Small Talk E-Book

Gordon Carrega

• Herausgeber: Books on Demand
• Kategorie: Poesie und Drama
• Sprache: Englisch
• Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Seitenzahl: 51

Beschreibung

Small talkers of the world, unite! Gordon Carrega has given us our manifesto. Arm yourself with this book and forget about words of wisdom.

Leseprobe

For Ulla

CONTENTS

Night Owls

Didn’t Spend

Stones

Empty Day

Your Voice

Enjoy

Just Talent

What

Never Think

Flowers

Forever

Here Comes

On My Way

Calm

The Same

Mutual

Hope

I Will

One Glove

But Actually

In My Arms

Exactly

Beginnings

No More

So What

I’ll Be There

That’s That

I would like to thank the Berlin-based video artist Wenfeng Liao. His workwas the inspiration for two lines in the poem In My Arms. The lines are:

“Even my spurs can’t make my desk chair gallop.”

“One flower in the wind like a metronome gone mad.”

Gordon Carrega lives in Berlin, Germany. He has published five previous books: Back Gate, A Place to Stay, Life of the Party, Up Ahead, and Excursions.

In all the world

There is no way whatever.

The stag cries even

In the most remote mountains.

Fujiwara No Toshinari

translated by Kenneth Rexroth

NIGHT OWLS

Night owls on the prowl mix their metaphors and don’t give a hoot. I’m Ok for now, that’s enough for now. Birthday parties keep happening, usually after sundown. Choose your reality, face up to it.

I went out of my way in order to get out of the way. Disorganizing my organized thoughts, I’m now aware of what I wasn’t aware of previously. A postcard from no one has finally arrived. Do you love me now that I can dance?

Seeing as how I already see and wait, I’ll now wait and see. Don’t bother me with before and after, later is just fine. Nietzsche wrote that his whole philosophy was about rising above resentment.

Nostalgia, using the past wisely. The world’s a stage, you’re on next. Nothing to worry about, worry about the nothing. Let me hear your voice. All men are brothers, that’s the problem. At the moment I’m not thinking of anyone.

Thanks for cleaning my reading glasses. I can now see the spaces between the lines. Too tired today to be impulsive. The soup is on. I mean, soup’s on. The performance left me to my own resources, my empty mind, though casting my glance variously at the folks in the audience I was also performing right there in my seat.

If I were to trust what I feel I would be crazy by now. During the day do what you can to take care of your health, at night do what you can to ruin your health. I had meant what I said, however saying I was sorry eased my conscience.

Onward, ever onward. Go ahead while I stagger along, staying right here. Nod wisely, squint a bit, even if you don’t get what I’m saying. Asked the neighbours speaking loudly outside my bedroom window if they would mind shutting up, seemed they did mind.

When will the spirit move me? Walking alone in the wide field I scatter my words, crows circling overhead, cawing in harmony. I didn’t have to turn out to be the way I am but that’s who I am.

Today I need a certain arrogance not to lose my mind. Time is not the same for all of us even when it’s the same time.

DIDN’T SPEND

Didn’t spend the day, the day never occurred to me. Because onto yourself. Correction, be a cause onto yourself. Neither of us knew what to say, we agreed on not knowing. An invitation from a friend to see a particular film, the film being important to him, should I go as an act of friendship even though the film doesn’t interest me?

Leaving for holiday, looking forward to my return. The novel was hard to follow as I read the pages in sequence, switched to reading every other page. Strolling home, summer twilight, just me on the sidewalk of the street where I live, the usual bus slowly passing, well-lit inside and no passengers, I feel weightless, floating in the glow of the old familiar.

What’s preferable, knowing nothing or not knowing anything? Stayed in all day yesterday, bored and restless, wishing for somewhere to go. Today a few appointments, already miss my yesterday. He informed me that I only knew half the story, didn’t say which half nor did he tell me the other half.

Standing to put on my black Levis, fell to the floor, entangled in the pants’ legs. Told I looked sad, answered I didn’t feel sad. Assured that I certainly looked sad, looked in the mirror, I did look rather sad, decided to go ahead and feel sad.

Trust is mystical. She turned away from me then smiled or did she smile then turn away, happened so fast. A glass of wine in the café, reading the menu over and over again from cover to cover for I had forgotten my book.

No advice, simply tell me what to do. Music called the blues helps you to overcome the blues while you tear your hair out, that’s the idea. Did you see what I just saw? Rise above or rise below.

Discussing the opinions of someone who is already dead, can I say I agree with him, or must I use the past tense, saying, for example, I always agreed with him, or I used to agree with him? Can I still agree with someone who’s already dead?

STONES

I told him how exhilarating it had been to watch the video of the Rolling Stones performing in Cuba, he replied that he didn’t like the Rolling Stones. Targeted by the wish of no story. Let’s wait until the bus comes.

Looked back, so did he, we didn’t wave. Duration of arrival, possessed by I am here. List of things to do, etc. etc. etc. Dark blue, right colour for never. Back in town for a few days, phoned an old friend from the hotel lobby.