April 5, 2008
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ElectricPoetry: New 1971 Transcriptions
New transcriptions from 1971. Never Seen Online in any form on any of my sites: When I began transcribing my poems in earnest to my ElectricPoetry website in 2003, I deliberately didn't transcribe all the poems chronologically, although they were listed that way on the website.I wanted to showcase the better poetry first. The first ElectricPoetry site had only a few poems represented from each decade, and they were, of course, a selection of the better poems. As I transcribe, I naturally have been posting the better poetry before getting to the lesser works. I wrote 134 poems over the course of 1971, which includes my last months in high school and first months of college. That's a lot of poems! There are still 41 more poems for me to transcribe and post on the 1971 section of my website. I began to transcribe these this morning, and have 12 finished, so I will post a few of them here on my blog. Below is one of the photos in my graduation photo package which I uploaded for Beth's (seedsower) high school senior graduation photo post. (A great post which shows the grad photos of dozens of Xangans.)
"The Virtues (LIFE, LOVE, HONOR, REVENGE)"
Poetry by Michael F. Nyiri
1971 (17 years old)
LIFEHey! Live life to the fullest
The philosophers say
Think it over
Say the scientists
Repent what you have done
Saith the men of God
Do what you want as long as it doesn't bother me
Says the undecided
Live how you want
Says the cynic
Live only for money
Says the miser
Get what you can
Says the swinger
Move with the crowd
Says the follower
Move with my crowd
Says the leader
Rebel
Says the antagonist
Fill yourself
Says the glutton
Follow your instincts
Say the psychiatrists
Take two and call me in the morning
Say the doctors
Do this
Say the careless
Don't do it
Says the law.
And the poor fool
Worries himself
Into his grave before
He's ever given a chance
To live.LOVE
What is it that tears your heart from it's bosom
What is it that draws water from your eyes
What is it that tells you
You'd rather be with that person
No matter what else in the world happens
What is it that stays with you
Even if he leaves for someone else
It's man's soft friend
And his venemous enemy
It stays there through the
Good, the
Bad, the
Beautiful, and the
Awful.
It is love.HONOR
Morality and etiquette
Rely on one word
Honor is the virtue
That make men turn foolish.
All will vie for glory
It's the hole in our society
No one likes to be conceited
More than the guy who's got the medals.
He did it all,
And did it all for honor.REVENGE
Fellow man, bear your arms,
Shoot those who did you wrong.
They ate your food
They took your wife
And they aren't worth living.
They're the scum of the earth
They're the worm on the ground
They are base
And bad
And they deserve to be shot
For what they did to you.If you guide you ways by what ethics show
You'll be running your virtues where blood should flow.
"Epilogue on the Death of Love"
Poetry by Michael F. Nyiri
1971 (18 years old)
Wherefore art thou bird of youth?
What was that thou said in sooth?
When life was but a supple twig
Love was that which seemed so big.
One plus one hath equalled two
Affection formed a wistful dew.
One plus two doth equal three
That doesn't work so happily.
And so one has to split and run
And love so dies, and this is done."Impetus"
Poetry by Michael F. Nyiri
1971 (18 years old)
When the asphalt river winds too sharp
And the streetlights get too bright,
City life is just a sordid breath
And smog hides sound and sight.
Rosemead, El Monte, Alhambra, L.A.
The hot sun baked us all today
The air was stale
The colors pale
There was nowhere to think or pray.There's a car that's waiting for the road
To speed up under it's tires.
All it needs is gas, and a willing soul
To spark it's quieted fires.
Rushing, rambling, fleeting by
Out to the land with bright, blue sky
The miles go fast
Saw the city's last
Find some space where we'll happy cry.The old Snake River summons us here
Splashing it's turbulent tune.
Where Canyon County, Idaho sits,
We'll be there very soon.
The greens, the browns, stand boldly out
Into paradise, we took this route
The trees are green
All beauty's seen
We'll all give a hearty shout.When the evening comes, the campfire's lit
And the Idaho nightlife sings.
The fire crackles with it's tender warmth
And sleepiness, the cool air brings.
Come the morning, food is served,
All wake up, no one unnerved
The pine smells good
As we eat our food
And also, serenity is served.All the time we learn about God and love
But who believes, in a dirty town
He has to view the beauty of nature
So he'll have a smile instead of a frown.
