Ay, Que Dolo!
Dona Josefina has thrown my goat
out onto the calle El Fez--
Ay! The menu of pain is as big
as a queen-sized aha umbrella.
The lolita from the barrio chino licks
the sellos and then my luau--
there is a hint of ajo from Ab-derabad,
with periodos of adages and lapis lazuli.
I have known the fonda of Dona Josefina,
the jetty of her hips, under the veil
of her mild protests where pigs and lox
do mix in a yodel of ah-do-do-dah.
The lolita from the barrio chino is a rider
of net gains and bronze sea snakes--
she holds a baroque club in one hand
and ma of mana from a mouse in the other.
poem by Nick Carbo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
Lapis Lazuli
The testimony of the blue
It paints the king and queen
The royal dresses
And a never completely sung
Jewel of the word
Lapis lazuli
Ink spilled into
Rorschach spots on the eye
It observes the blue at the bottom of the blue
The edges of the sky it paints in blue
And all the colours of the blue
Rising from the ground
Lapis lazuli
Seals the hands boughed in hope
The feet that go down to the root of soil
The eyes that open the butterfly restlessness
And the hair swaying on the scales of freedom
Lapis lazuli
Is the colour that walks
Within the sacred number
From one to two that makes three
In verse never completely sung
Jewel of diversity
In the strength of unity
A throne that can never be dethroned
poem by Miroslava Odalovic
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Summer 62 And You
That’s the last of school
for a while
she said
as you both descended
the school bus
and walked home
with her sister and yours
walking a small distance behind
any chance you could meet me later?
you asked
have to see
if Mother wants me
to do chores
she replied
maybe after?
you asked
she sighed
and looked up
at the late
afternoon sky
you caught her profile
and the way her cheek
was so kissable
and yet you didn’t
you just stared
have to see
won’t we
don’t want her
getting in one
of her moods
you walked on
in silence awhile
then she said
maybe able
to sneak out tomorrow
and see you
by the old pond
and you smiled
and you said
sure that’d be nice
but no funny business
she said
looking you
in the eyes
as if I would
you said
well Mother thinks you would
she muttered
looking away
so that her eyes
captured the horizon
and held it there
and you said
frankly Sweetie
I don’t give a dam or care
and she smiled and said
oh so very Clark Gable
and you both laughed
and she grabbed
your hand
and whispered
she just don’t understand.
poem by Terry Collett
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Serenata
The night soaks itself
along the shore of the river
and in Lolita's breasts
the branches die of love.
The branches die of love.
Naked the night sings
above the bridges of March.
Lolita bathes her body
with salt water and roses.
The branches die of love.
The night of anise and silver
shines over the rooftops.
Silver of streams and mirrors
Anise of your white thighs.
The branches die of love.
poem by Federico García Lorca
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Rose of roses and flower of flowers,
1.
Rose of beauty and fine appearance
And flower of happiness and pleasure,
lady of most merciful bearing,
And Lord for relieving all woes and cares;
Rose of roses and flower of flowers,
Lady of ladies, Lord of lords. Rosa das rosas e Fror das frores,
Dona das donas, Sennor das sennores.
1.
Rosa de beldad' e de parecer
e Fror d'alegria e de prazer,
Dona en mui piadosa ser
Sennor en toller coitas e doores.
Rosa das rosas e Fror das frores,
Dona das donas, Sennor das sennores.
2.
Such a Mistress everybody should love,
For she can ward away any evil
And she can pardon any sinner
To create a better savor in this world.
Rose of roses and flower of flowers,
Lady of ladies, Lord of lords.
2.
Atal Sennor dev' ome muit' amar,
que de todo mal o pode guardar;
e pode-ll' os peccados perdõar,
que faz no mundo per maos sabores.
Rosa das rosas e Fror das frores,
Dona das donas, Sennor das sennores.
3.
We should love and serve her loyally,
For she can guard us from falling;
She makes us repent the errors
That we have committed as sinners:
Rose of roses and flower of flowers
Lady of ladies, Lord of lords.
3.
Devemo-la muit' amar e servir,
ca punna de nos guardar de falir;
des i dos erros nos faz repentir,
que nos fazemos come pecadores.
Rosa das rosas e Fror das frores,
Dona das donas, Sennor das sennores.
4.
This lady whom I acknowledge as my Master
And whose troubadour I'd gladly be,
If I could in any way possess her love,
I'd give up all my other lovers.
