Thursday, September 29, 2016

And Rockford Poetry Will Never Be the Same

I finally organized all the poems I have written since the last book, Submerged Structure, into a file on my computer. I had to round them up from the cosmic reaches of the galaxy, or at least from ten different blogs and two old computers. I think I found most of them, and few of them still impress me. Nonetheless it feels good to have them cataloged.

Rockford was named the most dangerous city in America under 200,000 people by one source today. Earlier in the week someone carjacked a taxi and led police on a high speed chase through Downtown after firing shots at the police. I heard it after midnight Tuesday but it's not at all unusual to hear sirens all night.

The next afternoon someone had to be talked off the State Street bridge.

Pretty much a normal week in Rockford.

Let me see if I can find one of those poems I haven't published anywhere else because I am tired of writing today.

Using Your Medical Card

Please keep your card in a safe
Place and never allow anyone
Else to receive the benefit of
Disinterested medical care

Fear not the apathy of
Underpayed practitioners
Concerned more about their 
Student loans than 
Your pancreas

Ye shall surely not die

But there's no harm in taking
These dress rehearsals more seriously.
-Thomas L. Vaultonburg

Not very good. Probably won't make it into the next book, but it's alright for tonight. I never seem to get to the end of my own medical appointments, but hopefully I'll be done with dental work soon. What a mess I had made for myself not going to the dentist in twenty years. 


Rockford Pages poet Thomas L. Vaultonburg rides a bicycle

The Cubs played to their first tie in over ten years tonight. I sat there waiting for the game to start again, but it never did, so they went into the radio broadcast of the Thursday Night Football game. 

That's all. Going to eat my organic black eyed peas and quinoa meal now. 


Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Rockford Pages Poet Gets Shiny New Teeth

Outsider poet Thomas L. Vaultonburg recently got some shiny new teeth. At least on line he did. As was pointed out by his father thirty-five years ago, there's no point fixing your teeth because someone is just going to knock them out, anyway. Which as a prediction didn't turn out to be as bad as others, but thirty five years later an amazing advance in human technology called dentistry allows me to actually get thirty years of neglect repaired. At least semi-repaired.

After two years of dental work I expect to look like this 


And when that happens I intend to run for public office.

But before that the 2017 Outsider Poetry Slam League of America season. I was originally traded to Chemung, as my mother always told me I would be, but have become a free agent and will be competing for the Rockford Pages.

It gets dark and rains again as I write, and in a half hour I will do my final fantasy football draft of the season. Something on the right side of my body hurts a little more than I think it should, but I'm so sick of medical procedures I'm putting off having it checked out in hopes that it's something I have two of. 

My teeth never looked like that. They started getting knocked out early and often, and at this late date I'm just happy to have what I have left. This is the first opportunity after decades of service jobs to get them fixed. 

Poetry. Fantasy football. We may be getting a dog this Fall. I have no idea what kind I'd even like. But it will be nice to have a dog around again.