#448 L'ombre Céleste

The sky comes
on little fog feet.

It pauses for
maximum visual
impact before

moving on round 
the corner & then 
disappearing
down the alleyway.

#447 The Encounter

What fundamentalist church do 
the bilboquets belong to? Is this 
an awkward preamble in that 
once-a-year formal meeting at 
which the offspring are instructed 
who their lifetime partner will be?
Are there other opportunities to 
encounter members of another 
gender outside of gospel rallies 
& church hall meetings? How 
often do they hold dances? Do
they hold dances? Could this be
actually a prelude to a dance, both
sides uncertain how to proceed to
better know one another without
yet getting too close? Why is the 
outside angry? Where are the walls
to shut it out. Who defines forever?
When will the curtain be drawn?

#446 The Cicerone

Instead of a trident he holds
a candelabra. Instead of

candles it holds apartment
buildings — not large ones, 

just three storeys each. In-
stead of residents, they hold 

stories. For a small fee, the
cicerone will recount them.

A few cents more, & he'll
embellish with special effects.

#445 L'heure d'été

  


Maybe it depends upon the
country you live in. But instead 
of images of sunburnt masculinity, 
a perfume called Summertime in
these parts conjures up those 

several fevers whose vector is 
mosquitoes. Plus heat. & either 
humidity, the occasional hurri-
cane, lots of rain, or else an 
infinite dryness that brings 

only drought, depending on
which specific part of the 
land you live on. The smell of 
summertime is usually sweat — 
& where's the poetry in that? 
 

#444 Le Fin du Temps

The end of time presents as a
simple act of prestidigitation,
able to be reversed by a sequence
of triggers. It wears a black suit
when alone at home; but any time
it ventures out, sequins are de rig-
ueur, in the long-held belief that
the light catching on them will
assist the efficacy of the illusion,
much like movement of the other
hand draws the eye away from
where the legerdemain is actually
being carried out. There are other
disguises. This end of time is pre-
faced by perspective done on the
cheap — the faux wood floor tilts
upwards, & seemingly sitting a-
top its sloping edge is a rococo
frame. Not with an inset mirror;
instead an oval piece of plywood
with symmetrical jigsawn decor-
ation. It is a mirror, though. Look
into it & see laid out how time runs
backwards now. Turn round & look
ahead. That distant dot is time's end.

#443 The Secret Life III

Rodents & small humans
inhabit the tunnel that runs
beneath the clouds. They are
currently extinct, though the
occasional fossil may still be
found. A plucked stalactite
rests against the wall that holds
the outside in. There are four
openings out into a potential
void — hard to be sure, since
each has a screensaver which
is full of clouds — that take it
in turns to show newsreels
of previous wars. The size of
the openings determines what
centuries the newsreels date
from. Screening times will
be written on the blackboard
when the clouds wake up.