Hopeful Entanglement

 

a fifth dimensional butterfly flutters its wings
a third dimensional earth ascends..

Best Of..Bitter Boomer Love Songs (Reissued Reissue)

 
of that heavy muskcentric bygone era crows another deep-boiled scrotum turnip
for here breathes the fetid breath of a stellar exhibit zed of zed
an oxygen thief astronaut trolling carbon dioxide
a constant headline fixture of grim rubber-stamped charity benefits..

the blood-shot-eyed quadruple valve charisma bypass superstar
betrays his colonic passage of time
swamp integrated and irrigated with trashed hotel destruction
and gorged and despatched and spat-out flare-pantied fans
discarded memories lie by the venus flytrap-lined highway
his clenched sphincter pupils crack lizard lines
the envy of a draco monarch..

swiss alps-high of a certain nasal mist
snorted 
face filled with enough plastic puss to crazy-pave an indonesian landfill
another boomer gravitar as warm as a raging imploding ingrown caligula
regales the smirking interviewer with his endless tales of pregnant woe
there he sits in front of an empty green-screened recording studio because..

because another reissue of the best of.. is out now..is out now..is out now..
just so you know
for christmas
though not for more-than-casual believers of jesus
though perhaps very wise men might want to gift the returning special baby this
should it seed the idea later on to smash to smithereens
a modern temple of the pharisees
sounds like a plan..

yeah i somewhat regret those days now
the money the excess
all the alpha babe sex
now it all seems so..you know
so hollow..even though i know many viewers might be impressed..
he winked at the camera..
call it guerrilla marketing
or call it something else..

do i sound ungrateful
try walking in my shoes
they always expected so much of me
so gratuitous..
did i mention that my best of..reissued reissue is out this week..
oh yeah it is out this week..

i sometimes wonder if i had led an ordinary life
whatever that is..
things might have been so much easier
my assistants harassed for backstage passes
to hound me for autographs
extensions of my flesh
youknowwhoreimean..
does that make sense..

but please do not misunderstand me
though i could mention doors of stables bolting
or something like that..
metaphors for horses methinks..

sometimes i wish i never met all those..
what can i say
i was a babe-magnet
not boasting..still am..
in retrospect and we have to ask
did they enhance me as an artist
we have to ask..

that said i still managed to write some great and fabulous songs
they are on my best of..the reissued reissue out in time for christmas..
you could see it as a spiritual thing if that helps..

yeah so the reissued reissue best of..is out for christmas..
has new and deeper sleeve notes
and a previously unreleased acoustic version of deep-fried egyptian pharoah..

curled up on the bed watching tv
an elegant woman of a certain vintage..
flinches..
she instinctively stares across at a faded photograph of her younger self
the picture encased in a pretty little silver frame
nestles with others on the dresser by the nightstand..

she is caressed by the star in the aftershow party he invited her to
how could she forget
there she offers him the most dazzling sweet smile
obviously besotted she gazes up at his narrower eyes..

she reaches for the frame and considers pulling out the photograph
with a rueful smile she shakes her head
what did i see in him..
yeah i know..
and what did i learn..

she hears a door click open
her adult son strolls into the kitchen
and yes from a certain angle..

she gazes again at the photograph
no..still no regrets..
though you fool..you will never know..
she places the photo frame in a box
she switches to another channel..

no my collection of rare cars feels more like a burden
you could call it the zen art of investments
protecting my portfolio is a full-time job
i have to fork out the coin for three full-time accountants
see what i mean..

yeah so my best of..reissue is out now
at the end of the day it is all about love
thank goodness i still have that
despite everything i still love my fans..
oh and did i mention..

..her son sporting the most silly beaming smile siddles up to her
his hands playfully hidden behind his back..

then he flourishes the most beautiful bunch of irises
wafting the air with the most delicate of scents..
happy birthday mum..
love you so much..

they hug
generating the silence so warm
the bond unbreakable..

Lifted Concrete

 

approaching that reality
with comfort and clarity
revealed the mystery deepens
uplifting this concretised night living dream
in the truth is the knowing
beyond interpretive imagination overflowing
like the whispered secrets shared from seashells
receive through waves of silence
knowledge experienced and not mere belief..

For You Are Your Light Beam, Light Being

 

diurnal moon
sips the evening most best
the passage of time lattices fireworks
riddles me a lithesome dancer on this
gifting a poised satin-enrobed state of undress
shoo-bee-doo shoo-bee-doo..

simmering bells of the starship choir
the ethereal soundwaves blast lilac light shafting
the bloom of the silvery-corded ladder-climb
thus i might serenade parallel timelines..

razor-sharp edge of the pearlescent teardrop
of swarming cosmos a shave of moon shard
clamshell mothership topical glam i am
no strange passports required here
no mons de bozos
ganymede-elf poppets draw their nerf guns as softly
inspecting your visions burnished and bronzed
in repose and sanded down
emperor dreamweaver shaf-tee lobin-gis is in town..

yes that will do nicely kind sir
your mermaid jacuzzi beckons
so wthout more ado go and loft yourself along the flip-off ceiling
arcturan chocolates will be served shortly thereafter
for you are your light beam light being..

if only my earth employer could spy me now
this the perfect antidote to business class for certain earth artists
bungee jump the white hole for the coolest bends
they only need change their bluey turnip sauce once a century
vegan squid gloam the fusion cold plates
a tempest of shimmering sauces deliquesce..

fruits of the pleaides
slivered pears the quivery texture of simmered europa snow
though not the kind you could easily buy in a galactic waitrose
often peachened with martian parsnips..

the meer elephant jazz of procyon blasts
the sublime pilot horses of the dyson spheres
the green asteroid merchants festooned with rare minerals
buy me a pint of mushroom quartz special..
 
down in one
they lie me down
and through my open third-eye they pour
i hold my beer in my head
my astral self holds no complaints sans the med-bed
shoo-bee-doo shoo-bee-doo..

any questions..

Lacuna Feedback For Another Swan-Dive

empowering the quietened quitting with blessings
we bear witness to the tender ministrations of potent healer ophiuchus
we marvel at the stunning dedication to the darker vocation
never seems to tire of consigning early retirement with force-multiplier..

as here..
another football player can no more outrun his tripwired walls
lined with amped-up self-organising treacle
he clutches at himself as beneath his stretch-shirt he rents
he lurches a hop-skip sidelong from his extant spirit
for whose kingdom might he succumb to phantoms for the embrace of the python
for it seems the clean-living athlete is luminescing
guided to vials he lit upon luciferase..

the time-lapse filmed flower vividly wilts
the balletic slow-motion grand jete cum swan-dive
the way the boy crumpled over
terrified out his wits
for no player was near 
because the players that really count rarely are
self-appointed and rarefied
they rarely need tangle with our regulated shared air..

the all-too-familiar eeriness thus descends
as in sports events up and down planet earth now almost every weekend..

close-up of the manager with his hands on his hips
as a switch excruciatingly slowly flicks
his gaze across the green
vacuum-packs inescapable dead air for fortune mammon-piss metamorphoses..
 
his conscience its own martyred magnetar
crash-crumples out his suit-jacket a red card
strips him bare in moments
the rabbit holes vent through
magnetising him to the rings of steel
one ring after another
spangling gravity with serrating karmic glue..

so the boss gazes across the melting emerald
as a young prone soul lies uncollected 
they both blink and shrink beneath the baleful light
pressing prescient possibilities
sad as a farewell to a blade of all-weather plastic grass
perhaps with a young promising name to be engraved upon it later
with the heart symbol welded to a canned ocean of rattling silence..

so what kind of foul scythed this lad-child down
collapsing in folding chairs
the same kind of foul that now so eloquently fells the fans
and where his also tremoring girlfriend looks on inkling from the stands..

