Poetry by Rob Plath

Three poems
by Rob Plath


the long thin line

there's a
method
to the
long thin
line
in poetry

there's
a tension

there's
a building

like
two
hands
slowly
unfolding
the
blade
of
an
intimitdating
large
pocket
knife

or
a tightly
rolled
dollar bill
moving
tube-like
over
a
strip
of
white
powder
on the
surface
of a
mirror

or
mercury
falling
in the
thermometer
as
night
comes
on
hard

++++++++++++++++++++

1st draft is kingpin

the
1st draft
is kingpin

revisions
remove
the knobs
of the poem's
spine
1
by
1

you
dont
practice:
weeping
puking
shitting
bleeding

so
ditto
for
the
fucking
poem

of
course
if the poem
doesnt come
from deep
inside of
you

if
the poem
is merely a
game o' the brain

ignore
all this
shit

++++++++++++++++++++

conversation in front of a coffin in red hook, brooklyn

look at 'em, tuffest guy in town
wit make-up on, he laughed

an dat fucking necktie man, he useta
call 'em nooses & didnt even know how
ta knot 'em, the other said

his mout is sewed shut, god is punishin'
him for all times he call'd his ol' lady
a cuntbag, the first one giggled

an getta load of his hands, they prayin'
aint that a laugh, he nearly moider'd dat
priest once when he was blitz'd, he added

lets go have a cigarette man

sure ting, frankie

this ol' lazy fuck is
nappin' anyways, he laughed


Author bio:

Rob Plath is a 37 year-old poet from New York. He's published well over a 200 poems in over 70 magazines and journals. He has one book called "ashtrays and bulls" (Liquid Paper Press--home of the Nerve Cowboy) and five forthcoming this year: "tapping ashes in the dark" (Lummox Press), "sour milk for the soulless" (Cat Scan Press), "my soul is a broken down valise" (Pooka Press), "hooked to an iv bag filled with bile" (Scintillating Publications), and "whiskey and clay" (Pudding House Publications). He is currently the poetry editor of JD Finch's print magazine "the whirligig" and also editor of Henry Chalise's webzine called "neo lampshadian outpost." Back in '95 -'97, he was tutored by Allen Ginsberg at Brooklyn College and later in 2002, he performed on a spoken word/music cd with world famous musician, David Amram.