deepundergroundpoetry.com
Circus by the Shovel-full
What’s that sound?
The spectacle!
Seems the circus is back in town
Guess these humble folks still have something left to give
Something to take away
Once the circus decides to leave again
The ringleader,
That barker charlatan,
Stands poised with megaphone
To wax philosophic
Sophist and sophomoric
Clamboring for all that attention
Waving all his tired acts out
To perform before them
And they applaud
Blustering bravado with tales of machismo
And cheap, plastic trinkets
For proof that he was there
Hell, I still have the pamphlet
From the last time this show blew through
With Hot Air
And Hot Air
And Hot Air
Oh, and the stench of a dirty animal or two
The clowns are braving fires
And facing things like men
Both lighting and dowsing blazes with the liquid from a pen
Drinking like some fish
That Hemmingway would chase
But when it gets a bit confusing
They all pile into their little car and (e)race
Their spotlight out
Right
Out
The door
Now, after laughs are done,
It’s time to be astounded!
The elephants remember
And the big cats are all rounded
out into their cage
Where the barker cracks his whip
Stinging ornate orange stripes
and proud and puffy manes
From the safety of the center
Standing firm behind their training
But knowing if tragedy were to strike
The crowd would be abuzz with whispers of his show
The whip, the cats, the crowd
They all bite
And all the trick ponies are drinking from the trough
Lined up and waiting for their chance to get off
So this is from where all the premium horseshit comes
I knew all this and I still bought my ticket
I’ve seen this show before
I know what to expect
But I wish I didn’t know what lies behind the curtains
Kind of ruins the whole thing
The spectacle!
Seems the circus is back in town
Guess these humble folks still have something left to give
Something to take away
Once the circus decides to leave again
The ringleader,
That barker charlatan,
Stands poised with megaphone
To wax philosophic
Sophist and sophomoric
Clamboring for all that attention
Waving all his tired acts out
To perform before them
And they applaud
Blustering bravado with tales of machismo
And cheap, plastic trinkets
For proof that he was there
Hell, I still have the pamphlet
From the last time this show blew through
With Hot Air
And Hot Air
And Hot Air
Oh, and the stench of a dirty animal or two
The clowns are braving fires
And facing things like men
Both lighting and dowsing blazes with the liquid from a pen
Drinking like some fish
That Hemmingway would chase
But when it gets a bit confusing
They all pile into their little car and (e)race
Their spotlight out
Right
Out
The door
Now, after laughs are done,
It’s time to be astounded!
The elephants remember
And the big cats are all rounded
out into their cage
Where the barker cracks his whip
Stinging ornate orange stripes
and proud and puffy manes
From the safety of the center
Standing firm behind their training
But knowing if tragedy were to strike
The crowd would be abuzz with whispers of his show
The whip, the cats, the crowd
They all bite
And all the trick ponies are drinking from the trough
Lined up and waiting for their chance to get off
So this is from where all the premium horseshit comes
I knew all this and I still bought my ticket
I’ve seen this show before
I know what to expect
But I wish I didn’t know what lies behind the curtains
Kind of ruins the whole thing
Published 6th Mar 2011
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6th Mar 2011 10:57pm
...a down and dirty work, with plenty of depth to keep re-reading...love it P, if even for the sense of disappointment...
Anonymous
6th Mar 2011 11:00pm
A building crescendo of excitement and suspense any ringmaster would be jealous of. My only complaint is that a lot of your work is very long, when really it could be surmised in half the length. There are always great lines in each poem you write, but sometimes they seem surrounded by a mountain of filler material.
Yeah I have definitely been realizing that it is my greatest weakness. It really hit home when I offered Jestalessa a three word challenge and went on and on and on doing it for myself. I'm not exactly sure how to resolve this at the moment. Thank you for the input, Jack.
6th Mar 2011 11:53pm
i've been pulling them too, lately. lovin' that first stanza and the last, and these especially in between:
"To wax philosophic
Sophist and sophomoric" - i always want to swim in your vocabulary.
"The clowns are braving fires
And facing things like men
Both lighting and dowsing blazes with the liquid from a pen" - cool how it stands on its own!
"The crowd would be abuzz with whispers of his show" - don't know why it stands out, however, i quite like it. [:
"So this is from where all the premium horseshit comes" - i can't help but think at this point, that there is a barb here somewhere... a good one at that, i would say.
aaaand that's my 60 cents. [:
"To wax philosophic
Sophist and sophomoric" - i always want to swim in your vocabulary.
"The clowns are braving fires
And facing things like men
Both lighting and dowsing blazes with the liquid from a pen" - cool how it stands on its own!
"The crowd would be abuzz with whispers of his show" - don't know why it stands out, however, i quite like it. [:
"So this is from where all the premium horseshit comes" - i can't help but think at this point, that there is a barb here somewhere... a good one at that, i would say.
aaaand that's my 60 cents. [:
