salad dweller

When it comes to debt ac-
cumulation, the young 
lotus leaf, a new release 
of the original 1913 edit-
ion, is ideal for industry 
professionals & insurance 
lawyers. It has served as 
personal physician to Duke 

Albert I of Saxony, & has a
single metal wheel mounted 
on painted wood. Nearby, we 
also have today a number 
of helpful YouTube videos 
crafted from my best recipes.

stress balloon

 

100 Titles From Tom Beckett: #92

To Be is Irregular

Come the 21st Century; & so
many new pronouns have
entered the language that
some verbs can't work out
how to service them all. Stress
rises to the surface. Conditions
commence. The symptoms 
that are displayed will often 
depend on how tense they 
are. Past participles present 
with a shaking that resembles 
palsy, past simple with an ir-
regular pulse. As infinitive, has
been known to split. Only the
present participle seems able 
to remain immune, there on 
its platform, legs crossed, eyes 
closed, palms open to the sky. 
Sitting quite still. Simply being. 

wednesday false news trip

BidenMyTime said he would leave office if he can't pass cognitive test · a deadly contagion known as Disease X is emerging · the number of voters registering without a photo ID is skyrocketing in 3 key swing states: Arizona, Texas, & Pennsylvania, evidence that migrants who entered the country illegally are registering to vote · Israel said that the deaths of seven aid workers from World Central Kitchen in the Gaza Strip were caused by a roadside bomb planted by Hamas · Washington state passed a bill that will incentivize people to report hate speech & bias on a 24/7 hotline with a cash reward · a Fargo, North Dakota, man was arrested for clearing snow with a flamethrower · former US president DoNuts T.®ump faces criminal charges for taking out a loan & paying it back.

Meanwhile, in the backwoods

Metal brackets, 18 carat 
white gold men's wedding 
ring, no glitch. Advanced 

technology, the image 
printed directly onto can-
vas, rounded & beveled, 

art deco style, a euphem-
ism for describing queer 
people. A real all rounder.

geographies: Wartook

 

She was an oboe player in the Peloponnesian War

Salvage crews begin removing a block 
of heavily armed infantry standing 
shoulder to shoulder. I drive into town. 
My cassette collection has disappeared.

I pass a grid planting of trees in a garden.
There is no command radius but is there 
a spin limit? Column to phalanx, ultra 
high density endcapping, thoracic skele-

ton with an acetabular articular facet; but 
head-on against a similarly arrayed enemy 
they couldn't exist without the shield. It's 
hard to say who is most dangerous. Pike 

animations still suggest a #MeToo reckon-
ing, but after articulating the manuscript 
submitted by the dockside warehouse
it seems the tumor rarely presents in the 

hand. That might be true; but she, usually 
accompanied by her loyal trigger finger,
makes the most of her preferences by joy-
fully clicking the 'Cookie Settings' button.

wednesday newstrip

Marjorie Taylor Greene claims New York City's recent earthquake was God telling America to 'repent' · Fox host vexed by BidenMyTime’s good job numbers finds a solution – give the credit to T.®ump · McDonald's to buy back 225 franchised outlets in Israel after it was criticized for giving away thousands of free meals to Israeli soldiers · Robert F. Kennedy Jr. retracts false statement that no J6 rioters carried weapons · Italian island giving away its goats after numbers overwhelm human population · army of ladybugs deployed in Darwin to combat exotic papaya mealybug infestation · former president DoNuts T.®ump has privately said he could end Russia’s war in Ukraine by pressuring Ukraine to give up some territory.

geographies: Meeniyan

 

wednesday newstrip

DoNuts T.®ump believed Nepal was part of India — & he thought it was pronounced 'nipple' · US firm AT&T says data of 73 million customers leaked on ‘dark web’ · India bans Australian Broadcasting Corporation broadcasts on Sikh separatist killing · ex-T.®ump adviser says former president 'hasn’t got the brains' for dictatorship · 2022 video shows California police fatally shooting teenager who was reported kidnapped · Truth Social shares go into freefall after investors learn how much money it really makes · Botswana offers to send 20,000 elephants to Germany · Helldivers 2 players finally liberate Malevelon Creek, aka 'Robot Vietnam'.

