On The Early English Poem The Ruin
Mile-wide ruin of a city,
ruin of a town,
told tales fragmented,
your lost poet foiled,
his ruined poem
once whole on vellum, torn,
blackened to earth,
shrunk into microfilm.
Bath was the city
that bred bright balladry,
a rumoured recital,
rare fresh-inked flower.
Rime in the mortar,
rime on the broken tiles,
gold on flashing water,
fragment of a world.
Fires, excavations,
puzzle your pathway,
for history existed
even in history.
Poet whose part is past,
wide-eyed wanderer,
ply us with phrases,
your damaged verses
ancient slabs
over springs still known to us,
piped streams
running with language.
Rime on the broken tiles,
lines on the damaged page.
Flare, crumple, char.
Vain, vanish with the Weirds.
2009 [recorded at Chicago Calling Festival 2011]
poem by Sally Evans
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Related quotes
Fundamental of Liar Chapter CXXVI: Ruin
Do not ruin a good story
Do not ruin a perfect plan
Do not ruin a flawless lie
Do not ruin a great sacrifice
Do not ruin a hard work
Do not ruin a long trust
Do not ruin a magical moment
Do not ruin a golden opportunity
Do not ruin the current mood
Do not ruin an innocent dream
Do not ruin a sweet memory
Do not ruin a fair game
Do not ruin a mutual agreement
Do not ruin a smiling face
Do not ruin the flowing river
Do not ruin the sequence order
Do not ruin the standard procedure
Do not ruin the prepared show
Do not ruin a complete circle
Do not ruin a final ending
Do not ruin the leisure time
Do not ruin the aiming shot
Do not ruin the hidden purpose
Do not ruin a genius idea
Do not ruin the dead price
Do not ruin a determined mind
poem by Maria Sudibyo
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Tale of Three Cities
New York blasted London blasted
Singapore -
Ripped off each other's metaphoric balls,
Crumbling walls.
Priapic city monoliths -
Blue-sky scraping bastards -
Shout about their height (but really length) .
V8 arseholes didn't care -
Pumping shit into the air,
So long as they were always there to
Fart aloud a smoggy cloud,
Laughing at the weak asthmatic,
Humoured that it seems traumatic.
Watch the greedy cities oozing
Chair-bound fat committees, though they
Look a bunch of titties as they
Waffle on about the pound.
Ever thought to look around and see
That they were dead?
Copyright © Mark R Slaughter 2010
city city city city city city
city city city city city city
city city city city city city
city city city city city city
city city city city city city
city city city city city city
poem by Mark R Slaughter
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New York City Rhythm
Words by Marty Panzer
Music by Barry Manilow
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When my heart is torn apart
by love I wish I had,
Well, I spend my nights in the city's lights
and things don't seem so bad.
Ya know the movement seems to soothe me,
and the temp takes control,
and I lose my blues
when the Ne w York City rhythm fill my soul;
it's the New York City rhythm runnin' thru' my life,
the pounding beat of the city streets
that keeps mydreams alive.
I'm lost, I'm found, I'm up, I'm down,
but somehow I survive.
It's got to be the New Y ork City rhythm in my life,
It's got to be the New York City rhythm in my life,
in my life.
When I'm out for love or sin,
Oh, it's good to be in town,
In the funky dives on the old west sid
there's always somethin' goin' down.
Oh yes , I live my life with strangers,
and the danger's always there,
but when I hit Broadway and it's time to play,
ya know that I don't care;
It's the New York City rhythm runnin' thru my life,
the poundin' beat of the city streets
that kee ps my dreams alive.
I'm lost, I'm found, I'm up, I'm down, ,
but somehow I survive.
It's got to be the New York City rhythm in my life,
in my life.
City rhythm, oo city rhythm.
song performed by by Barry Manilow
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I Still Love the City, But the City Doesn't Love Me
Some have told me the city will ruin me
Some said the city is an ugly place
The city has marred better men than me
I hadn’t lived in the city for quite some time,
But living there again was an amazing experience
The city glowed with a dazzling beauty,
Pumping a vitality in my veins
Through my heart, an exuberant,
Youthful feeling of excitement
I let the city have my heart.
I thought the city gave me hers.
This love was not meant to last.
I had to leave the city for a little while.
The city couldn’t handle the distance,
Provoking the city to eject me from
The city’s heart, ripping and tearing
Until I was only a memory, a fling
So I left the city in search of a new life.
I found myself alone in the desert.
I convinced myself the city was only
A memory locked away
The days were sweltering and arduous,
The nights were frigid and excruciating
These times were spent alone, in silence
Where almost no life is sustainable,
And I ignored the ghosts which
Maliciously brought about vibrant,
Heartwarming thoughts of the city
I turned North, the city far passed
The horizon, though its glimmer
Reaches me still
Its lights do nothing but illuminate
The darkness this desert has
Brought into my heart
And the damage my lungs have
Sustained as they drown in my
Quiet tears
In this moment, I unleashed
An ugly, primal scream
From the depths of my marred soul,
The waves traveling through miles of
Nothingness
It was then when I realized
I still love the city.
