The Residue
Rain in the gutter,
muttering as it gushes down
through the drain cover.
Water in volume, rushing along,
so strong and powerful,
buffeting the kerb stones and mortar
at the pavements edge,
wedging the silt up into a pile,
and all the while,
building it higher and higher.
When the streams subside,
the residue is left to be dried,
by the sun,
and the wind whisks it up in swirls,
and it is deposited further down the street,
to meet up with other surplus dust.
A never ending circle of events,
happening in this gutter,
even a strutter such as a pigeon
taking his morning bath,
knows the culvert well.
Wearing his feathered mackintosh,
preening his plumage, cleaning his quills,
he displays no frills.
Rain in the gutter,
is muttering, and the pigeon is fluttering,
perched on the drain cover.
poem by Ernestine Northover
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
Rats!
She's cleaning her whiskers
And tending her fur,
The full-blown ablutions
Important to her,
She's only inside
When it comes on to rain,
For she detests water
From gutter or drain!
She waits for the sun
To dip down out of view,
The stars to come out
And the breeze to blow through,
Then stalks through the garden
Head raised like a Queen,
And listens to rustles
From dartings unseen!
She looks with disdain
When I beckon to her,
And only runs in
For the dish by the chair,
But brings me a present
At dawn's early light,
A rat with no head or
A pigeon in flight!
She clambers through bushes
And climbs all the trees,
Looks down at we humans
And does as she please,
There's no little creature
Immune from her front,
Her bell tinkles warnings,
The cat's gone to hunt!
poem by David Lewis Paget
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The Decision To Be Happy
I am watching water
dripping from the gutter
the rain has just stopped
falling
the sun begins its part
spreading soft light on the window panes
my wife has finished taking her bath
and kisses me on my cheeks
breakfast is ready on the table
and the smell of rice and pork grill spreads in the house
the water that drips from the gutter
to the leaves of the fortune plant appears
like diamonds bringing all that gladness
to the younger hours of the day
well, ask me what is this all about
oh yeah, this is all about this decision to be just
simply happy.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Amy Hit The Atmosphere
If I could make it rain today
And wash away this sunny day down to the gutter
I would just to get a change of pace
Things are getting worse but I feel a lot better
And that's all that really matters to me
Amy hit the atmosphere
Caught herself a rocket ride out of this gutter and
She's never coming back
song performed by by Counting Crows from This Desert Life
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Higher In Time
The mountain is steep
The ditches are deep
The task in hand
Is making us weep
But heres a promise
(I intend to keep
/
That I mean to keep)
Seed it in your mind
And say it each night
Before you sleep:
We will climb higher in time
(och!)
Youve got a head full of trouble
And a ship to build
(you think you wont make it
But you know you will
You feel you need your
Cup refilled
Fill it out of mine
Well drop the defenses,
Pool our skill
/
Your heart youre hiding
Its making you ill
You feel like you want to have your
Sporran refilled
Well, fill it out of mine
Let the soulful water
Overspill)
And we will climb higher in time
Ive been to the bottom
Ive been on the train
Ive slept in the gutter
With my head in a drain
Ive been brutally proud
Ive been mortally shamed
But this is not a crime
Im just learning, my friends,
That its all in the game
And we will climb higher in time
(och!)
Climb higher in time
Climb higher in time
song performed by by Waterboys
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Advice from the Experts
I lay down in the empty street and parked
My feet against the gutter's curb while from
The building above a bunch of gawkers perched
Along its ledges urged me don't, don't jump.
poem by Bill Knott
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My Hands Must Be Magical
my hands must be magical
to make your body sing
my fingers must be probing
to find every moment of loving
my eyes must be the fountain
of understanding
my heart must have that enduring
patience
of the gutter to the rain
guiding pleasure not to drain
you need me as i need you
whatever be the price!
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Like A Cloud
like a cloud
i change shapes
cumulus, nimbus,
feathers and cottons
i mirror myself on a pond
and begin to like myself
the reeds look at me
with disdain
and the rocks there
speak ill of me
no matter how beautiful
i am
be it the shape of David
or of Narcissus
always everything i am
what i have
they claim them to be owned by the wind
they say the wind makes me
the wind unmakes me and i am left
with nothing
but just the illusion of a cloud
doubt, i now have them and i am lost
in an island without a name
like a cloud i wander
higher than the cliffs and friend of the sun
the wind claims me and still i am nothing
there is no use for all these
i have loved the wind and learned to live with its daft
i love the wind and its song
its distance and its intimacies with my hues
but with the wind i am nothing i have none
all of them disbelieved my right to be myself
i am wandering and wishing upon the stones
i fall
i am rain i am the water in the gutter
i flow
searching for the place where i can be myself
distinct like a mole on a cheek
there is no wind to claim my shape and color
sad, i am still nothing, as empty as a hand opening
pleading for space and air, i am still nothing.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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Loving That Taste For The Gutter
If they always call those they visit trash,
And on a daily basis they are around them.
