I Always Cry at Superhero Movies

This age wanted heroes. It got us instead. — Tony Kushner

I always cry at superhero movies
Our hero, bitten by a radio-
Active wombat learns the sudden truth:
Her wombat powers are not just a fluke.
The crisis of the moment means that she
Must act, and no one else can do it.
She didn't choose her powers; they chose her.
What were they thinking when they chose her, though?
Those all-too-human shoulders are too frail
To bear the burden of the superhero.
I know that shocking moment all too well.
The desperate, drastic need for someone's help
But no one else is stepping up to act.
"I volunteer!" I didn't say that, did I?
Shit, I guess I'm doing something stupid
Theater-goers cheer when Wombat Girl
Suits up to fight the threat against the city.
The camera doesn't show the queasy gut,
The hands that slightly shake while zipping up
The hero's wombat suit, but I know better.
My diaphragm quivers. Down my cheeks slide tears.

Tags: poetry superhero underwear perverts movies courage fear

"Emily Dickinson" House in Amsterdam

Emily Dickinson House Originally uploaded by abostick59.

It has no significance except that someone once thought it would be a neat thing to do to adorn the side of their house with this verse:

To make a prairie it takes a clover and one bee.
One clover and a bee,
And revery.
The revery alone will do,
If bees are few.

The Transmigration of Jerry Falwell

Jerry Falwell is dead, alas.
Let's all queue up to shake God's hand.

(with apologies to Michael Bishop)

The Fúfumal

THE FÚFUMAL

by Kate Gladstone

Fúfu, small rabbit, ____ fastest of hoppers,
Works in woodland ____ his ways of evil:
Field-mice he finds, ____ then hammers with head-blows,
Vexing the queen ____ of the Vanir folk.

Down came good Freya, ____ frowning at Fúfu.
Said she to the warren-born: ____ "No worth I find
In your smiting of cheese-thieves. ____ Smirk not, but obey me.
To change from your ways, ____ three chances you'll have.
And if you change not, ____ then a nithing you'll be."...

Read the whole thing.

(via Kip Williams)

Why Am I So Happy Here?

Under the comforter
My arm wrapped around your belly
Your ass cradled in my hips
You are warm, I am warm
We warm each other

I am so happy
Out of proportion to the
Pleasure of your body
Considerable pleasure though it is
There's a difference between feeling good
And
Feeling safe
Feeling like holding you is all that matters
Feeling like holding you is why I'm alive in the first place

It doesn't make sense
Life sucked just a short while ago
And now I'm in paradise
In the morning when we get up
Life will suck again
But now I'm in paradise

What's Good About Sunglasses

The sun's bright out there
Sunglasses keep the glare out of your eyes
If you're working
Cleaning debris
Sunglasses'll protect your eyes from
Dust, wood chips, stuff flying around in the air
Even working inside, they'll keep off the dust and black mold
Remember, though
If you're talking to the woman whose
House you're ripping up
The last remnants of whose life
You're piling up on the street for the city to haul away
Take your sunglasses off
So she can look you in the eye
See that you're a human being just like she is
But put them on again when you're through talking
Because the really great thing about sunglasses is
They hide the tears

for Veronica