Tales of Fantasy Wag

" Tales of Fantasy Wag "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Difficulties winning
gone missing
under new limits


given lavishly
found out easily
after entering the fifth


under suspicion
as an erratic trip
for the wistful


after breaking in plied by gifts
within an illicitly anonymous
non-profit system


during precipitous crises
whining like a million
cramped and baffling
underhanded answers
in tiny thumb squares


uploaded in huge batches
of ignored lending standards
like stakes-raising elation
with good indications


chuckling away
with prohibitive favorites
as celebrated renegades
in terabyte flavors
of the high-and-mighty
live action as over reactions
spun off as character-clashing
tales of fantasy wag


getting their moxies on
in fictitious memoirs
of voyeuristically
dissimilar mobster hits
as heavy-handed fisticuffs
of fictitious symbolism
befittingly gripping
in a one-act mystery


setting sights on night lights
with skinny black ties
against crisp white
from on on high by starlight
finally labeled with masking tape
on shaking metal trays
minus the substantiation of DNA


intensified by motorized
monotonies vibrating
as eyes widening
like unidentified
high-profile hires
in kaleidoscopic exorcises


making blank payments
to survivors
while self-driving
past fire pits
on coastlines of scathed
nations with fabled
blood and betrayal
as lost relations
of bone decalcification
perform in spaces
with rain-soaked waits...

Flip-Flops in the Lobby

" Flip-Flops in the Lobby "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán

Flip-flops in the lobby
and roof-top gardens
of first models facing the park

down to the penny
for decades
needing updating

carpeting is stained
limited cabinet space
north facing

finished basements
don't cooperate
deemed baseless

shooting for the moon
by letting air out
of a balloon

in a buying mood
as pre-approved
consumers

being buoyed
anonymously
and easily

while laundering
dirty money
pre-rinse, wash and spin

in resistance
to the digital spills
of astringent fiscal conditions

like ceremonial first pitches
while clinging to traditions
with over-sized catcher's mitts

squatting with hi-tech chest
protectors and helmets
of tar and resin

a wind up, a hit
and a miss
caught swinging

as absurd purists
backflip
for sponsorships

showing no hints
of pit-bull
tendencies

thick-headed
athletically
as a string of litanies

looping cartwheels
strung out beneath
reaming bleachers...

Vocal Trickery

" Vocal Trickery "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Vocal trickery
among friends
in an alt-arts mecca
without consequence
forcibly separated from them
already felt as reverie
for identical shells


simultaneously retro
with misdirection
deeply connected
by identical upwellings
as an endless none-the-less


stemming from optimum
ill health lacking in vegetables
with scant attention
paid to Sunday breakfasts'
nutritional contents


anchoring the passages
with body scans
captured in a flash
as an age-old artists' practice
scattering blue-bonnet seed packets


in double helpings
of second natures
name checked
as identically eclectic
generally more-or-less
embellished by exceptions
while making no sense


being stacked in patterns
of unmatched dynamics
by keeping track of ironclad vacs
with twisted tales of wiry hairs
in the peppery ponytails
of a leading man


translated as sex on legs
detangling in chambers
on blood-stained satin capes
waving laptops backstage
as madcap favorites
with plastic fangs


not only zany
but audacious
as snarky montages
of disruptive technology
unsusceptible
to reinvention
at the multiplex


unapologetically angsty
deconstructed mythologies
surging towards the unquenchably
thirsty alive and still working


diffusely perused for abuses
being ballyhooed
during champagne shampoos
harrowingly strait-jacketed
by the dilapidatedly charismatic


in a give and take
collaboration
with banality
as an unthinkingly evil
cliché-ridden citizenry
not fitting in
while firing
a six-figured
nuclear missile...

Sand-Swept Gravel

" Sand-Swept Gravel "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Sand-swept gravel
species accountable
to high pounces
over spotted backs


unpatterned savannas
tall grasses wild cats
reproduced annually
occasionally blackish


tear stains on faces
during predation
in the rain
on a hunting range


in an open plain
swaybacked
with a wasp waist
faster than the fleetest prey


detaining a mate
pouncing play
rufous flanks
unmistakable
pups of late...