Rose of roses and flower of flowers,
Lady of ladies, Lord of lords.
4.
Esta dona que tenno por Sennore de que quero seer trobador,
se eu per ren poss' aver seu amor,
dou ao demo os outros amores.
Rosa das rosas e Fror das frores,
Dona das donas, Sennor das sennores.
poem by Alfonso X the Wise
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Meditations on the South Valley, Part XXIII
Pancho, the barrio idiot.
Rumor is that una bruja from Bernalillo
le embrujo. Unshaven, chattering
and nodding to airy friends
that follow him,
he roams the barrio all day.
I see him at least twice a day—
walking on the ditch behind my house,
hours later walking across the bridge.
Harmless, la gente leave him alone
in his own fantasies,
to share his bread with invisible companions,
to speak back to voices
that brim over from his childhood memories.
I have seen him
on all fours in Raul’s field
with the sheep. Or last Christmas
in the tree meowing like a cat.
You always fill my heart Pancho
with delight.
poem by Jimmy Santiago Baca
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Hawk IIII
So I sat up and stared at the place the hawk had been-
rose, shuffled to the window, in fact
the Barrio was still the Barrio, in every respect:
the Projects not going anywhere fast,
the cars still parked along the curb
yellow, black, red and green
the little tree empty of wrens.
'Well', I thought,
present or absent
a hawk makes nothing different.
Difference, the mis-en-scene, the meaning
being the human part, and up to me. The hawk
was just a hawk sitting in a place where you don't normally
expect to see a hawk, that's all.
But I couldn't help thinking of the way
the halk made the neighborhood quite wonderful-
here: a flyway, and gone,
just a desolate, hawkless tract.
poem by Morgan Michaels
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Lawless Avenues
Papa hit him, mama kissed him
Made him go to catechism
With the sisters in their black and white
And all the time those city streets
Were teaching him another kind of wisdom
When to run and when to fight
Up at the playground after school
Listening to tales of the prison system
And those lawless avenues
Dawn on a half darkened street
A childs footsteps repeat
And something there turns them
Down those lawless avenues
Silent joe went down so bad
He was the strongest fighter the avenues had
Stabbed in the chest--he went down swinging
Someone from some other part of town
No one even seen it coming down
And you dont hear no church bells ringing
And in the violent night the police light
Sweeps across the lots and the yards
Following those lawless avenues
Down on a half darkened street
Armies advance and retreat
And struggle to take control
From those lawless avenues
Manuelitos sister rosa
Ran away with a surfer from hermosa
Manuelito, cuida a rosa,
Hay mira como estan las cosas!
(manuelito take care of rosa
--look at how things are)
But who could blame her after she saw
Every boy die who could have gotten close to her
Rosa es joven u solo quiere
Ver la belleza del mundo
(rosa is young and only wants
To see the beauty of the world)
Manuel said--
You gotta fight for what you want in this life
Just before they shipped him overseas to nam
Otra guerra sin razon
Otra guerra sin fin, sin honor
(another war without reason,
Another war without end, without honor)
And she was fighting to understand
When they shipped manuelitos body home
All she heard was one more shot
Echoing down lawless avenues
Hoy amigo, tal igual como ayer,
La lucha en el barrio no cambia
Nuestros hijos son los que han de crecer
Por ley de la calle, viviendo entre abrazos
Y chingazos
(today my friend, just like yesterday,
The struggle in the barrio doesnt change.
Our children are the ones to grow up
By the law of the street
Living between hugs and blows)
Down on a half darkened street
Fathers and sons lives repeat
And something there turns them
Down those lawless avenues
En el calor de la calle
(in the heat of the street)
Buscan valor en la calle
(looking for valor in the street)
Hasta final de la calle
(till the end of the street)
song performed by by Jackson Browne
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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There once was a gambler from Reno,
Who after lunch forgot to take beano.
Everyone had good hands,
But they fled through the sand,
And they wound up playing cards down in Chino.
quote by by Juan Olivarez (16 April 2011)
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Henry Fonda's son: That's how everybody identified me until Easy Rider came along. Good old Captain America.
quote by Peter Fonda
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Yo
* jewel and atz together
A little yodeling song
For my man yo
And I know that yo dont know
That I wrote this song a late one night
Hed heard me yodeling down at hobo gins
And we were hanging out at the putter inn
He was beggin me to yodel
And oh yo he wasnt half the type
He held out his hand
I said whats your name?
