two for tanrenku

two unhappy walkers

with death thoughts

do the platypus dance

while clouds queue 

to refund a blue sky

weak sun 

the space between earth 

and the boy’s feet

each step uncovers

hidden water walkways 

hot streams 

pour into teacups 

of synchronized symphony 

even though 

it is plastic

you kiss the octopus

forsaken by my demons 

a glimmer emerges -

stars on a clear night

within the doubt’s shadow

an indifferent symmetry

dramatic statements
regarding war
and you
not even knowing 
how to say hi to her

down green grass

tanks tread on

the rainbow’s end

this morning 
pain becoming 
the snow melting 
over the sound 
of a woodpecker

bark dust flies

ATVs shower

the picnic table

10  the sound of water
   boiling over
   from the lentil pan
  a light covering 
  of snow

beneath the sea

bleached coral

cooks for dinner

while sea urchins settle 

mouths closed

later that day
the whale
eats your whole family

on the boardwalk

a leviathan throws

the shell game

seagulls cry

for favorable winds

moving into 
another time 
and then opening 

from an old suitcase 

mithras pretends

to sew gold armor 

but light grows dim

at tunnel’s end

in the cafe 
that reminds you 
of a film set
drinking coffee 
that tastes like shit

grey cigarette ash

floats slowly down

the deep elevator shaft

carefully 
putting the ants back 
a shark
in reverse 
willow catkins

caterpillars drop

from the sky

barcoded for sale

20 snow moon 
   while you were 
   in the womb 
  a movie tried 
  to kill you

deserted streets

fast food wrappers

near brownstone steps

abandoned hopscotch 

as the city wheezes

weighing her heart 
he feels 
a certain emptiness

calliope steam 

fuels elephant dreams 

of midnight strokes

on circus straw dust

with hyena laughs

your life a folly 
the rain and then
the rain

taps on a tin roof

bugles for crows

blow a dirge 

to circle around 

the smell of decay

in an ode 
to patriotism
on this hill 
you put your arm 
through

loosely tied

the tourniquet 

sinks in a fjord

not acknowledging 
your jealousy 
cleaning its face 
with fresh snow
the cat

with subtle disdain

a frozen peach

warms itself

30  clear morning

    a spotlight follows the jogger 

    around the shoreline

    hidden in Egg

    a naked lady

hidden garden

a fecund scent

around my head

with a moan

the world dissolves

after spitting teeth 

you find the courage 

to walk all day

bleached, crumbing

an empty street

rumbles and shakes

tree squirrels

pause and wait

asking for owls

the child

as a birch

cold north winds

rustle dying trees

on newly-formed deserts

a cold cup of coffee

with starving fox eyes

rolling upwards

messenger of lords 

a stone

putting itself back

the black stripe

behind skunk ears

naval oranges

contemplate toes

occult plank

all that remains 

of the hockey game

the thought of dying 

under a train

hungry waves

winds blow from

deep trenches 

thoughts for food

does a firefly sandwich still satisfy?
west winds, south winds it's all grain to you.

returning seven times to the app, do you sow the nightjar's eyes? 
within the viper’s nest an earthworm’s meditative encasement

where is the bill for rainbow’s end?
swimming upstream with the trout

what colour will we paint the sunset, chief? 
the next god will swirl the cosmic latte more

will you fall into the galaxy without conscience?
yes and the goose feather too

can you pass me the bus timetable, please? 
with great solitude a small school of fish

why not the intrinsic moment of quiet desperation?
my hands were becoming little - they were big

the mouth was full, could you repeat that?
eating larvae the joy of koi surfaces

does the mudslide spoil your dinner?
i could think of nothing more to fill the void

10     cactus or cat puss, your call sire?
another sauerkraut face caked with candy floss

maybe reconsider your weight gain on Jupiter?
nothing but carp scales to counting calories 

are you sure about the pancreas? 
it matters not what you say about spinach

the case of whine with no doubt?
popeye, yes, but pinot grigio of the mind

cirrocumulus or cirrostratus, olive oyl?
within the eye of horus amethyst teardrops

want to run down the toilet paper of time?
yes, but please don't wipe your bum on a pyramid

wanted by the fbi, do you watch that 10 part Michael Jordan documentary?
only if the flying squirrels come home to roost

what is the meaning of that chocolate-covered banana?
potassium - a small infinity but an infinity nonetheless

will you clean the coffee pot?
for a small fee we bury the entire body

where is the pocket croissant hidden?
i last saw him in padiham in the bookies off main street

