# Your Opinion Needed! in the Anthology Thread of the June 2010 SDMB Poetry Sweatshop! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 28, 2010, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729 "2010-06-28T00:04:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/1 "2010-06-28T00:04:28Z")
It is 8 PM, EDT - the June 2010 Poetry Sweatshop will now close an hour. In the meantime, I will start posting the poems I’ve received thus far, and I’ll start the poll at 9 PM. Past poets (and I) have greatly appreciated peoples comments and feedback on the works presented here. I have one simple request - please wait one hour until the Sweatshop officially ends at 9 PM before posting anything else. That way, the first threads are all just the poems. After 9 PM this evening, please; we welcome your input! I just want to emphasize the importance of voting - the poets are depending for an outside opinion of their work. The poll is by secret ballot, so no one need ever know how you voted. As we did for the last two months, I’ve made this a multiple choice poll. Please note that the poll is seeking your favourite poem - no deep, arcane knowledge of poetry’s inner workings is required. Whichever poems strike a chord with you, please give them your vote. And, though the choice will be difficult, please take the time to choose at least one poem. I also want to mention that because of our current working method, all of the following poems will be posted under my user name, which may lead people to think that I am trying to claim authorship. Only one of the following poems is mine - the authors’ names may be found in the spoiler boxes at the bottom of each reply. The three words this month are: **Transaction Destiny Spite** And so, allow me to present our poets’ work for this June… ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/2 "2010-06-28T00:06:24Z")
“A Faustian bargain,” he thought with a grin A transaction born of destiny, Fed by a longing from within. He cared nothing for what it would cost He knew only that it was his; A treasure sought from olden days, A path to enduring bliss. Yet such deals do have a price; Be it money, time or soul And from spite or even playfulness The Dealer collects his toll. Cuckoorex ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/3 "2010-06-28T00:08:32Z")
If you could, would you change your destiny? Would you peer into the future, and not liking what you see there bargain bargain bargain for something different? What would you be willing to relinquish in the give-and-take of the transaction? Your life/love/health/happiness/soul dearly owned deeply missed in the eyes of God and all His grace, but given freely the better to reward you with? The price could be, would be expensive I’m sure. Especially when one would surely, and swiftly be negotiating with Satan Satan Satan for something different. What you would be able to trade in the commercial arrangement of the deal… Your life/love/health/happiness/soul already abundant already surplus in the holdings of Satan from all his dealings, but taken anyway, the better to spite God with. In Winnipeg ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/4 "2010-06-28T00:10:00Z")
What some would quote as destiny I term a propensity An ever-summing stack of tendencies Sometimes chosen, often defaulted A transaction Of ideals Where one does not exchange So much as abandon And adopt anew, sever and graft Will seldom be observed Unless from spite, deliberate and calculated So many coins Chucked sneering in a jar Shot From Guns ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/5 "2010-06-28T00:11:47Z")
The transaction took only moments quite brief, really, for so weighty a matter the Service had briefed me well I was ready, and so, of course, was she what did I carry, you ask, a suitcase of cash? a gun with a silencer? a cloak, a dagger? Please. No, too cliched by far it’s different than that, and so: a key, a number, then a longer number, a passport and a small plastic card the means of safe passage she knew what it meant what would come next think of it, just think of it, as she must have: a new life, a better future her own destiny now within her grasp escaping at last from that tragic, murderous realm breaking the chains that bound her leaving behind hunger, fear, a lifetime’s careful silence beneath the glare of an elite who could have her killed, or worse, on a whim; tyranny’s coarse hold soon to be slipped forever. As that hated flag snapped in the breeze over our bowed and whispering heads the guards stupidly staring past us, armed for an invasion that would never come, I remember her smile, so radiant in spite of her worries, knowing that freedom was just a little closer but that was twenty years ago, and I confess I could hardly bear to tell her that her daughter must remain behind. Elendil’s Heir ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/6 "2010-06-28T00:16:15Z")
The electronic hiss of the tinted sliding door The blast of cool to combat the burning heat She walks in all wisps: her hair, her dress, her books; And to a quiet corner seeks retreat. “It’s nice in here,” she sighs with much relief And settles back into a comfy chair. He watches her from behind his Keats And wonders if she even sees him there. She’s lovely Galatea in his midst. He worships her so dearly from afar. He longs to meet her, touch her, feel her kiss; But surely he will never cross that bar. She murmurs and he sees her fingers move Along the page to trace an irksome line He ponders if Mt. Etna could contain The height and breadth that all his thoughts enshrine. A patron interrupts his longing gaze. Their transaction, like a boulder, blocks his view. “Polyphemus,” he curses ‘neath his breath And he checks in their Ovid, overdue. The scanner, like a Cyclops, grates his nerves. He wants this cretin off and on their way. In spite of this he smiles, nods, and bows Lest irritation elongate delay. Gone! At last, his path returns to clear. He settles back to cast his gaze anew. Gone! Galatea no longer in the chair. Alas, what’s a poor librarian to do? Again flows on the river in his heart The blood that pumps within his poet’s chest He turns another page to change his skew And let this stumbling destiny now rest. melodyharmonius ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/7 "2010-06-28T00:17:54Z")
Destiny’s a loaded word used, by and large, in the negative. You have no choice. No transaction can thwart it. It will come to pass In spite of all your wiles. And yet, if Fate is a concrete slab, Hope is like a tree root that patiently cracks the pavement. Where Destiny is granite, Love is a lichen, softening the rocks and feeding the fauna. And if Life is a jagged, rocky shore, our children, through countless generations, like waves transform its deadly crags into a sandy beach. Humans are like climbing vines among the razor wire, rusting and blunting its cutting edge with Sisyphean optimism. Le Ministre de l’au-delà ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/8 "2010-06-28T00:20:42Z")
