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| This Just In by Jerome Sala Winter 2003 false leads abounded today as investigators sought to recover lost destinies from the societal pyre rumor has it these destinies were last seen dancing around an immense bonfire wildly— as if infected with some medieval disease some claimed these allegorical figures sought their own demise they felt weary one observer theorized of their own conventions— no matter how nonconformist they were deigned to be by onlookers from the perspective of the personifications themselves they barely felt as if they were well persons film and television producers are working feverishly in co-operation with pop psychologists and New Age mesmerists in order to dream up new stories for these destinies to inhabit without a place to live the authorities fear the notion of vocation will be lost forever or at the very least consigned to the same historical zoos that house other ideas which have devolved to the status of exotic curiosities in danger of extinction "if people no longer feel they are born to do something," one talk show commentator commented "notions of personal responsibility are liable to disappear— next thing you know they’ll be looking for a handout" It Was the Night Before Monday by Jerome Sala and a good thing too because if the weekend went on any longer the populace was in danger of the overwork it took to have a good time you could feel the relief in the night air in every restaurant around every TV screen among the crowds pouring out of the Sunday night features leaving the parks or in the minds of those obstinate individuals visiting a last site at their keyboards you could hear the chatter arising into the atmosphere like a swarm people excitedly planning how they would spend their morning relaxing in front of a column of figures or obeying the kind machines that urged them forward at a more human pace than the cruel bosses of the leisure industry and among those who were tired (and there were many) of risking their lives in order to enjoy them voices began to cry out and demand revolutionary action— some called for a longer work week supported by a leisure strike so that the oppression known as entertainment could be retired forever Jerome Sala’s most recent book is Raw Deal: New and Selected Poems (Jensen/Daniels). His poems have appeared in Boundary 2, the Boston Book Review, Conjunctions and many others. |
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The Rail invites you to a reading with Jason Flores-Williams and Brian Carreira, along with musical guest Steve Strunsky of the Lonesome Prairie Dogs. Thurs., Sept. 22, 8:30 p.m. Vox Pop--Flatbush, Brooklyn www.voxpop.net |
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OFF THE RAIL FALL 2005 at the Central Branch of the Brooklyn Public Library - Grand Army Plaza |
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The Independent Press Association-NY recently honored The Brooklyn Rail with the following awards: |