37℃

In a recent prompt at poetry writing group Poets and Storytellers United, admin Rosemary Nissen-Wade wants us to "rewrite one of your not-quite-working pieces by transcribing it backwards, and then following wherever that leads you."

photo by Pitsch from pixabay



37℃


by my feet
           the asphalt,
           sunbaked,
dead leaves crispy,
yellow painted lines
          cracked,
          flaking,
          the sighs
of vehicle tyres rushing by,
turning, churning,
          a chain gang
          herding
dust, paper, plastics
          to the kerbs,
the mynahs hide in the shades
not bothering about food,
the tired leaves
of July,
      keeps falling
          and then
          hesitant
      again,
the air
      unmoving,
           hot,
still silence.



26/02/2025
**********


And this is the original poem, posted on this blog 15 years ago, that was used to "write it backwards". It is reproduced below.


Spring


still silence
the air
hesitant
to move

the leaves of spring
are not green
not yet
like sighs
sun crisped
they drop
from boughs
to the asphalt
by my feet.



written 14/02/2010
Chinese New Year
revised 07/03/2010
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So dear reader, which poem do you prefer? After writing the new one, I still think the original is better, sharp and to the point. What I like about the new one is it goes like a single breath.

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2025

Read Between The Lines

Recently, at my other blog, I did a series of erasure or black-out poetry. I took old newspapers and magazines, even on-line posts, took a marker pen (digital too) and started blacking out lines. Looking back, mostly what was created was not poetry, but it was fun doing it.

I chose five, which I think are the best of the lot, for your reading pleasure.

If you want to read the whole nine-yards click the LINE HERE.


Read Between The Lines


#4

skip socialising today
You may be reminded of a debt

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#8

a spider's web across
eyeballs

the truth
must be shining with light

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#9

having fun should not be hard
you need to pay attention to it

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#10

you always carry lots of money.
That's the problem.

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#17

No history could tell the secret
of that have always existed on the fringes,
the witch doctor
the hidden temples
the jungle tribe

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Really, my mind has a blackout almost every day, and you want to talk to me about poetry?
- dsnake1's muse

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2021

a tourist strolling through the Gion district at night

Around this time last year, I was preparing to visit Japan...

photo of a Kyoto bar by YunPing


a tourist strolling through the Gion district at night


A cold autumn wind unexpectedly greets us
blowing from behind as we exit Sanjo Station.

Coming from the river, the chill shakes billboards,
descends on the crowd going to Pontocho Alley.

Even at this hour, 9 p.m., in this slight rain,
from the stations, the main roads, the hotels,
groups of people talking, laughing, taking selfies,
head towards this narrow, wet and dim alley.

Indistinct chatter in many languages, guffaws,
Japanese polite phrases, hang in the air.

Keeping a close eye on any puddles, or any geishas,
lit lanterns on almost every door or eaves,
my friend helpfully points out the lights to me.

Not the ones with names, clan crests, but
only the ones with a red symbol of a bird.

Pausing at one, he says that this is a geisha teahouse,
quaint, but expensive, if you want the experience.

Resuming our walk, the crowd is still not thinning,
slanted light pours out of a bar as a door opens.

The banter of gruff men floats over, phlegm laced.
Under this dark, rainy sky they could be yakuza,
vying for one last fling of greatness.

We are exiting the alley to a busy road, the
x on our maps showing the next train station.

Yearning for the warm beds of our hotel, we
zero in on a takoyaki stall to end the night.


12/10/2020
**********

This is an Abecedarian poem. It is a poem that uses all the 26 letters in the alphabet chronologically, each letter starting a new line.

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Theme song from anime movie Castle in the Sky - Carrying You

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2020

a poem with no last vowel

I have written a poem with no 'E's. That was a tough one. Now I have written one with no 'U's. This was an easy one.

photo by Harsh Solanki at Unsplash



a poem with no last vowel



i told her i wanted to write a poem with no last vowel.
what's a last vowel? she asked.
i pointed a finger at her.
she pointed at her chest, eyebrows knitted.

took a swig of bacardi from a whisky glass.
loved the sharp clink of crystal, so melodic.

she in her lingerie, prone on the bed was so distracting.
finished the poem?, she asked.
what was she hinting?
i pointed a finger at her, shook my head.

took another long hit from the whisky glass.
perhaps this was not a good time to write poetry.


26/08/2020
**********

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Band-Maid - Daydreaming

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2020

dark side of the moon, part #3

what an early morning walk through the neighbourhood can do to you...

photo by dsnake1



dark side of the moon, part #3


adjust your eyes to the night awhile. the long line of street lights, they are zombies coming out to play.

do not touch that empty plastic bag rolling, flailing across the zebra crossing. do you feel any wind?

no flowering trees around, but a scent of frangipani? and that lady just ahead, is she waiting for a taxi?



