my doggerel (written while depressed)
Did this one today...
LAMENT, MARCH 2023
Stare at the ceiling as the earth whirls blindly in the dark
as you lay there, ears ringing & head pain, as always
as your head hurts, spreading middle girth
Cold inside, halted, without a spark.
The occasional note as your gut slowly drains
from the meal of bolted flour, cheese, olives,
a manmade ration for the bipedal swine herd
Another day ebbs, another evening gains.
Stare at the ceiling as daily you know
Knowing inescapable: you're past the prime
the bald fact, always without tact,
Faded mirror never fails to show.
Staring upward as the ball hurtles in the black
around the hot bright mindless sun,
your stare as unseeing as the rock itself
a captive in a slowly rotting sack.
Feel free to comment, folks. Whaddaya think? I might post more poems here as the inspiration (for lack of a better word) strikes.
You do get out your feelings nicely. That can help people see their feelings as normal.
Do you also write things when you are less depressed? I would include those as well because they can help people get inspired to get out of the depression wave. @slowdecline48
@bestVase7265 Not normally, no. When I am not depressed my creative work is more active. Usually it's either sketching with ink & brush, or finished art, or some kind of DIY thing.
It is interesting how your brain processes different emotions so differently, isn't it? @slowdecline48
INVENTORY
When you wake up, take inventory:
what parts hurt, what parts still work
This is the ritual, always done
no matter your belief: god, Jesus, Elvis
before putting on your shirt:
Note what works & what still hurts.
After you get up:
go to the bathroom, nowhere else
(you might have to run...the only thing
you still do like a child) as the
lower tract demands it, always:
It creates its own personal ***.
After sound & stink:
put the didofenac gel on aged fingers
maybe the rest of your hands if you need
dollar store cream on at least one joint
(usually two), no exception indeed
so the pain will not linger.
Then to food if you can cook.
If not & you've forethought,
get something from the freezer
if not, then head to the nearest
gas station/convenience store...
"food" without goodness, plastic you bought.
Eat like a cow, because that is easiest
then go about your day, like
numberless days before it.
A haiku:
So many meanings there. @slowdecline48
Yeah, I'm a regular Zen master... But seriously, it always surprises me when someone looks at my work & sees more levels of meaning in it than I had intended. A bunch of chisels really are laying on my drafting table right now 😝 ...gonna try to tune 'em up & fix a few of the handles this coming week.
I think that is what poetry is...seeing stuff other people didn't. It is great how just a few words can have even more possible meanings than tons of words.@slowdecline48
Oh I love poems. Thank you. I looked up at my popcorn ceiling after reading that and scowled at how ugly it was. Stupid bumps lol.
@SweetPea321 I hear that...
Are you married or do you have a muse? I'm divorced and enjoying being single for now. Perhaps in my golden years I'll meet the love of my life since dating is not an option for me now. All of my time and energy goes to my autistic child.
@SweetPea321 No, no wife or muse here. There was a time when I wanted to settle down but that didn't pan out, & eventually I had to let her go. We were friends for a while afterwards, though...
My sympathies for you re that parenting....never sired any children myself (that I know of) but my cousin & his wife are still taking care of their son even with his being in his twenties. His autism is full-blown, so it's always been a job for them both.
Hi @slowdecline48 If I knew you in real life, I'd ask to buy one of your hardwood canes and you could sign it for me.
I also hate the disturbing sound of fireworks when it's not the 4th of July.
@slowdecline48
Hello there slowdecline, how are you doing?
It's not for everyone to have an artistic side, it makes you unique!
Wishing you a good weekend 💙
@MeaningfulSilence I appreciate the check-in, thanks. Right now...eh. I'm okay.
It's hurricane season so the rain is as sudden & thorough as it is unpredictable. Haven't been able to work on the current wood project since the only place I can do it is out on the patio--half of which is uncovered. Whenever it's not pouring buckets or drizzling, it's too hot to be outside. I've been keeping occupied while cooped up.
Got music, which is good. Sometimes I catch up on my sleep.
@slowdecline48
Hi alowdecline48!
Does the unpredictable bad weather of hurricane season last long? It's unfortunate that you can't work on your project. I love wood, it's one of my favorites! Yours seems an interesting project, is it a secret project or can I ask about it? 😊
Hope you can keep feeling okay, also if weather is not favorable.
Cheers !
Hi there, @MeaningfulSilence! You seem like a cheerful person...that's a nice thing to be.
My current project is a cane. Managed to get a bit done on it early this morning after being awakened at around 0240 hrs this morning by some young fool setting off fireworks in the parking lot... At this point, all that's left is refining the tip, putting the endcap on it & then sanding it down & applying a finish. Thinking I might do an oil finish this time.
I am undecided about whether to post photos of it here. If I do then it will be in a separate thread.
Also it will be my 9th cane so far...started making them when my right knee started hurting in the early 2010's, & now I have additional health-related reasons. If you're gonna walk with a cane then please don't use one of those chintzy aluminum ones they sell at drug stores & Wally World, for the love of God....seriously. That junk doesn't last. You'll be lucky if you get five years out of one. A good hardwood cane can last for decades!
Your canes sound beautiful and so meaningful. I am sorry that it is too hot now to work. It has been really warm for July this year. @slowdecline48
@bestVase7265 & @MeaningfulSilence - I finally posted a few snapshots, though they're slightly dated by now. You can see them here. (Scroll down because they're near the bottom)
You have quite the artistic eye. Beautiful. @slowdecline48
You should be proud of yourself. @slowdecline48
Sleepless in OP
21st-century drug:
Internet, cell phones.
Definitely @slowdecline48
Huh