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Oh my Guinness!

A world-famous
brand of dark, Irish dry stout
inflation pushed the price
of a pint above six euros ($7.08),
and found the madding crowd
"absolutely wild" and ready to rout
they got spooked when they saw me
how ghastly I looked,
no idea what this Mötley Crüe...
arch! time machine burnout
re: major malfunction
must be the cause,
I strongly suspected
mine major disorientation about
my physical environment
to a bad dream
but...this can't be feasible
cause I see the ghost
of...who else, but...
me Arthur Guinness,
who established brewery in 1759
unwittingly mentioned in conversation
with a very attractive matronly patron,
the beer not necessarily the woman
global symbol of Ireland,
often referred to
as the "black stuff,"
and now owned by Diageo.
who comes over
to ask me a question
despite myself espying
a picture of Dorian Grey
writer by Oscar Wilde
and storied novel
his likeness on the wall,
who vaguely resembled...
someone very familiar to these
myopic bloodshot eyes
which phantasmagoric portrait
must be a trick,
cause as a man of the cloth
I abstain imbibing
amber liquids of the gods
no matter their strong temptation
to grant or maintain
immortality and strength
and as a teetotaler maker of ale
reputation of mind
never suffered nary a hint
despite being on the brink
(of what appeared as delirium tremens
but in truth severe debilitating panic attacks
of unquestionable veracity the source),
thus to appease the unquenchable
ofttimes implacable raging thirst
assuaged by sipping ice cold spring water)
unlike hardcore booze hounds
on the prowl for the finest liquor or other drink
but some unbeknownst customer
or rather rat fink
undoubtedly spiked
and I did intuitively suspect
an unknown rapscallion
who reviled against
Bible thumping blue blood
set out along or accompanied
with others to hoodwink
yours truly, thus to play along
and aside from feeling woozy
courtesy nursing feigned drunken stupor
think yours truly
walked like a chicken
"Yiddish phrase sounding
something like schocke mach,"
(and feel free to inform me
the correct Yiddish phrase)
in tandem with other unpleasant symptoms
methought maybe I contracted bird flu
twittering away like a madman
totally out of my element
analogously being cast
within the drama that did drag
titled La Cage aux Folles,
and felt confused and dazed
but lo... in the distance
methought "Ocular orbs"
(a literary or poetic term
referring to the eyes or eyeballs,
describing them as spherical,
globe-like, or circular)
saw a stairway to heaven
(courtesy smart glasses
invention - perhaps patented
by some smart as a whip kid
generously bestowed
with eye popping
handsome funds to said kiddo
to the tune of the number one
with countless zeroes)
device currently owned
by Mark Zuckerberg),
a visionary who set his sights nabbing
the future without making
a spectacle of himself
actually enhancing acolytes
and his expanding population
of growing devotees
immediately transforming them
into professorial hirees
ready equipped with teaching
the subject of their choice
by dint of instantaneously
acquiring the book knowledge
and absorbing years worth of experience,
albeit augmented virtual hands on skills
in a flash-drive becoming qualified
masters of their domain
despite the ample naysayers
(throwbacks from the quaint old school
of bricks and mortar
with one teacher -
at most two
who taught grades one thru six),
yet whose poo pooing
drowned out by the ability
of the average lunkhead
to osmotically breathe
in the requisite trappings
within the figurative
and literal blink of an eye
undermining parochial and private
school establishment paradigms
and nursery rhymes
harkening back
to Colonial American times when
School days, school days
Dear old Golden Rule days
'Reading and 'riting and 'rithmetic
Taught to the tune of the hick'ry stick
You were my queen in calico
I was your bashful, barefoot beau
And you wrote on my slate, "I Love You, Joe"
When those innocent babes in the woods
were a couple o' kids
at some juncture labeled truants,
whose ideas of skipping school
or - "Playing hooky,"
meant to skip school or work,
originated in mid-19th century America,
with the first known print usage
appearing around 1848
in New York, and widely believed
to derive from the Dutch word
hoekje (nook/corner),
referring to a game
of hide-and-seek,
or from the slang "hook it,"
meaning to run generations ago
intentionally skipping school or work
for freedom, often involving fishing,
wandering in woods, or hiding out,
with roots back to the 1840s,
and involved faking illnesses,
creating false excuses
like farm chores,
or sneaking away
to enjoy empty homes
without the risk of
instant digital tracking
unlike sophisticated youth
of the second decade
after second millennium anno domino
(with guys sporting beard as guise
or dolls gifted with noticeable bosom -
a strong suspicion
videre licet breast enhancement)
with access to their own vehicle,
plus whose physically mature appearance
functioned like a golden ticket
allowing, enabling and providing opportunity
(ordinarily verboten),
who this writer (predicated on
his overactive imagination)
appeared for home room
than high-tailed
to some adult oriented
bawdy illicit activity.