What do they regard themselves?
Trash collectors?
Or recycled garbage...
Loving that taste for the gutter.
They can't leave it,
'Cause they come right back.
No matter what they call it they want it like that!
Because they love that taste for the gutter.
They love that taste for the gutter.
Whenever its suspected someone else will attack,
They will defend their trash with a coming back.
Because they love that taste for the gutter.
Yes they love that taste for the gutter.
They can't leave it,
'Cause they come right back.
No matter what they call it they want it like that!
Because they love that taste for the gutter.
They love that taste for the gutter.
If they always call those they visit trash,
And on a daily basis they are around them.
What do they regard themselves?
Trash collectors?
Garbage defenders?
Whenever its suspected someone else will attack,
They will defend their trash with a coming back.
Because they love that taste for the gutter.
Yes they love that taste for the gutter.
Garbage defenders,
Loving that taste for the gutter.
Trash collectors,
Loving that taste for the gutter.
But wont admit or quit,
Loving that taste for the gutter.
They can't leave it,
'Cause they come right back.
Because they love that taste for the gutter.
Garbage defenders,
Loving that taste for the gutter.
Trash collectors,
Loving that taste for the gutter.
But wont admit or quit,
Loving that taste for the gutter.
But wont quit,
That taste for the gutter.
Or admit...
A loving for the gutter.
And wont quit,
That taste for the gutter.
Or admit...
A loving for the gutter.
No they wont admit it,
A loving for the gutter.
Or...
Quit,
A taste they have for the gutter.
No they wont admit it,
A loving for the gutter.
Or...
Quit,
A taste they have for the gutter.
Or...
Quit,
A taste they have for the gutter.
No they wont admit it,
A loving for the gutter.
Or...
Quit,
A taste they have for the gutter.
Or...
Quit,
A taste they have for the gutter.
No they wont admit it!
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
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the second Gargoyle
You were at the window
When I left you
In anger
I looked back
Someone projected
From the gutter
Of that same
Stinking building
Throwing a spout of rain
from a
Mouth not
Really grotesque
But it was more
than an animal,
no doubt
it was you.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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An Alley...
i am just an alley
where you must pass
i only listen to the waters
after the rain
and like you they pass me by
i am a friend of the gutter
we speak the same
language
there are stones on my belly
the rats come at night
the sweepers on
bright days
i am not a street
and so i have no name yet.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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I don't believe in gutter politics. I don't believe in gutter journalism.
quote by Maria Shriver
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Concealment And Covering
you conceal so many things
for so many reasons
you cover them
for so many ratiocinations
you cover you cup of coffee
so it may not get cold that easily
in the same manner you cover your cooking pot
so it may get hot earlier and at least fuel
you cover your ears perhaps because there's so much noise
you cover your head because it may be so hot or there may be rain
you cover your book to protect it from stains
you cover your furnitures because there is so much dust
you cover your body, your heart, your mind
for so many reasons
to each his own because we want to survive we want to live
we want to be just left to ourselves in our chosen privacies
no one has ever said that survival is a crime, a sin, a wrong,
it is the most fitting thing to do, and you must do it too.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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April Rain Song
Let the rain kiss you
Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops
Let the rain sing you a lullaby
The rain makes still pools on the sidewalk
The rain makes running pools in the gutter
The rain plays a little sleep song on our roof at night
And I love the rain.
poem by Langston Hughes
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If You Want Blood You Got It
Its criminal, there ought to be a law
Criminal, and you know what were shootin for
Shouting at the other guy
When his back is turned
Dont know the reason why
Aint it bout time you learn
If you want blood, you got it
If you want blood, you got it
Blood on the sheets, blood on the rocks
Blood in the gutter, give my last drop
You want blood, you got it
Wha-ooh
Its animal, livin in the human zoo
Its animal, and I know what you gotta do
Its the curse of the working man
Givin more and gettin less
Doin everything he can, cleaning up the mess
If you want blood, you got it
If you want blood, you got it
Blood on the sheets, blood on the rocks
Blood in the gutter, give my last drop
You want blood, you got it
Ooooh (shove it)?
You want blood, you want blood
After you
Blood on the sheets, blood on the rocks,
Blood in the gutter, give my last drop
You want blood, you got it
If you want blood, you got it
If you want blood, you got it
If you want blood, you got it
song performed by by AC-DC
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I Get Excited
(tennant/lowe)
--------------
(excited)
(excited)
(excited excited excited excited)
(excited excited excited excited)
(i get excited)
(i get excited)
We're both in the gutter, that's no surprise
What does it matter, when i look in your eyes?
We've lost all our money, we're thrown out of bars
We're lying in the gutter, but we're looking at the stars
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I hear the sound of the subway, the sigh of the heat
The click of the visitors' heels on the street
The rattle of the taxi, the scream of the cars
The clatter of the dustbin and the beat of my heart
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why
(excited excited excited excited)
(excited excited excited excited)
You're in my soul
My body moves to your control
Baby, i've been thinking about you
All night long, and the neighbours are talking
I don't know why, i don't know why (excited) (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why
(excited) (i get excited)
We're both in the gutter, that's no surprise
What does it matter, when i look in your eyes?