the golden manager tilts
his heart also misses more than a beat
he glances to the physio eyeless
then pulls together his fracturing facets of self 
composes his eyes open wide to again play along
humming noise to an occulted given anthem
we see the owner in the stands anxiously listening on the phone
as the disembodied directors in the boardroom conference call
their zeitgeist static always there in spirit..

on the radar is that incoming missile
the mirage a missile miraged
equivocal statements the product placement
like a swiss finishing school-trained shrug of the shoulders
studiously paced elegantly vacant..

around the ground a jet stream silence cleaves
as players and high-viz demi-spectral beings crowd above him
that weird silence cloaks a weirder science still
wrapping expanding ushering the midfield general off the stage
his jaundiced face is the death-clown applause from the fans
what will var have to say about this
back to the studio
the experts will help us understand
he fell over
not sure why
we should not speculate..

under a foil blanket
the sound of interference crackles
vanishing a player down the tunnel to flashes
vending another coincidence for the nervous sponsors
lining verdant the pockets of lab-coat dealers
at warp speed..

by the bye
we were informed by the mainstream quite recently
of the reason for all the excess deaths of the elderly in the uk last summer..
climate change
well what else would it be..

i am sure we can all relate
i had to use my usb mini-fan on at least four occasions in august
temperatures rose well above room temperature
i sweated a few thimbles..

and we all recall how the elderly battled their way to the shops
all while the novel desert winds blasted their cardiganed bodies and bobbled faces
jackals howled as rattlesnakes hissed like trapped air from almost-banned hosepipes
and as vultures sensed another premature granny death
they circled and looped and swooped laconically overhead
later someone close may have muttered an afterword..
if only she had covered up her bare arms..

a very english kind of excess death
for a very twenty-first century..
for as the elderly playfully fried crumpets on the starched pavements
dreamily sipping mescaline from the hacked blackpool cacti
they were caught unawares by the sting of scorpions
hiding right out in the open covering the cracks nearby
the sting of scorpions
and all for the love of a proto-ritual
scorching scorpions and scorchio..

excess deaths
what a phrase..
almost as glad with itself as..
fake news
unintended consequences
collateral damage..

as glad with itself as..
social distancing
safe and effective
and..
trust the science..

and coming as soon as yesterday
azov battalion are good nazis..

those poor elderly souls
struck down because of climate change
that two-minute walk slayed them
thank goodness they will not require central heating this winter
or will the winter excess deaths be ascribed to unusually cold weather
made by russians
snap for the cold weather snap perhaps..

yet last summer they died because of climate change
as the unforgiving sun
beat down on their balding rare-vinyl pates
peeling their skin stripped bare lasered with uncut vitamin-d
so that even the nano-tech could not reboot them
so targeted they were by the lashing unforgiving unshielded sunbeams..

so alas one last roll of the furry dice
before they passed through the pearly gatefold sleeve in the sky
greeted perhaps by an open-armed white-robed bernard manning
press ganged by a mischievous deity to be a beaming galactic light-being..

perhaps jim bowen welcomed them
you probably know you are dead
okay smashing
in this kingdom there are many caravans
you can rent them out
but you can never leave ..

enough of these otherwordly hosts
back to the football..

after the substitute sprints on
a free kick is returned to the opposition goalkeeper
more applause
sportsmanship..

the goalkeeper quickly volleys the ball up to the other end of the field
the checkerboard orb spins and arcs between the static lines
there a striker collects and scores very clinically..

after the match both managers are interviewed
the losing manager does the obviously disappointed-thing
and the winning manager when asked
about his carried-off player
parries..

yeah he is being given the once-over
we will know more soon
he is a good lad..

it was a strange kind of foul..i mean fall
we want him to be well
of course we do
depending on the next draw we might play at marburg soon..

then glancing away from the camera
after a pause he whispers to the distant cigar-smoking seashells..
you know after all..
though some things are bigger than football
we should not speculate
it could be due to..to a wide range of reasons..

he strikes more pregnant lacuna
the deadened guitar feedback already smashed windows prepared earlier
as lightning strikes an emptying-shaped pool..

and our fans can rest assured
we have enough players in the squad to..to cover him..
thankfully our owners have provided the critical depth
so whatever happens he will be covered
rest assured
he will be covered..

Everest Feather

and beneath
as stricken eyes on stalks salt
fade in fade out fade in..
the shock-proof sole
lifts the raised boot
in mid-air grandly hovers 
to allow a generous time to admire its topography
a genie made from ingots of pure bats
always fullly engaged and ready to strike
again
again for again
for fun
for because..
you know..just because..

again for again
the boot lifts off the trampled face
yet still presses and compresses
the will partially velied reveals itself imperial
it is imperial..

for the sole bifurcates its phantom mind
the suffocating hidden hand
its greater force
an unreachable will with all its dreamed devices
almost supernatural
forever unquenchable..

the lifted foot delivers
and occasionally prods and appraises
then lifts
no relief so temporary..

and five and four and three and two and one..
and one..and one..
..and one..
..and one..
more waiting
the waiting ritual..
then the weight thuds and crashes down again
landing the everest feather
its sweet brushing kiss avalanche..

the tragic face beneath contemplates the sole-mind
cobras and vipers the raw open nerves whiplash crack electric
waves overlap and wash over
ripple cascade riptide obliterate
fearful convulsions gush through the body
another lamb
another lamb as stiff as a board as limp as a sacrificial rag doll..

as the eyes latch on and stare up at the sole
the zero countdown to one
waiting and waiting
completely transfixed
miles and miles of open road
the pressurised space between collapses
contorts to the nothing harpsichording
as the beatings continue
the tautening space amid the sobbing silence
for the pleasure of the remote control..

little can transfix like pure fear
the mind of the sole cannot be reasoned with
its perverse purity manifests myriad
insatiably gorges on the pulsing numbness
an energy vampire
the hate and contempt made of ice and fire
in the vacuum cooks and stirs
and adds helplessness to taste..

the waterfalling eyes stare fixedly at the sole
it is in this waiting
that the never-ending brutal initiation thrives
for the slow and deliberate destruction such waiting brings
in terror tracks the tracer fire ..

and again for again
as the boot lifts
tick tock tick tock tick..
the silence..
the rolling silence roars..
the rolling silence roars tick tock tick tock tick..
then..

then another landing
no more waiting
no more waiting..again..
the weight connects and clamps jaws down
as it rises

the sliver of relief stings
washes over and is so sickening
so maddening
more of the cruellest relief
music for the abuser to savour
twisted empathy of the sociopath
holds a timer that melts time
with the witness so numbed
intoning it is all in the mind
you do not feel it after a while..

the driven boot
floats weightless
the lake of the grey swan
the mindless mind murderous
the outward gaze inward
a dark spaceship in zero gravity sipping the black hole of its night
heavy and empty
landing the weight of this planet
as light as a feather
everest feather..

the sole 
of a superlative gymnast
the goliath treading so lightly
the ballet dancer with his steel boots on 
toys endlesly 
one big and endless pulverisation
the traction for the infinite initiation..

splinters shatter
the living dead graveyard of the shards shape the vast desert mosaic
open road territory
the sole of the boot then lifts and floats and hovers
again for again
silently enquiring guess when..
guess when..
guess when..again..
again for again
where all numbers repeat as one..
..one..
..one..