But the city doesn’t love me.
poem by Alex Gomez
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Atlantis
In that ocean.
Wide eyed and deeper in your gaze,
And bluer than the bright that's in the cave.
There is a city,
Came out from you, Atlantis
In ruins, sunken below the waves
But in the city,
Where there is no one.
What's the point of being free, eh?
When there is nothing there to tie me down,
Oh, no more here.
The bluest city,
Covered in coral and coral,
On sea chests,
And sealed Jamaician tales.
There is nobody
To count the soldiering meandering whales,
With a shoal of herring amongst the sails.
But in the city,
Where there is no one.
What's the point of being free, eh?
When there is nothing there to tie me down,
Oh, no more here.
There is the city Atlantis.
song performed by by Kate Bush
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Love Lies In Ruin
love lies in ruin
love lies in ruin
love lies in ruin
love lies in ruin
leave if you want
if you can decide
leave if you believe in paradise
and stay if you must
if you'll trust my highs
stay, never leave, never go
my love lies in ruin
and better still my heart has ceased to care for anyone
you want to seize her
then tell her that you love her so
testify to all that i have ever felt for this girl
so walk on the wing
on the faith of desire
walk thru this place
as if your own
and leave as a friend
as a will that won't bend
leave as you would again
thru all the seasons
that i lived, i know i'm exiled
i testify to all that i had ever felt
as a child
my love lies in ruin
my love lies in ruin
to all i denied
i resist and i cursed
to all let me say
thank you so
for love is my way
is the path i choose
for love ever young may i feel
my love lies in ruin
my love lies in ruin
my love lies in ruin
my love lies in ruin
song performed by by Zwan
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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The Big City Type
I woke up in a big city apartment
Rode to a big city job
On a big city subway
With hip, big city people
Worked at a big city job
In a big city skyscraper
Stood in a big city line
For lunch, heard big city jazz
On a big city radio station
It was like a big city scene
In a big budget movie
When I realized I had become
The big city type
I always wanted to be
Yet I was still me
poem by Adam Artois
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The Pretty, Pretty City
Now the city has a studded nose,
Because the city is so pretty, and the city knows:
The city, she almost fooled me underneath the
Chicken sky- The city is so pretty,
But the city lie:
I loved the city and all its vermilion moods and ice-creams,
With parks and busses and city airplanes
And city rides- City coffins and city dies;
And I watched the city get drunk and turn around
And raise its monuments and party down;
And I sat upon one of her benches in a speculating mood,
And wondered if the city was so pretty,
Why was she so rude: The vulgar nebulas of the city’s
Eyes, the narcissisms of its displays:
There are so many well suited boys better than I out walking
In their sunny city days:
And I realized, the city didn’t love me,
The city plays and paws and eats up little boys such as
Me- She said she loves her little poet boys, such as me,
But the sweet, sweet city lies,
Because the city is so pretty, studded nosed and stunning eyed,
But she uses her autumn facades to blind the autumn chicken skies-
The pretty, pretty city has me hypnotized,
But the pretty, pretty city lies.
poem by Bret R. Crabrooke
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After the Fire
What is left after the fire burns all
The smoke, the pile of dust
And the blackened ruin
The smoke blown, the dust swept
But the ruin will stand as reminder
And make us stronger
poem by Maria Sudibyo
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Heart of Texas
houston my city
like a pearl in the night
as fireworks light up
and the children sleep tight
the center of earth
revolves around you
patience my city
teach me virtue
this place a new mecca
the lost should flock here
come to me my friendlys
im the connoisseur
of this common era
discard me an error
i dont mind one bit
my city engulfs me
like a warm night blanket
my town here it heals me
such beauty night light
in this bayou city
heaven is alright
poem by Nighttime Daydreamer
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Blackened...
blackened steel...
blackened faces,
blackened hearts,
blackened roads...
blackened eyes,
blackened dreams,
blackened prayers,
blackened gods...
blackened memories,
blackened fingers,
blackened windows,
blackened rooms...
blackened thoughts,
blackened nails,
blackened shovels,
blackened tomb!
poem by Eric Cockrell
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How To Ruin Everything
There's something wrong with me I don't know
if it's not just inside my head
It feels like I'm walking through a dream
I still remember what you said
I know that everything will be alright
It's going to work out for the best
I think there must be something better still
It isn't really so far-fetched
You know I'll go running out
and ruin everything
You know I'll go running out
and ruin everything
It's hard to trust in somebody else
responsible for your success
But in the end I know it's up to me
I live my life with no regrets
So tell me everything I want to hear
What do you like about me best?
I've been a king and I've been a fool
I'm not about to give up yet
You know I'll go running out
and ruin everything
You know I'll go running out
and ruin everything
I've had enough of the promises
I've had enough of empty threats
Some people wait for opportunity
Why should I wait? I haven't yet
I want to burn down the prejudice
I want to destroy the evidence
Is all that really matters what you're worth?
Then what is it worth for your two cents?
You know I'll go running out
and ruin everything
You know I'll go running out
and ruin everything
song performed by by Face To Face
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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We would fight not for the political future of a distant city, rather for principles whose destruction would ruin the possibility of peace and security for the peoples of the earth.
quote by Neville Chamberlain
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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where are your powers Babylon?
