Son of Uncle Sam
by Bill Yarrow
He doesn't drink, but he has his
intoxications: strength, sugar, sleep,
sex, surprise. He's hooked on the pinball
excitements of adolescence. He's the one with
a moustache loitering on the monkey bars. He's the
one who just replaced the lifters on his Impala. He's the
one whose girlfriend needs a wholesale career overhaul. He
can see the future, but it's not a future that will come true. He
works with his hands, but that takes brains he tells his nephews.
He's over forty and he still eats red meat. He's got sand in his socks.
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Author's Note
A version of the poem appears in PANK 4.
The poem appears in Pointed Sentences (BlazeVOX, 2012).
Other stories by Bill Yarrow
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Spaz! Spass! Spasso!
Oui.
*
The line I'll keep like an idea is probably the one about red meat after 40. The line that stopped me is the one about seeing the future, but not a future that will come true. All fascinating notifications about this man's state. I love the cascading look of the lines on the page.
form fits function perfectly. Love that string of s's, love this guy. I know this guy. *
Love love love this. So many incredible lines. Like Julie, that string of s's is terrific. These lines are so very loaded. And cool play on Son of Sam.
Aside from the extraordinary architecture (HOW DOES HE DO THAT?) this piece avoids an over-simplistic attack--what John Barth called "shooting fish on the plate..." and generates real expresso worthy energy about a dynamic and hapless loser. Bang.
Love the concept of a cycle here in form that returns on itself, emphasizing the eternal, the mundane, and the truth of this line: "He can see the future, but it's not a future that will come true."
Yes.
Sounds like a pretty happy guy, to me.
;-)
(we're all fooling ourselves in one way or another. we're all going off the cliff eventually.)
Great form and content.
Son of Uncle Sam: 'He's the
one whose girlfriend needs a wholesale career overhaul.'
Don't send her to rehab with Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.
:) *
Loitering on the monkey bars with a moustache - love that image. I think I know this guy... Great job!
Oh, Bill..don't we all know this guy?
Kinda like Matthew McConaghey's character in Dazed In Confused?
And I love the shape..it looks like the ship he's been waiting to come in has capsized.
Rene
The five s's, a food group for Tarantino fans, to be sure.
Bill, I've already asked you before ... how you keep doing these things ... you evaded my question, so I'm going to guess ... then I'm not going to tell you what I think.
fave
Just great.
Oh Bill! You used my fave letter: S! How happy I was.
This is wonderful...I love the flow, the description of this man.
Maybe it's the title...but the shape reminds me of a swaying flag.
Enjoyed this.
Line after line after line. Socko! Big fav.
I found this extremely sad. I think it was the last line in particular that got me the most, he feels so lost and that is so goddamn universal
*
"He's the one with
a moustache loitering on the monkey bars."
A slightly creepy and funny take on a sad case. *
Sad case is right. Thanks for commenting on "Son of Uncle Sam," Kim. In an earlier version, there was no moustache. You're right--now it's creepier.
great form, great flow, bill, and fun, too. love the ending especially. "He
can see the future, but it's not a future that will come true. " is beautifully put and true, too.
He's hooked on the pinball excitements of his adolescence.
Love that line. Love the whole caboodle. Sweet-n-sour. Peace *
Ah, Bill, you do make it right. Loved the construction and the piled up meanings and the final oomph of the ending. That's talent with a bit of a grin and grimace. Great stuff.
Superb. I love the form of this, Bill, and "pinball excitements of adolescence"...
Oh, man, know this guy a million times over. What a wonderful character. And as James says, the architecture . . . perfection.
I can connect with some people who never grow up, they can't let go.
sand in socks...
Loved it wholly.
The shape of your poem made me feel like I was slowly stepping down, almost into a lethargic pool, as did the rhythm of your words. Our SoUS seems to be series of snapshots, that even as a set failed to define him. If SoUS represents a typical American, then it seems we all may be a just set of likes, dislikes, and doesn't-seem-to-cares. There is so much here to think about, Yarrow.
It does take brains to work with your hands--good point, and one not understood by many.
By contrast, it doesn't take hands to work with your brain.
Nicely done.
Something good in every line, Bill. And it's just as good if read backwards.
Late to this but loved the cascading flow of words and form, and the way each thought leads to something not quite its opposite yet wonderfully unexpected.