Tuesday 31 August 2010

Fallow

FALLOW

–adj
1. (of land) plowed and left unseeded for a season or more; uncultivated.
2. not in use; inactive
–noun
3. land that has undergone plowing and harrowing and has been left unseeded for one or more growing seasons.
–verb (used with object)
4. to make (land) fallow for agricultural purposes.

–adj.
pale-yellow; light-brown; dun.
























Fallow ribbons
Stiff with centuries
Neolithic romance.

Monday 30 August 2010

Lagan

LAGAN

–noun
Law. anything sunk in the sea, but attached to a buoy or the like so that it may be recovered.






















Hopeful lagan
Flagged in buoyant red and black
Lobster traps and nets.

Sunday 29 August 2010

Pleonexia

PLEONEXIA

-noun
Excessive or insatiable covetousness.























I will admit
To an access of pleonexia
When resting my eyes on cheese.

Saturday 28 August 2010

Copemate

COPEMATE

-noun
1. An associate or friend.
2. An opponent or adversary.























I thought we could be copemates
But after a fifteen days courtship
We parted just copemates

Friday 27 August 2010

Thrum

THRUM

–verb (used without object)

1. to play on a stringed instrument, as a guitar, by plucking the strings, especially in an idle, monotonous, or unskilled manner; strum.
2. to sound when thrummed on, as a guitar or similar stringed instrument.
3. to drum or tap idly with the fingers.
–verb (used with object)
4. to play (a stringed instrument, or a melody on it) by plucking the strings, especially in an idle, monotonous, or unskilled manner; strum.
5. to drum or tap idly on.
6. to recite or tell in a monotonous way.
–noun
7. an act or sound of thrumming; dull, monotonous sound.

noun
1. one of the ends of the warp threads in a loom, left unwoven and remaining attached to the loom when the web is cut off.
2. thrums, the row or fringe of such threads.
3. any short piece of waste thread or yarn; tuft, tassel, or fringe of threads, as at the edge of a piece of cloth.
4. Often, thrums. Nautical . short bits of rope yarn used for making mats.
–verb (used with object)
5. Nautical . to insert short pieces of rope yarn through (canvas) and thus give it a rough surface, as for wrapping about a part to prevent chafing.
6. to furnish or cover with thrums, ends of thread, or tufts.



Life unravelling
Tired thrums picking up dust
And experience.
Humming dull songs of routine
Vibrating with adventures.

Thursday 26 August 2010

Ergophobia

ERGOPHOBIA

-noun
a fear of or aversion to work























All of the sudden
I dread the end of summer.
Sheer ergophobia.

Wednesday 25 August 2010

Snag

SNAG

–noun
1. a tree or part of a tree held fast in the bottom of a river, lake, etc., and forming an impediment or danger to navigation.
2. a short, projecting stump, as of a branch broken or cut off.
3. any sharp or rough projection.
4. a jagged hole, tear, pull, or run in a fabric, as caused by catching on a sharp projection.
5. any obstacle or impediment.
6. a stump of a tooth or a projecting tooth; snaggletooth.
–verb (used with object)
7. to run or catch up on a snag.
8. to damage by so doing.
9. to obstruct or impede, as a snag does.
10.to grab; seize.
–verb (used without object)
11.to become entangled with some obstacle or hindrance.
12.to become tangled.
13.(of a boat) to strike a snag.
14.to form a snag.























How many tired ravens
Would it take to pull a snag?
How many broken wings?
How many broken dreams?
Too many nights spent
Worrying about chimeras
Pebbles
Grinding our wheels to a stand still.
Now you are looking away
Searching for another guardian angel:
Someone with un-torn wings,
Someone with un-torn dreams.
I remain standing by the road side
A lethal dust particle lodged in my teeth
Forcing the passing of a smile
Until lips start bleeding,
Attracting butterflies;
Ghoulish wings
Feeding on wishes.
I walk into the brook
All the way to the sea
My teeth secure around the snag.
I dare not fly any more.
The waves close
Above
My darkest hour.