I lived in Idaho a long time ago
And once more up there I must go
I'm tired of this existence
I'm building up resistance
I've got to get to Idaho."Joe Cool and the Importance of Being"
Poetry by Michael F. Nyiri
1971 (18 years old)
I'm cool, I have long hair
(I shout hippie phrases but really don't care)
I'm cool, I wear love beads
(I talk about it frequently, but never do the deeds)
I'm cool, I smoke pot
(I took it once, but now I'm not)
I'm cool, I wear flares
(If it were the style to wear straights, I would, who cares)
I'm cool, I preach love
(But I never believed in a God above)
I'm cool, I love all the races
(As long as I don't have to look at their faces)
I'm cool, I don't believe in 'Nam
(But only cause I'm afraid of getting killed, damn)
I'm cool, I'm a hippie at heart
(And whatever's cool next, I'll play that part.)UPDATE: Today Joe Cool wears polyester and hangs out at discos with a coke spoon around his neck. - 1980
UPDATE: You got it. He's a yuppie with a BMW, a Nautilus membership, and a hot tub on the roof of his condo - 1986
UPDATE: Idaho. NRA 1999. A survivalist, natch."Brother Bertram's Book of Verse"
Poetry by Michael F. Nyiri
1971 (18 years old)
Benign Brother Bertram
Has a book he carries with him.
It's a book that suffices
To suit his every whim.
Cuddled to his breast
Rests
Brother Bertram's Book of Verse.Beloved Brother Bertram
Loves this book he carries with him.
In it he writes
About the feelings he has each day.
And in the interim
He feels
Every emotion he can possibly.Busy Brother Bertram
IS this book he carries with him.
Every part of it
Coincides with a part of him.
And he lives
Simply
To emote his feelings into his book.Brother Bertram's Book of Verse
Is a tribute to the poet
It has swallowed him completely
And he doesn't even know itBrother Bertram's Book of Verse
Records each little feeling
It convey's the poet himself
Becomes his very being
BEHIND THE POETRY: "The Virtues (LIFE, LOVE, HONOR, REVENGE)": Obviously, Revenge is not a virtue. By the time I reached the age of 17 and began my seinor year of high school, America was in a real mess. It would be another year before the fall of Saigon and the withdrawal of troops from Viet Nam. I was a scholarship winner, but my lottery number came up 1A but I got an extension because I had still had braces. A lot of the "lesser" poems I have never posted online, including this one, give voice to my personal confict upon hearing so many preach their various "virtues" to me. "Impetus": A simple yearning for a city boy to return to his "roots". I don't remember Idaho from living there, since I left before the age of 5, but I did have sweet memories of visiting my grandmother in Idaho before her death. "Joe Cool and the Importance of Being": I have sometimes written poetry in another "voice" and this is a good example. I was making fun of the "cool kid" who really weren't so cool at all. "Brother Bertram's Book of Verse": This was the title of my second group of "Spontaneous Poetry" written over a day in June of 71 and the sixth of nine poems. Pretty much describes me at the time. The alliterative "B" sounds of the title were inspired by a Neil Diamond song popular at the time called "Brother Love's Traveling Salvation Show." MFN/ppf
Comments (21)
It may have just been because I was so struck by it that it preoccupied me as I was reading the rest of this, but I think that the first part of the virtues poem (life) was absolutely phenominal(sp?).
All around great work, thank you for bringing these out in the open. I also appreciate the commentary provided at the end. I understand poetry is often best left to open interpretation, but it doesn't hurt to give the reader a head start
Great stuff :coolman:
you've clearly been a thinker your whole damn life. Awesome!
My favorite was the Virtues; LIFE is the best.
I hate poetry, but absolutely love yours.
Life was my favorite and it was something that needed to be said.
I liked Life the best too and HEY.....You had hair!!!!!!!!!!! LOL!!
Revenge reminds me of a saying I heard once....resentment is like drinking poison and waiting for the other person to die.
"Joe Cool and the Importance of Being" struck me, mostly because I've always wondered what happened with that generation; you know, why they haven't made a big stink over Bush and Iraq and all of the destructive federal policies of this country. It's just good insight to read a young voice from that time period. Thanks for posting these, even if you consider them your "lesser" poems.
