Alex+Johnson

My Poetry
//**3/10/11 - Ode to Charlie Sheen**// Inspiration: []

Tiger blood burning through your veins And the smell of last nights drinks fill the air You are powerful Brick walls of cocaine disappear at your very sight Running through your house In nothing but boxers, socks, and a heart full of strength Die not like Ledger, for you need not meet his fate Because long will your screams fill the air "I'm not bipolar. I'm bi-winning."

//**3/16/11 - I Was Raised by**// I was raised by Gun slinging Smoke in the air "Get some!" Kind of heroes

Those wall climbing Treasure hunting Snatch and go "We have to find it!" Kind of adventurers

Some smack talking Risk taking All out "Bring the heat!" Kind of leaders

Some skull crushing World saving By the book "Mission complete." Kind of brothers

Some wall running High speed No fear "Flow with the environment" Kind of stunt junkies

Some intergalactic Other world Do-gooders "Save the pandas!" Kind of heroes

By those rough and rowdy Fight ending "Is that all you got?" Kind of warriors

By some post apocalyptic Gun making All rounder "I stand alone" Kind of survivalists

I WAS RAISED BY VIDEO GAMES

//**3/15/11 - Sonnet**// Oh Shakespeare why? Must we suffer this fate I only want to just relax. Rest now. For night is near. You need not feel my hate. As I write this piece my mind wonders how How can I sit writing this piece that blos Say over once and yet over once again Why must we suffer this lame tale that grows But realize poetry is my pain Shoot, run! Duck quickly to cover. My mind is fixed. But push on I shall to end this sonnet Still I write with my weary feelings mixed I know that soon I can go on the net

//**How Can You Be So Strong?**// How can you be so strong? Through all thats happened to you, still you stand With that graceful smile, looking so composed. How do you stay so strong? Even through this whole ordeal. But now I see you falling, but fear not. I will catch you my dear After all you've been through it's ok To let your walls come down because now I will be strong for you No matter the situation or place I will be strong for you Putting back up your walls And making them breathe new life I'll be strong for you

//**Roses**// @ )--'--,--- Thy hallowed thorn Which has pierced the flesh and souls of many As cries of joy resound Like song of ancient sirens. Blood drips upon thy broken flesh As she runs through your veins Like rampant virus

Statement About my Poetry
My poetry is usually a complex undertaking. I feel like a lot of my poetry has an inspiration. Most often, my poetry will be fueled by politics, digital media, or recent ongoings in the world. I think the thing that makes my poetry unique is that I make emphasis on a lot of the words. Usually I will write in a lot of enjambments. That enhances the overall flow of the poem. Another technique I like to use is the speed at which I write it. Most often, you can feel poetry if it is being read. All of my poetry is written in a way that it will make a lot of sense if read. That also allows for the power of it to be captured.

Poems of Choice from Other Poets and Analysis
//** Read Your Fate **//** by Charles Simic ** A world's disappearing. Little street, You were too narrow, Too much in the shade already.

You had only one dog, One lone child. You hid your biggest mirror, Your undressed lovers.

Someone carted them off In an open truck. They were still naked, travelling On their sofa

Over a darkening plain, Some unknown Kansas or Nebraska With a storm brewing. The woman opening a red umbrella

In the truck. The boy And the dog running after them, As if after a rooster With its head chopped off.

Charles Simic achieves an outlandish and reflective poem by using imagery to address carelessness as well as regret. Charles Simic approaches the topic of regret in a very forceful way. He kind of dances around the topic, masking its silhouette but not exposing its true face. The actions in this poem have a lot to do with loss. For example the line "A world's disappearing" could represent a myriad of things. The main thing it represents here is that people are rapidly and swiftly vanishing, even from plain sight. This is reinforced by the lines "Someone carted them off In an open truck." I believe this poem is a way of talking or starting a conversation about a touchy topic such as human trafficking. A lot of the imagery in this poem can range from serene distraught all the way to severe panic. In the line "The boy And the dog running after them" really expresses a sense of urgency. This also reinforces the idea that someone has been kidnapped or sold off.