Future Songs Of Immersive Experience

 

on the train yesterday
bored and tired as i was riding my shot-away material
please cut and paste into your search engine
best to use the brave search engine and browser*
after the doors closed again
only a few more stops to home i said to myself..

then i happened to tilt my head up
and there above the opposite window
i read an advertisement
the jack the ripper walking tour
enjoy the jack the ripper walking tour
huh..

and the ad was placed next to a public transport notice
stating that sexual harassment will not be tolerated on public transport
i suppose that is what private transport is for
and i am sure that a modern day jack the ripper 
would never dream of harassing any woman on public transport
that dude was woke..

the jack the ripper walking tour
a photo montage showed its unforbidden delights
one picture inside the ad
a small girl covers her mouth feigning amazement..

yeah we could take daisy there for her birthday
then a burger after that for a final treat
then tomorrow to the nurse for that shot
just to be on the safe side..

these jack the ripper walking tours are presented as educational
enlightening tots to the darker nature of a london thankfully long gone
lest we forget and all that
understand this tender child
before the lockdowns 
once there existed a darker london 
it was not all love and light as it is now..
and for this there are jack the ripper school tours..

so these tours
presented as educational
educational but with fun activity elements thrown in
whatever that means..

thus not voyeuristic or sensationalistic
not money-grubbing or mythologising
brutal murders and rapes for higher-mindedness then
and made suitable for young and innocent
and pliable minds..

okay fair enough thank goodness
i was worried there for a minute
but then i caught myself being overly moralistic and cynical
which is very bad form indeed for a blog poet
and i might lose some followers which would be truly tragic..

i thought about that and wisely agreed with myself
a jack the ripper walking tour
it makes perfect sense
do you not agree with me
okay try this for size
try and imagine instead a jack the ripper hopscotch tour
or a jack the ripper milfs tour
or a jack the ripper morris dancing tour
or a jack the ripper silent-prayers-for-his-defenceless-victims tour
all would not make sense
and all would be in very poor taste
well apart from the milfs one
not to mention again i might lose some followers which would be truly terrible..

by the by i have relations in new delhi
perhaps their scorched-earth forebears will enjoy
but only when it is no longer deemed to be in very bad taste
a yoga meditation in the bus where an unfortunate woman
was gang raped in 2012
why should they miss out
education is an important thing
even for us darkies of the former great empire
get the tambourines and incense ready and assume karmic crash positions..

and in the near future
with your own little great grandpersons
crawling beneath the irradiated slime
purely for educational purposes 
may enjoy holograhically
a fred west mobility scooter tour
or a harold shipman and his victims holiday weekend getaway extravaganza
or a yorkshire ripper christmas carol festival
his virtual long-distance lorrry resurrected
and covered in festive regalia and candles
all very educational
and not presenting any fire hazards for the subterraneans..

or hows about
hows about
the jimmy savile kiddies charity fun-run on treadmills
for he often used to say for the kiddies..

for no doubt after world war three
by some miracle
the bbc will still exist
the bbc and cockroaches
hows about that then
hows about that
marvellous..
and even after world war three
you will be asked to pay the license fee..

and perhaps the little droids
chipped and devoid of souls
faces covered with biohazard masks
painted with flowers and syringes and cats
will enjoy the great reset genocide lockdown sit-in tour..

it will be a super-virtual and immersive experience
where among other things
in one of many millions of secret easter eggs to unlock
the children may visit the virtual home of an ancient
and very obscure blog poet
a very obscure blog poet who existed before the great cull
who was rightly mocked in his time for being a conspiritorial nut
there and then the children will be informed
that he was shot in the back of the head
then thrown into a ditch
that the coroner concluded he died naturally of covid
he refused the jab
thus was absolutely of no loss to anyone..


*
community.covidvaccineinjuries.com/compilation-peer-reviewed-medical-papers-of-covid-vaccine-injuries/

https://vaccineimpact.com/2021/gagged-australian-nurses-form-whistleblower-group-to-expose-what-is-really-happening-in-hospitals-with-covid-19-vaccine-injuries/

and a song to read:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbmS3tQJ7Os

 

Her Saturn Return Bleeds The Noir Of Noir

the androgynous statue offered she raised skyward
and she almost tipped over backward..

so she thanked her trademarked wonderful fans blah blah
and the pentagram tables of suited women and men and..
applaud their nod
the chiselled chiefs baleful before the gleam and the glisten
teeth too full of teeth peel back vice-tightened skin for prisms
cgi fireworks will vividly display on scrying mirrors
and bring to an end another awards season
the crackling crescendo will serenade the amorphous smog
the no contest no contest
no contest..
 
she walked off the stage four-walled
marching lithely to the countdown to another commercial break
3-2-1
she waved one final time
the choreography co-signed and perfect
the dog food and the toilet roll and the anti-anxiety pills
brought you this magical carpet ride of weird
so yielding for the others
they will bear so very lightly the tragedy to soon follow
though the slivered civilians will be crushed again to wrap in a bow
so glad to receive the baton they are so broken
slow hand-clap
slow hand-clap..

a few beats later and sat all alone with three minders
all unblinking inside the static flashes
in the stretch limo radiating darkened toughened glass
snowed the drone hum the aum of the parching air conditioning
where she started to weep musing
what is this thing that must pass
one minder offered her a tissue
while with the other hand took her statue
a tissue for a statue
and dropped it in a plastic bag holding its concrete value..

later after rictus grinning through the after show parties
rinse and repeat
she stood on the balcony of her hotel suite
the light pollution from down below shimmered shivers
tore closed the raiment
rolling up the starry scroll..

that gaze down again
the blinking lights the neon signs
the too pretty transience broke her
broke her one final time
and so very despite herself
despite herself being what they had carefully fashioned
her becoming for her ending
for another becoming
already propositioned and prepped to race down the pipeline
to be actioned with her finishing school-grace and stoicism
face down face up..

and there
just there below and down to the left
a newly adorned award-winning actress
also alone
immersed in the infinity pool
a few widths of the blue foil glow swam up to her
the camouflaged octopus mesmerised by itself..

and as she pulled herself up and out
her shadow man deliberatively carelessly threw at her a towel
a corner of which greedily sipped the chlorine
3-2-1
she fished the towel out
3-2-1
only the distant cicadas
3-2-1
and as she dropped the towel back into the infinity pool slo-mo
she stared at the shadow man
and
3-2-1
the shadow man rolled the drinks trolley into the pool
crash..
cicadas..

a ratatat on the sliden shut triple-glazed door
your very last interview has arrived..
she gazed at her handler as he droned
you should be happy
it has been signed-off so no need to worry
then off we go
you are done and gone
you disappeared into your sunset golden already
my condolences and congratulations on your passing..

the interviewer walked in
and offered her three a4 sheets
this is what you will say here
is there anything you wish to add
she shook her head no
the interviewer looked at the handler
the handler looked at the handled
you know this is your last one
your last interview
so this time you may say a few lines of your own
but only if you wish..

we have added the requisite mystery
the baked-in ambiguity
the open-ending for the rock-laden casket
the tabloid fake conspiracies
all the usual misdirection will sit pretty
were you murdered
or was it a suicide
the only options provided
never the hoax of course..

of course..she repeated
she looked through them both
3-2-1
and walked back out to the balcony
then dropped the three sheets over the edge unread
one sheet quivered like a leaf
before landing on the infinity pool
the actress looked up
but did not swim out to read the slowly bleeding ink
soon to insinuate with the chlorine and the chivas regal
soon to entwine with the drowned trolley of silver-sprayed plastic..

the interviewer shrugged her shoulders
the handler ushered her out
no matter for the gain-of-function-tomorrow
is all ready for the magazine stands
exclusive – the unanswered questions
that never asks about the forbidden unasked..

early next morning she sat breathing in
the sprayed scent of leather in the private jet
observing the breaking news she reclined
her tragic death announced on all channels
the usual theatre the usual noir verité
the trolley
the ticker-tape
the red and blue flashing lights
a genuine dummy strapped under the sheet jealously guarded
as it is wheeled out and lifted into the hollywood ambulance
by masked comedy paramedics..

