Passanger on the Q Train

Practical muscles, lettered with nicks and scabs from another time.

On his left arm is a tattoo,
A blue diamond, that ripples with each subtle motion.

Boots stained the red of an open plum,
With jeans rolled below the knee.

He idly scratches his chest with fingers decked in stars and skulls.

A bike chain and an open vest, make a "V" of skin.
Moles and stubble stick to his face.

Harring's enfant crawls around his brow,
As a baseball cap hides long eyelashes.

Preselected Words:

Enter the farmhouse,
A locus of dreams,
Both rural and urban.

A speck of red,
And a swath of gold,
From the eyes of the thrush.

The farrowing squeals from far below,
A pinkish mass with mouths to feed.

Down by the ants and the blades of grass,
A mouse's steps shake the earth.
The rumbles and the darkened sky
Signify a passing.

----

Pre-generated some words. Not sure how well this went though. Eh.

The Three of Us Are Lovers

Bitter as an old wound,
The taste lingers in my throat,
Soft and familiar it drips like the rain.

The rain outside is cold and lonely,
A found again friend on a train ride home.

We are lovers.
The three of us,
We sit together,
Quietly stewing and brewing.

If I Followed

If I followed each desire
Whould it shrould our hearts in fire?
Delicate is our fleeting flesh,
But sins you live with for the rest
Of your time, like hours and years.
For the devil lives on in our fears.
If thoughts of flame make you perspire,
Perhaps this wish you should retire.
----

Another poetry exercise on voice.

Hatred in the Hearts of Men

I don't always know what they're talking about,
But I know when it's me.
Hatred in the hearts of men,
I don't need eyes to see.

---

for a writing exercise

Simile, Metaphor, Figure, and Conceit: My Lover is Like a Ruby

My lover is like a ruby.

My lover is a ruby.

She is my ruby of love.

My lover is a ruby with gleaming edges and stark eyes,
Refined she shines with all her might,
The grace of unturned stones.

Shorts

Three sentence mysteries:

If the ruby mirror was here, it meant the professor knew all along. With a slow and careful purpose she turned to the doorway. The two old friends drew their revolvers and the staredown began.

The caretaker scowled as they came to the mansion. The master of the house was his closest friend. That's why he kept him under the bed.

Shorts

The lion is the mountain king,
Trapped beneath its weight.


To be smooth and gleaming like polished metal,
A body transformed into ideal form.