20  can you get me some fertiliser? 
    after the fan shits then hits a home run

is melba toast really a necessary way to travel?
my eyes the coffins of her shirt tails

is that a cloud of malt extract over adelaide? 
with a nosedive she snorts ice cream sundae

whatever happened to the no return points of light?
on the underside of the coin a tiny man paints a tiny white bronco

six hours before the shift - do you want some orange juice?
with mourning threat the working paradigm fades to black

finding a black quarter would you backflip?
dominatrix partridge ate the evil rex

have you got the book on pear trees? 
under the outer skin a skein of blackbirds

perhaps the clown shoes need more spit polish?
the moon a vision of hand rub

where does wood alcohol go when it dies? 
after a strong cut the beaver lowers his chain saw

why do weeping trees uplift all the spirits?
the salad days of salad memories

30 can we please talk about the vinegar? 
of course the sour cream is all attitude of crows

no need to remember what the lizards said?
the song that brought about regicide

purple on purple?

counting backwards as sand through toes

will you find the snail slime end?
bird feathers for clouds underfoot lasagna but blue

is there no way to kill the apes?
understand why the nautilus shelled a flying fish

how did penny loafer misuse cause the crash?
of course my nose is supposed to be bleeding

are the wife and kids ok? 
dolphin doubts remain the last cruel intentions

which glass seas shatter on the purple horizon?
pacific, indian, atlantic all the salt anatomies i sing for myself

reincarnation - canned aubergine or carnations? 

a mad cow reblends the cannibal’s brainpan

by what reasoning do you follow the zigzag?
in 1793 he made that jump shot

40 faced with the natural curve of time - when do we go to the strip mall? 

under a veil the scream of robin’s egg blue turns cold

to which problem applies a discordant algorithm of sand?

you say apple blossom i say the cloud that sees us all

any frittata left, bro? 

a bloated piñata scowls at the crime scene forensics 

exactly where did you find the licorice gun?
we stole his shoes - but i won't talk about the ammunition

aim high or low? 

navel gazing i find the universe of lint

perhaps earwax made the stars brighter?
they should have built the statues with sand

push the ant? 

just make sure to brush it off later

will you water walk eating that caramelized onion?
red, white, spring all of them underfoot 

i just walked on the soul of a creme brulee is that not enough?

the sweet cheeks chipmunk ravages a picnic basket

where’s the shame in flicking a checkered past tablecloth?
the night sky reimagined as her gingham dress 

50 how much for the night hawk's olfactory organs? 

your credit card rejected by a hare’s breath

no badge? then please where are your papers?
i've got the logbook for a mark 2 fiesta

if these aren't dahlias then why are we making a blood sacrifice?  

due to high demand all the sheep lay down to sleep 

did you find that waxed penny under the ski jump?
not for nothing our brazillian credit

i lost?

you’ll find remuneration in the lockbox

when will bow ties see the end?
a formality - the wind changes your face

heart, tongue or check? 

a pocket watch drops down the rabbit hole

what took a shit in your top hat?
doves - they mistook it for the marinara trench 

did woodrow wilson just offer us a magic trick? 

from the crooked mustache a black man dies

when you grow up, will you be a firefly?
it really does depend upon the fertility rites 

60 which way will we walk over the papaya? 

from left to right witch #1 always comes first

with what do you garnish dandy lion meat?
grandma sent herbs from her cottage garden

do you know where i left the pan? 

that bread loaf reclines just outside the window 

did those magic fish multiply the hurricane’s force?

a cough and a sneeze for scales

the metric weight of mice eyes? 

a jar of cheese whizzes by your head

has it come to this mourning dove coma?

it's all sugar in Bologna 

can we put the bricks back now?

for a small fee anyone can ring their chimes

assuming sentience where do opossums play?

i watched them once in the yeast extract

b12 or the m1 north? 

since you asked another rigged game explodes

do our limited monkey brains risk detonation?

the kids left for the europa

70 is your tooth sore?

only when I laugh track it

did you exterminate all the bats in your belfry?