and there blinking before the paps
the fake distraught witness
for some reason wrapped like a boxer in a towel
the fake witness wrapped like a boxer in a towel
being comforted by a fake reporter as earnest as the joker
breaking news breaking news
the star found dead in tragic circumstances
tragic circumstances emphasised
perhaps to clarify for the viewer
that the star was not found dead in life-affirming circumstances..

no doubt a fake investigation
complete with fake pathologists will find answers
and fake friends of the dead will shed their fake tears earnest
inject more trauma then deftly insert product placement
yeah..she was so talented..
yet troubled..
why did she jump..
or i have to ask was she..pushed..i dunno..
she laughed watching that
good grief talk about telegraphing
the cliches springing forth for the revolving hearse-roundabout..

as high as an eagle soaring
her new pointman sat across from her
you can breathe easy now
this project is completely over
at least for you so please rest and relax..

for your next..
we believe no plastic surgery will be required
a slight change in body shape
and different make-up will more than suffice
perhaps a new hairstyle
your old one being so iconic
that is all you will need
it is all too perfect
too perfect..

so your new ident is all good to go
here are the documents
you did so well
all the messages and meaning transmitted perfectly
it will echo for the given
you are a legend among your own you know
not only for those idiots down below
you have risen high by a fair few degrees i am told
your beautiful secluded villa awaits you..

your father the admiral would be so proud
now you can lay low for a while in the seychelles
the hollywood biopic has already been penned by the baron
another 27-club martyr you are
the nihilism always so giving..

he roared and roared with laughter
he raised a glass to the immortalising deadened
their gifts never-ending
the great flood of emptiness ever-expanding
as more beckoning sirens weep..

 

August Autumn

 

resting on the leaves the leaves
the leaves around the leaves to fall
playfully hang
in meditation the leaves upside-down upward peer
rustling wonder 
and in rushes a prayer still transmitting..

wispy silhouettes of gently whirling air
her coffee vapour rises to the slowly lowering branches
as she sits with a tome
leaves turn leaves
to paraglide and to rise..

the coffee table is white
in the way melting snow is
the shade of a wordless wish yet to be lost..

she sits by a formica coffee table
she sips the coffee like it is
the nectar in everything and on her lips
the infinite sea of the sipping drops..

she is reading a physical book
like they really did back in the twentieth
she is reading a physical book
and she is real
and the leaves that fall 
to ponder and rustle
to ask
for a duet
for the leaves-in-waiting to breathe..

and an ocean wave of auburn
laps down her left shoulder blade
certain strands glint like threads
threads of the deepest red wine counterpoint
a lime quarry of surface-mined philistine 
an untethered pavement dirigible of used inflated tyres passes by
hunting on tinder for a horny recycling bin
please note in the twenty-first 
this counts as a realised manifestation of empowerment..

i have a book with me
should i ask her to kiss
she would bless the words
though the barista might call the police..

does this sound too much like the intoned narration
of a reflective car window-man in a hopelessly romantic european film
the battered citroen itself a disillusioned marxist..

a film made before the tail end of yesteryear
full of other-worldly colour symbology
okay i will stop here
the twenty-first century has no need for such dreamy dreary nonsense
smoke blown please walk with me..

Time-Bound Alchemists Of The Golden Nothing (Are We There Yet? Yeah, Almost..)

 

would you like to own this bullet point 
this non-fungible token of pressed and compressed parallel air..

purchase segments by installment 
comfortably at your own pace
own this precious mental art space..

then..
flaunt on the blockchain marketpace your inflation-proof investment
integrate your good self with the semblance
and here is the grid reference 
initiate..initiate..

this small rectangle here [        ] for you to colonise
represents this parallel air-art installation frozen malleable
and your hypothicated asset
will be presented to you
wrapped in this limited edition ether gift case..

so please handle this piece of architecture with great care
your composition of many zeros
consider a piece of prime land
bi-located in trans-dimensional nothingness cloud-locked
stay amazed
for every micro dot could be yours to own
the entire bullet point contains ever-splitable subdivisions
subdivisions of the bullet point constellation
ever the drop containing the information ocean
never mind what resides within your very essence
never mind sentience..

so much more
so much more valuable than a piece of ordinary unregulated air
this piece of parallel air forged into a bullet point
this will be your status symbol
this piece of air-art will hold long-lasting cultural relevance
perhaps for a little more than a short while
empty ephemera now more than ever never out of style..

parallel air-art as avatar icon
space-saving asset class of zero-dimensional substance
the days of paper-art will soon be over
paper abused and tarnished by destructive earth-hating painters
you and your bullet point will help fight climate change
trees will no longer be genocided for two-dimensional landscape
perhaps unregulated air should also be regulated
why should air be consumed for free
why should air be consumed for free
now what a market that would be..

to certify authenticity and ownership
each bullet point will have its own unique identifier
use proudly as your sigil as your banner
no need to be ironic
upload to your art-wallet
please note the expiry date
on request we can send you the fine print..

also coming soon
own your allotted central bank digital currency
you will hold the keys to your allowance
for as long as every facet of your good self remains super-aligned
only then your given parallel airy currency hypothecated
will not be erased or reconsigned
otherwise all will be fine
all will be fine..

and to help combat fraud
we will monitor every purchase you make
you will agree that cash must be criminalised
and all your habits and communications notarised
for you have nothing to hide
you have nothing to hide..

and to further encourage cbdc-uptake
you will be rewarded
with a cbdc-positive tick-mark
we have selected you as a lead-pioneer
you will be gifted ten-million benign bot-followers
these hypothecated humans monetise
as they like subscribe and share and sign-up the npcs..

and to further imbed and imbue a sense of cbdc-belonging
active smart citizens will be uplifted with higher scores
and as you are appointed a primary influencer
an enlightened and enlightening emissary
a flashing magnetising nodal point tantaliser
you will enjoy a more flexible spend-time allowance
and you will be able to fire some people
and if you feel an ache or emptiness inside
these are only teething pains and they should soon subside..

so do not wish away your privileges
you should twice-daily monitor your citizen credit score
remember tomorrow will not be like the bad old days of cash
where transactions like highwaymen wore masks..

to spend your cbdc 
you will only need to flash the reader your iris
as was uncannily predicted in old science fiction films
your iris is ours
your iris is ours neural-lattice-trademarked and protected..

so stay tuned
for very soon your cbdc will charge to the rescue
to defeat the fiercest crises predicted by boomeranging nostradamuses..

we have the injectables
a technology hacked blackout
more scarcity more blockades more broken supply chains
and a war the war
triggering an unfortunate and utterly unpredictable series of events..

here shall breathe dragons of monumentous epoch-changing circumstance
demanding imaginative and daring solutions
for immediate implementation
the debate can happen later..

never worry for we are on it
can you not already see our handiwork around you
the engineered divisions the misdirections
the soul-destroying self-identifications
the medications
the neurosis
the intention..

another upside
a currency crash will save our world
and our banks
and cbdc will usher in a new earth
all our players are locked-and-loaded
so all that you see playing out before you now
merely the theatre generating all the reasons
to offer you our selfless gifts to be deemed essential..

a wink
always a wink
your signature
and here is your expiry
this can be revised and changed by us at any time..

from now think of yourself as a precious piece of biometric data
lashed to a digital representation of you
you will be preserved even after deletion
your good self cloned for immortality
your iris are all mine to paraphrase the line
for a designated time
and for all time
we can match you with any crime
many have already given away their dna
those ancestral databases entice better than we expected
yeah turns out i am related to cleopatra and a manchurian dentist
at least i know who i am now..

you will always be treasured as our collectable asset
as unique as non-fungible art
as fresh as a bullet point
a bullet point with a flexible expiry date..

we have a sense of urgency for we are time-bound
do not fret about this
it is quite profound
it is way above your pay grade
this war being partly metaphysical
we are called soulless but in fact we are very mystical..

so not long now
before your central bank digital currency saves you
block and chain
get ready for the new now
we are wizards
we are wizards
alchemists of this turning
alchemists of the golden nothing
first a little more trauma must be tapped and released
we will feed on those sweets
as we resolutely respond to the cries for the treatment
then everyone will be initiated
spirit annhialating spirit and to deadline
then out will be carved a remarkable new time..

