deepundergroundpoetry.com
Schrodinger’s antidepressant
I once hallucinated a cat.
Not there until I saw it,
gone the moment I looked,
it was definitely there.
I know it wasn’t a flight of imagination,
or interpretation of movement or light.
There were no bushes to rustle
and no shadows in that open moonlit field.
I wasn’t thinking about cats
(or of anything really)
just returning to my tent
after brushing my teeth at the campground.
But anyway, there it was
just left of my feet
and I actually dodged to avoid it
lest we get entangled
in my visual cortex.
I keep this seemingly insignificant memory,
a reminder of the confusions of chemistry
as my brain weaned from numbness
back to truth,
and the paradox of how we can be
simultaneously
perfectly healthy
and terribly ill.
Published 9th Apr 2022
Author's Note
#8
Inspiration: true story; can't remember why it came back to me today.
Inspiration: true story; can't remember why it came back to me today.
All writing remains the property of the author. Don't use it for any purpose without their permission.
likes 6
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comments 12
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9th Apr 2022 4:29am
funny how the Brain works sometimes, a beautiful mystery. loved this piece! thought evoking with great imagery
12th Apr 2022 1:25pm
Thanks for taking the time to read & comment! I'm glad it made you think. 😊
Cheers,
k
Cheers,
k
9th Apr 2022 4:53am
Dear K,
Or were you in Narnia? Portals K, they’re everywhere. Nooooo, I’m just funnin’ ya. I wholeheartedly agree with your closing lines. It’s the ultimate paradox when physically we’re tip top but mentally…eh? Even I could feel the fur of this cat from your description! Excellent detail. Great piece. H🌷😽
Or were you in Narnia? Portals K, they’re everywhere. Nooooo, I’m just funnin’ ya. I wholeheartedly agree with your closing lines. It’s the ultimate paradox when physically we’re tip top but mentally…eh? Even I could feel the fur of this cat from your description! Excellent detail. Great piece. H🌷😽
12th Apr 2022 1:27pm
Thank you, H. I was in a lot of strange places for a while, but none quite as delightful as Narnia, sadly. Thanks for your constant support; it's so appreciated.
❤️k
❤️k
9th Apr 2022 7:16am
'' the paradox of how we can be
simultaneously
perfectly healthy
and terribly ill.''
Ain't that the truth!!!
simultaneously
perfectly healthy
and terribly ill.''
Ain't that the truth!!!
12th Apr 2022 1:29pm
Yeah, it's pretty weird. And then there's the divide between how we really are inside and how we appear to others...
Thanks so much for reading, I appreciate your presence!
❤️k
Thanks so much for reading, I appreciate your presence!
❤️k
9th Apr 2022 8:12am
I actually have a Schrodinger's cat story...
Which is... Extremely dark.
And I don't know that many would understand.
(I have never told anyone about it.)
This is an interesting account of your experience.
On a side note: the piece I wrote, based on your
key words... Involves hallucinogens...
And interesting perceptual occurrences.
I very much liked this piece.
Which is... Extremely dark.
And I don't know that many would understand.
(I have never told anyone about it.)
This is an interesting account of your experience.
On a side note: the piece I wrote, based on your
key words... Involves hallucinogens...
And interesting perceptual occurrences.
I very much liked this piece.
12th Apr 2022 1:35pm
Goodness, I sure hope you didn't poison a cat trying to test the theory!
Thanks for your kind words. This was a weird experience, where I finally realized that I was actually messing with my brain chemistry... and therefore, how messed up I must actually be.... hard to explain. I often only appreciate things in retrospect.
Thanks again for the read & support.
❤️k
Thanks for your kind words. This was a weird experience, where I finally realized that I was actually messing with my brain chemistry... and therefore, how messed up I must actually be.... hard to explain. I often only appreciate things in retrospect.
Thanks again for the read & support.
❤️k
Haha! I have no idea where to start here.