Acorn Finials

" Acorn Finials "

by Suzán Jiván

for Stanislaus Dubowski


Attention spans
shrink
like pirated signals
of origins


rousing curiosities
unspooling
like a cracking
good yarn


as self-consciously
snarling swashbucklers
become ably embodied
where ever the plot wonders


strictly at sea
by inhibiting
walking
with webbed feet


as three species
breed
like little grebes
with yellow cheeks


non-breeding season
awkwardly waddling
gone kaputt
singly and monolithically


bands of orange
applied in top
of uncannily vaginal
painted patina patterns


bunched-up fabrics
bearing monograms
of fenced yards
for hipped-roof barns


scholarly muddy bottomed
short-bodied knock-kneed
third-century cutlery


mixed feelings
for hobbies
of raising bees
being draped in bunting
as symbols of comfort


bidding on silver gilt
with irresistible
acorn finials
without finishing
laboriously stitched


backstories of tragedy
pervading embroidery
instructed in needling
techniques of deer
and funereal wreathes
four- and five- figures each


off-putting dangerous work
being greeted by a bleepity-bleep
perhaps after having had
one too many family samplers
pajama clad showing signs of wear...

Tripods on Mountaintops

" Tripods on Mountaintops "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Not so fast
likely to be a blast
as the last
reinstallation
caught in the embrace
of fresh paint


encountering
old faces
over decades
in stained
glass panes


unconvincingly
reframed
by staid
curators
of conservation
during private
conversations
on Memorial Day


in serious
but funny ways
repatriated
by long-standing
estates with pre-
determinations
of remade relations
with DNA


against a non-
profit backdrop
of impromptu
artists in flip-flops
manicured hardly
as far-fetched manis


transcending
quintessential
blue-chip pressure
coming to resemble
the first time ever
increasing prevalence
of pop-up smarts
like tripods on mountaintops...

Unnamed Targets

" Unnamed Targets "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Unnamed targets
at the heart
of a so-called non-war
within limited uses of forces
reappointed as pinpoints
of global assaults


forged offshore
unremorsefully
written off
as secret
endorsements
of opaque currencies
hacked across
floors and walls


where the living is tidy
fired by design surmised
minus hand-wringing anxiety
sheathed like pythons
opposed to writhing
with the magically dematerialized



strictly bush league
squared off with a woody
flowering tree with shiny leaves
fortified by digging underneath


bloated roadkills
exploding over and over
where the heart isn't in it
somehow dismissed
like the unlikeliest
of infantile ids


wryly whining
divisively as sidekicks
of moneyed bigwigs
lacking credibility
with backstage jitters
in box office hits
vintagely triple billed


soaring villainously
into a trillion roaring winds
diving from cliffs
with slim birds' wrists
furiously flapping
lift and drag...

Prophetic Trenches

" Prophetic Trenches "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Prophetic trenches
beyond a wrench's reach
worth every penny
despite rising temperatures
on asteroids in question


unaware of anyone else
dreamed up by bartenders
as testy epithets
in below ground shelters


looking out of step
while gaining momentum
with star anise
as lemon peels climb out
revived without trying


highball sized
unexamined undersides
beard and porkpie
imbibed wildlife


best described
as too thick to sip
with a cucumber spear
downriver tonic mixed in
with gin on a wide rim


at a low simmer
a touch more bitter
sprinkled with mint
and grainy particulates
between pitchers


with citrus
standing in
above suspicion
like cough syrup
drunk through
a long straw
as a saner choice...

High-and Medium-

" High- and Medium- "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán

High- and medium-
temperature veins
elongated sideways

silver white
striated lath like
on stalactites

cockscomb sulfides
confused with pyrite
remobilize oxidize

since time
tending to crystallize
none survives

stripped away
underlying formations
final sites

names assigned
misidentified
prominent boulder piles

crystallized dikes
unequivocal titles
friable...

Grinding Malaise

" Grinding Malaise "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


The flight of the unlikely
neither clear nor precise
left spiraling
in a death-defying crisis


sitting idly and drying
up beneath spindly
rigs of depletion as cyclones
like insurgencies
reel repeatedly with refugees


immensely irreverent hectoring
without making sense as expletives
reorienting themselves eerily
self-possessed as separate identities
in debris-clogged streets
of casualties wiped clean


at a cut-rate
annualized pace
while death rates
climb for migrants


as audacious free-
wheeling tornadoes
lethally circulate
across the great plains
on a fateful day in May


unable to turn the page
after twisted devastation
grinding malaise slinking away
while yanking at expectations...

Clench-Fisted Twister Haiku

" Clench-Fisted Twister Haiku "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Clench-fisted twister

incoming rumbling funnel

severe pummeling



school-structure rubble

muddles of thunderous glum

crushing succumbing...