And he said yo
So I asked him again
And he said yo again
So I figured it must be his name
Well I was having some perculiar thoughts
But you cant say much with a name like atz
So I settled back
Tried to figure out yo-yos game
Now yo was sailin three sheets of the wind
With a frozen stare
And an ear-to-ear grin
He kept beggin me to yodel, sayin
G-gget up there and yodel with the band
It was my good friend rod with a hired gun
So I stepped up to have a little bit of fun
With the lead, and the bass and the drummer and the rhythm man
Now yo he staggered right up to the stage
He had this angelic smile on his face
That sucker looked like he floated up to heaven and he died
While I never had a fan quite like yo before
He stood there mesmerized on the floor
He started stompin and clappin when he heard my yodeling cry
(chorus)
And I said
*yo this yodeling songs for you
No matter where you go
No matter what you do
Remember that time spent yodelings time well spent
Ive never had myself a fan club before
But yo dont you know that one things for sure
If I do Ill make you my fan club president
And I said
*(yodel)
Well when I got through
I said there you go yo
And he was still smiling but his eyes were still closed
And I thought I was going to get away from him
But then he opened them wide and said
I-ii want to hear some more
Well I was wearing out my welcome and I was running out of time
But I decided that Id yodel up another line
Cause I thought it was the only way I could get yo off the floor
Then I got to thinking
I realized
Suddenly I realized
Why old yo liked yodeling
Because everytime I yodeled I was saying yos name
Well then I got to thinking it probably wouldnt work too well
In fact it downright sounds like hell
If you ever try to yodel using anybody elses name
Try inga
*inga-lay (etc.)
See what I mean it just doesnt work
So in this whole wide world
No matter where I go
One thing Ive learned
Ive finally know
Ill never yodel again if theres anyone in the audience named yo
And I said
*yo this yodeling songs for you
No matter where you go
No matter what you do
Remember that time spent yodelings time well spent
Ive never had myself a fan club before
But yo dont you know that one things for sure
If I do Ill make you my fan club president
And I said
*(yodel)
(long yodel)
song performed by by Jewel
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Requiem For Evita
(crowd:)
Requiem aeternum dona evita
Requiem aeternum dona evita
Requiem evita, requiem evita
Evita, evita, evita, evita
Grant eternal rest to evita
Grant eternal rest to evita
Rest to evita, rest to evita
Evita, evita, evita, evita
Requiem aeternum dona evita
Requiem aeternum dona evita
Requiem evita, requiem evita
Evita, evita, evita, evita
song performed by by Madonna
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Let It Rock
The weekend comes to this town
Seven days too soon
For the ones who have to make up
What we break up for their rules
Well I saw Captain Kidd on Sunset
Tell his boys they're in command
While chino danced a tango
With boomstick in his hand
He said: It's alright (alright) if you have a good time
It's alright (alright) if you want to cross that line
To break on through the other side
Let it rock
song performed by by Bon Jovi from Slippery When Wet
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Do They Know It's Christmas
It's Christmas time
There's no need to be afraid
At Christmas time
We let in light and we banish shade
(Jonah doing Boy George)
And in our world of plenty
We can spread a smile of joy
Throw your arms around the world
At Christmas time
(Jonah doing George Michael)
But say a prayer
Pray for the other ones
At Christmas time it's hard
(Chino doing Simon LeBon)
But when you're having fun
There's a world outside your window
(Jonah doing George Michael joins in)
And it's a world of dread and fear
Where the only water flowing is
(Jonah doing Bono joins in)
The bitter sting of tears
(Jonah doing Bono)
And the Christmas bells that are ringing
Are clanging chimes of doom
Well, tonight thank God it's them instead of you.
(Jonah) And there won't be snow in Africa this Christmas time.
The greatest gift they'll get this year is life
(Chino) Oh-oh
(Jonah) Where nothing ever grows
No rain or rivers flow
Do they know it's Christmas time at all?
(Grady)Here's to you
(Jonah)raise a glass for everyone
(Grady)Here's to them
(Jonah)underneath that burning sun
(Everyone)Do they know it's Christmas time at all?