geographies: Cohuna

 

wednesday newstrip

At least 12 Palestinians drown trying to retrieve 'useless' aid parcels dropped into sea · family group charged with stealing $16,000 worth of groceries from an Auckland supermarket, walking out with six trolleys full of goods · a viral video is claiming to show the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse from a large explosion; the video actually shows an explosion on Kerch bridge between Crimea & Russia in 2022 · also in New Zealand, Gisborne's rainbow crossing has been restored after a protest group linked with Destiny Church covered it over in white paint in protest of a drag event · Moscow has vowed to build two entire new armies before the end of the year amid fears President Putain is planning an eventual strike against Europe · Prince Harry named in $30m sex abuse lawsuit against Sean 'Diddy' Combs.

Today the post-
woman brought
me the macaw
I'd ordered

off the internet.
Caveat emptor —
I got sent a
Scottish crow.

geographies: Longerenong

 

wednesday newstrip

Man dies after falling from hot-air balloon in Melbourne’s north · Putain has no successor, no living rivals & no retirement plan – his eventual death will set off a vicious power struggle · Uber to pay Australian taxi operators $272 million in class action settlement · Sharon Stone names co-star she was told she had to sleep with to ‘save’ a movie · billion-dollar deal to supply Australian-made Boxer military vehicles to Germany signed · first patient of Elongated Muskrat's Neuralink brain chip implant demonstrates playing online chess with his mind · DoNuts T.®ump has promised to "root out" what he called "radical left thugs that live like vermin within the confines of our country that lie & steal & cheat on elections".

headline & response

Whatever, Thor.

wednesday newstrip

Swept away: $500,000 sand dune built to protect US homes in Massachusetts disappears in days · McDonald’s restaurants hit by technology outage at outlets across Australia · vote against T.®ump, former supporters urge in $50m video campaign · Pandemic PPE: how Australia entrusted a small-time retailer with $100m & got 46m unusable masks · Covid-19: U.K. Government writes off £10bn on unusable, overpriced, or undelivered PPE · fury as waste disposal firms are given £35million of taxpayers' money to burn unused PPE · the Australian Tax Office is reviving old tax debts totalling billions, threatening some taxpayers with bankruptcy · Love Lies Bleeding stars Kristen Stewart in a blood-splattering revenge tale that is already queer heart-throb canon.

geographies : Newmerella

 

wednesday newstrip

South-east Australia to bake in near-record heat while cyclone threat returns to north · as Gaza teeters on the brink of famine, Israeli girls drink water & try to block aid trucks at the border · Tasmanian dumpster divers tell supermarket prices inquiry about 'massive' food waste · Irish referendums: voters reject changes to family & care definition in the constitution · ‘Not good enough’: Australian Federal Minister lashes Meta as losses rise from scams on Facebook · a video of three children with their wrists cabled-tied together was taken in Broome, Western Australia, earlier this week, & sparked national outrage.

geographies: Callawadda

rare bits

wednesday newstrip

Out-of-control wildfires scorch Texas Panhandle, prompt shutdown of nuclear weapons facility · T.®ump's claim of being a 'prophet' appears to be a sign of his 'mental disorder' · University of Florida terminating all diversity, equity & inclusion positions · changes around Māori language come into focus as New Zealand government approaches 100-day milestone · thousands defy Kremlin to attend Navalny’s funeral · Haiti violence: gangs free 4,000 inmates in mass jailbreak · new RMIT, CDU study finds cannabis has 'deadly' effect on melanomas in laboratory · proposed class action lawsuit accuses Apple of monopolizing cloud storage for its devices · controversial pro-life society at University of Manchester founded by a male president who 'opposes abortion' shares photo of its first official meeting after the event was met by thousands of protesters · DoNuts T.®ump suffered his first loss in a GOP 2024 primary on Sunday, & he didn't take it very well.

Ruby Tuesday

A couple of notices.

Have a chapbook, Melancholy, out from SurVision Books.