A Trio of Prequels

" A Trio of Prequels "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


A trio of prequels
fulfilling the needs
of mocked-up scenes
good for staging
set pieces
out of sequence
like general ideas
in fiery atmospheres


rendering the fat
off of animals
in walkways
and on ladders
seamlessly captured
with handfuls of scratch


symbiotically charismatic
tracked down by the bafflement
of unfounded maximalists with prowess
testing the colossal "how"
in all-consuming offshoot movements
by cruder interviewers
suffused with absolute ambiguities


like conduits of artistry
leaning on what seems to be
without noticing staked-out
cinematic chatting
finally cracking down


with six figures
and little filtering
of the familiar inner
framed in irksome
buttoned-up
all-of-a-suddens
while huddling
with bulky
comeuppance
done full justice
as sullenness
creeping up
in close-ups...

Borrowed Mostly

" Borrowed Mostly "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Borrowed mostly
unaccompanied
indebted deeply
to near compatibility


merely piecing
epitomes by giving in
to lumbering start-ups
proceeding wearily


unleashing pie-
baking giants
dangerously leaked
by wee companies
in between
communal bondings


progressively
be-bopping
into supremely
modest modicums
of close-cropped
cosmopolitan ardencies


swapping febrile lap ups
with blackmailed aspirations
while making the case
for dramatically slap-dashed
whole lotta fancies


as laughing gas
sets the standards
of feeling the tedium
all too vividly...

Eyes of the Spider Still Life

" Eyes of the Spider Still Life "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Head banging away
with a sung-through nature
erasing narration
as elusive as spaces
between tables
while a faint polonaise
plays with a hip-hop flavor
ranging from folksy-favorites
to thumping raves of betrayal


interpolated as craters
resembling decorated graves
folded and faulted farther north
as feldspar and quartz
uncomfortably far from wars
when pity turns into the torment
of awe in a furious offshore


sounding bullhorns
as spoilers
dangling like cat toys
in the comfortless flat
of a nefarious assassin
with impious disparities
like spidery species
during molting periods


appendages flex
against shedded
exoskeletons
with victims
surrounded in silk


on the debit side
of divine rights
with zero lot lines
as places to hide
from crises
of ideologies
while tugging
on heartstrings
and sucking arteries


acknowledged
by black-clad
activists incanting
natural disasters
in the badlands
of greenhouse gases
and tar-sands
extractions' aftermaths


spread accidentally
feeding stealthily
on bumblebees
in mimicry of extremes
seldom seen
by the majority
with consummate ease
in bursts of speed


on chocolate-and-cream
floating leaves
dabbling legs
gaping fangs
enzymes on prey
sticky base...

Nominally Present

" Nominally Present "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Taking the helm
drifting upended
in claret-colored velvet
nominally present
full-metal digital relics
as inaccessible potential threats
of the venerably effortless
comedies of errors


preventable as unmentionables
ludicrously a little ahead
of near echoes testing
the limits of an offense
gone too far arbitrarily blocked
by wonky barroom clods
like plodding homebodies
amid bits of formidable domesticity


almost unbearably
rotating on one leg
even more precariously
flipping switches
into "on" and "off" positions
while whispering vigorously
as fingers slip and smoke billows


flapping unanchored
caution tapes
with brassy cadences
and cool gazes
occasionally deactivated
by carafes of vodka
in synopses of folly...

Almost Invariably Blue

" Almost Invariably Blue "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Almost invariably blue
except the solution
as translucent species


becoming implicitly
bigger like realness
desiring to disappear


in a blinking red light
essentialized entirely
across a knife in writing


more cynical than sinister
science fiction in a hands-off stance
after toppling a mascot's glass
with inaudible commands
quite candidly large scale


incisively sad
caused by the ancillary
brandy of a right-hand man
notwithstanding
after jumping at the chance
of becoming a champion


with a whiff
of chrysanthemums
in exercise class
tails wagging
remaining standing
sussing out the smells
when happy hour ends...

Like Outcries

" Like Outcries "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán

Restricted
by a barricade
system
known as
a sally port
along
with the spare
advantages
of an orb


surmounted
as a cross
outlined
in hoary frost
as an exploitive
offering


hauled until taut
crawling
back and forth
layered across
triangles
of the first fork


with radii
and spirals
like outcries
fetching higher
and higher sites
for fortresslike
top prices


on foot and on bikes
seemingly lifeless
warnings inside
of wireless rites
as security tightening
benday dots
and vertical stripes


in the harsh light
of private hands
with backlashes
from armed camps


as passions of rank
and file ignite
like pop idols
amid violence


on a gridiron
escaping alive
via Wi-Fi
hitting new heights
along fine lines


in an art hive
of clash of the titans
in the absorbent white
of a wandering eye...