**T** ell me: How will you **R** emember this night? **A** nguish. Days too few. **N** ow go without spite. **S** ing, my love, of me **A** nd feel my heart bow. **C** ruel. Here is the fee. **T** arry not; go now. **I** don’t pity you, **O** ur destiny is **N** ot. HardlySanguine ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/9 "2010-06-28T00:22:06Z")
Saw each other at the grocery store a year after you said “I don’t want to see you no more.” You asked how I was doing flat like it was a perfunctory transaction instead you just really askin’ like you cared. I miss you tonight was what I wanted to say. It’s been a year but the pain hasn’t gone away. Everytime I think that the worst is all through I started seeing visions of you. “I’m doing ok” is all that comes out in spite of myself. Last year we were lovers and laughing at all we’d dare young and light and free, like we were dancin’ on air. We talked of our love and our destiny that we’d make. Now we talk of the weather, and I no longer believe in love or fate. Now our goodbyes are said once more, not even waving as we walk out the door. And driving home I think of the road our lives have taken and the bends that we speed down along the way and wonder, How did we get from saying “I love you” to “I’ll see you round some day”? BarkingDog ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/10 "2010-06-28T01:07:24Z")
…the June 2010 SDMB Poetry Sweatshop is closed. Now, it is time to read, savour, comment and especially, vote on the eight poems printed above. ---
**Author:** ![HardlySanguine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/96bed5/32.png) [@HardlySanguine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HardlySanguine)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/11 "2010-06-28T06:28:14Z")
In the same vein as the poem I did above (really, what was on my mind last night?) but which I didn’t quite complete in time: (barely NSFW) [spoiler]There once was a man from Nantucket Who came in a bucket. In spite of his mores, He pulled down his drawers. And with his transaction complete His destiny replete, He got his cash and drove away. [/spoiler] ---
**Author:** ![melodyharmonius](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/melodyharmonius/32/21310_2.png) [@melodyharmonius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/melodyharmonius)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/12 "2010-06-28T13:12:49Z")
Thanks again for coordinating this, Le Min! ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/13 "2010-06-28T15:22:00Z")
Hoorah! Thanks, as always, **Le Min**. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/14 "2010-06-28T16:03:05Z")
You are most welcome, but it is a great pleasure for me. I enjoy seeing what different poets create from the same basic source material, as well as seeing the consistent voices of regular contributors. Even though I’ve met only a handful of Dopers face to face, I find I take this deadline very seriously indeed rather than face the embarrassment of letting friends down. It is also very helpful on my own path as a writer and a poet to learn to find inspiration spontaneously, and to create, if not a polished, finished work, at least a spark that could be shaped into a flame with thoughtful editing and further drafts. And as I said earlier in the Logistics Thread, this weekend’s peaceful protests in Toronto being hijacked into vandalism and looting had me very down in spirit, and it was tremendously uplifting to have the pleasure of reading three brand new poems on Sunday morning after a sleepless, anxious night. I am happy to have contributed, in however small a way, to encouraging people to write for no other reason than the sheer joy of creation. ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/15 "2010-06-28T16:14:44Z")
I’m excited I finally managed to get off my ass and contribute! I was so panicky that I wouldn’t be able to come up with anything, and, in fact, stared at the words blankly for a minute or two, going “Oh god oh god oh god.” 😃 I think I ended up knocking the whole thing out in about 20 minutes, though. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/16 "2010-06-28T18:03:29Z")
It’s fun as always to read the results, **Ministre**. I’m sorry I couldn’t participate this time. I was in a foul mood all weekend and didn’t feel like composing anything. But I’m looking forward to next time. ---
**Author:** ![Barking\_Dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ccd318/32.png) [@Barking\_Dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barking_Dog)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/17 "2010-06-28T20:08:43Z")
Thank you for organizing this every month **Le Min!** I don’t know bout the rest of ya’ll, but the hardest part of writing, for me, is getting up off your butt and doing it. **Le Min** , you’ve managed to encourage and inspire me, and obviously several other folks, to do just that and I’d like to thank you for that. You rock dude. And the same to the rest of ya’ll! You’re all amazing poets and I’m proud to be counted among you guys (and gals)! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [June 28, 2010, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/18 "2010-06-28T22:10:12Z")
Another thanks, **Le Ministre de l’au-delà**. This might be the best batch yet. One of them is so good it gave me the chills. That would be telling! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Shot\_From\_Guns](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ccd318/32.png) [@Shot\_From\_Guns](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shot_From_Guns)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/19 "2010-06-29T14:02:32Z")
Two poems took an early lead, but things spread out a bit after that… I’ll be interested to see how everything shakes out! > [@koeeoaddi](#): > > That would be telling! 😉 Well, yes, but presumably the author might be gratified to know. 😛 (And I can already tell it’s not me, unless your voting didn’t match up with it, so I’m a disinterested party.) ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [June 29, 2010, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729/20 "2010-06-29T17:40:22Z")
Good stuff. Thanks, everybody, and thanks, **Ministre**! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-opinion-needed-in-the-anthology-thread-of-the-june-2010-sdmb-poetry-sweatshop/544729.md?page=2)