Old
sot he is, drunk of drunks,
professional
proper up of bars,
jars,
jugs of, pints of ale, chased
down
with a tot or two or three
or
maybe half-full glass of warming whisky.
He
smiles that inebriated smile he smiles,
guile
he has, animated, bothers others,
other
patrons with his drunken idle chatter,
slurring
each and every word.
They’ve
heard it all before,
his
inane views on world affairs,
how
his wife bleeds him of each and every penny,
so
skint is he, so stony-broke,
hasn’t
any coins to rub together,
pours
out his empty grasping heart.
They
know his game and play it,
just
to get rid of him,
buy
him another pint, tell him “Now fuck off!”
He
laughs out loud, slaps their backs.
“Cheers mates!” he grins as he swills down
another
dose of that lovely golden nectar.
He is
not done yet,
watches
eagle-eyed as others leave,
checks
their glasses, downs the dregs,
smiling
smugly as if he has won some clever game.
Bar
emptying, he gathers up the glasses
hoping
for a freebie for his effort,
but
now so unsteady, he falls,
smashes
glasses as he hits the floor.
The
barman (now pockets full enough)
finally
chucks him out.
He
staggers out, smug and happy, singing loudly, heading home.
At
home his family wait,
shivering
in their frightened bodies,
quivering
in their troubled minds,
fear
showing in their blackened eyes…
they
never win his mindless drunken games.
He
always wins.
Anna
:o]
Brenda
(cheers Brenda) at The Sunday Whirl has us writing using the following words: Bar,
check, animated, wait, loud, laugh, drunk, queen, eagles, family, win & hearts. (I must admit to being naughty as I didn’t
use ‘queen’ - as I would have had to force it in.)
23 comments:
Such a good job with the words...the one word I could not force into my poem, "drunk." And it colored your whole poem!!
I couldn't tell that this was made from a wordle, you did an excellent job of writing the tragedy of booze... I think winning like this is like loosing the least.
Wonderful and creative description, (photograph) of a piece of life.
ZQ
You caught this so well...and to think it was done with certain pre-chosen words. Some great wordsmithing here.
The sad realities of a drunken life especially for the family.....
This poem gave me chills. You really created a vivid word picture of this drunk of a man. I could see him really and feel for his family wondering if he will be able to get home after yet another night out. Whew!
Such vivid visuals -there are no happy endings for a happy drunk. You wove the prompt words so well and inconspicuously!
stark and real a scene repeated many times unfortunately... with booze and drugs
I could sense trouble as I was reading, a chilling tale of the hazards of drinking. Excellent job with the words. If you hadn't mentioned the prompt, I would have never known.
Brilliant writing! This is so impactful - so eloquently rendered - and the details: WOWZERS!!! Fantastic!!! What a heartrending drama - starring a man so bereft of self-esteem, he has poisoned his own mind to the point that he is toxic to whatever place he is in. Beyond, being a masterful piece of writing, this is an important work that achingly showcases the issue of alcoholism and the toll it takes.
You really blew me away, on this one. Love it! Love it! Love it!
The denial of the drunk, blaming his wife rather than his drinking for the lack of money. I was most struck by the picture of those waiting at home for, as a child, I was one of them. And as an adult had one last encounter with a drunk. Sigh. A good write, Anna. You nailed it.
The tale stumbling and causing dread in the poem is powerful and so well told--I feel the fear of the family, the trembling as they think of what might come...
If you had not seen your note, I would've never thought it came from a list of words. Brilliant. And terrifying in its reality.
This poem has a life of its own, identifiable by diverse readers. It is well done --conciliatory and cautionary. My sincere compliments on your skill.
i couldn't tell it was from a prompt, a wordle. excellent job!
the drunk, if it is just a one time binge, he will just have to sleep it out. if it is alcoholism, that's another story. :(
My goodness this is powerful! You describe alcoholism perfectly here.
Agree with previous comments- you rocked the wordle..it seemed effortless.
Brilliant. I know this scene so well.
What a gig! So sad! You wrote me under the table.
This flowed so well, you would never know it was written from a selection of words. wonderful!
You did a fantastic job with this prompt and tell the sad story of alcoholism.
Thought provoking, as always. You seem to be inspired by the limitations of having to use certain words. I like the twist at the end of the poem.
The drunken life and those that orbit around these folks. Your poem rings true!
A dreadful tale, and very well written, all too realistic.
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