2018, or thereabouts
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"ashes
swirling
swirling
at your
bare feet"

-dsnake1, glimpse

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2020

dark side of the moon, part #2

imagine what a messed-up chair top can inspired...

photo by dsnake1



dark side of the moon, part #2



we have to land, she says. we have to jettison some stuff. the fuel, some cargo.
but the people down there, the villages?
fuck the villages, she says

and she runs her ferrari right through the lights...


20/10/2018
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this piece partly inspired by news of supercar drivers behaving badly...

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Rolling Stones - Paint It Black

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2020

a poem with no 'E's

Some years back, at a local poetry forum where I used to hang out, there was a challenge to write a poem without the vowel 'E'. I thought, wow, it must be difficult. It was. But I managed to write one. I wasn't too satisfied with the original and did an edit on it. Below is the result.

I wonder if any of you have written a poem without 'E'. I am thinking of writing a poem each without an a, i , o and u, but the thought of writing one is already pretty scary. :)

image by dsnake1




coming home



midnight
at my corridor

i
thought i saw things
      unholy

a shadow
      gliding
at a lift landing

as a dog howls,
primordial,

distant

barking at

a sky of rusty slag
      bulging
with a storm

a wind mobilizing
X-wings
swooping in

on dim corridors
in
attack flights

as i turn
a lock
on my door

and walk 

into a warm room
to my child
hugging a pikachu

smiling
waiting
for daddy.



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
08.07.05
revised 26.04.07
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"Not happy? Okay, stand up and fight!"

-- dsnake1, a quote with no 'E'.


Shared on Poetry Pantry #170 at Poets United

photo by dsnake1


Sherry, this is for you. The blue sky I mentioned in your comment. Taken near my home today. :)

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© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2013

stoic

I wrote this for "A River Of Stones" writing challenge two years back. The aim is to write a short verse every day in the month of January.

This poem was inspired by the rainy weather we were experiencing then. Plus, going back to work in the middle of the night on an emergency call wouldn't make for cheery writings. :)





photo by gracey
image from morguefile.com



stoic



how long have the pigeons
huddled on the wet ledge
from the incessant rain
that has been falling
since dawn?
and
i
in my warm room
still feel a chill when i see
them shake their feathers ever
so slightly when an angry rush of wind
howls across this rain-lashed apartment block.



30/01/2011
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"If you are going through hell, keep going."

-- Winston S. Churchill



This poem is for participation at Poetry Pantry -#131 at Poets United.

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©cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ) 2013

Haiku Heights September Challenge

I took part in Haiku Heights' September Challenge, writing a haiku a day for the whole month. All the poems are posted at my other blog, "i write too". It has been a great experience, and I have come out with some good ones (in my opinion). Also, I have come across some great and talented poets in the course of the challenge.

It's time for a break. If you, dear readers, are interested, click on the drop-down menu to access the poems. Or, you can read the whole lot here, at i write too. Happy reading!

The Height of Haiku Challenge

Please choose Day 1 : Write Day 2 : Mirror Day 3 : Windmill Day 4 : Singer Day 5 : Flourish Day 6 : Kiss Day 7 : Hypnotic Day 8 : Hidden Day 9 : Yearn Day 10 : Magic Day 11 : [] [] Day 12 : Moon Day 13 : Liberty Day 14 : Elixir Day 15 : Patience Day 16 : Chime Day 17 : Winter Day 18 : Home Day 19 : Bold Day 20 : Feather Day 21 : Bubbles Day 22 : Bullseye Day 23 : Water Day 24 : Lost Day 25 : Cold Day 26 : Phoenix Day 27 : Poise Day 28 : Charm Day 29 : Rhythm Day 30 : Geylang

© cheong lee san ( dsnake1 ), 2011

A poem with no 'E's

Some time back, the poetry forum where I used to hang out organised a poetry exercise where the members were asked to write a poem without the vowel 'E'.

I wrote one, but I guessed it wasn't too good. I was trying too hard! Recently I took out the original, polished it up a bit, (come to think of it, it's almost a total redo), and here it is, a poem with no 'e's. :)



image from www.bigfoto.com


coming back



midnight
at my corridor

i
thought i saw things
      unholy

a shadow
      gliding
at a lift landing

as a dog howls,
primordial,
      distant

barking at

a sky of rusty slag
      bulging
with a storm

a wind mobilizing
X-wings
swooping in

on dim corridors
in
attack flights

as i turn
a lock
on my door

and walk
into a warm room
to my child
hugging a pikachu

smiling
waiting
for daddy.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
08.07.05
revised 26.04.07
****************


I wanted the title to be "coming home", but no 'e's, you know.
I would love to do a sketch too, but it's hard to draw dim corridors or x-wings. Truth is, I am a bit lazy this week. :)