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[damellon]

Now I want to be a lawyer too

[Byron]

Now I want to be a lawyer too

Is that 'lawyer' or 'layer.'

[damellon]

Byron - I could be a many-layered lawyer, but not 'til I grow up.

I’m thinking that if Leonard appeared in the doorway just before Mickey_One tried on the Ann Summers outfit he may have been inspired to write the words

I love to see you naked over there
Especially from the back

[Manna]

hee hee. This is great. Sorry I've been away, excuses, excuses, but none I can tell. Whoo-hoo!

Now then. My spelling of brazier was just stupidity because I'm a terrible speller. Spell check doesn't catch stupid things like this, neither role/roll. Of course, I have no idea what a lotterary is, and neither does my dictionary.

I took a look at the photo and, though I don't remember who started it, I think my little mac has better screen resolution than yours. It's a canard that Doorway Man is naked. He is clearly wearing a sleeveless plaid flannel. The fact that such attire was never fashionable says that, while our semi-masculine burlesque dancer is obviously trying to fit into too many circles, and too widely varied clothes, Doorway Man is comfortable with not fitting in. Comfortable he is, in his raggedy old beat up flannel. He'd probably be comfortable naked as well, but unfortunately, he is not naked.

But the look on his face, while comfortable, is also a bit wistful. I think he has a touch of envy for Brassiere Man. Maybe he's thinking that someday, it might be fun to dress burlesque. But he knows it's not in his nature. I think Doorway Man is the true author of this poem. He spoke to all of us. And he said:

one summer
on Hydra, I shall dress
as a burlesque poem


and I say, aye, aye, aye, aye, take this poem. Take its weathered copyright in your teeth.

[Christine]

If we're all to be lawyers, perhaps we should have a quick summation.....

Our poem is good but does it need more improvement? Or is it ready to be posted on its own thread to be critiqued? I think the picture's a necessity.
Should we write some music for it, Damellon?
Is Byron right about M_O's original masterpiece meaning it's how we can find our way out of the perpetual darkness - "Later this summer I will....."?
What are the 3-legged ferrets wearing?
I like the "We are all the man, bugger" analysis. It rings true.
Would Leonard have also been inspired to sing "oh won't you be naked for me" if he saw M_O, the unmortal mortal?
Manna, is that an iron in the picture, can you tell on your Mac, and what does it mean? Strike while the iron's hot?

Meanwhile, the poet has spoken again....

"Pater, I am in Ann Summers writing a poem.

Mickey_One, how d'you feel about changing 'in' to 'beside'?

[blonde madonna]

I spent the night dreaming of a burlesque show in my living room. It was 3 am and I wanted you all to leave (I have a big day planned, Sunday is my favorite day) but my husband kept offering you aperitifs and coffee. Sleep well poets.

[damellon]

Welcome back everyone. Blonde Madonna - can you disclose what it is about Sunday that makes it your favourite day? And many thanks to your husband for his hospitality. Is that what disturbed you, do you think - the way he insisted on plying us with aperitifs? I’m quite worn out today after it, but it would be churlish of me to say so. Manna’s favourite day is Saturday, or it was this week, but she’s not saying why. Christine?

Now to work….. Christine your suggestion re music is a fabulous one, but I refer to previous discussions re playing background music while we surf the forum. Sony may hunt us down for royalties and I don’t know that Mickey_One would be willing to defend us on this one. What about a slide show?

I know the author has given us ‘clarification’ but I for one am still unconvinced.
I has occurred to me that the author might wish to mislead us. I am not convinced by the ‘pater’ thing. Is the author old enough to address his father thus? If Byron is right about the string vest and the humble background I think he’d have got a clip around the ear for talking to his father like this, never mind sending him a photograph of this nature. It seems more likely to me that this is a fragment of a juvenile text conversation between the poet and his friend Peter.
Consider this rephrasing -
Poet :‘Peter, I am in’
(Peter: ‘Where?’)
Poet :‘Anne Somers’
(Peter :‘Doing what?’)
Poet : ‘What do you think I’m doing?
Replaced afterwards with ‘writing a poem’

The photograph, of course is a red herring. Everyone knows that you buy from Ann Summers online. This may not even be the poet but some poor unfortunate lookalike. Not that it’s not intriguing in it’s own right.
We could of course pretend to accept his far-fetched explanation and proceed to deconstruct his preferred version.
Manna, Christine, Blonde Madonna and Byron - what say you?