Tearing Down

" Tearing Down "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Tearing down
singling out
greater degrees
of new links
at first hearing


as atrocities
for the world to see
dragging bodies
from streets
with depravity
having seized
footage routinely


mounting newly found cut outs
in veiled secrecy while shrinking
from fast-talking fair warnings
at the behest of underlying deficits
in pledges as unusual steps
while showing arresting dilemmas
like preventative removal
of both breasts fueling
trends not medically necessary


as forces withdraw
into broader unusually longer
lingerings in the soil
of tangle-veined decay
in weedy places
with predaceous tapers


outstretched while at rest
with pleas to surrender
when negligence is debated
in opening statements
for separate cases
of addiction medications
as frenetic as incarnations
within columned spaces


saved as odd bits
of information
manically jotted
down on paper
with any number
unctuously
compulsive


held in extreme
dihedral V's
darting erratically
raspily rattling
by burrowing
in banks
while being killed
at hatcheries


ritually tapping
rapidly humming wings
difficult to see
roosting nightly
in cavities
of loose colonies
in heat...

Tremendous Pressures

" Tremendous Pressures "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Tremendous pressures
deflected questions
tepid protections
lethal projections
contentious requests
to the letter
like tips of flight feathers
along a trailing edge


bluish white brackish habitats
hardly distinguishing
between wintering and breeding
by melodiously whinnying
while suffering staggeringly
buzzy and slithery tens of billions
of deceptively simple
bristle-tipped whopping figures
squirming in the dirt long term


pushing and pulling
as the poles warm
more and more
implausibly low balling
without warning
as irrational actions
of ingenuity and craft
in frisky dances
of perilous practices


suddenly falling
sullenly mourning
flinging handfuls
of water overboard
all according to a core
of unmannered sorts
in a roomful of small talk
as well-clawed-long-horned borers...

Terminal Snooping

" Terminal Snooping "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Terminal snooping
diminutive debuts
crammed into minuscule
senses of bruised


under-fueled finely tuned
hard-and-fast issues
of futuristic breadcrumb clues
crumbled by humans
with grandiose numerals
minus scrutiny


semi-contentedly
as listless directives
within schisms
of hit-and-miss


willfully unhinged
by wisps of ignorance
bearing gifts
jam-packed with the tricks
of tweedy symbologists


antennal lexicons
of migrant monarchs
with green darners'
wings above bodies
held horizontally
no rest and no margin
as slap shots for scoring stars


fitting farewells
crisp and detailed
bare knuckled
no gloves
rebutted rebuffed
come-a-runnin'
out a' da tunnel


in breakups
as breakthroughs
under review
famously staid
reflecting rises and fades
under condemnation
from mandates
of abdication


knowingly or just luckily
like clumsy comeuppance
plugged in
while waiting for winners
beneath the bark of conifers
attracted to lights at night
like false tigers on cacti


next to last
densely haired
desert areas
contractile
carcasses
droppings
shiny or not
death watch...

Unexplainable

" Unexplainable "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Taking aim
heralding change
under speculation
unexplainable flex pay


flagrant loan modifications
spending decades
deciding to break
prior obligations
in violation
of out-of-state
layoffs as payoffs


too big and unwieldy
as overlapping
black-capped chickadees
foraging on twigs
and chunky sea ducks
feeding on mollusks
common to abundant
monogamously hidden
among underbrush


heavily hunted
easily flustered
boyishly undone
culturally befuddled
by neither punk
nor grunge bee venom


crew necked
small headed
predaceous decay
stout bodied
hollowed out


rat-tailed maggots
taking advantage
of esteemed families
as handicappers
handle the slop
without harm
or letting on


complimenting cops
as point guards
international or not
in highly-charged
carnivals of carnage


affinities for hockey's
ricocheted shots
keeping the pressure on
like high-level decibels'
next level of upsets
flirting with heavily-
pressed legends


after starting with fresh parts
using the phrase, "popular"
for those in want hiding in garages
and hopping through backyards
with firm holds on the monopolies
of mixed martial arts genetic glitches
shying away from dinner
avoiding the risk of facing a cliff-
hanger of tradition freely admitted...

Challenges to Wisdom

" Challenges to Wisdom "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Challenges to wisdom
agreeing in principle
to intimate triggers
falling short of ambition


being eked out annually
at double the amount
of the loudest amid doubts
of turning out against let downs
obscured by ousted dust clouds


yellowish brown
laterally flattened
grasping abdomens
parasitic caterpillars


piercing the skin
stocky in build
blackening
yellow jackets
indistinct
or abstract
as species attacks


knowingly navigating
towards a roped-off corner
in a speed machine
while ransacking bodies
of silicon in amiable partings


dropping the artist
in the process
like the nicest possible
snoring heartily
as the hurly-burly elderly


recouping costs
in thumb-nail portraits
with endorsements
of well-fought juggernauts
for digital coffees
on recent mournings


like tracks on salt
in revolving doors
sprawled across
nagging sorts
urged strongly
ticked-off
roiling royalties...

