can be heard

cutting through

unconscious connotations.

It buries itself beneath

the cries of the gulls

and crashing waves.

She sings softly

in our ears

never letting us forget

her voice.

The City (Draft 4)

The City

I

Rising over the desert

it spreads across the mountains,

beaming softly across the

endless sprawl.

Reaching

water and sand,

waves crash into piers

as bodies dive

into natures embrace.

Towering figures framed

against the mountains,

pillars of ingenuity

reflecting rays cast

upon glass and steel.

Arteries begin

pumping platelets

from North to South,

East to West.

By the entrance to Poseidon’s realm

the beasts stand,

craning their sinuous

mechanized necks.

The relic of a sentinel

stands watch over a task

long since relinquished.

II

Alive and breathing,

life engages its patrons.

Peering through windows

the box chatters on as

beauties recline into

the folds of suburban decadence.

The world is a small expanse

best seen through tinted

eyes for second sight.

Palatial homes filled with

an emptiness

few could understand

or desire.

Manes beam deceit

of affluence worn

as proudly as

any regal regalia

from a vanquished monarchy.

The sound of blades and

arboreal amputations

cut and clamor,

the only disturbances

in such placid places.

Brown skin

tanned like leather,

stewards of a past

not as distant as some

would care to think.

___________________

They always watch them

when they encroach,

like a stain moving

and corrupting.

Always so ready,

ready to assume the worst.

Black and Whites

pull up screaming,

rubber gripping,

screeching to a halt.

Freudian compensation is drawn

and thrust out.

Slugs puncture hungry

vitals shocked by sudden

scarlet spurts.

The soft sound of

meat hitting asphalt.

A stain removed,

another spreads

like an amoeba

expanding.

The box will have more

to talk about.

III

We travel within

Arteries,

Veins

& Capillaries

cast in concrete.

Blood at a standstill

time to time

(more often than anyone would like).

It pumps from Arteries

to Veins

& Capillaries

for far reaching extremities.

At the center of it all

the heart never sleeps.

It beats endlessly.

It beats endlessly.

IV

Dreams

draw them in

like a wide eyed doe

drawn from the forest.

Short on money

(isn’t that always the case?),

fueled on endless ambition,

the heart draws them in

to streets lined

with names immortalized

into the stars themselves.

Lucky breaks and losing streaks

mar in almost equal measure.

It’ll be a great story

when the camera eyes

capture the ineffable essence

that’ll one day be lost

to hubris and indulgence.

On the hillside

beckons a name

as towering as

Colossus &

Ozymandias.

Cast into hearts,

molding ambition,

standing

hollow backed

and

beautiful.

V

In the shadow of the heart,

they wander the jungle

of it’s interior.

Souls wear

the endless toil

of life across

their faces.

There is nowhere

but here.

Dirty streets

clogged with cast off dreams.

The failed state of hope

occupies like an

invading army

waiting for the last body

to drop.

VI

Lights flicker on

across a patchwork

grid

one by one.

Lighting up

the darkness,

we can

never see

the stars above.

Blood flows

quickly through

concrete arteries.

The heart glowing

Blood flowing

Heart beating

On and on

and on…

Magnetic North / Magnetic South

We were wrong for each other.

Young & Foolish Hearts

only know

one thing.

It's all I wanted

from you.

You both share the same smile.

I could never have been

his father.

I could have never made

you as happy.

You have found a comfortable place.

We are magnetic poles.

Faces

You won't find me

when you look around.

I'll be everywhere

I'll be nowhere

I'll be the faceless

man I always seem to be.

You always wonder

where I've been.

Leaving Oz

Leaving Oz

Our prying eyes invade everything.

What we hide we show

to our friendly strangers.

An inner life

revealed by picture or word.

An inner life revealed too readily.

There is no wizard behind our curtain anymore.

Detritus

The Devil is patient.

The wind grows bored of the leaves.

You are loved.

Kick the dirt into the air,

cursing it for the clay and rib.

She reaches her hand out to you,

straining

you never reach.

Cast your stone

in the lottery.

bear the scars of your own transgressions.

pretty, but ultimately empty.

petty, but ultimately empty.

Loved?

I was born. I died. I lived.

could never stand still.

these memories hang from chains.

you and me? in time.

Speechless

Speechless

I saw you in the hall

crouched against the corner,

your head rested against your

chest and folded arms.

"Are you ok?,"

I asked.

You said nothing.

You rocked

back & forth,

just enough to see you move.

I asked again

& met the same response.

I stood there in silence,

you said nothing.

We had an understanding

there in our shared absence.

It Will Come

parallels running,

never intersecting.

Resist for a bit.

It Will Come

We all find it

eventually.

It's hard to say

how or when

but

it will happen.

When it does,

the past fulfills

its promise.

Urgency

Urgency

It never goes away.

It only grows with the passing days.

Others forget It.

They languish comfortably

in chosen paths.

A race towards an end,

we run laughing and yelling

knowing someone

will hear us,

will see us

will remember our presence

once we are gone.

The Act Of Breathing In

The Act Of Breathing In

It invades every

Artery

Vein &

Capillary.

Flows through

rivers coursing within.

It travels to the seat of the mind

and elevates thoughts

into a higher understanding.

The Resting Heart

The Resting Heart (The City)

She glows in torrential darkness.

Her streets desolate in the downpour.

She rests

She rests

while she can.

It comes down

comes down

down

dow

n.

Relief and frustration

by the drop.

She slows down

slows down

down

dow

n.

She shows a side of herself

we rarely ever see.

Go to sleep.

Sleep

slee

psl

ee

p

.

Love you Forever

If I love you forever

will that be enough

or is it just the start?

If I love you forever

will that be enough

or is it just the start?