[Christine]

I'm sorry if we overstayed our welcome, Blonde M. If we address our thank you note to Mr. BM, Australia, will he receive it? My favorite day's Friday. Except for this Friday as when I went into town to pick up my car today (I couldn't drive home last nite after all the aperitifs and coffee), it had been towed cos of a parade and I can't pick it up again until Monday. Mickey_One, can you please advise what your retainer might be? I know you're going to be busy Later This Summer but I think you'd agree, this is a matter of some importance. And I have to insist upon the deluxe wig.

A slide show has potential but we only have one picture and some might think it limiting. Maybe we should insert our poem into the slideshow? Do we know anyone who could help us with this?

Damellon, what's your favorite day? I think you may be on to something about M_O misleading us -- I think he forgot to copywrite protect his original work as there's no little c in a circle anywhere.

Poet :‘Peter, I am in’
(Peter: ‘Where?’)
Poet :‘Anne Somers’
(Peter :‘Doing what?’)
Poet : ‘What do you think I’m doing?
Replaced afterwards with ‘writing a poem’

This seems a far more reasonable account given what we don't know about our Poet.

So, as we were?

one summer
on Hydra, I shall dress
as a burlesque poem

Is it ready to go to print, girls? Shall we wait for tech help in creating our slide show? And what shall we put in our bio?

[lizzytysh]

If I may... as an observer of this delightful exercise, I feel its process also has possibilities as an off-Broadway or West End [its U.K. counterpart?], one-act play on The Evocative Consciousness in the Collective Making of a Poem [something much shorter, actually, that can be recalled as friends tell friends, "You really must see . . . "]. Eventually, after a number of successful runs, one of its subsequent ones may extend to include an element of audience participation.

The most proper seating might be comfy pillows scattered about the floor. The playbill outside would, of course, be his herness, tempting all imaginations... and "burlesque" simply must stay; too much mood to discard. Of all its incarnations, I feel its latest restatement is its best.

Still looking forward to your slide presentation.


~ Lizzy

[mickey_one]

how many of us have conducted a choir, with a cucumber as a baton?

[Christine]

M_one, must we chase you all over Spain to pin you down? I'm not certain if this is your latest poem or your resume submittal for our West End show.

[Manna]

my guess is that this is michael's seed for the second stanza. I think I'll wait for the photo I hope is forthcoming before adding any substantial edits, but that comma has to go. And surely there's a better euphemism than cucumber...?

[damellon]

how many of us have conducted a choir, with a cucumber as a baton?

¿Cuántos de nosotros ha realizado un coro, con un pepino como una batuta? - just checking that this wasn’t a Spanish onion or omelette or the likes.

Don’t be drawn in - I think this is just a throw-away remark by Mickey_One to distract us from our endeavours. He’s just come home from participating in Evensong and is suppering on a light cucumber salad with an accompanying French stick (and a glass of Sauvignon Blanc). That’s why he needs that comma. It’s nothing more than that. Ignore it.

Has anyone looked at the photo today? I admit to an irrational apprehension about so doing. Remember that film ‘The Witches’ where the disappeared child appeared in the painting, changed her location in it from time to time, and grew old there as the years passed? Can’t look at ‘The Burlesque’ just in case there is now a cast of characters there in various stages of undress or redress. If anyone is brave enough to have a look….

Now to our vignette…Manna, before he comes back could you just edit our final version to include that
circled c- just to be safe? Gracias.

..Nice suggestion Lizzy re the Broadway/West End show but I think we shouldn’t be too ambitious until we’ve tested the market. If we are to add a musical accompaniment and choreography to our non-Forum performances then our piece would I think be reminiscent of Noh - where the tempo of a given performance is established by the interactions of all the performers together. The Edinburgh Festival can be a litmus test for such new work. How is everyone’s diary for rehearsals between now and Christmas? Should I try to interest someone who has previous experience directing theatre?

[Manna]

one summer
on Hydra, I shall dress
as a burlesque poem


© The Goddesses, August, 2007


How's that?

[damellon]

Manna - that is so neat - I'm overjoyed!!!!!! Are we Greek Goddesses??