Making Their Way

" Making Their Way "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Making their way
toward moose attacks
and plastic surgery mishaps
as woefully inadequate
excess capacity


on balance sheets
that don't matter
for hedge fund managers
of air travel


seeking passengers
with the exodus of capital
by big carriers in intimate raptures
of mauve and lilac set to clarinets


pollinated by orchestral yellows
uptempo in tangos of flirtation
touchingly well placed
with the delicacy of ballet


put into place as urbane repartee
like celebrated gangsters
ever sacrificing grace
of filthy-rich patrons


on and off stage
as outlandish clichés
whiling away
scissoring legs
igniting fracases
in instants of rage
all the more devastating...

During the Lull

" During the Lull "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom
Mom Suzán


During the lull
alluring woods
of walnut
done up
in public


humpbacked
spittlebugs
smoky in color
as winged adults


riche-punk
skirts with bustles
filing into the club
in final cuts


fired up
by bystanders
streaked buff
nocturnal
and crepuscular
active after dusk


who's more vulgar
in the clutches
of the unpublishable
made more difficult


erupting
in the forefront
first discussed
as a liquid rush
almost brusquely
lackluster


subject to dungeons
with the minutiae
of one no trump
fully undone


hushed in introspection
craftily peddled
in the leaf litter it frequents
federally protected lockstep


caught up short
shimmying off
as wistful glitter
fond and fickle
consumed in a sitting
through the fog
of glib insignificance


mouth parts dis-similar
absent or vestigial
with little of life's history
present as ungiven


laid in twigs
while living
as nymphs
in atypical spittle
delicate in build
giddily innocent
as artifice on rim
shots of saffron palettes


drained wetlands
riparian stands
solitary or in pairs
while hawking
insects in midair


grating "pink"
drawled lisping "tseep"
plucky heroine eerie
hush undercut
cacophonously
as flashy colors
in seas of ugliness


awkward breaths
tellingly embellished
increasingly frenzied
by tight-rope adrenaline


appropriated for "oooh"
on the prowl for new
parachute jumpsuits
not really mute


deeply abstruse
as lubricants
for middle-finger salutes
in unisex restrooms


reproduced
as virtually see-through
blowups of ruin
like mindless consumers
defrocked and denuded...

With a 'Psst'

" With a 'Psst' "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


With a 'psst'
as highly suspicious
conventional wisdom
vestigally twisted
rasping sucking biddies


stoking disinterest
in the vividly maximalist
sashes of terra-cotta silk
enwrapping fascinatingly big cities


on fresh bed linens
with atypical mixes
of humor and bluntness
in billowy light fixtures


entrenched above credenzas
seemingly in reference
to stressful doll questions
along walls of often forceful
shower heads gone unmentioned


wrought again
as bath collections
with armrests
on other sides
of the bed
often heard
echoing
as best sellers


happier than ever
among the wreckage
clutching a teddy
late at the Met


wearing purple lenses
while eating at desks
with 800 guests
in safety-pin dresses
and shredded fishnets


as early-bird specials
for sun-drenched
creative endeavors
only in the sense
of vials of fragrance


witty and jaded as sacred
powder puffs praised
on flawless faces'
grandest claims
having been pried away
eyes glazed...

Retrieving Wheels of Cheese

" Retrieving Wheels of Cheese "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Moving past scandals
with jellyfish genes
live on Wall Street
mocking offspring


covered in maple
leaves and knotweed
while retrieving
wheels of cheese


as epiphanies
for pickled piglets
and jerk chicken
tending to rekindle
step sisters


with bare minimums
as sibling spin
by Aboriginal children
in organic head trips



both good and bad just after days
teenage campaigns
calling soda commercials racist
as a mainstream phalanx
of home-made carbonation


in combination with tomatoes and eggs
invoking get aways similar in shape
to uninitiated pungent marinades
finding their way to extraordinary
flavors browned and braised


ground to a rough paste
with upper body strength
while sopping up fragrant
tablespoons of entrees


with the promises of grapes
as sweet intakes cooked sustainably
in local landscapes of root-eating
aphids and warm-jowl bacon


riveting minute-by-minute
with a hop and a flick
barely a whisper
off the fingertips
towards the rim
akin to a drop shot
of raw ferocity


fairly hard-bodied
plant hoppers
soft-winged
flower beetles
heads concealed
feathery antennae


emerging suspects
private sectors expelled
holding their breath
getting by defenders
granted clemency
under settlement


rationed daily bread
lines of questioning
changed perspectives
flagging potential
insurgents suspects


monogamous
loose colonies
snails, tadpoles
salamanders
highly gregarious
walking well on land


"cluk , cluck, cut, putt"
powerfully muscular
tail-spread strut
intensified color...