Tender Moments In Grand Schwabia

 

father superior booth granny
with your diaphanous bearded testicle of one breast
please forgive me for i have transgressed
transform me..

do go on..

father superior booth granny
i confess i am plagued of murmurings possessed
self-crimpled i drain deliquescent
gurgling throughout my murky thought-canals
obtuse and unreasoning
afflicted as i am with..
thinking...thinking..
i beg you to carve..

oh it shall be done

i shall be booth granny

you did right by informing on yourself..

all the blessings of the grand schwabia upon you

let pebbles of his magnificence bathe you

sup this smart-dust wafer

take these vampire protein spikes

i press this implant upon you

my rod of furry prions shall transform you
explode you with my light

and should you succumb to any more..
any more..thoughts..

please return at once for attitudinal correctives
let this laser scalpel be your guide..

father superior booth granny
your fluoride is my apple juice
my gonads i need them not..

in the goblet then
your mind
your gonads
your third eye
for the state delicatessen..

i feel it already oh i feel it
i am it..
i humbly donate all my extractions to grand schwabia..

blessings..

your gifts are now noted in the obsidian ledger

your second-sight folded in toto

stay blissful in the smart city grid

continue to do

as you have done for grand schwabia

stay designed

stay the humble subject of grand schwabia

monitor and inform on yourself

you are now boosted to optimum levels..

father superior booth granny
with your diaphanous bearded testicle of one breast
..i....i..
oh what was i 
what was i about to say next..
my thoughts are..scattered..
i..

ah..i see you are done
take a whole day off work
rest and..
stay designed
and do not do any headstands for a while
for your head bandages are to be recycled..

Imaginary Friend

 

and there
right there beside you
beside you while passing this strange fairground land
the shadow-blending play arcs a spectrum of light
the presence there from the vast somewhere 
the grain the essence the flare of the imaginary friend..

there to bear arms with you in the here and tomorrow
or for while mysterious scales stay tipped
for perhaps the existential vacuum is corded
connecting reconnecting layering
reciprocating then replaying
meaning
load-bearing the real with the imaginary transcending...

you have your imaginary friend..
i have to go
i have to go..
..soon..

..and their imaginary friend
the contrail the wisp of cloud interlace..

in all the plasticity
in all the hardness
in all the contrariness
in the whole dynamic
in the loss
in the broken bond shock
in the confusion at the discord
in the heartache still beating to an echo of a once syncopated time
in the imaginary friend the imaginary friend..

the imaginary friend
the imaginary friend wept as you wept
their firm touch
the flesh your corrugated angel felt
through and through
the bracing ocean breeze ozone
the gold
the entre nous secrets
the dark humour in those soft stones
now here bygone..

the imaginary friend
some adults grow out of it
in deeper space catch themselves
wondering who
wondering what they were
what gifts..

laid low reflective as clear as a bell
chiming the minor chords of burst bubble-time struck angular
forlorn pressed against the vast
as a certain comet once near passes
offering a generous peacock display of ice and dust-trail fireworks..

shared conversations confidences the concord
and the oz-effect of that silence so listening
so breathing
so present
so being
the alone so entangled..

Point Of Entry

 

sitting quietly still
watching the scenery roll by
like a fleshed-out studio production
with accompanying wobbly vaudeville piano
a ski-slope slide..

the passers-by
a character study
who am i..

tufts of tumbleweed rain
another piece of scenery
windows eyes..

the scenery performs all by itself
observe
consciousness is not a spreadsheet
the fade-to-vivid..

every mundane second
silvery
one hallmark of full-blown sobriety
the intense psychedelia of the ordinary
an appreciation appearing to appear on..

i tie ribbons to a few strands of shredded drizzle
stark and saturated and striking
a guitar solo for abandoned new warehouses
the enigmatic open smile of a crumpled car bonnet
an adagio of ignored alarms
the swelling silence blows a candle..

i disappear into this
the nothing
something more than an upended zero
more than rolling green fields
living cat-dragged pedigree luminous
like a newly abandoned lover
the flat grey city plains unfold
valleys
vast ticking seconds
the weird of human..

watering reflections
water reflections
poetry with impunity
poetry without direction
so effortless
gently points..

 

The Indignantee

 

only the other day
yours truly again had to listen
listen to the tired old argumentation
about why tony blair should be stripped
stripped of his well-deserved knighthood
can you believe it..

the indignantee was puce of skin and word
livid and burning pomegranate
grim with righteous anger
a self-combusting human pamphlet
how is it that tony blair has been made a sir
i signed a petition
a petition..
and yet he is still enjoying his knighthood
what am i missing..

most of the time i am a quiet and patient man
but on this rare occasion i had to be the contrarian
and with a slightly raised voice i replied
my good man
know this
you will never amount to be even a thirty-third
a thirty-third of the man that tony blair is..

tony blair served the crown in ways that you can only dream of
have you..
selflessly gifted tax-payer checks to the military industrial complex
or declared war on a noun to usher in our beloved surveillance state
or help eliminate another half-a-million iraqi men and  women and children
to quote madeleine albright before him
..a price worth paying..
it would not hurt to show some gratitude
gratitude for such sacrifices that he helped make
for the crown
now go away and eat some yellowcake..

Should The Magistrate Go Straight To A Potato

 

surprising even herself she coyely confessed 
this is the first time i have ever seen someone do that with a potato
colour me impressed
and i cannot believe i am about to admit 
i want to try it out for myself
i desire to do it now right now 
right now
i feel a pressing urge
but i have to go to the supermarket first
for needs must..

then she stopped dead in her tracks and enquired
…but what kind of potato can do that
i mean is there a difference between a king edward and..
what about organic
it sounds silly but should i first talk to it
or rub it gently like a genie a lamp
i am a married woman so i will not stroke it
i just cannot bring myself to do something like that
not yet..

she giggled
of course i am only joking
i jest
i am not really married..

i just cannot bring myself to stroke a potato
maybe one day yes
but not just yet
i need to upgrade my potato-rubbing skill-set first
take it slowly and deliberatively step by step
yes i feel a bit of a lemon
at school i never took potato-rubbing classes for lemons..
she giggled again..

ah lemons..
and what about lemons
should i train with lemons first
or because lemons are different to potatoes
somewhat like apples are to oranges
lemons are not potatoes i think i mean..

or is it more like comparing daffodils with puffins
or is comparing lemons to potatoes
with apples to oranges
with daffodils to puffins
as silly as comparing or even contrasting the yeti
to a merengue to the loch ness monster
i hope that makes sense..
she said apologetically..

but what if the loch ness monster is a baby boomer
a baby boomer loch nes monster
who still owns a hostess trolley and a working fondue set
or am i now being very silly
this is so unlike me
honestly this is so unbelievably unlike me
i am still a magistrate
i need to remind myself that i am still a magistrate
in a medium-size town with ungodly dark edges..

and correct me if i am wrong
but a fondue set cannot make a merengue
or can it
should it
i really should know this..
she admonished herself..