Tuesday 24 August 2010

Manavelins

MANAVELINS

–plural noun
Nautical Slang .
miscellaneous pieces of gear and material.
Also: Manavilins, Manavalums



Left here haphazard
Manavelins and whatnots.
Discarded empire.

Monday 23 August 2010

Entropy

ENTROPY

–noun
1. Thermodynamics .
a. (on a macroscopic scale) a function of thermodynamic variables, as temperature, pressure, or composition, that is a measure of the energy that is not available for work during a thermodynamic process. A closed system evolves toward a state of maximum entropy.
b. (in statistical mechanics) a measure of the randomness of the microscopic constituents of a thermodynamic system. Symbol: S
2. (in data transmission and information theory) a measure of the loss of information in a transmitted signal or message.
3. (in cosmology) a hypothetical tendency for the universe to attain a state of maximum homogeneity in which all matter is at a uniform temperature (heat death).
4. a doctrine of inevitable social decline and degeneration.






















Maybe decayed time?
Entropy forcing us down
Erasing our wings.
In the name of gravity
Dreams failing to support us.

Sunday 22 August 2010

Friable

FRIABLE

-adj.
easily crumbled or pulverized






















Friable paste
Fine melting crystals
Sheer delight.

Saturday 21 August 2010

Wallow

WALLOW

–verb (used without object)

1. to roll about or lie in water, snow, mud, dust, or the like, as for refreshment.
2. to live self-indulgently; luxuriate; revel.
3. to flounder about; move along or proceed clumsily or with difficulty.
4. to surge up or billow forth, as smoke or heat.
–noun
5. an act or instance of wallowing.
6. a place in which animals wallow.
7. the indentation produced by animals wallowing




This morning,
Heavy clouds
Wallow on the slope of the mountain,
Drunks too full to budge.

Friday 20 August 2010

Huckster

HUCKSTER

–noun
1. a retailer of small articles, especially a peddler of fruits and vegetables; hawker.
2. a person who employs showy methods to effect a sale, win votes, etc.
3. a cheaply mercenary person.
4. Informal .
a. a persuasive and aggressive salesperson.
b. a person who works in the advertising industry, especially one who prepares aggressive advertising for radio and television.
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
5. to deal, as in small articles, or to make petty bargains.
6. to sell or promote in an aggressive and flashy manner.






















The vegetable man
Needs not be an huckster
His wares are selling
By sheer virtue of their look.

Thursday 19 August 2010

Poetaster

POETASTER

-noun
an inferior poet






















Her look nailed me for a poetaster
Cuddles would have to be offered
To placate her displeasure.

Wednesday 18 August 2010

Psychopomp

PSYCHOPOMP

-noun
A guide of souls, one who escorts soul of a newly-deceased to the afterlife.



Later that night
My psychopomp arrived
In the guise of an old tea pot
Who hadn't quite realised
I was very much alive
Still.

Monday 16 August 2010

Illabile

ILLABILE

-adj.
Incapable of falling or erring; infallible.



His brow talked about
A superb, illabile man
God in the making.
Folks mocked his jug ears, of course,
But incense was attractive.

Sunday 15 August 2010

Zaftig

ZAFTIG

-adj.
1.Full-bodied; well-proportioned.



Zaftig wine
To plump up my curves
And my smile.

Saturday 14 August 2010

Confrication

CONFRICATION

-noun
A rubbing together; friction.























Confrication
Paw on ear, ear on paw
Building up statics
Friendly human gets zapped

Friday 13 August 2010

Artificer

ARTIFICER

-noun

1. An inventor.
2. A crafts-person.
3. A mechanic in the armed forces.























Time
That artificer
Cranking up centuries
Just to pass the time.