For the Most Part

" For the Most Part "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


For the most part
cold swims in the dark
with amber shades of orange
propelled stolidly as an octopus
vanishing up an arm
anatomically forgotten


as non-combative
skittish species scattering
in recently undamned airspace
as alternatives to manned
inaccuracies and drawbacks
of risk factors in particulate matter


lighted by fireflies superbly unlikely
to be trapped inside their own likeness
as look-alikes wickedly hard-to-find
in bundles of colored wires


shading into violence older and wiser
as primary rivals emphasizing
former sizes of bodies and lives
while pedaling paint-chipped trikes
morphing into hot toddy icons


cherry picked like sweet times
surprisingly just right in line ups
of scruffy beat-up shrugs
from stubbornly rough-and-tumble
vulnerably fuzzy earth mothers

trenchantly thinner
mythically less witty
within the limits
of shape-shifting tinsmiths
of the not-quite-convincing
embracers of risk


deliriously unreliable
like an almost thief
with unfailing penalties
for unethical intents
of maximum sentences


without paying attention
to selections
of multiple-choice tests
while seated next
to everyone else
raising themselves
since obsolescence


dipping in development
rapidly unchecked
like white picket fences
on the many levels
of instant messages


toiling together
in elastic-waist pants
with a positive
side to the latter
of far-flung locales


as members not tenants
of diverse sets
meaning to suggest
playing pat-a-cake

on a grand staircase
of coffee tables
for loftily talking cohorts
munching popcorn
in dorms for paramours
of hand-drawn unicorns...

The Longest Days

" The Longest Days "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


The longest days
as unseasonal flowers
bloom freshly for hours
across chenille
soft spreads
of marriage beds
bedecked
by fallen petals


increasingly crying foul
being treated shabbily
for malleability
mislead paid less
having taken
the usual steps
of erection selections


as subsidies for many
returning to the fray
balking at pre-emptive
participation nimbly
invisibly stripped
of privacy hand picked
like comb-finned squid



as social stigmas
lacking in validity
backlashing as flashbacks
of unfairly harvested Vidalias



muddied by crises
of deep reluctancies
thrown off more cautiously
by online pharmacies



threw traditional means
of treating marquee E.D.
more tangibly in onion fields
while facing teary
chemical weaponry...

Like Unlikely Pioneers

" Like Unlikely Pioneers "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Like unlikely pioneers
never quite
getting to the center
as a rush of pleasures
in treasure chests
of perpetual momentum
for the not necessarily
born again after long experiments


employing one-tenth as many
doubled back agains
writing huge checks
for American intelligence
supporting efforts
of epical zealots



being jeered
in the streets
doused in gasoline
and incendiary beliefs
sparking feelings
of dark delirium


like twilit gibberish
with nefarious omissions
as refusals to fit in
read in one sitting


fabulously ambitious
probabilistic pictures
that do not disappear
in near misses


since the very beginning
of pitiless cognitive dissonance
tasked with killing
in sinister dominions
while seeing much-needed
angel's wings more easily
as central conceits
snappier as sequels...

Along the Backstretch

" Along the Backstretch "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Along the backstretch
at the discretion
of detachable lenses
with a heightened
police presence


as purple hearts
and bronze stars
grow darker
over neon ponchos
scanned
with electronic wands


without letting on
to match up problems
with few good options
while keeping a distance
from the conflict
as the bringer of jollity


on condition of unscripted anonymity bearing the barbed wit of atrocities
as blunt trauma and gunshots
for bombers keep calm
lacking despondency


looking idiotic
in shiny brown oxfords
without socks
like a charmless
script doctor
of pulpy unorthodoxy


poised to take portraits
of unsuccessful porn
with attention deficit disorder
for escorts over the course
of appalling stories
for tiny warriors
with psychics on board


taking time off
from cranky voices
by sallying forth
into the paranormal
while carrying
encrypted crosses
for targeted audiences


louder blunter
conspicuously missing
after gigs
with one last fictional cringe
in sitcom oblivion
while in the skinny...

