Pont Neuf, Paris, 1902

Tags

1902, 2018, 6*, afternoon, autumn, branches, bridge, grey, Paris, rain, red, river, sky, speech, statue, steps, umbrella, woman

                the afternoon autumn skies
                had red taint in their greys

                from sodden divested branches
                grown warped and wet

                before the river – turn away,
                don’t look at me like this – but

                the iron rider on horse had
                none of it atop graceful steps,

                ‘pah’ said the old woman
                as she shook out her umbrella

 

de l’avantaged de Pont Neuf, Paris, 1892 by Camille Pissarro

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

afternoon wormhole: La Route, Effet d’Hiver, 1872
autumn & grey wormhole: 10/28 ‘in this strong light …’ by William Carlos Williams
branches wormhole: Puerto del Carmen
bridge wormhole: Rain, Steam and Speed – the / Great Western Railway, 1844
Paris wormhole: looking / ridiculous
rain wormhole: 10/22 by William Carlos Williams
red wormhole: Cote des Bœufs à l’Hermitage, Pontoise, 1877
river & sky wormhole: Cours La Reine, Rouen, 1890
speech & woman wormhole: A Corner of the Garden at the Hermitage, 1877

 

looking / ridiculous

Tags

2015, 6*, accountability, debate, echo, event, future, history, humanity, injustice, Paris, politicians, politics, rhetoric, Syria, terrorism, time, white elephants

                there is always always a whole
                history behind every event

                never more so as we
                step over rubble into the future

                which we build now; and so much
                of politics has become

                so deft at skipping the history
                to gainsay the outcome

                that it has become flat
                blunt and spade-like for holding, nothing

                to account; history is human
                hurt from any injustice and from any experience which persists despite

                the rhetoric (oh, you weren’t
                reaching for the shelves, were you!);

                responding to Paris by
                bombing Syria was on the table there-it-was

                a rhetorical knee-jerk
                blind to any history

                hoping for crowd-approval
                like the echoes of a playground brawl;

                politics should be sharp and uncomfortable,
                include all difference

                include whatever white elephants are in the room;
                spade (sic) politicians who

                will not respond to the white elephant
                who will not respond to the history

                are left with only the puff of rhetoric
                braying like farmyard animals, looking

                ridiculous; air strikes in Syria are ridiculous

 

there were a number of terrorist attacks in Paris during January 2015; there was debate in the UK about launching an attack on Syria as a response; the Labour leader, Jeremy Corbin, was courting views on the response – I wrote a poem

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

echo wormhole: Plumstead – Woolwich – Plumstead 220211
history wormhole: ‘God, who am I …?’
Paris wormhole: Le Pont Royal, 1909
politics wormhole: London refugee march – 120915
time wormhole: lack of center

 

Le Pont Royal, 1909

Tags

'scape, 1909, 2015, architecture, bridge, buildings, Edward Hopper, facade, morning, Paris, sunlight, trees, veins, walking

                                Le Pont Royal, 1909

                                the thing is: the morning sun
                                which meets the facades face

                                on and sculpts them – fine-
                                hewn – into their architecture

                                and makes the bare trees into
                                manly veins, is not brought

                                by the bridge despite all its
                                pedestrian traffic to work

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

architecture wormhole: hinged – From Hell ch. V
bridge & sunlight wormhole: 1965
buildings wormhole: words tumble like / boulders – poewieview #25
Edward Hopper wormhole: Doctor Strange I – the trashcan tilted the better to see now the street
morning wormhole: fine
Paris wormhole: Le Pont des Arts, 1907
trees wormhole: Michael Redford: triptych
walking wormhole: while walking

 

Le Pont des Arts, 1907

Tags

1907, 2015, air, bridge, cream, Edward Hopper, grey, lemon, morning, Paris, passing, river, sea, sky, steel, sunlight, walking, wind, years

 

 

 

                           Le Pont des Arts, 1907

                           in 1907 girders were made
                           curved to span a river in
                           tempered sprung, perched
                           across pillars, a taut hold
                           of tonnage letting the

                           frozen strain of arched
                           air through which to sea,
                           allowing the first parting
                           for cream sunlight to
                           wash the quays a new day,

                           holding up ridiculous Way
                           for passers-over blown
                           full against over-clothes
                           regalia by the fithery grey
                           sky preparing lemon

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

air & grey & wind wormhole: sooner or later
bridge & Paris wormhole: The Louvre in a Thunderstorm, 1909
Edward Hopper & years wormhole: Western Motel, 1957
lemon wormhole: that comicbookshop in dreams,
morning wormhole: Morning in a City, 1944
passing wormhole: all along the blue sky
river wormhole: Bodiam Castle
sea wormhole: dream 230315
sky wormhole: hungry for a thread or two
sunlight wormhole: sit
walking wormhole: Sunday afternoon

