Turbidophilia
— love of trouble
Pleasure, ease, contentment: a bore.
Where’s the rub? The snafu? The glorious glitch?
Tiff. Tizzy. Tumult. To-do. Remember:
no itch, no fuss: no pearls to string.
Feud, fit, flap, flurry.
Hoopla. Imbroglio. Rhubarb. Pickle.
What good’s a shampoo without lather?
Soup unstirred? Wedding without a row?
I want spasm, spat, squabble, stink.
Brouhaha. Boondoggle. Conniption. Clash.
Calm’s as good as dead: a plum-pit.
Give me ruckus, rowdydow, ruffle, snit.
originally appeared in Poetry, September 2003
7 comments:
So much fun to read aloud.
It reminds me of a word I like, "siserara", which Mrs. Byrne's Dictionary defines as "a severe blow or violent reproach". Somehow the meaning got twiddled in my mind to mean an angry fuss, something between a foofaraw and a brouhaha, so that's how the word gets occasionally (mis)used in my house.
Thanks Sculpin: It's a little weird to read a poem over the phone, and the quality of the transmission isn't great. But it was fun to try.
I love "siserara" and "foofaraw." Great words.
wow! i thought the poem sounded really good!--even with the phone thing being a little strange to get used to. very nice!
Peter: great to hear you. And I love "rowdydow," gotta remember that one. Fantastic, and now I want to go work up an obscene amount of lather in the shower tonight.
Oh, Peter, what a good, good poem---and what a good, good reading. There's a kindness, a gentleness in your voice that also shines through in your face, in your smile. Gosh, I'm glad I stopped by tonight to hear this.
What a wonderful reading! More!
rowdydow reminds me of a word my friend Donna used one day when talking to my dogs. It's rootypoot. Whenever I say it to my pups they go nuts and run in circles. They're not right.
Thanks J, E, L, P: glad you enjoyed it. Post an audio of one of yours?
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