she rubbed her own chin thoughtfully then pressed on
in other words
would even rubbing a lemon help me with a potato
and although i have never stroked a daffodil or a puffin
just supposing i had
just supposing i had stroked a daffodil or a puffin
or even only lightly rubbed one discreetly at arms-length
could i then go straight to a potato
or would the lemon thing still be best to start off with..

so to recap from rubbing to stroking
should i rub a daffodil then a puffin then a lemon then a potato
or should i go straight to the potato without touching a lemon
i underline
rubbing not stroking
please understand
i have my limits..

also i must ask
what kind of lemons are most like potatoes
and as importantly
what kind of lemons are least like potatoes
for example
i have eaten lemon-flavoured potatoes
but yet to have even once had a potato-flavoured lemon
do potato-flavoured lemons even exist in our world
she gazed to the heavens for a sensible answer
well maybe in russia..

she pondered
my goodness this has become so involved and so confusing
if you had told me only this morning
that i would be talking earnestly with you
about potatoes puffins lemons and daffodils and loch ness monsters
yetis fondue sets hostess trolleys baby boomers and meringues
i probably would never have believed you..

but perhaps..
but perhaps as you seem like such a decent gentleman
i probably would have
nothing is simple is it
but there it is
life is always so full of surprises
and i a middle age woman
who in one particularly memorable and carefree teenage year
enjoyed the stone roses storm their delightful signature set at wigan pier..

Hum The Colours Hum Silence

 

peeking through gaps of closed bedroom curtains
sunbeam shards tint projecting
for the haze a planetarium filter
screening the dust mote constellation fluttering
above my head arcing circling scintillating..

below the ceiling yet somehow higher
slowly twirling pastels swirl..ever so..
almost an angel dust moonbow
or a suspended-in-air giant snail shell
rolling rotating
inviting my upward gaze..

a levitating question mark
of opalescent golden elfin strands
waves of gentle glinting topaz
honeycomb my brushed eyelashes enchantment..

i laze on the bed likening
and wordlessly pondering what connections
as the constellation envelops
folding rising
expanding
dissolving
morphing its wonder
and a small moth helicopters anthracite
enticed to explore
flitting across this swatch of cosmos
faster than the speed of light could fling..

approach
i close my eyes
the light being the silence
studded with creamy copper-tone stars
fall on the bed sheets and land and
enthroned colours hum inside my eyelids
unheard-of..

The Stream, Anciently..

 

the days of the poison pen letter
ink
accusations
ad hominum cross examination
crossings out
smudges
torn photographs attached neatly with a red paperclip
angry asterisked notes in the margin
i will never forgive you for the vodka/bacardi incident never..
one-paragraph-a-page terseness
that florid concision
the seal of a cigarette burn on the page
the mosquitos of ash and a proverb
no need to reply
the return address on the envelope
you can still wish me a happy birthday
is that not the least you can do
exclamation mark question mark..

the days of the love letter
ink
musings
crossings out
smudges
pencilled illustrations
perfume-scented 
asterisked notes in the margin
explanation
the strange apology and the yearning
no need to reply
no need to say anything
just wanted you to know how i still feel
though i know you know
so here i am again just counting down the days
before i have you all to myself again
suggestions for suggestions..

the days of unfolding..

Grin Reapered

 

oh how he aches to be a part of something
something truly momentous in human history
something to be remembered for millennia..

well lucky for him
the biggest bomb ever
will soon flatten him into oblivion with his entire city..

Yoga Of Ostrich

 

from the vantage point of the ostrich
saturated
collaged
curated
head in the ground searching for the origin point
of the rainbow shine
the mind bubbling bent from light..

from the vantage point of the ostrich
shepherded
parcelled
distributed
undulated on the unrolling 
ambience subterranean wave machine engineers provide..

here the battalions of ostriches are
slugged by crabs alluring siren songs
to search under the sand starless
and lying here their astrologers and astronomers are..

here the ostriches stand
protruding asses extrude slanty aerials
stay informed and trust the plan
here clawing laser pens the ostriches stand..

from the vantage point of the ostrich
triggered
enraged
reconfigured
synchronise-dancing to the beats of the echo chamber
a seeded solid state unit awake reflexive
uplifted projecting toxic froth insensible..

the ostrich occasionally raises its head
searching for sunglasses
then gazes wide-eyed at the sun-gazers
bemused and more than a little disgusted..

Box-Fresh

 

tourniquet the unknown war widow
as flags are folded in memoriam
for soldiers popped to orphan a casket..

imposing monuments loom
the fallen autumn leaves lightly smudge
the official line signed-off and vaulted..

anthems fulsome stir solemn empty
salt the desert a vast glisten
water the lake of tears a mirage..

veiled shells succumb
struck numb clutch those photographs
polish the frame of the finger-brushed glass..

solder base metal filigree
a sapling fashioned to nail a piece of earth
posthumously decorate with box-fresh toy animals..

The Glimmer Of The Monochrome Rainbow Shine

 

self-medication
uncoils its side-venom medicine
rationing the universe of salt forlorn
imbibing its spawning spoil unawares
incisor gums inject fanged straws
anonymised in a tryst with misery
the viper strike enticement
the slick lunging kiss of a wraith
in generous sympathy
the self-medication venom oils
stays the immediate execution with the slaking palliative
once a pleasure now the chore
though in the delay
ingeniously disguised as self-preservation
floored
holds court like the ludicrous emperor
the jester and source
war paint licks..

in the numbness
the illusion sauce
glosses the barbed candyfloss rescue
the price the cost
tumbling out the matryoshka doll the trojan horse
beneath the dark light flicker
the ebb away so fleet
inside flesh out
slide rule-kindness a blindfolded
essence effortlessly debilitates..

palms wash the mirror through the face
like a veil through dry ice cold-boiled cobalt midnight
discarnate gate-crasher liminal
gaming make-believe filters
humanising the broken toy with frost
garlanding the suspension..

within the crystallising bubble
the alarm is softened
the caressing clouds avalanche a compress
slowly deceptively deliberately
rotate like lowering blade-sheathed wisps
ungrasped then grasped
as fanciful timelines coalesce
the present absences univited appear ever more apparent 
and implodes and implodes the fateful agency target..

Yet

 

whatever next
will you trust your intuition..

a prison planet
the severest test of the spirit and soul
a descension ascension
for whom earth-life tolls..

whatever next..
yet
an open heart your fortress
cosmos..
a beautiful earth..

Utopia, Incoming (The Correct Deployment Of Fluffy Towels 101)

 

First Aid At Work 2027
Scenario Test Question 9 Of 11

percy patel works in accounts by the fourth turning of the third floor
his desk sits by the east-side emergency fire exit stairwell *
you are his designated first aider..

+percy delightedly informs you that his waters are about to break
  he has gone into labour..

you only have a first aid box and a high-viz tabard
what do you do..