 

The Louvre in a Thunderstorm, 1909

Tags

'scape, 1909, 2015, breathing, bridge, Edward Hopper, painting, Paris, rooftops, Seine, sky, skyline, storm, thunder, trees, windows, years

 

 

 

                                 The Louvre in a Thunderstorm, 1909

                                 the mansard roofs were sullen
                                 right up to their windows, even the

                                 Pont du Carrousel was brooding, begrudging,
                                 still, its continued expanse; but

                                 the trees were aflame in anticipation, they
                                 have always breathed the scape of sky

                                 to ascertain continued combustion, never
                                 cursed it to a line, however stylish

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

breathing & Edward Hopper & years wormhole: Evening Wind, 1921
bridge wormhole: new year’s eve 2014; train up to London to / walk the bridges across the Thames, and / listen to the voices say it is, and was, like, / but get back home before the fireworks / obliterate it all in the emptying twilight
Paris wormhole: the air of architecture
rooftops wormhole: silhouette: // second / thoughts
sky & trees wormhole: that comicbookshop in dreams,
skyline wormhole: up here
storm wormhole: after the storm
trees wormhole: dream 230315

 

the air of architecture

Tags

1978, 1979, 2013, 4*, architecture, being, experience, eyes, Paris, reading, summer, time

                           I read a book during the summer of ‘78
                           or ’79 I cannot remember the title I can-
                           not remember the author I cannot rem-
                           ember the plot or any of the characters
                           I cannot remember the cover and am
                           not sure I would recognise it again if I
                           found it in a second hand bookshop –
                           it was set in Paris, I think, and involved
                           prostitutes, possibly, but nevertheless
                           left a slight flavour at the back of my
                           eyeballs which I haven’t been able
                           to blink away no matter how deep
                           I breathe the air of architecture

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

architecture wormhole: titanic
being wormhole: posture
eyes wormhole: city-centre-coffee-shop / talk
Paris wormhole: wide-open / concentration
reading & time wormhole: letters to mum II – family // like a grate

 

wide-open / concentration

Tags

'scape, 2012, 5*, avenue, chimney, growth, Paris, poetry, train, windows, writing

 

 

 

                                                      wide-open
                                                      concentration

                                   goodbye you endless
                                                      rows of chimney pots
                                   along the raised avenues
                                                      of ateliers
                                   I wrote no poems of you
                                                      this time
                                   but I took away something
                                                      much more

                                                      valuable

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

chimney wormhole: only
Paris wormhole: lobby
poetry wormhole: ‘I am a secret / superhero …’
train wormhole: train // line
windows wormhole: let us mauve a whirl          elongated
writing wormhole: two fat ladies / chk klak klip // all the while

 

lobby

Tags

2012, 4*, being, family, hotel, love, Paris, people, portrait, society

 

 

 

                                lobby

                     some check out the gift window
                     some read the economics magazines
                                like they know how that
                                          all happens
                     some sit with their bellies
                                full of role and family
                     families sit with their phones
                                each doing something different
                     most are fat some bare their
                                hairy arms crossed
                     some notice the clocks around the world
                                most notice the weather
                     some work constantly on the phone and the screen
                                some stand with a slightly kicky dance
                                          waiting
                     but every one of them
                                every one of their
                                toes lift and fall
                                          awkward
                                with their step
                                whether they
                                wear sandals
                                or not

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

being & society wormhole: my life / of others
family wormhole: whiter than family
hotel wormhole: ‘the burgundy velvet evening …’
love wormhole: wakey wakey / time to get up
Paris wormhole: parc du Champ-de Mars
people wormhole: 1974 – Greens / End Woolwich

 

parc du Champ-de-Mars

Tags

'scape, 2012, 4*, Eiffel Tower, Paris, park, photography, pigeons, speech

 

 

 

                                                                                 ready
                ready
                                              sit-crouch
                                hold it
                                                              hold it

                                silent click – point

                                              oh a pigeon
                                                                                                            flew
off

                                              missed it

                                parc du Champ-de-Mars

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

Eiffel Tower & Paris wormhole: the Eiffel Tower
park wormhole: the Eiffel Tower
pigeons wormhole: coffee shop / no –
speech wormhole: losing the anxiety

 

the Eiffel Tower

Tags

'scape, 2012, 4*, Eiffel Tower, Paris, people, poetry

 

 

 

                looking at the people
                      pouting air
                      pinching just a little one
                      holding [in the middle of the road]
                      leaning forward back leg anchoring
                I am looking too hard for a poem of
                      the Eiffel Tower

 

 

 

^{————w}(O)rmholes_________________________________|—–

Eiffel Tower & Paris wormhole: the Eiffel Tower
poetry wormhole: what comes first … // the poem or the content … // the shamatha or the vipashyana … // the posture … // or the sitting?
people wormhole: coffee shop