//** Eyes Fastened With Pins **//** by Charles Simic ** How much death works, No one knows what a long Day he puts in. The little Wife always alone Ironing death's laundry. The beautiful daughters Setting death's supper table. The neighbors playing Pinochle in the backyard Or just sitting on the steps Drinking beer. Death, Meanwhile, in a strange Part of town looking for Someone with a bad cough, But the address somehow wrong, Even death can't figure it out Among all the locked doors... And the rain beginning to fall. Long windy night ahead. Death with not even a newspaper To cover his head, not even A dime to call the one pining away, Undressing slowly, sleepily, And stretching naked On death's side of the bed.

The poet's use of image and tone creates an intense atmosphere of realism and intriguing metaphors. The poet allows for the images of the poem to be displayed vividly because of the use of language and tone. The majority of the poem is made up of enjambments but also includes line breaks. The pauses created work to enhance the overall flow of the poem. The pattern of the poem seems to be starting from early day/midday with the writer following death. Then it cuts to a scene at his home and cuts back to death, carrying on the story from the afternoon to night. I think the main point or image of this poem is how death has to go and do his job but if he isn't on time, then people out live their time. It could also be perceived as sorrowful because it's as if the guy who escaped death is mocking death himself by living another day. The family seems almost jubilant because they seem to drift through their actions with ease while death seems stressed to a degree. A lot of the words used in the poem are very powerful and allow you to read it as if you were watching it unfold in front of you. The overall image that death himself is an almost normal being that just travels to collect souls etc is really interesting. The way that the author built the character of death was very unique. He seemed to build around the character instead of making the character to a set definition and revolving the rest of the poem around that. It's more like he made the poem then added in death as a character and allowed him to fill different roles (parent, husband, dead soul collector).

//** In the Library **//** by Charles Simic ** There's a book called "A Dictionary of Angels." No one has opened it in fifty years, I know, because when I did, The covers creaked, the pages Crumbled. There I discovered

The angels were once as plentiful As species of flies. The sky at dusk Used to be thick with them. You had to wave both arms Just to keep them away.

Now the sun is shining Through the tall windows. The library is a quiet place. Angels and gods huddled In dark unopened books. The great secret lies On some shelf Miss Jones Passes every day on her rounds.

She's very tall, so she keeps Her head tipped as if listening. The books are whispering. I hear nothing, but she does.

The poet's use of image and metaphors creates a sense of intrigue. In the poem, there are a lot of references to angels. I believe that the multiple references to angels are attributed to the subject matter. The poem is talking about a library and all of the knowledge contained in its old dusty books. It is likely that the angels are like flowing free knowledge waiting to be seen. A lot of the details are fairly vivid. Although the lines are mostly short, each line has a unique crisp image and allows not only for great visualization, but also for flow. Most of the lines are enjambments. This helps to enhance the overall images. Another explanation for the multitude of references to angels is that they represent the peace and tranquility of the knowledge in the older books. The books seem to have been untouched for years. This means that when someone picks it up to read it, they will be given that knowledge. But if it was a more popular book, the knowledge would be distorted and in unrest because so many people would have clashing ideas. That is why the poem gives off a sense of mystery and invokes intrigue. I think the main reason behind this poem is that the author wants people to pick up a random book to read every once in a while. People will learn something new if they pick up some no name book by an unheard of author from centuries ago.

//** The Diameter of the Bomb **//** by Yehuda Amichai ** The diameter of the bomb was thirty centimeters and the diameter of its effective range about seven meters, with four dead and eleven wounded. And around these, in a larger circle of pain and time, two hospitals are scattered and one graveyard. But the young woman who was buried in the city she came from, at a distance of more than a hundred kilometers, enlarges the circle considerably, and the solitary man mourning her death at the distant shores of a country far across the sea includes the entire world in the circle. And I won't even mention the howl of orphans that reaches up to the throne of God and beyond, making a circle with no end and no God.

Yehuda Amichai achieves a great sense of grief, as well as destruction through powerful imagery. A lot of the power from the poem comes from the detail of his dialogue and language. For example, in the first line it reads "The diameter of the bomb was thirty centimeters". This really shows the level of intense imagery he wants to achieve from the start. As the poem develops further, his tone changes to reflect a sort of madness and urgency. The reader can almost feel the pain of those that suffer because of the bomb. All in all, the author makes you think about greater ideas such as war and ethics.The way he relates the victims from the devastation of the bomb to the overall loss and sorrow of the world really brings the imagery to another level. It allows for the reader to experience the bigger picture of the bomb and its aftermath.