Best Practice Answer

firstly you would inform security/reception/or your other designated contact
to call for an ambulance immediately
your designated contact should already have been made aware
that percy is with child and expecting shortly..

and so that paramedics can be escorted directly to him
clearly identify the floor and desk number/location of percy..
..
then take four clean **fluffy towels from the person-cabinet
and put on your high-viz tabard..

how to embrace and relate..
do not be afraid to dig down deep to your unfathomable depths 
breathe deeply and lilt to a falsetto
ecstatically exclaim
make way and celebrate
make way and celebrate
stop all work
percy patel is breaking water
percy patel is having a his-baby
you may wave your arms high in the air uplifted
be in your own presence
but be careful not to accidentally punch anyone in the face=..

reassure percy that an ambulance has been sent for
and paramedics should arrive very soon..

what if percy is sweating..
you must only gently mop his fevered brow 
with the specialised moistened wipes provided
because so-called fluffy towels might scratch his skin #..

then comb both of his eyebrows in an upwardly direction
and away from the eyes..

to allow percy privacy
ask nearby staff members to please stand away and make space
dignity is power..

deploy the aloe vera testicle-guard and operate gently
watch out for stubborn pubic hair recoil..

designate a trusted colleague to fetch the backside-defibrillator
then open the first aid box for the conductive serum sachet
then to mitiagte the compressed clenched tension
squirt on your trained massage-hand generous dollops
by caressing and rubbing his backside cheeks tenderly until soft and shiny
backside cheeks should burnish like ancient bronze
see illustration..

carefully place on a non-flammable surface
a lit essential lavender oil candle
there should be one safety lighter
and one lavender oil candle provided in your first aid box..
..
to protect dignity
at two increments of thirty-three degrees
his maternity skirt should be lifted up respectfully
it might help to imagine lifting a wedding dress veil..

ensure that his gum shield is firmly fixed
and manufactured with british-standard rubber..

then and only then take the paddles of the backside-defibrillator
shout stand back
administer two shocks
wait thirty seconds
and only if the baby does not begin to appear
administer two more shocks
continue until the paramedics arrive..

 to catch the baby "
 unfold the vacuum-pack bamboo bucket
 and hold one metre above the backside
 use the purple measuring tape provided..

  only utilise this purposed bamboo bucket
  plastic buckets are bad for the environment
  but even worse for the head of the jettisoned his-baby...++

should the his-baby begin to appear
do hold and support its head
do not pull its ears
do encourage the birthist to scream and safely be in his own moment
exploring the range of sounds he can make with his vocal tract unleashing
essentially generating and pouring out all his tenderest emotional expressions..

observe primal vowels twisting and turning
rising and elongating
and fusing with abrupt yet spirited interludes of silence
ask a trained colleague to help time the silences
see chart..

footnotes

 *never ask a pregnant man-person breaking water to run down the stairs
  always use a wheelchair and lift if available 
  knees and shins should firmly rest on the chair seat
  backside raised proud and high toward the lift doors
  any false teeth should be gently removed
  allow the paramedics to lead..

+make a mental note of anyone refusing joy
  inform
  feel empowered..

= (insert name) is having a his-baby..
   percy patel is used only as example 
   so if the delighted man-person is named bob smith
   you would not ecstatically exclaim
   make way and celebrate
   percy patel is having a his-baby
   you would ecstatically exclaim
   make way and celebrate
   bob smith is having a his-baby..

   fun question
   what would you ecstatically exclaim
   if bob smith is in a relationship with percy patel
   whose his-baby would he be having
   see notes for correct protocol..
   ..
** remember just because a fluffy towel may look soft and fluffy
   does not mean it is soft and fluffy..

# fluffy towels are only to be deployed to protect privacy and dignity..

" be careful not to drop the his-baby
   it is not a marrow or a man-size baby melon..

 ++ fun fact
        a his-baby will fly out at speed
        often exceeding 7km/h..

Save Yourself, Marry A Semicolon

Dear Reader, 
Reading time will be at least twenty minutes.

..as the we empowers the all

empowered by the all are the we..

GONG..

down and out
drowned inside the images of this rules-based order dawning
unceremoniously marched to a meeting room by a sashaying demon
i was summoned to appear before a grave senior manager..

not one of your semicolons have preferred pronouns
not. one.
not. one.given a smidgen of safe space to self-identify
not. one. of. them.
yes we noticed..
please sit down..
and please do not try to self-justify..

i had to sit down after hearing that
indeed the chair i sat on also needed a chair to sit on..
the high strangeness continued unabashed..

i chose your semicolons charitably
semicolons oh so slyly sliden
nestled forested within your moon/jejune vocabulary
i could have gone for all your full stops
                  there were plenty aquaplaning there
as kind as i am to all living punctuation you are not..

the grave senior manager gazed at a militant-level lavender tea bag
and as he held it up to the anglepoise lamp like a bag of precious gems 
grazing knuckles rubbed the perforations sniffed
he continued
we have this held in abeyance
in abeyance yellow-carded as a colonistic micro aggression
i believe you were offered training for this
we are offering you this again
               bespoke tailored to your..special
needs
yours specifically
accept this time please
and no use pretending you have not taken the jab
tuesday nine ayem
yet again the trainer has been apprised and primed and is ready to..
..is ready to..receive you..

utterly discombobulated and bewildered a million squared
in a cyclonic vacuum to home i traipsed
a basketball of spruced up cat hair-thoughts spiked my clouted head
the conversation replayed again and again without end..

the pavements i swum beneath dove the rising moon quicksand teeming
not one of your semicolons have preferred pronouns..
not one of them given a smidgen of safe space to self-identify..
there hiding in plain sight 
lay so vividly displayed the what-nature of some ludicrous consciousness
already fallen rising..

and what on earth is living punctuation..
i could not recall ever watching living punctuation on attenborough
i could not make sense of any of it
what was all that meant to mean..

searching for guidance at home that evening meditating
i connected with a vedic ascended master
his third eye only shrugged
advised me to welcome this as yet another spiritual test
oh no not again i groaned and protested
but he casually waved me away with his usual scratch-and-sniff cursory blessing
thus resigned to my fate off the next morning to the training i went..

******************************************

the meeting room i was sent to was vast and bare
i heard a noise
sounded almost like a voice 
i was the only one there..                                                                                             can                                                                                                  you hear me..  
after a few minutes waiting
the door clicked closed behind me
and i beheld the facilitator
she advised me not to be scared
and for some strange reason that made me feel very scared..

i see you as a challenge
your semicolons we will champion
soon all this will only seem fathomless
to those lacking the required empathy
though that will not be tolerated or excused..

to use a forbidden term the facilitator appeared all female
not tattooed or studded but demure and elegant
that threw me off somewhat and i sensed she guessed my confusion
she smiled and sniffed confounding the given lazy stereotype i bought into
then she pointed at the screen with her laser pen..

right..a little bit about myself
yes i am female and heterosexual
i like men..there..i said it..
now that really threw me..

she smiled continuing..
of course we know that semicolons cannot have preferred pronouns
we know that any form of punctuation cannot self-identify
even in this day and age that would be ridiculous..
though we know you have noted young children are encouraged now
to not only self-identify but to reassign..
she gazed at me..

taking my cue i asked so what is all this about
what is really going on here..
she advised me to think laterally..
to that i probably laughed or threw my hands in the air..

think of the analogy of boiling a frog..
simmer it slowly to a boil
and no surprise it does not jump out the pan..
after a beat the facilitator continued
and through various technologies we have soul-mapped you
we noted you demurred even stepping in for a gentle lukewarm bath
yes you received the memo but then you shredded it..alas..
we are not asking you to believe any of this
only to pretend to
is that so difficult..

apart from the sexualising children aspect
with the rest okay i will comply i replied
and as i picked up my coat to leave she laughed
oh no not so quick i will note your remark
but please sit down
i have not finished..

as you know the uk no longer has much of a manufacturing industry
and we are hopeful that our banking sector will collapse later this year
later this year..fairly precipitously
so we need to plan for a mad max-style world economy
i hope you begin to sense where i am going with this
we intend to pull the rug from under everything
in every way
it will be a noble calling
a noble calling to lead the flock to exude stranger ways..

you see for reasons i cannot not divulge here
the world population is scheduled to collapse wondrous
wondrous..
bread and circuses soon to be mostly circuses
not imminently i am reliably informed so please do not fear
meaning you should be all right for at least another..
she turned away toward her voice trail..

thing is..
we need to make ourselves fit-for-purpose
create industries we can excel in
for example biomechanoid intelligence is one of them
or the bleeding edge work researched at porton down and cern
i can skip this if you wish..