Really like Joe Cool and the Importance of Being! Great stuff. It rings true to life and those who care what others think. It is so PC on the outside, but real on the inside.
fyi; I was turning 5 years old in 1971, so Snoopy was real big with me then
@tinahawt - Dear Tina, That's a wonderful compliment. I wrote these as a kid, of course, but even today people who don't necessarily like poetry seem to understand and enjoy mine.
@ktandie - Dear Katie, I've been railing against Bush since he was elected. In 2001, when he decided to go into Afghanistan, I was "making a stink" about it but everyone in the country was "pro terrrorsim" back then and I was made into a pariah on the message boards where I tried to preach peace. I've also written extensively about how I was co chair on a high school club back in 1970 called the "Eco Action Committee". We were holding campus rallies about global warming back then, but nobody listened. Now everyone is "going green" and I think it's like closing the barn door after the horses have already run away.
@Lmoisan - Dear Lmoisan, I should have put the Snoopy reference in the Behind the Poetry notes. The "Joe Cool" character was created in either 70 or 71, and I cribbed the name of the Snoopy character for the poem.
I don't believe that you wrote some of these when you were only a teen, I just wish some of the teens of my generation could write something equally good *sigh*
RYC: I enjoyed your entry, thus I commented
and it hurts losing BonBon, he was my only friend in this hostile environment. It's been a few days and I still can't get it off my mind. Thanks for being so understanding, you won't believe the insensitivity I got from some of the people I call close friend.
'love' made me smile....i get it...same with 'impetus'...you just had stuff bubbling out of you in your youth...i was busy breaking horses (and a few bones)
you're like Bob Dylan
As usual, I can take poetry or leave it, and some of this poetry I like a lot more than other pieces. I really liked Joe Cool. I've been thinking in the last week about poseurs, reality, and the faces people put on. *hugs*
Oh, those poems are really brilliant & you only 17-18! :goodjob:
I wrote silly poems in H.S., sometimes in study hall when I should have been studying. Hardly any of my poems got very serious or deep. My dad was a good poet, and many of his were serious and thought provoking. When he wrote humorous poems, he called them "doggeral". I've never heard anyone else use that term.
As a poetry lover, I admire your talent.
BTW: Thanks so much for the info. on the Clouds video and flatpick46
~~Cheers!
Dear Mike,
I must say Joe Cool and the Importance of Being made me smile. To all of those who talk the talk but can't quite walk the walk... It's interesting how what's 'cool' changes.. Always will change. I've decided to be me and not worry about the coolness factor :p. Have a great day.
peace,
Jane
Hi Mike =)
I liked Life best... I had to write poetry during my junior year of HS for Creative Writing and my poems didn't sound half as great as yours. By the way, the commentary makes me wonder where I would have been in 1971.
Mike ppf,
Really enjoyed 'Joe Cool.' Maybe its the historian in me, or the fact that I had Snoopy Joe Cool pajamas back in the day.
~come_closer
I love your poetry. And just so you know, I've never been quite so prolific with writing poetry as I was when EP was blooming. I'm just saying.
Love,
Blue
aww...thanx mike.. i hope u dont mind me calling u that.
and thanx for dropping by my page, it really made me smile =)
im not a big fan of poetry, but i read every single one u post because i think ur such a great great man. why is it a fool?
Darling Mike, I really love "Impetus." The first stanza is terrific. I also dig the Joe Cool poem. I love that you still have the poems that you wrote as a teenager.
RYC: Thank you for watching my videos and leaving such wonderful comments. I loved your comment on 'Prom Queen's Lament.' It was poetic. I have no doubt that you and I would be such good friends in real life.
I like "Epilogue on the Death of Love"... I have known something about that topic. I have been rather absent as usual, but have popped in a couple of times when I see your name on Featured. I really liked the Xanga Dictionary idea. Of course I always enjoy perusing your poetry.
Joe Cool... I think that was every guy I knew in the 1970's.
Hugs, Tricia :wave: :fun: :wave:
Love "I'm cool, I wear flares (If it were the style to wear straights, I would, who cares)" and the Joe Cool updates,you need a 2008 one....what do cool guys do today? I have no clue ,I am married to a farmer!
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