sowed them with our dream on the moor 

will the sitcom get another season? 

funny thing with light paprika dust

which smoky mind clouds the starship performance?

to the never end end

between the lines

steam cleaning

the aardvark suit

insect eggs
your metallic skin 

a short distance
from prosperity peace
to the gallows tree

makeshift morgue 
her legs 
legs 

in the treasure cave
a cache of lipstick

6 hand me downs 
  a tree clown 
  eats a lemon

snake bitten apple
she picks licorice
from her teeth

crocodile handbag 
the rhododendron glitching 

in the sacred grove
ancestors tell me
how to feel alive

with no cure in sight 
you tie your feet 
to a birch

that bacon-smoked smell
the other cheek turns

12 images of mars 
    after he falls 
    you hold his head

behind the backyard fence
weed death dreams
up in smoke

last stop on the bus route 
the top of a goose’s head 

from a great height
liver pate consumes
the hot summer morning

the virus
nothing but two clocks
eating a sandwich

earth’s last cream pie
in the face of global warming

18   soft oblivion 
    all the b-roll 
    full of cactus

what a prickly start to the fan fair
some baseballs
more equal than others

beyond neptune 
a ceasefire 

from the lower clouds
ball lightning
sinks the 2nd rebound

cold morning
full of clouds
your twitter feed

inside the dimensional interstices
droopy dali pocket watches

24  broken clock 
    learning the terror 
    of being

cut out of the herd
time to pause
the stockyard

in the child’s sandpit
a bee makes a nest

underarm deodorant
a sardine can
gurgles then sinks

tomato infinity 
all the small yellows
in bloom

without orchid violence
the shining path resigns itself

30   as he goes by
    the vinegary smell 
    of ink

dressing down a salad
to give up
the last leaves

first-draft 
she being alive

synchronized quantum spin
interstitches a new universe
in no time

egg sand 
to catch the breeze 
with a breeze

down the flatulent wormhole
a mother cries the toast is ruined

36 sauna coals 
   you fall in love 
   with the ant god

facing trails of flame
a short walk
into the sun

we imitate the problems
of orange squids

dilemmas of choice

the monkey brain

picks at time lice

white whale 
searching for 
a childhood movie

imagine a gossamer web flicker

bargain basement prices on mr. soul

42  winter blossom 
    undeserving 
   of his love

buried in snow

boundaries break

a runny nose

behind the mourning couple 
teenagers playing frisbee 

spinning plates

on a pine log

run home

whilst dropping fish 
the plane 
has second thoughts

throughout the flight

double fast heartbeats

48 turning on ice
   the sound 
  of a million insects

ears buzzing 

locust bean 

gummy bears drum

positioning his arms 

to augment his biceps

slippery slope

come to arrest

the child’s play

chalk cliffs
the dna 
of bananas 

from the monkey mind

a chaotic leap of faith

54 standing on 
  the dealer’s head 
  you kill an ant

inside the smokehouse

John Philip Sousa

strangles a duck

from the bird hide 
a deep sense of shame 

polar bears cry

the hot sun

burns back

tangerines and sea air
your heart eaten 
by a giant monster

as the bombshell smokes

another spent wad ejects

60 inside the melon 
   you find a tuna fish slowly 
   but happily swimming

apple worms play to no applause 

the whole-note
truncated symphony

your right leg 
becoming Mexico

border wall

half-buried

a desert eagle

cutting yourself up 
one kilo at a time 
the last person forgets you

with an edge cut

the mirror sneezes

66 late winter sky
   the metal hand railings 
   on this old tram.

as a whistle blows

the last dime
drops

he leans over the train track 
and spits

winds rage

the last passage

opens up

the selling of shade
the lion’s stripes 
becoming your chest

from earthly bowels

a hairspray flatulence

72  your miserable life

    cold in a cold oven

    a cold pie

blackbird cluster

small pecks widen

my soul hole

certain of nothing 

you peel an orange

cloister bells

prison bar shadows

climb the walls

waxing crescent

the broken english 

of rabbits

burnt carrots

drop another bucket

78  your ancestor

    waking 

    amongst pollen

undercover of darkness 

iguanas 

rock the boat

coffee 

like something

all ajitter 

my face

falls down