Thursday 12 August 2010

Paragon

PARAGON

–noun
1. a model or pattern of excellence or of a particular excellence.
2. Printing. a 20-point type.
3. an unusually large, round pearl.
–verb (used with object)
4. to compare; parallel.
5. to be a match for; rival.
6. Obsolete. to surpass.
7. Obsolete. to regard as a paragon.






















She want him to be a paragon
But he claims he's not the type

Wednesday 11 August 2010

Risible

RISIBLE

-adj.
1. Laughable; ludicrous.
2. Disposed to laugh.
3. Relating to laughter.























The gull
Found the angel
Utterly risible:
Why the big wings if made of stone?

Tuesday 10 August 2010

Atrabilious

ATRABILIOUS

–adj.
1. gloomy; morose; melancholy; morbid.
2. irritable; bad-tempered; splenetic.























Death proved so atrabilious
That it had so be put behind bars
Where it quickly grew morose.

Monday 9 August 2010

Nebbish

NEBBISH

-noun

A pitifully timid or ineffectual person.






















Nebbish creature
Glad for green protection
No hugs today.

Sunday 8 August 2010

Mizzle

MIZZLE

–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
1. to rain in fine drops; drizzle; mist.
–noun
2. mist or drizzle.


–verb (used without object)

British Slang . to disappear or leave suddenly.






















Frozen mizzle
Caught in a glass
For hotter days.

Saturday 7 August 2010

Acedia

ACEDIA

-noun
1. Sloth.
2. Laziness or indifference in religious matters.






















Cat!
Thy name is acedia;
Your dreams
Holding this world
Anchored into reality.

Friday 6 August 2010

Advert

ADVERT

-verb
1. to turn the mind or attention
2. to call attention in the course of speaking or writing; make reference



Squinting
We can advert our perception
Divert our attention to the unseen
The guessed actions
Athena
In the palm of a vanished god

Thursday 5 August 2010

Haptic

HAPTIC

-adj.
1. Relating to the sense of touch; tactile.
-noun
1. The science that deals with the sense of touch.




Haptic creature
Hungry for caresses
And the feel of wind in its hair.

Wednesday 4 August 2010

Bromidic

BROMIDIC

-adj.
Commonplace; trite.






















Siesta in a hammock
Bromidic feast of summer
Still enjoyable.

Tuesday 3 August 2010

Abstemious

ABSTEMIOUS

–adj.
1. sparing or moderate in eating and drinking; temperate in diet.
2. characterized by abstinence
3. sparing.






















The beast had
An abstemious mind:
A sparse thought process
Compensated for by
An otherwise inordinate gluttony.

Monday 2 August 2010

Restore

RESTORE

–verb (used with object)
1. to bring back into existence, use, or the like; re-establish.
2. to bring back to a former, original, or normal condition, as a building, statue, or painting.
3. to bring back to a state of health, soundness, or vigour.
4. to put back to a former place, or to a former position, rank, etc.
5. to give back; make return or restitution of (anything taken away or lost).
6. to reproduce or reconstruct (an ancient building, extinct animal, etc.) in the original state.




After the harvest,
The seasons slowly restore
Lemons into fruitful mode.

Sunday 1 August 2010

Dice

DICE

–noun
1. small cubes of plastic, ivory, bone, or wood, marked on each side with one to six spots, usually used in pairs in games of chance or in gambling.
2. any of various games, esp. gambling games, played by shaking and throwing from two to six dice or poker dice onto a flat surface.
3. any small cubes.
4. Auto Racing . a jockeying for lead position between two or more drivers in which tactics are used to pass or keep from being passed.
–verb (used with object)
5. to cut into small cubes.
6. to decorate with cube-like figures.
7. to lose by gambling with dice (often followed by “away”).
–verb (used without object)
8. to play at dice.
9. to cause or bring about by gambling with dice.
10.Auto Racing . to duel with another car or cars in a dice.






















Small dice
Cool delight
For a hot summer