Last month I went on a short vacation to a tropical paradise. One evening my wife and I found ourselves sitting in a crowded bar, watching a band set up as patrons continued to arrive. The bar was small. Amongst all of this chaos there was a woman twisting and turning her way around theContinue reading “Sitting in a bar…”
Category Archives: new work
The law of the jungle
This poem is a critique of human hubris and our ability to fool ourselves into thinking we are at the top of the pyramid (spoiler alert: there is no pyramid, we’re just another mammal). What we could learn, if we listened I’ve been told that all the things that are wrong in the world can’tContinue reading “The law of the jungle”
Memory triggers
This poem was inspired by an image that came to me of someone opening an old cupboard and seeing a blue jacket. In writing the poem I put myself in that person’s shoes. A “manrobe” is a half-height wardrobe with a small set of drawers, which were very popular through the first half of theContinue reading “Memory triggers”
Not fit for publication
Trigger warning: this post and poem deals with child abuse and animal abuse. Please do not read if these topics will cause you distress. Today’s poem is one I submitted for inclusion in a periodic journal of poetry. It was deemed not to be of high enough standard. It’s not the first time I’ve beenContinue reading “Not fit for publication”
Not all men, but most of the songs
It’s been a while since I blogged. A lot has been happening in the world, especially the heroic stand of Ukraine against Putin’s denazification invasion efforts. So my mood is pretty dark. Today’s poem fits into the ‘found poetry’ genre. I have reflected on the songs that play on the radio, in supermarket, at weddingsContinue reading “Not all men, but most of the songs”
Understanding
If you have read 3 or 4 of my poems before you will know that I often reference particular muses or inspirations. One of the common sources of inspiration is nature, another is love (in its many iterations). Today’s offering was inspired by my Number 1 muse, my wife. So yes, this is an apologeticContinue reading “Understanding”
Rethinking erasure
Usually when one thinks of erasure it means that something or someone is being diminished, perhaps permanently removed. The connotation is that that erasure is bad. Today I decided to take a poem from my archive and try the technique of removing words to create a new piece. This is erasure poetry. You can startContinue reading “Rethinking erasure”
Angele Toomey Poetry 