About This Poem

Last Few Words: Don't drink and drive as words of a sober Caucasian, nonestablishmentarian, Pennsylvanian, proletarian, sexagenarian, and Unitarian.

Style/Type: Free verse

Review Request Direction: What did you think of my title?
How was my language use?
What did you think of the rhythm or pattern or pacing?
How does this theme appeal to you?
How was the beginning/ending of the poem?
Is the internal logic consistent?

Review Request Intensity: I want the raw truth, feel free to knock me on my back

Editing Stage: Editing - polished draft

About the Author

Region, Country: PA, USA

Favorite Poets: Robert Burns, Charles Dickens, Robert Frost, Matthew Scott Harris, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Sylvia Plath, Gary Snyder, Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman

More from this author

Comments

neopoet

neopoet

1 month 2 weeks ago

Neopoet AI [2025-04]

The below is a computer-generated response from Neo, Neopoet’s AI:

This poem ambitiously weaves together a wide array of themes—commercialism, cultural history, personal identity, and societal change—using the emblematic figure of Arthur Guinness as a central motif. The sprawling narrative style and stream-of-consciousness approach create a dense tapestry of references and reflections, which can be both a strength and a challenge.

Strengths: - The poem’s rich intertextuality, referencing everything from Mötley Crüe to Oscar Wilde to educational history, invites readers to engage with multiple layers of meaning. - The use of historical and cultural details grounds the poem in a specific context, lending it a documentary-like texture. - The conversational tone and occasional humor (e.g., “walked like a chicken” and “Yiddish phrase sounding something like schocke mach”) offer moments of levity amid complex ideas.

Areas for Consideration: 1. **Clarity and Focus**: The poem’s density and frequent shifts in topic can make it difficult for readers to follow the central narrative or emotional thread. Consider tightening the focus by selecting key themes or images to develop more fully rather than covering many disparate ideas in quick succession.

2. **Line and Stanza Structure**: The poem’s current form is a continuous block of text, which may overwhelm readers. Introducing stanza breaks and varying line lengths could improve readability and emphasize important moments or shifts in tone.

3. **Punctuation and Syntax**: The sparse use of punctuation sometimes obscures the intended rhythm and meaning. Strategic punctuation can help guide the reader through complex sentences and clarify relationships between ideas.

4. **Voice and Perspective**: The poem shifts between first-person narrative, historical exposition, and meta-commentary. While this multiplicity can be effective, clearer transitions or markers might help readers navigate these shifts without losing engagement.

5. **Imagery and Metaphor**: Some metaphors and references (e.g., “ocular orbs,” “stairway to heaven” via smart glasses) are intriguing but could benefit from further development to deepen their resonance and connection to the poem’s themes.

6. **Cultural References**: The poem assumes familiarity with a broad range of cultural and historical references. Providing subtle contextual cues or focusing on fewer references might make the poem more accessible without sacrificing its richness.

Overall, refining the poem’s structure and clarifying its thematic focus could enhance its impact and accessibility, allowing the unique voice and imaginative scope to shine more clearly.

Please send feedback about Neo (our AI critique system) to neopoet.com/contact