We've lost all our money, we're thrown out of bars
We're lying in the gutter, but we're looking at the stars
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why
(excited excited excited excited)
(excited excited excited excited)
(ooooooooh)
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I get excited, you get excited too (excited) (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why (i get excited)
I don't know why, i don't know why (i get excited)
I get excited, you get excited too
song performed by by Pet Shop Boys
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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D.w. Washburn
Lead vocal: micky dolenz
Produced by: the monkees
D.w. washburn, i heard a sweet voice say.
D.w. washburn, this is your lucky day.
A hot bowl of soup is waitin'.
A hot bowl of soup and a shave.
D.w. washburn, we picked you to say.
Can't you hear the bugle call? can't you hear the bells?
Even you can be reborn, you naughty
If you don't get out of that gutter,
Before the next big rain.
D.w. wahsburn, you're gonna wash right down the drain.
Up, up, come on get up off your street.
If you can only make it from your hands to your knees,
I know you can make it to your feet. wooah!
D.w. washburn, i said to myself.
D.w. washburn, why don't you go save sombody else?
Well, i got no job to go to.
I don't work and i don't get paid.
I got a bottle of wine, i'm feelin' fine.
And i believe i got it made.
I'd like to thank all you good people
For comin' to my aid.
But i'm d.w. washburn.
I do believe i got it made.
I do believe i got it made, don't need nobody.
I do believe i got it made, i do believe i got it made.
Or...
Dw washburn i heard a sweet voice say
Dw washburn this is your lucky day
A hot bowl of soup is waitin'
A hot bowl of soup and a shave...
Dw washburn...we picked you to save (the whole thing is about the
Salvation army finding some soul that they think needs saving....and the guy
Is perfectly content as he is)
Can't you hear the flugle horn?
Can't you hear the band? (also could be bells...certainly fits the music
Here...but the band would refer to the sal army)
Even you can be reborn
You naughty n'er - do-well (an archaic term for a slacker)
Get up, get outta that gutter
Before the next big rain.
Dw washburn...you're gonna wash right down the drain.
Up, up...c'mon get up (my kid's favorite part of the song)
Get up off your street (has been written as "seat" in other places, but
Micky is clearly saying "street" ...which works in context.)
If you can only make it from your hands to your knees,
I know you can make it to your feet..whooo
Dw washburn i said to myself (character is going introspective here)
Dw washburn why don't you go save somebody else? (i.e. we picked you to
Save, but dw doesn't give a ****)
Well i got no job to go to
I don't work and i don't get paid
I got a bottle of wine
I'm feeling fine.......and i believe i' got it made.
I'd like to thank all you good people
For coming to my aid, but i'm
Dw washburn
I do believe i got it made.....etc. to fade
song performed by by Monkees
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Leaves (thread)
under the dogwood
leaves cover
a cat’s grave
early spring
one leaf still dangles
from the tree
palmistry
dew drops on a leaf
pick a vein
widow’s diary
pressed rose petal
the last leaf
with the rain drops
leaves flutter to the ground
fall showers
fallen leaves
circusing in the grass
merry-go-wind
October shower
leaves in the gutter
disembark
leaves changing colors
across the landscape
season's chameleons
morning rain
under maple leaves
tap my shoulder
leaves ripple
with melodies
cicadas song
These were published online by Sketchbook. See September/October “leaves” Haiku thread:
poem by Ben Gieske
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Rain, cold rain
Rain, cold rain
collects and runs
Curb side- gutter
Brush leabes and cigarette butts
With bits of paper in a heap.
Bodies with faces hidden
By umbrellas
Walk into rain from rain;
Rainbow oil stained muddy
poem by David E. Patton
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More Suitable For You
I should have more of an understanding,
As to where you are coming from?
Your quick slide into the gutter,
Has been done by your own doing.
My stay there,
Was a result from your suppression.
You will find your stay,
More comfortable than I did.
At least those who slid there with you,
Are all of your acquaintances.
Like you they too have similar traits.
And like you they chose to deceive others too!
That gutter is a place,
That seems to be an ideal fit.
A perfect one and more suitable for you!
Please don't be offended,
If my dog does what dogs do.
I left my poop scooper!
If I were you I'd do my best to do a little move.
poem by Lawrence S. Pertillar
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The Metaphor Of The Pigeons Cooing
pigeons live inside the ceiling
taking the entrance at the broken side of the gutter
i can hear them coo
some eggs hatch and some fledglings
are cooing
one day i have not heard of them anymore
and the rats are singing
like pigeons cooing
these rats wanting to get attention
tomorrow i will take away the gutter
so the pigeons will know that we are missing them
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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