I popped out from ‘The Big House’ in Auckland for a bottle of wine, and while wandering around the closest bottle shop, overheard a fellow at the till haranguing the gentleman behind the counter, at first I listened amused, but quickly this English migrant turned homophobic and nasty. The Asian gentleman behind the counter…
…was clearly not sure what to make of it, and chose a path of neither agreeing nor contesting, but skirting around the political quagmire. By the time I left the shop I was fuming and quickly smashed out this poem to express my frustration.
–
I’ve got nothing to say,
but I’ll say it anyway
let me voice my opinion
every subject is my dominion
give me an opening
I’ll take it,
cause I’m not really listening
I’m just waiting
for an excuse to reproduce
the arguments I’m making
in my head while you talk
and some people find it frustrating
that my champagne brain
has a hair-trigger cork.
But i’m not seeking to enrage you
just to prove my intelligence
once and for all
my insecurities
Can make me feel quite small
I’ve gotta jump in
Let the world know I’m well informed
All these fact I got online
And the theories farmed from Reddit
Please just give me a sign
That it impressed you when I said it.
–
It’s a dog-eat-dog existence
You’ve gotta toot your own horn to survive
If there’s a zombie apocalypse
I know my brains will keep me alive
I’ve got the drive
In this capitalist market system
I can thrive
Everybody’s got an opinion but I can dismiss them
Unless it’s more intricate than mine
Then I get a sinking feeling
like I’m being undermined
I’m liable to find the smallest flaw
this shit can quickly turn unkind
I’ll talk you out, I’ll shut you down, I’ll shout you out the door
If I’m really insecure I can use a filibuster
I’ll dominate the conversation
Before your arguments can muster
I’ll fluster you into quiet frustration.
–
It takes a certain kind of someone
to maintain a friendship with me
most of them are people I buy from
paying extra I connect with my money
With Pablo the wine merchant, or Jill who jar’s honey
And it’s funny,
If I gave myself the time to reflect
On this course that I’m on
Social life a train wreck
Giving and receiving only negativity
Maybe I would be able to see
That if I opened my eyes, my ears, my mind, my heart
I could take control of this poet’s pen, write myself a new part.
–
Joe Blogs, 2019