Sting Operation

by Clyde Always “Protester accused of unleashing bee swarm on deputies to stop eviction” —The Washington Post In Massachusetts, Boys in Blue were injured when a protest grew. Assailants swarmed and caused a buzz. One wonders where the swat-team was…

Bonehead

by Clyde Always “[A] 14-foot skeleton was shamelessly hijacked in broad daylight from a front yard in a neighborhood in Austin, Texas.” —Fox News Sneakily, creakily, Halloween hijacker snatches a skeleton 14 feet tall; someone so brazenly kleptomaniacal must have the busiest closet of all.

Casein Point

by Clyde Always “U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers… in downtown El Paso seized more than 100 pounds of undeclared cheese Sept. 6.” —cbp.gov Cheesious, Seizious, CBP Officers implement bans that are clearly absurd. If you encounter these disciplinarians, penalties may or may not be in curd.

Orange Dream

by Clyde Always “A Nebraska man paddled 38 miles down the Missouri River in an 846-pound pumpkin” —NBC News Bibbidi, Bobbidi, Hansen of Omaha grew, from a seedling, the vessel he oared. One might assume that this sexagenarian— snug in a pumpkin—is out of his gourd.

How to Handle a Scandal

by Clyde Always “Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin delivered an emotional speech… touting her job performance and defending her right to have a private life after leaked videos showed the leader dancing and partying wildly.” —New York Post Dauntlessly, Flauntlessly, Marin, Prime Minister, faced her detractors and never lost heart. Want to eradicate phallocentricity? Take […]

Caustic Relationship

by Clyde Always “Dermatologist arrested after her husband secretly recorded her allegedly poisoning him with Drano…” —NBC News Uckity, Yuckity Yu, Dermatologist, fed hubby Drano, the newspapers note. Maybe her motives weren’t toxicological; could be the man had a clog in his throat.

“Meatspace”

by Clyde Always “The metaverse platform Somnium Space plans to let its users’ personas live on. … Live Forever would instantiate a digital avatar of the user based on vast amounts of information collected as he or she interacts in Somnium Space” —Reason Virtual, Hirtual, Somnium Metaverse offers indelible life in the mesh. There, you’ll […]

Too Faithed

by Clyde Always “Rep. Glenn Thompson Voted Against Same-Sex Marriage, Then Attended His Gay Son’s Wedding” —Rolling Stone This marriage-equality bill I abhorred. It flies in the face of the word of the Lord! Now, if you’ll excuse me… Would those in the room please all raise a glass to my son and his groom?

Should’ve Said “Gratuity”

by Clyde Always “Hong Kong’s iconic giant floating restaurant capsizes in South China Sea” —USA Today A nautical eatery sank to its grave when rescuers found it too flooded to save. I bet it was cursed by a slip of the lip (some waitress had prayed for a newsworthy tip).

Company Ouching

by Clyde Always “25 employees suffer burns after hot coal team-building event in Switzerland” —New York Post To break the ice, sometimes the Swiss walk barefoot over steaming coals. The argument for doing this, presumably, is full of holes.

Phallusy

by Clyde Always “The First Amendment Protects the Right To Put a Tiny Penis on a Beer Label” —Reason Sudsily, Pudsily Flying Dog Brewery proved in a trial, so righteously fought: banning of packaging’s unconstitutional whether it features a package or not.

Tunnel Vision

by Clyde Always “Federal agents find sophisticated tunnel under US-Mexico border and seize almost a ton of cocaine” —CNN To New York City’s Subway and to London’s Underground: just south of San Diego a competitor’s been found. In terms of pure efficiency this system really shines— on just a single set of tracks it runs […]

Winter/Spring 2022 ISSUE: Table of Contents

Featured PoetAlex Steelsmith Spotlight: Alex Steelsmithby Julia Griffin Book Reviewsby Barbara Egel Poems by…Gilbert AllenClyde AlwaysAlex BarrBruce BennettJerome BettsHilary BiehlJane BlanchardLaura J. BobrowDan CampionJ.P. CeliaMary CookPat D’AmicoTerri Kirby EricksonAndrew FrisardiDaniel GalefDavid GalefNicole Caruso GarciaClaudia GaryStephen GoldJulia GriffinDavid HedgesMichael HeydLily Jarman-ReischDerek KannemeyerSteven KentJean L. KreilingSeth LererKathleen McClungBruce McGuffinBob McKentyEd MeekMike Mesterton-GibbonsTimothy MurphyJames B. NicolaChris O’CarrollJames PenhaD.A. […]

Alex Barr

BACK  |  CONTENTS  |  NEXT Classical Clerihews Polyphemusthought he wouldn’t seem asabsurd and comicalwith a contact lens instead of a monocle. Nausicaalived on Corfu, or maybe Sicily or even Corsica.She didn’t sign her work, through modesty,but may be the real author of The Odyssey. Circewas told “Men are swine” by Nursie.Growing up she thought, “To […]

Gilbert Allen

BACK  |  CONTENTS  |  NEXT Burgerdämmerung In the beginning was money,and gentrification was good.So the Spirit of Urban Renewalsaid, “Eve’s Diner stays! Understood?” But soon there was trouble in Eden.Some snake told a customer fibs.His faith in her twin patties shaken,the first man embraced a McRib. The neighborhood followed McAdamswiftly, though often unseen.Now nothing’s afloat […]