no i replied perplexed though intrigued
i asked the facilitator to please go on..
so you know about porton down the facilitator asked
i replied yes it is five miles from salisbury
mythical novichok-land..
and cern is the large hadron collider near geneva
i am not sure exactly what they do there..

well it is a particle accelerator she replied
but beyond the pr it is used to tap into other dimensional realms
already we have discovered and reached into alternative universes
and managed to pull in some of their resources
which we are busy finessing and manipulating
to succumb to our utopian ends..

the point is we have managed to imprint a kind of consciousness
a kind of consciousness onto everything 
and every kind of inanimate..object..
will thrive in this society where stones are to be your loving pets
and where certain kinds of liquids your benign partners and..
..and initiating masters..

the silence that fell between us was like floors of stacked night collapsing
i was so uncomprehending
soon we will live in a society where stones are to be your loving pets
and where certain kinds of liquids your benign partners/initiating masters..
i could not tell whether she was mocking me
or being serious
i wanted to be hugged by a fluffy bear
or failing that i wanted to jump off from the tallest building..

would you like a comfort break the facilitator delicately enquired
yeah that would be great i anxiously replied..

after the break the facilitator prodded
you probably have a question or two..
and i asked with a fatalistic sigh
what is the most important thing i need to know..
need to know and understand at this time..

the facilitator pondered
and then with a finger drew a diagonal line..
at the appointed date and time
we wish to nominate you as the semicolon ally
we will facilitate you a heartfelt damascene conversion
and broadcast you conversing with every kind of sentient punctuation..

eventually you will marry a semicolon fashioned from an alternative realm
or if you prefer you may marry a full stop or a comma
soon none of these things shall be regarded as extremely strange
or worse still fatuously decreed as unholy perversions
but merely new norms reflecting our ascension..

multi-dimensional stakeholders sublime
the sparkling black hole dance floor we shall tap-dance
circumventing the mind our grand upskilled inversions
higher than the stars
designed finer than creation shall scintillate..

the timetable has been set
the scripts of our sceptics fine-tuned and polished
this enfeebled controlled opposition shall be plastic injected
to be obliterated
by our dimmer-switcher fanatical pop culture moulded sculptors..

and in a very believable way you shall also be inserted
as part of the strategic infantry for this fresh order..
oh and please do not ask why we are doing all this
without offending we know you will not understand..
that we are doing this because..
because..we can..

after collecting my thoughts atomised
i asked the facilitator whether i would be offered a choice
she replied i will offer you that illusion
for if you opt to say no and try to walk away
the end result would be exactly the same
through electronic warfare we could brainwash you anyway
to be programmed and activated
or we would allow you to simply implode and implode
fractured inside ever-looping spiralled deja vu..

you could be sent on a one-way ticket returned to another realm
for we have an exchange programme with..them..
or you could do the wiser thing and volunteer
remember you only have to pretend to believe
at least that part really is up to you..

i responded no thanks i will take my chances
and as i got up to leave
the facilitator replied
let us circle back and see
a gentle taster of what might be..

be prepared..
tonight after you fall asleep..
you soon will know what i mean
please realise it will be real and not a dream
and you will not recall anything i have mentioned to you here
and linear time will not mean a thing
past present and future will be so last year..

i locked my front door
i gargled with and then swallowed a fistful of elephant knock-out pills
i screwed ear plugs tightly in my ears
then i pulled the bed covers right over me
i clutched a new baseball bat in one hand
though felt only as gangster as a ping pong champion
and then and only then i allowed myself to enter sleep
so slowly..so very slowly..

******************************************

i found myself in the centre of a vast and packed-full amphitheatre
i was sat on a chair in the centre of a rostrum
and no more than two metres looking away from me
stood a human-size exclamation mark..

the exclamation mark seemed almost gendered 
though i asked myself how can that be
it wore an elegant flowing scarlet dress
and a strange apparatus suspended over its head
which looked like a lampshade made of spinning coloured glass..

the exclamation mark looked out to the audience
the audience made up of all kinds of strange animate shapes
all in exotic dress complete with diadems
with a flourish the exclamation mark turned to them..

welcome back
our next guest is a so-called human being
part of the exchange programme we have with..them..

the demure exclamation mark floated above me..
welcome human..being..welcome
let us start by discussing the current controversy..

so human being please answer
please answer this..
why should we provide toilets for human beings here
for we understand there are no toilets provided yet
for any living punctuation guests in your realm over there
please explain..

i could only splutter out
i had no idea where i was
and i had no any idea what living punctuation is
or knowledge of living punctuation in my realm
or what realm meant
or why so-called living punctuation require toilets..

my statement was met not only with utter disgust and disbelief
but the most derisive and uproarious and mocking audience laughter
the demure exclamation mark archly raised its one eyebrow
my goodness 
so-called living punctuation you say
and we are told to celebrate that we are you and you are us
that we are all in this together
allies with purpose
yet you archly claim that living punctuation does not exist in your realm
and clearly you do not even pretend to empathise
as to why we might require specialised toilets
the exclamation mark turned to the audience and mimed WOW
anyway we know the truth
i already interviewed your senior line manager..

i replied that i had no idea what my senior line manager meant
when he upbraided me for not giving my semicolons preferred pronouns
again i asked the exclamation mark if it would explain to me
what living punctuation is and why they require washroom facilities
and why not comprehending or not complying
is the sin for which i have been sent here
wherever here is
i asked if this was a punishment or some kind of purgatory..

a punishment a purgatory
the exclamation mark acted horrified..
and there was a sharp intake of breath from the audience
the palpable shock rippled through the amphitheatre
the sentient shapes twisted and screamed blue murder
for they felt insulted their home i had described as my punishment..

insult upon insult
this will not stand
human reprobate
your time is at hand
to you the audience i ask
should this heretic human being hang..

the entire amphitheatre screamed YESSSS
some chanted HANG IT HANG IT HANG IT
then i was roughly pulled off my chair
to be dragged across the stage
as terrifying coronets screeched and belted and blasted..

to rapturous cheers a neon gallows rose slowly off the floor
then a rope was pulled tightly around my neck
the exclamation mark smirked her treppaning smile
there and then i realised
as tears welled up and stung my eyes
i was about to meet my ignominious end..

the exclamation mark enquired any last words human being
human being soon-to-be-human fairly dead
shocked on hearing her words
the reality of my situation really hit me there and then
stunned and utterly defeated
i only could shake my head despairing
so alone so abandoned and so confused and devastated i felt
becoming ever more terrified the more i struggled for breath..

there was an excruciatingly slow countdown from ten to one
though the audience was having fun..
as i closed my eyes waiting for zero..

ONE…………………..ZERO.
the trapdoor gave way beneath me
a snap to silence
welcomed me to a lived eternity of nothing..

***********************

suspended in grey nothingness i float
i have only hazy memories of who i am or was
i have a vague feeling i may have done something very wrong
is it some kind of bleed-through flashback
or am i going mad 

another flashback

but of what..

we are trying to rescue you
this is not a test..
meditate
try to remember
can you hear...

were those sounds a voice..
..i might not be the only one here
the space i sit in is vast and bare..

i hear a door click closed behind me
i behold someone
the facilitator
the facilitator advises me not to be scared
and for some strange reason that makes me feel dreadfully scared..

..moving forward as we phase-shift to this elegant age..

then as we lift ourselves up from dusty ground

the unbroken-i slays to cultivate the lost

we pray to remain unblemished

we avow allegiance to the gracious we-i the all..

rollling waves the aquarian transition

the new and widest spectrum of love

as the we empowers the all

empowered by the all are the we..

GONG..