(Cover image by Victoria Chernyakhivska)
Available at http://www.survisionmagazine.com/jamestateprizewinners.htm.
Price €7.50 plus postage.

*
At Dichtung Yammer, Thomas Fink has an exchange with me about "A line from Mick Jagger," a poem included in my recent Ley Lines II, out from Sandy Press & available through Amazon.

Mick Jagger seems quite excited about it.

Don't ask why

because I have no idea, but Ogden Nash is running around in my head this morning.

I think that I shall never see
A billboard lovely as a tree.
Indeed, unless the billboards fall
I'll never see a tree at all.

(&, in passing, I never knew, or perhaps had forgotten, that Joyce Kilmer was a guy.)

wednesday newstrip

Kilt-wearing pervert is arrested after going into antique stores & shoving items up his rectum before placing them 'back on the shelf for display' · Victorian man vanishes after receiving about $500,000 in cryptocurrency account error · DoNuts T.®ump wins South Carolina Republican presidential primary beating out the state's former governor Nikki HailMary · Australia is condemned as a 'police state' after Americans notice unusual detail at Taylor Swift's sold-out concert in Sydney · China's new patriotic education law targets its people living overseas, but is law possible to be enforced in Australia? · Ukraine war: Zelensky says 31,000 troops killed since Russia's full-scale invasion · NotJustanyahoo: Cease-fire would only delay Rafah invasion 'somewhat.'

Now out from Otoliths

Otoliths has just released my un saut de chat.

Mark Young
un saut de chat
b&w
118 pages
ISBN: 978-0-6455483-2-7
$US17.45
Direct URL: https://www.lulu.com/shop/mark-young/un-saut-de-chat/paperback/product-v8k9n2k.html?page=1&pageSize=4

“I’m a couple of years into my ninth decade, & have decided it’s time to tidy a few things up, specifically creating some trope-based collections, rather than collections of recent work.

“Retrospectively, my Ley Lines II that came out in November 2023 from Sandy Press should probably be considered the first collation: a single trope (‘A line from . . .’), a significant number of poems (just under 100), & written over a number of years (2014-2021).

“un saut de chat is composed primarily of prose poems, with some found poems & a few ficciones included. There are around 140 pieces in the book, from the past twenty years. I feel, displayed this way, that it gives greater insight into thematic aspects of my work that are not so easy to discern otherwise.

“The next book in this loose grouping will be my entire Magritte poems, all twenty years of them. It will probably come in at around 600 pages, & be ready for printing around the end of the year.”


[Lulu have discounts running during the week. Promo codes for the current week can be found each Monday at the Lulu Press Facebook page.]

wednesday newstrip

DoNuts T.®ump must pay $US355 milllion in penalties, barred from NY business for three years, judge rules · key event in Sydney Mardi Gras calendar scrapped over asbestos mulch concerns · fake alligators at Riverview Park in Mesa, AZ., fooling people into calling emergency services · Federal politicians pass motion urging US & UK to allow Julian Assange's return to Australia · Kristen Stewart stripped down for the most recent cover of Rolling Stone last weeek, posing with her hand inside a jockstrap · getting the brush-off: First Nations artists walk away from Brisbane Portrait Prize over AI · jailed Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny dead at 47, region's prison service says · DoNuts T.®ump again threatens to sacrifice NATO allies to Russia.

wednesday newstrip

Israeli prime minister rejects Hamas cease-fire offer, vows to fight until 'absolute victory' · Woolworths responds to mud cake outrage after ‘final straw’ for Aussie shoppers · Pink is partnering with PEN America to distribute 2,000 banned books at her shows in South Florida, CNN reports · Taylor Swift has issued a cease & desist to a Florida college student who uses public data & social media to track her private jet · Sydney motorist ordered to surrender 'OCT7TH' personalized number plates · World Surf League spits on greatest ever surfer Carissa Moore after Lexus Pipe Pro exit · Notjustanyahoo tells Israeli army to prepare to evacuate Rafah before invasion to destroy Hamas — but where can 1.5 million Palestinians go?

geographies : Caniambo

 

