Reanimated Lavender Granola Switchblade Nun rides again.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Kimberly & the Atomic Bomb

When Kimberly saw the atomic flash,
she didn't really care;
it just meant no more Gas N Go,
no more washing her hair.

No more filling out college apps,
no more diet fads and
no more having to hear that one sucky song til she pukes.

She thought of the times her mother had told her
how she came before she was due--
so tiny and fragile and blue--
but she said she had known her Kimmy was a fighter and would prove all the doctors wrong by surviving.

When Kimberly saw the atomic flash,
she sat on her bed and looked at the backs
of her hands as if she had never seen them before,

And the moon glowed red over the Gas N Go
like a rose on fire in the night.
_____

for DOLN #65.

22 comments:

  1. I realize that cool is probably not the right word for the mood behind this, but it's stuck in my head anyway. Like here:

    "When Kimberly saw the atomic flash,
    she sat on her bed and looked at the backs
    of her hands as if she had never seen them before"

    The perspective you give everything is what I think I'm most drawn to - that's the cool, I suppose :)

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  2. Good one, Fireblossom. Here you are at the "Big Box Store."

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  3. If this is how it's all gonna end, I'm OK with it.

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  4. This reminds me of my 'apocalypse now--please' tag...ya know, it's just not that big a deal some days...this is one of your more devilish works, where initially it appears mundane and all in the vernacular until upon listening more closely it suddenly seems to be speaking in tongues.

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  5. but i don't wanna glow in the dark!!!

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  6. i'm with lori mc above. that was my favorite part, too. like one finally notices something just before it's all gone...

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  7. ah, those mind-expansion hands! Haven't seen them in a while....
    HHHMMMMM



    Aloha from Waikiki,

    Comfort Spiral

    > < } } ( ° >

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  8. So cleverly written, so much behind the lines. It left me thinking and feeling something strange. Good write.

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  9. I was admiring that image of yours earlier today, wondering why she was missing just a few of her bones---the index finger and thumb, her faux shooter must have backfired on her.

    "how she came before she was due--
    so tiny and fragile and blue--" ... Hmmm. I like.

    "she sat on her bed and looked at the backs" ... This line on its own makes me think Kimmy is picturing old lovers.

    She has done it all. She has experienced an unbelievable number of things, even though she is only 18 or so. She has lived more in those few years than most people live in a lifetime.

    Your closing speaks of passion, and also of bad omens, beyond Kimmy's control. So I believe this atomic flash is a new lover who is so heartstopping that this might be the poor girl's last night on earth.

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  10. It's always an interesting tale when one comes in here. Love the closing lines. And ADORE the kitty in the babushka on the right!!!!!

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  11. there is a pretty cool rhythm to this...and hey the apocalypse will save us all kinds of headaches...think it can be scheduled before the next debate?

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  12. A rose on fire in the night is a great visual. Looks so beautiful, if you don't notice the thorns.
    It's strange, this also made me think of a patient getting an x-ray that might determine if tomorrow could yet be a seed to next year.
    I imagine the feeling very similar.
    Maybe resignation, maybe fear~but out of your hands.
    Very interesting piece, FB
    Lucky kim don't live in iowa where the big chain is "kum n go"
    Who thought that up?

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  13. Ya see, even at the end of the world, there's a bright side ;-)

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  14. How do you do it? You always take the most unique perspective and make it seem perfectly plausible and perhaps preferable. Masterful.

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  15. ...she didn't really care. it just meant no more... This just gets to me!

    Not the way I want to go, feeling forlorn, dispassionate.

    (and Brian... I can't WAIT for the next debates :)

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  16. I didn't get it.
    But damn, I wanted to.
    Very cool lines and flow.
    If I "got it" how much better.
    So, is it really "apocalyptic"?
    What the "atomic flash" symbolic of something else?
    Like just the red moon?
    Or did she see bones from the blast's x-ray.
    Maybe it is as simple as that -- an apocalyptic blast used to talk about a life evaporated.
    Hmmmm, what was the gypsy thinking?

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  17. I always love how you picture is such a fabulous accompaniment for your poetry and this one is perfect! I like Kimmy's no nonsense approach to atomic catastrophe, and the final simile is an excellent finale.

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  18. sadly upbeat ... so where can i find temp tats like those? i want those 'bones' for halloweeeeeeen

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  19. Love the angle you went with this.....you always pack a punch whatever dirrection you are going....love this one Shay!!!

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  20. I love that line about the backs of her hands. This is very cool.

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Spirit, what do you wish to tell us?