A Once-Quiet Stretch

" A Once-Quiet Stretch "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


A once-quiet stretch
even through recession
nevertheless storytellers
of transcendental largess


as culturally sagging tag teams acclaimed for streetwise
writings with abrasive psyches
by in hammers and strings


relentlessly self-reflexive
spontaneously theoretical
tired devices of nothing trifling
like groundbreaking reboots
mediocre to outright


slapped or spit upon
while miming an easily
portrayed bitchily
feverish misogyny


in not clear surly theater
glittering pink
with reproduction capacities
annoyingly newbie


showing more skin without stigma
in bold bidding of upside down signals
drawing inferences at risk
of expert's skills claiming nine tricks
with film clips of 4-4 spade fits


for getaway destinations
fingers separated and splayed
seldom raised in declaration
as bracelets and anklets
of spiraling undulations


legs raised and angled
thigh height
with utmost politeness
newly copyrighted
after taking early retirement
line by line with supertitles...

Tripped Up by Hunches

" Tripped Up by Hunches "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Facing the overall
before and after
infatuation of dating
on a leafy street
during a crime spree


storing bodies
after bombings
cautiously monitored
real or not


from a lot farther
as unidentified flying objects
sounding alarm bells
of healthy skeptics in self defense


twice elected while out of session
thinking new meetings will help
with extraterrestrials as staff members


scientifically declassified
as skyward sightings
of social butterflies


with mud being slung
after choosing not to run
as dysfunctional incumbents
tripped up by hunches


as anxiety erupts
long before the rising sun
like unknown outcomes
of muckety mucks...

Wringing a Living

" Wringing a Living "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Wringing a living
with the faultless fluidity
of a flimsy simmer
with flinty close kin


in voice overs
from the pokey
as out takes of hope
too often mis-spoken


patiently free of shame
like compilations
of non-inspiration
in neck chains
at an ambling pace


in blown noses
and overbites
watched over
ineptly in tone
as crossovers


exceeding grasps
at odd angles of morality
while fawning glossily
as brazenly poignant
straight talk
guilelessly lively
ludicrously lovely


in nude photo shoots
true to style
profoundly satisfying
when glimpsed from behind


obnoxiously spotty
sequenced with slobbering charm
while throbbing with discards
of the comically spot on


agreeably bleak
like encirclings
of terminal timidity
superciliously
lacking in sympathy


breathlessly sexy
implausibly
swimming naughtily
along sidewalks
of chalk drawings


like miasmic bon amis
beat up preachily
by innkeepers
as secret ingredients
come back cheesily
in pre-released
emergent indies...

When it Comes to Art

" When it Comes to Art "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


When it comes to art
irregardless of the jargon
of flash mobs chaotically
recruiting posies for round robins


as back ups for bereft fathers
during Mother's Day Garden Parties
on industrial red carpets proximal
to the Bronx as cathartic
nods to gin and tonics


striking illicitly safe at a distance
dressed similarly not identically
while smiling in top hats and ties
with adrenaline highs
for button-pushing archetypes


positioned stage right
as nights solidify
minus compromise
gathering outside
improvised two at a time
serpentinely forthright
while singing lines like:
"biopic blood ties bind"


self-pityingly weepy
turning the other cheek
unconvincingly like a sphinx
while seething underneath
imagined sequels
of the company we keep


brazenly absent
after scattering ashes
as characters slip
into murderous suspicion
of artsy kinships...

War Was Constant

" War Was Constant "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


War was constant
preferable to dishonor
in suits of armor
as brutal phenomenons
with detachable parts


eavesdropping
staples of horror
balding bouffant
vaguely alarming


bathed in orange
lowly downtrodden
friends of the obviously
unpopular newly-cobbled
not-for-profit scholarly


demolished decorative arts
as family coats of arms
carved on facades
of improminence


hot and smelly
secretly cherished
involuntarily messy
ending up
obsessively having sex


steeling away
into misty morning rains
left in place on picnic tables
for gangsters satiated
by wedding cake
cigarettes and bouquets
on short breaks
with hands raised...

Not an Anomaly

" Not an Anomaly "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Not an anomaly
of silicon for the Amish
as birth control policies
about to leave the job


while exploding populations
and climbing birth rates
in the most populous states
are blamed by the right to remain
silently radicalized


during deaths by suicide
being fueled by high crime
and small-time violence
while firey spires rise
on the Fourth of July
surviving alternative sites
of drone strikes
by hiding in boats nearby


as splashier
attention grabbing
mash ups of tragically
tabloidy uproars
become immersed
in the digital world
while winking
with hands on hips


in a spotless kitchen
offering up nonissues
as definitively vintage
collard hot dishes
as the hubris
of sole individuals
in ethnic exhibitions


wistfully indiscriminate
as templates for ships'
masthead figures
wearing pant legs
for doe-eye food chains
of wax-based face makeup
melting in front of fireplaces
while gazing up in resignation...