Today the post-
woman brought
me a fart in a

jar. Damn that
voice recognition
AI software—I'd 

asked for a jam 
tart to go with my
morning coffee.

wednesday newstrip

A woman wearing what appears to be leather lingerie has been charged with drink driving following a collision with an e-bike in Sydney’s Moore Park overnight · BidenMyTime called T.®ump the 'sitting President' during January 2024 speech · Lowitja O’Donoghue, celebrated campaigner for Aboriginal Australians, dies aged 91 · Victorian police chief labels protesters who confronted police taking part in a Pride march 'an ugly rabble' · King Charles has reportedly given his blessing to Prince Andrew & Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, to remarry each other · rallies held in support of offshore wind farms as Newcastle, Wollongong residents hopeful of job opportunities · Australian academic Yang Hengjun given suspended death sentence by Chinese court.

Waitangi Day

https://theconversation.com/waitangi-day-2024-5-myths-and-misconceptions-that-confuse-the-treaty-debate-221973

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/has-this-years-waitangi-day-reached-flashpoint-maori-voices-speak-out/qr5ct96je

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-02-06/maori-protesters-nz-clash-with-nz-prime-minister-waitangi-day/103421202

wednesday newstrip

Australia must consider bringing back conscription as ‘all-out war’ with Russia looms, expert says · NotJustAnyahoo is defiant after UN court ruling, says Israel presses offensive for 'complete victory' · Rip Curl joins Australian swimwear companies in heavy pivot to growing trans market · women over 50 are the new gamers · Pram Minister Anthony Overeasy has been booed by the crowd at the Australian Open tennis men's final · North Korean leader Kim supervises tests of cruise missiles designed to be fired from submarines · activists throw soup at Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa in the Louvre in climate protest.

What AI is up to these days

aka The six-fingered demon who wants to rule the world.

Today the post-
woman brought
me Tropical Cy-
clone Kirrily. I
was blown away.

wednesday newstrip

Israeli Prime Minister BeenJammin’ NotJustAnyahoo rejects US calls for Palestinian state after Gaza war · Māori leaders & others in New Zealand attend a rare national meeting called by the Māori King due to concerns about the new government’s policies on indigenous rights · ex UK Prom Minister Bore-us Johnson says T.®ump back in White House is ‘what the world needs’ · Microsoft discovers state-backed Russian hackers accessed emails of some senior employees · Palworld, aka ‘Pokémon With Guns,’ is tearing up the steam & twitch charts · Jodie Foster is showing us all how to age naturally.

waiting in the wings

We're the red X.

Today the post-
woman brought
me a leporidae
farm. It had

been beautifully
maintained,
not a hare
out of place.

wednesday newstrip

Former New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern ties the knot with Clarke Gayford, as anti-vaxxers picket the wedding · Australian students handed ‘wellbeing shots’ made by subsidiary of British American Tobacco · DoNuts T.®ump returns to court for new E Jean Carroll trial – & it could prove costly · recovering the ‘Aryan worldview’: the Western Australian book publisher under scrutiny over far-right texts · console owners played more Fortnite than GTA V & Call Of Duty combined · “Chicest” is not a proper word, would not even be the best word to suit your intended meaning &, most of all, it's just such an ugly word · UN says Gaza war 'staining humanity' on eve of 100th day as Houthis vow to retaliate against US strike.

Now Out From Otoliths

Otoliths has just released David Jalajel’s Snapshots from the Ark.

David Jalajel
Snapshots from the Ark
b&w
illustrated
138 pages
ISBN: 978-06455483-1-0
$US17.95
Direct URL: https://www.lulu.com/shop/david-jalajel/snapshots-from-the-ark/paperback/product-655yzjy.html?page=1&pageSize=4

Until midnight this Friday, Lulu have a 10% discount running. Promo code: SNOWDAY10. Promo codes for future weeks can be found each Monday at the Lulu Press Facebook page.

Here is a bestiary with a weird taxonomy of “Dead Ducks”, “Dead Dinos” and “Dead Bugs”, describing the bizarre relationships people have with the animals it catalogues. Partially inspired by player mechanics involving video game animals, the relationships portrayed are exploitative, often abusive and always focus on people’s needs and concerns.