Chorus (Everyone)
Feed the world
Feed the world
Feed the world
Let them know it's Christmas time again
Feed the world
Let them know it's Christmas time again
Feed the world
Let them know it's Christmas time again
song performed by by Deftones
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Every great work of art... is a celebration, an act of insubordination against the betrayals, horrors and infidelities of life.
Azar Nafisi in Reading Lolita in Tehran (2003)
Submitted by Simona Enache
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Umbrella Man
When the sun just refuses to shine on through
And its cats and doggies all over you
You need some protection so what do you do
See the umbrella man
Go and see the umbrella man
When its raining - umbrella man, umbrella man
You can see him when its sunny, when the rain comes down
You ought to find a corner where hes always found
A reflection in a puddle, just turn around
To see the umbrella man
Go and see the umbrella man
When its raining - umbrella man, umbrella man
There are some things in life on which you can depend
Dont try to guess when itll rain again
You dont have to worry cause youve got a friend
Come see the umbrella man
I will be your umbrella man
When its raining - umbrella man
Go and see the umbrella man
Dont forget the umbrella man
When its raining - umbrella man
I will be your umbrella man, umbrella man
song performed by by Utopia
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Capis Windows
How do you enter that Manila
frame of mind, that woven
mat of noodle house restaurants,
that dawn of tapis tasting women,
that hankering of hourly hauntings?
Drive along Roxas Boulevard
when the moon has just clocked
out of third shift and the sea horses
are returning to their feeding stables.
Walk the afternoon trees of Taft Avenue
and talk to the mechanics of Sunday
medicine. Ask them for recipes
to cure fire-retardant love. Bask
in the baying of mahogany dogs on Mabini
street and pass through the red
wrought iron gates of Calle Remedios
where you'll find a house with capis windows
where Doña Inez waits to sew your skin.
poem by Nick Carbo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Throw Back The Little Ones
Lost in the barrio I walk like an injun
So carlo wont suspect somethings wrong here
I dance in place
And paint my face
And act like I belong here
Chorus:
Throw back the little ones
And pan-fry the big ones
Use tact, poise and reason
And gently squeeze them
Hot licks and rhetoric
Dont count much for nothing
Be glad if you can use what you borrow
So I pawn my crown
For a ride uptown
And buy it back tomorrow
Chorus
Done like a matador I pray for the weekend
And hope the little girls still throw roses
Else Ill change my bait
And move upstate
Before the season closes
Chorus
song performed by by Steely Dan
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Warning: Irony And Others Ahead
1
dearest readers online
be forewarned
when you read a poem
there may be irony ahead
and if you don’t look out
yes, it can be like you’ve
run against an iron pole
smack bang against the forehead
(which may not matter if you’re Ironhead â€"
but if you’re anything like me
flesh and blood and heart â€"
Ouch! It can more than hurt!)
2
be forewarned also
when you read a poem
it can be like
driving in a school zone
when the kids are going home â€"
so watch out:
irony may be walking with persona
and the literal with metaphor
and maybe a figurative pig round the corner
and sarcasm hand in hand
with opposite-of-what’s-being-said
3
so do drive alert
eyes open, mind open
when in Poetry Land
O most intelligent reader
for you never know
in the thoroughfare of poetry
who you might
just bump into:
Mr Alternative;
Mr So-in-your-face;
Ms I-Want-to-Talk-About-God-Yet-Again;
Vicar There’s-No-Bloody-God;
Mr and Mrs Moralist;
Mr Hey-Let’s-Have-Sex-While-at-Poetry;
and so on, you know â€"
It can be like being Alice in Wonderland
with the Mad Hatter
but you got to keep your sanity
for company
yep, stay alert
or you might just crash your Reading
4
An Afterthought
and I know
wise reader
all the above might make me sound
like Mr-know-all
but hey â€" modesty’s never been
the poet’s professional trait
(you must think about that â€"
cos even the poet devoted entirely
to Subjects Divine and Holy
and of Such Lofty Things
and exuding sweet humility
is bloody arrogant -
cos they do implicitly or explicitly claim
they know what really matters
while you or I don’t)
poem by Raj Arumugam
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Life is beautiful. Life is sad.
Vladimir Nabokov in Lolita
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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A good novel is one that shows the complexity of individuals, and creates enough space for all these characters to have a voice; in this way a novel is called democratic — not that it advocates democracy but that by nature it is so.
Azar Nafisi in Reading Lolita in Tehran (2003)
Submitted by Simona Enache
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