T0VR1ST H0T3LS W1TH P3RF3CT...

tourist hotels with perfect

corners never blemished by

rocket propelled grenades, yet

G00GL3 S0VL F00D R3ST4VR4NT...

google "soul food restaurant"

and chances are better than

not you will find non-soul food

STR4NG3 S1M14N SC13NC3S...

strange simian sciences

inclined to apply square rules

where only fractals exist

G4S ST4T10N C0FF33 - 4S T4LL...

gas station coffee - as tall

a cup as possible, with

like four hazelnut creamers

SC4TT3R1NG CR4CK3D C0RN F0R CR0WS...

scattering cracked corn for crows;

thus far, they've not returned the

favor, but I am patient

P30PL3 WH0 TRVST C0PS 4LS0...

people who trust cops also

trust politics; guess they get

returns on their investment

TH3 H1GH3R 3DVC4T10N...

the higher education

industry profits off of

the meritocracy myth

0NC3 4CT1V3 F4RMH0VS3 4L0NG...

once active farmhouse along

dying side road left vacant,

decaying, with For Sale sign

S1MPL3 C3R4M1C C0FF33...

simple ceramic coffee

cup, refilled with flirtatious

small talk; it's nothing, like life

CH3ST MVSCL3 4NX13TY...

chest muscle anxiety

grip countered with deep breaths and

long stares upwards into sky

SP4C3M3N W0VLDN'T TRVLY B3...

spacemen wouldn't truly be

"space" men, but from another

planet; no one's born nowhere

N0 B3TT3R D4Y TH4N TH1S 0N3...

no better day than this one;

no better life than this one;

ain't gettin' shit else no way

V4C4NT STR1P M4LL'S 4SS 3ND - L4ND...

vacant strip mall's ass end - land

of abandoned shopping carts

and other things forgotten

SVNR1S3 0V3R 4TL4NT1C...

sunrise over Atlantic

from cheap hotel balcony

("cheap" being relative though)

PR4Y1NG MY GR34T-GR4NDCH1LDR3N...

praying my great-grandchildren

live in dark age return to

pre-Columbian lifestyles

WR1T1NG Y0V C4N ST4B P30PL3...

"writing you can stab people

with" I used to say; hardly

have space or time to think now

D34D 4PPL14NC3S ST4CK3D 1N Y4RD...

dead appliances stacked in yard;

dead souls stacked in overpriced

houses; dead system's last gasps

4N 1LL3G1T1M4T3 4RTS...

an illegitimate arts

renaissance except more

mixed meta-american

W3 H0LD1NG 1T T0G3TH3R...

we holding it together

good as possible, one patched

leak a time in half-assed life

25-Man Metaphysical Roster: A.F.C. Bournemouth

[nobody likely looking thru these old 25-Man posts I snuck in after the fact,

so good place to sneak in pic of tattoo of Andy Capp chasing a bastard cop]

[25-Man Metaphysical Roster is a football dork methodology meant to establish a listing of players who have been most active for English Premier League teams in their past 100 non-friendly matches. Essentially, it is calculated by minutes played, but weighted towards most recent games. The end result is a listing of the 25 players in a team’s recent history who have had the largest hand on their metaphysical sporting trajectory. The English Premier League was chosen because it is the highest level of football played in an English speaking country, and I speak English. Also, it is what comes on TV here in the USA, where I fucking live. And yet still I should clarify I hate English, and also America. Thus maybe I hate myself. Should I not fail in maintaining my unpaid deadline, a new 25-Man Metaphysical Roster will appear on the 1st and 15th of every month.]

Let’s go back through Bournemouth a second time, although this time with no blurbs because well you should know if you’ve been thumbing through the old shit.

#1: Steve Cook (same as last time Bournemouth was 25-Manned on 15-May-2017)

#2: Simon Francis (up from #3 last time)

#3: Charlie Daniels (down from #2 last time)

#4: Adam Smith (up from #5 last time)

#5: Joshua King (up from #7 last time)

#6: Nathan Ake (up from #19 last time)

#7: Ryan Fraser (up from #13 last time)

#8: Andrew Surman (same as last time)

#9: Dan Gosling (same as last time)

#10: Harry Arter (down from #6 last time)

#11: Asmir Begovic (previously #16 for Chelsea on 15-Sep-2017)

#12: Artur Boruc (down from #4 last time)

#13: Jordan Ibe (up from #17 last time)

#14: Callum Wilson (up from #15 last time)

#15: Lewis Cook (up from #24 last time)

#16: Marc Pugh (down from #10 last time)

#17: Junior Stanislas (down from #11 last time)

#18: Benik Afobe (down from #12 last time)

#19: Lys Mousset

#20: Jack Wilshere (down from #14 last time)

#21: Jermain Defoe (previously #2 for Sunderland on 15-Feb-2017)

#22: Tyrone Mings (down from #21 last time)

#23: Bradley Smith (up from #25 last time)

#24: Jack Simpson

#25: Lewis Grabban (down from #23 last time)

T3NN1S B4LL 1N TH3 0C34N...

tennis ball in the ocean -

return to sender, but torn

asunder - idles on sand

T1R3S L1K3 3L3CTR1C4L T4P3...

tires like electrical tape

sliding up down and around

them Carolina back roads

F1ND1NG F0RG0TT3N C0RN3R...

finding forgotten corner

in devils' gridlocked lines to

downward spiral for few days

Hatsu Basho 2018 Honour Tanka Day 15: RYUDEN (10-5)

[an outstanding performance gif] 

my apologies for 

withdrawing like an injured 

yokozuna, y’all 

once Tochinoshin had won, 

wasn’t much left to tanka 

but let me also 

give glowing accolades to 

the young Ryuden 

the lanky youngster appears 

to be poised for true stardom 

Japan’s sumo world 

will suck the soul out of young 

promising natives 

but Ryuden carried himself 

well, winning Fighting Spirit 

(he shared with Abi, 

but I already wrote ‘bout 

Abi earlier) 

(now we are officially 

caught up, time for Osaka)