Night & Dawn in the Heart

The heart beats slowly

as the night wears on.

A slower flow of redillumination

pumps in through

her.

Platelets pass through

with an unusual ease.

Her residents rest

until the sun cracks across

the sky.

A new dawn.

The pace quicken as

blood rushes in

once more.

When The World Begins

When the world begins

I'll see you here.

Illumination awaits,

place your stake with me.

When the world begins

don't mistake

the change at hand.

When the world begins

the old one ends.

When the world begins

I'll be waiting.

When the world ends

I'll see you here.

Waiting, waiting...

Stripped Of This Convenience

in darkness

silence.

dark corners

rest peacefully

as we fret

endlessly.

a primal fear

we return to

time after

time after

time.

Backed Up

cloistered by the elements.

Puddles form quickly

as the water falls.

Expect

You expect it to come easy.

When it doesn't

you wonder why.

When it does

you don't think about it at all.

Consumption

Consumption

They only see the fruit.

Rarely do they wonder about

the tree and the seasons

before the harvest.

Caged Lions

Caged Lions

Together they roared

from the streets below.

Throats straining,

voices proclaiming

GOD IS GREAT

GOD IS GREAT

GOD IS GREAT

as the world

watched,

wondering

where it would end.

The pen rests against

the blank creamed colored

pages waiting

to finish the story.

Tea

Tea

Let the kettle boil for a bit.

When the whistle blows

pour it out into the cup,

let it steep for a bit.

Careful to not let it

burn your lips.

Breath in its warmth

before that first sip.

Soothe your throat

and soul

in one fell swoop.

ISLANDS

ISLANDS

Wandering the seas for this fabled land I will risk the life I seek to preserve. What pride or ambition will mark this journey I undertake? I will will this ambition into being. A foolhardy venture they claim, but what hence when I return from the seas with my conquest, proof in hand?

Accolades will bear my name, my exalted stature will remember naught the naysayers who bore down their thumbs at my aspirations. I am Odysseus and Columbus, I am the boldness of our kind, I am the ambition that seeks not approval nor sanity in pursuits. I am. Je suis. Yo Soy. My life, my death will be my own. These Islands my white whale to pursue to the bottomless depths of hope and folly. Islands await my feet upon their shore, the waves at my back, the doubters at bay. On these Islands, my salvation, my ambition, my redemption. For mine glory and mine alone.

David Drayton

David Drayton

Four spent casings

sitting in the chamber.

It stalks outside

waiting for me.

God won't take me

but it will.

More Incomplete Words

These years have been

too cruel and too kind.

But it's you

I'm still looking to find.

Hearts beating steady,

Singles always ready

for that spark

to set this darkness alight.

Other Mathematics (incomplete)

We divide more than we add.

When we don't,

we subtract.

Negatives and Positives

vary in

Degrees and Percentages.

Where is the Sacred Geometry

guiding our Telemetry?

W(right)

W(right)

I'm always wrong.

I know you're right.

I know you write

it all down.

Lets start over,

I know you're right.

Let me say it

over again.

We get caught up

in these words

too often.

Lets start

over again.

Snow Angel by Kelli Anne Noftle

Snow Angel by Kelli Anne Noftle

Made a snow angel in the sand

but the ocean washed the shape away

and everyone just stared at me for

wearing mittens to the beach

on the hottest day of summer but I

wanted Olive forced into

a season change.

Stark white memories but,

darling there's no such thing.

Just these recycled feelings

with a different face. And

I'll pick up where she left off

if you will pick up

when I'm gone.

When I'm

gone

gone

gone.

So I made your past

a narrative

and I watched it as

an audience

detached from all the characters. And

everything we thought we lost

was saved

and everything we thought we gave away

we kept.

And we slept in so many

hotel rooms that the sheets started

smelling like

smelling like we did.

Surely darkness will hide me

and the light

become the night

around me.

___________________________

This has been a song I have had on repeat the last few days

and I just wanted to share this.

For more info on her and her music please visit

www.myspace.com/miniaturesoap

When You Took Yourself

When You Took Yourself

You will never be able to see

what it is you did

when you took yourself from me.

The weight became too much to bear,

caving in the walls

that kept you there.

They found you

crumpled in a heap.

What can I do?

I hope you found your peace.

Calliope

Calliope

You sing your song

like the muse of yore.

Your voice your eyes

beckon more than implore.

Calliope

O how you sing!

Calliope

what creation will you bring?

You sing your song,

O Calliope

muse of Yore!

Your voice your eyes,

O Calliope

beckon more than implore!

Calliope,

Calliope

most beautiful

and wise,

sing forever more.

Currents

and

I

I

I

dream about you,

and

I

I

I

dream about you.

and

it's so far away

so far away

it just can't

be true.

So I

just sit

and dream

a b o u t y o u.

The Girls At Rite Aid

The Girls At Rite Aid

Beneath the lamp post

at the sidewalks edge

they drunkenly cradled

each other,

flinging bottles

into the street.

Each one burst

with the sound of

a liquid filled light bulb

exploding,

each more freeing than the next.

You could hear them laughing

like the gods themselves.

The few people around

just looked and moved on.

I entered and purchased my goods.

Walking out past the automatic doors

they were nowhere to be found.

The broken glass

and alcohol still on the street.

They were freedom and joy

at its best.

Black Flag - Damaged

http://blogs.laweekly.com/westcoastsound/locals-only/black-flag-damaged-word-cloud/

Walls

Walls

(a.)Did you see where it went?

(b.)No.

(a.)Are you sure?

(b.)Yes.

(a.)Seriously?

(b)Yes.

(a.) { d e e p b r e a t h }

(b.)What are you going to do?

(a.)I don't know.

I don't know.

Space always expanding.