If indeed our cat is still in the box therefore a cat which is both dead and alive then consider the rest of what I say to be a completely true compliment on your poem.
The opening line is completely reassuring when read in context to the title... it brought peace knowing the protagonist was reaccounting a quantum poetry experiment on a cat that wasn't real and alive.
Thank Gawd for that!
To be honest I found L2 funny... I'm not sure if the humor was intended or not? But I interpreted it to jest on the over explained...
At the same time Eugene Wigner's theory came to mind when read in conjunction with L3..
At this point the poem was both written and unwritten.
Dodging to miss the 200,000 neurons smaller than 1 square mm fighting the lobes was massive moment in this poem. It ties the theory, the experiment and the brain functioning together. Have a ❤ for that!
In S2 when you take the leap from quantum mechanics to quantum chemistry the question that ponders is size... can the cat get larger or would it get smaller... though you pen withdrawal perfectly and this thesis is of the opinion that size would decrease however the state of the box is, I would assume an open box would reduce the size while a closed one would surely increase it.
The ending is well penned and the perfect explanation for a poem which is both on the page and off the page. However I assure you it will not degrade even under scrutiny.
Well done! There is a lack of intellectual poetry and this made my heart happy. I don't even care that the geek came out of me.
Al
P.S. the poem works well as an antidepressant and therefore the experiment works!
If indeed our cat is still in the box therefore a cat which is both dead and alive then consider the rest of what I say to be a completely true compliment on your poem.
The opening line is completely reassuring when read in context to the title... it brought peace knowing the protagonist was reaccounting a quantum poetry experiment on a cat that wasn't real and alive.
Thank Gawd for that!
To be honest I found L2 funny... I'm not sure if the humor was intended or not? But I interpreted it to jest on the over explained...
At the same time Eugene Wigner's theory came to mind when read in conjunction with L3..
At this point the poem was both written and unwritten.
Dodging to miss the 200,000 neurons smaller than 1 square mm fighting the lobes was massive moment in this poem. It ties the theory, the experiment and the brain functioning together. Have a ❤ for that!
In S2 when you take the leap from quantum mechanics to quantum chemistry the question that ponders is size... can the cat get larger or would it get smaller... though you pen withdrawal perfectly and this thesis is of the opinion that size would decrease however the state of the box is, I would assume an open box would reduce the size while a closed one would surely increase it.
The ending is well penned and the perfect explanation for a poem which is both on the page and off the page. However I assure you it will not degrade even under scrutiny.
Well done! There is a lack of intellectual poetry and this made my heart happy. I don't even care that the geek came out of me.
Al
P.S. the poem works well as an antidepressant and therefore the experiment works!
12th Apr 2022 1:51pm
Wow, AL!
Your compliment is both simple and complex... but I maintain that the compliment is most definitely there, and so I will accept it without reserve. 😊
Science is great fodder for poetry. I loved hearing from your inner geek, and am truly humbled and pleased by your response. This cat experience was alarming to me at the time, as I was coming to realize just how little control I had over what was going on inside my head. Looking back, it's more of a curiosity now, and it was fun to ponder whether the cat had just momentarily appeared from some alternate reality, maybe in an attempt to escape that damn box...
Thanks again for taking the time for a little mind play with me!
Cheers,
k
Your compliment is both simple and complex... but I maintain that the compliment is most definitely there, and so I will accept it without reserve. 😊
Science is great fodder for poetry. I loved hearing from your inner geek, and am truly humbled and pleased by your response. This cat experience was alarming to me at the time, as I was coming to realize just how little control I had over what was going on inside my head. Looking back, it's more of a curiosity now, and it was fun to ponder whether the cat had just momentarily appeared from some alternate reality, maybe in an attempt to escape that damn box...
Thanks again for taking the time for a little mind play with me!
Cheers,
k
8th May 2022 6:58am
I felt like I was there with you in the moment. I love the way you ended this write.
LJ
LJ
8th May 2022 12:18pm