Illustrious Babylon
where are your powers now?
city of fame
city of gold and silver
city of a famous name
where are your powers now?
city of wonders
empire of sin
Babylon
city of ruins
mighty Babylon
city of prowess
empire of old
empire of supremacy
rich with stolen gold
where are you now?
city of the hanging gardens
city holding the righteous captive
where are your powers Babylon?
city of desolate wastes
ferocious Babylon
look out over the valley
Cyrus the great of Persia
with his army of men
and Darius the Mede
with his army of men
diverting the great river Euphrates
and sneaking under your walls
your 'impenetrible walls
Babylon
city of ruins
Where are your powers
King Nebuchadnezzar?
your colossal gate is open
your subjects are drunk
drunk with wine and blood
unaware of approaching destruction
living their normal course of life
where are you now Babylon?
heaped in ruin and desolation
...forever
now just a dry desert plain
and the wind goes...hush...
poem by Allen Steble
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The Eternal Kansas City
Chorus (choir singing)
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city? (do you know the way to kansas city? )
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city? (do you know the way to kansas city? )
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city? (do you know the way to kansas city? )
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city? (do you know the way to kansas city? )
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city? (do you know the way to kansas city)?
(van singing)
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Train down to st. louis
Get me there alright
Over to the city there, you know that one
Where the farmers daughter digs the farmers son
Dig your charlie parker
Basie and young
Witherspoon and jay mcshann
They will come
Oooowoooowoooo
Chorus (van and choir in background)
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Excuse me do you know the way to kansas city?
Lady liberty in waiting
You know she lights the way
Her name is billie, shes a holiday
And the city is eternal -- hey, cant you see?
Its inside of you and its inside of me
Oooowoooowoooo
Chorus (van and choir in background)
You know, you know the way to kansas city?
You know, you know the way to kansas city?
You know, you know the way to kansas city?
You know, you know the way to kansas city ?
You know...the way to kansas city
You know...the way to kansas city
Wild thing
You know the way to kansas city (choir only)
Thank you man (van)
You know the way to kansas city
Sing it (van)
You know the way to kansas city (van and choir)
Hit it (van)
You know...the way to kansas city
You know...the way to kansas city
You know...the way to kansas city
You know...the way to kansas city
Baby cant you sing it one time (van)
(choir)
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
You know the way to kansas city
song performed by by Van Morrison
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Ruin
There's a moaning I hear when I try to sleep.
It's the sound of a drawn out tragedy
The result of centuries of neglect.
With no attention paid to cause and effect
And the pain gets worse and the screams ensue.
It's the world living with a parasite
It's the world living with it's own infectious disease.
Ruin is what you wanted
Ruin is what you get
Ruin is what you worked towards every single day.
The infestation reaches far beyond it's means.
The sapping of the strength has muffled all the screams.
Self centered beings play out self centered lives.
Indifferent creatures living in indifferent times
And the blame is passed round when the death throws sound
It's the world living with a parasite
It's the world living with it's own infectious disease.
Ruin is what you wanted
Ruin is what you get
Ruin is what you worked towards every single day.
Ruin is what you wanted
Ruin is what you get
Ruin is what you worked towards every single day.
Ruin
song performed by by Sick Of It All from Yours Truly
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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4. 'BLACK Day for the PINK CITY Stained RED..13th May 2008
[IT IS NOT A POEM]
[To all my POET READERS ]
My beautiful PINK CITY is tainted RED today
Six or more Serial Bomb Blast ripped through the heart of the city
Ruining the peace of the Historically Royal town
The heritage now turned in a graveyard.
JAIPUR the capital city of the most peaceful state Rajasthan in INDIA
Became the target of terrorism tolling many innocent lives
The growing Metropolis became the playground of evil forces
My heart broke to watch the heart rendering visuals of the remnants.
I want the support of all my poet readers to condemn this inhuman act
And wish that no evil force should succeed in its aim.
Although I am safe with my family but do not know of so many
All those who are killed or injured were the residents of my city.
GOD have mercy and give courage to the families and the citizens to bear this hour of grief.
Abha Sharma, JAIPUR [ Rajasthan], INDIA [13th may 2008,10: 30 pm].
poem by by unknown author
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I have accepted a seat in the House of Representatives, and thereby have consented to my own ruin, to your ruin, and to the ruin of our children. I give you this warning that you may prepare your mind for your fate.
quote by John Adams
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Complete ruin
I am going to ruin
Complete ruin
It is only because
I have lost reason
And I am confused
And I am infatuate
And I am angry.
poem by Gajanan Mishra
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Ceylon City
Im going home to the town where I was born
Where little children laughed as they sang
A happy song
In the little town of ceylon,
Ceylon city, ceylon city
Ive got a boat , I hope its still afloat
With rusty sails, and an old wooden oar
It goes along, in the little town of ceylon
Ceylon city.....
My daddy will be waiting there
My sister will be combing down her silver hair
My mamma will be waiting there
Serving lunch to my brother, but hes nowhere
Ceylon city....
song performed by by Cat Stevens
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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