DNA Aberrations

" DNA Aberrations "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán

DNA aberrations hooked together
in strange ways
accused of impeding investigations
as disconnects translated
like cancer disasters
after blasts scrambled in crashes
laid bare stanched the morning after


rallied into lands of flannel
with contraceptives wisely available
when the ask takes place
planning and pampering
before blanketing began
as patent leather fantasies
of fact before flagged-down families
began with proposals of marriage


like cactus calculus
confidently expansive
as imaginative cocktails
for rooftop gardeners
switching to moxie
in spectacles of barley


on graffitied streets
with senses of intimacy
fashionably blank faced
after coming of age
as oases of mistakes
in relatively small spaces


made from big donations
while dying of complications
during upgrades for chronic pain
cleverly put in place
with sheep sheers to carve shapes
on examination tables
with misinformation...

Skyscrapers Inches High

" Skyscrapers Inches High "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Skyscrapers inches high
out for a Sunday ride
on revved-up bikes
for short whiles
like longtime
tight-knit survivors
shirtless on Long Island
at graveside databases


offering tastes of various states
waking up and making eggs
angled lankily snapped away
pinching in ingredients of anarchy
sporadically shifting the shims
of lifelong spritzers with salted rims
in the din of pigs ears served crispy


after the barber had finished
surviving Hitler by getting tipsy
with homebuilders on doctors' visits
never having had children
coming back for dinner
thick on the grill gone missing
without a will still living
as silver-haired fit kin
slipping in before the band quits


hindering ladder
access to farm stands
picked by hand
as upticks in demand
in emails on iPads
with goose eggs
now available


as higher yoke-
to-white ratios
likened to leftovers
of free-range poultry
with the contents drained
in destinations
with rolled-down gates
while presiding
at card tables


getting carried away
while dues paying
querulously irritated
rocking in wicker cradles
of the present day


already understated
by code breakers
unaware of dangers
overdosing
on medications
in crisis situations
where glazing
is all it takes
to sustain inflation-
proofed arboretums...

Really Didn't Want Kafka

" Really Didn't Want Kafka "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán


Really didn't want Kafka
finding Florida on the contrary
tearing apart shocking bonds
of warmth and charm


precisely as opposites
like unwilling partners
of the self-conscious
in a first novel
as final volumes


prices start
with the absence of comedy
shying away with white out
like sibling rivals
obsessively whining


in a house divided
unstintingly scrutinized
while spewing birthrights
transcribed like rewrites


thereby denying
apparently mindless
misidentified entitlements
structurally codified
as perfectly fine


entirely unrealized
yet extremely timely
while earning stripes
in a final demise


like a sniper of childhood
gone wild with anxiety
by way of the knife
with a built-in light...

Approximate Running Times

" Approximate Running Times "

by Suzán Jiván
Mom & Mom-
Mom Suzán

Approximate running times
for playwrights at the end of life
left feeling lighter with surprises
like glinting comic relief of singer-
songwriters schmoozing unsung lives


dramatically
making the case
for music labels
sometimes devastated
onstage as hard labor


finding conceit distasteful
in adaptation to the fatal
as impassioned evocations
only a stone's throw away


during police raids
whose star us fading
having concocted
blurring of the lines
ensnared by desire


contrived by,
"not quite"
manipulated by,
"much of the same"
but, "not always"
like icy-fingered slights
of rat-raced satires


as scant dialogue
in unidentified environs
of isolation having survived
mechanical bull rides


like triangles nearing the eye
safely gliding ever tightening
smashing adversaries into scrap
in final battles as spectacular
last stands befalling the land


aimlessly dancing
with knockout whammies
after taking a stab
at bedraggled sea chanteys


awaiting the release
legally and logistically
as harrowing
as filling in the blanks
as distractions
in the middle of the pack
of self-analyses


rather bitterly mixed up ineptly
repeatedly breaching the brink
while riding bicycles and grinding teeth
illicitly limiting the tedium
by not revealing grisly incredulity


passing too closely
neither joining in nor quitting
after fracturing shoulders
and collarbones and coping by doping
cloned human hormones
in sensational overtones containing
the most overblown footnotes


like less glamorous roles
as the Dow closes
unbeholdingly for shareholders
in nagging yard sales
for wayward candidates


after the train has left the station
with dividend payments
having helped shape
ricochetting glass makers


irreverent for decades
like bedroom behaviors
appropriated on bedside tables
as aspirations of fung shui...