ISBN: 9781483519258
Out of my mind
Foreword by the author
A Writer’s Lamentation
Alliteration Alleluia
At any given moment
Confessions of a porcine male
Conversations with my cat
Cosmic
Daughter
Depressed
Don’t call me, I’ll call you
Edible
Everyone Anonymous
Exercise without movement
Fatty Gue
Frivolous nonsense
Gomorrah
Grey Sky Thinking
Harold and Maude revisited
His mind was a padded cell
If my life were a kingdom
I’ll have what he’s having
In praise of Emily
Jaundiced
Lost and found
Lulu
Messy
Miss Lovely Legs
My literary garden
My three friends
No weddings, just a funeral
Not more (bleep) dishes
On the train of thought
One Pink Sock
One, Two and Three
Parenthood
Prehistoric Perspective
Satan’s Temptress
Schizo scherzo
Self-Destruction
Still waiting
Such a beautiful face
The Benefits of Ageing
The colours of my mixed emotions
The James Joyce Experiment
The Knowing
The Last Garden on Earth
The Passing Parade
The personal war on terror
The Suitcase
Things I loved
Thoughts on passing
Time capsules
Voice in the wilderness
Walkies
Welcome to Ward 17
Who the f**k am I?
Wordsworth need not worry
X Rated
Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
You can’t handle the truth
Z to A
Summaries
You may have heard of ‘The year my voice broke’ or ‘The year of living dangerously’, but for me 2009 has proved to be ‘The year of writing poetry’. Of the 60 pieces presented here, 46 were written since the beginning of 2009. I recall having expected to start work on a novel or produce a collection of short stories, but poetry came to dominate and ideas filled my head.
The collection presented here is something of a mixed bag. Although there are several pieces on the recurring theme of ‘the mind’, these are interspersed with moments of total frivolity and earnest contemplation on unrelated subjects. I believe this is a good thing as I really don’t like to take things too seriously.
In terms of process I virtually had to wait for inspiration and enthusiasm before anything happened. I am the first to admit that I am not a disciplined writer. If I had to work to a deadline I would be in real strife. Despite the suggestion in the very first item (A Writer’s lamentation) I did not experience much in the way of writer’s block. Nor did
I spend long, torturous hours agonising over whether I had the right words or if I had achieved creative perfection. In most cases the embryo of an idea came to me at random in a very quiet moment and later formed on the page almost before my eyes. The truth of the matter is that I felt more like a conduit than a craftsman.
The title of this collection is a perfect example of how I think. Double meanings are a favourite thing of mine, so it is appropriate the title should be one. This is not to say I am actually ‘out of my mind’, although there have been many occasions over the years where I have felt this way. Those around me may argue I behaved as if this was the case - some of the pieces contained in this book may suggest it is a fair assessment. I am happy to let the reader make any judgement they wish.
The other meaning in the title is one I see as a given. These are all original works straight out of my head. I would never contemplate plagiarising anybody else’s work, so a similarity between what is contained here and anything written by anyone else ever is purely coincidental. There may be some clichés and concepts previously imagined, but it is all literally out of my mind.
For the benefit of the reader I have included a personal summary of every work. I felt obliged to do this as some of the pieces are obscure in their origins and it can be good to know what the author was thinking when pen was put to paper. They are only very brief summaries and may not provide the whole story. Some things are better left unsaid and it then becomes the reader’s prerogative to make conclusions about meaning and the mind of the writer. In addition I have noted the date on which each piece was written.
I did toss up whether to present these poetic forms in alphabetic or date order. I don’t know that it would make a skerrick of difference. Viewing the works in date order only highlights the concentration of output of 2009. ‘Such a beautiful face’ was written over 10 years ago, but would not be out of place if I had penned it yesterday.
In this collection I have sought to entertain, bemuse, disturb and provoke thought. If I succeed in conjuring any emotion from the reader at all I will feel that I have accomplished something. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I enjoyed writing them.
The Steve
4 November 2009
Does anyone know where my head is at?
It was last seen on the 825 bus
destination ‘Somewhere in the clouds’
You should recognise it
orange-shaped
red faced
tears spilling from the corners of each eye
like pineapple juice
If you find it take a scalpel and cut it open
Inside are infinite ideas
whirling in a mindspace maelstrom
some which, like a diamond, sparkle
in favourable light
Some are more serious
inspired by fear
yet strangely sublime
Then there are others which simply don’t work
They are as unwanted as a used nappy
How did it come to this?
No plan existed which could have led me
to travel this path
like a ghost, rarely seen
lost in limbo land
All around me the prosperous go about their business
as I hit my stumbling writer’s block
“Author! Author!” the maddening crowd cries as one
but in truth, would this have been the outcome
had I been born a painter?
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alliteration Alleluia
Buoyant boys bellow boo-yeah
Cheeky cheerleaders chanting
Dainty dandelions dancing
Elephant’s elegant entrance
Fancy fantasy fandance
Gentleman’s gentility
Hillary’s hilarity
Idiotic idiosyncrasies
Jolly jester’s jealousies
Kindly king’s kinship
Lively lovers lock lips
Many money-making mums
Naughty nubile naked nuns
Opal opulence
Papal populist
Quality quartz
Raucous rorts
Seasonal stormy seas
Teen’s tarty tease
Ukuleles useful, Ulysses useless
Vicar’s vengeful, Venus villainous
Wrapped writer’s wrist
X-otic X-men X-ist
Yay! Yellow yaks yield
Zany zebra’s zippy zeal
Alleluia, Alleluia
and Amen
In my computer-centric microcosm
consisting of a desk, a chair, a screen and a keyboard
Staring out a window on the world
vertical blinds afford a blinkered view
Just like watching a reality TV show
A mixture of wonders and horrors
are occurring in places all around me
at any given moment
A teenage boy is daydreaming about having sex with a pretty girl
Lightning is striking physically and figuratively
A typical male is seeking to dominate everyone as per his elevated testosterone level
A wife is complaining vociferously about her husband’s infidelity
A master is subjecting a minion to a cruel and unusual punishment
Partners are struggling with the words ‘I love you’
A psychopath is hungering for their next victim
A gay man has been alienated for declaring his sexuality
A black man has been racially vilified by a stupid white man
The loved and unloved are going missing, never to be seen again
A speeding car is going out of control leading to death, maiming and disfigurement
A heart that had been pumping beat for the very last time
A sensitive individual is experiencing extreme vulnerability
The defenceless are being set upon by those who would deem themselves superior
A ruthless person is using intimidation and bullying tactics to gain advantage
A devious type is lying through their teeth to fool the naive
An overgrown garden is finally being attended to by a caring nature-lover
A woman has been sexually assaulted by a complete stranger
A child has been sexually abused by someone they knew
People who had made false assumptions are being caught out by them
A psychiatrist has just concluded a patient’s session by prescribing unnecessary pills
An angry youth is trying to solve his problems using his fists
Winners are enjoying an endorphin rush that comes from the euphoria of victory
Losers are picking through their performance at a post-match post-mortem
A so-called man of God is misusing his religion in a way that is harmful
A person who wants to avoid responsibility is slowly drinking themselves to death
Cancer has claimed yet another life
A fragile mind is about to snap