Snapshots from the Ark takes John Shoptaw’s maxim that “[h]uman interests cannot be the be-all and end-all of an ecopoem” and turns it on its head by taking human interests as the “nature” poet’s single-minded concern. Each poem zeroes in on a different way people act as if their interests are all that matter. The animals are opportunities to present unflattering and painful portraits of our worst anthropocentric tendencies.

So are they ecopoems? By holding a mirror way too close to our noses, they show us the ugliness of acting with indifference to the creatures who share the world with us. In this way, the poems raise our awareness about the consequences of our actions. Yet, they do so while being zany and fun, like when people clear-cut a forest using a giant crab that whacks down trees with dinosaurs clasped in its claws.

These poems unsettle us, make us uncomfortable, challenge the way we think, and hopefully inspire us to change the way we behave.

     — Flamur Vehapi, from his review on Otoliths

Blurbs

We live in a post-Ark world. And said world’s a bit (or more) messed up. But why would we think the messed-up world that caused the flood would be different after the floodwaters recede? Humanity is… humanity, nothing more and nothing less. David Jalajel’s Snapshots from the Ark is but a metaphor for that comprehension, except that it contains humour. The poet is wise to understand how one of the most effective weapons against evil is humour, and such is also what makes these poems worthwhile:

It has the dead-eyed stare of someone
who’s seen death and lived to tell the tale —

Plus it’s Scottish. And it grins up at you
like a little boy seeing his first pair of boobs.

     — Eileen R. Tabios

Imagine that David Jalajel were in Noah’s shoes, receiving instructions from the deity to form an ark of “gopherwood” covered “inside and outside with pitch” (Genesis 6:14) in which to place pairs of species. We would soon learn the who’s who of beings to be rescued from the ensuing flood: survivors, sea monsters, dead dinos, dead beasts, dead ducks, dragons, and dead bugs. How fitting that David Jalajel employs couplets mirroring the pairs. Each poem speaks to the reader in conversational tone with clarity, caveats, and hilarity. “Ammonite” begins:

That sucker’s
a total crybaby

Just give it
a good slap—

And from “Pegomastax”:

If you see one of these, aim it at
the nearest national bank and run.

They say the perfect pegomastax
can steal your credit card details.

Snapshots from the Ark is a brilliantly envisioned work encompassing all manner of life lessons from observing each being.

     — Sheila E. Murphy

Today the post-
woman brought
me a mid-
life crisis

& a Ferrari
in a color that
matched my
blood’s hot eyes.
  

wednesday newstrip

Israel's Prime Minister BeenJammin’ NotJustAnyahoo says military seeks full control of Gaza-Egypt border · heiress to the L’Oreal cosmetics throne becomes first woman to amass $100 billion · Kanye West’s Aussie wife Bianca Censori ‘laid the smackdown’ before his shock apology after a series of anti-Semitic tirades · Australia went to war in Iraq based on ‘oral reports’ to cabinet from then Pram Minister John Howard · new Queensland dangerous dog law won’t have enough bite, claims RSPCA · nearly 200 names linked to Jeffrey Epstein expected to be made public · the phallus on a prominent Māori sculpture in Te Āpiti – Manawatū Gorge has been cut off by vandals, shocking the stakeholders of the popular reserve.

wednesday newstrip

Apple has been barred from selling one of its best known products amid claims it stole the technology from a much smaller company · Israeli minister hints at retaliatory actions taken in Iraq, Yemen, Iran · Chinese chess champion stripped of title after defecating in hotel bathtub, alleged anal beads cheating · The New York Times sued ChatGPT-maker OpenAI & Microsoft in a US court on Wednesday, alleging that the companies' powerful AI models used millions of articles for training without permission · a frustrated regional council in Western Australia has erected signs warning drivers against using Google maps after GPS-based directions repeatedly sent travelers down unsafe roads · Maine bars DoNuts T.®ump from ballot as US Supreme Court weighs state authority to block former prissygent.