Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Not a Circus Fan



Circus me a frown
clown in neon blue
with stripes
I see in my sleep

Oscillating, like a cyclone
like that time
after too many mango margaritas
in Cabo

Heave-ho
pirate clown
black and white
and stubbly beard

I hope he won’t hug me
scratches, Patches
and his scent
like bourbon on Santa’s breath

Now there’s a clown

asking if “mommy” would like to sit
on his lap too

Watery eyes, seen too many
bottoms
of glasses

And cigar smoke
fingering the suit

I make for
the other end of the sleigh
feeling a bit like sequins and legs

and hope for more
of stale popcorn
and less of
the inexplicable circus peanut



Copyright 2012 Jennifer Wagner

30 comments:

Peggy said...

Oh wow, quite the different view of the clowns! I would not be a fan either! I guess they are best at a distance!

Mary said...

I agree here pretty much. O have seen the clowns at the Shrine Circus. I prefer them at a distance to up close. I don't those uniforms are laundered much. Anyone who goes around hiding himself I wonder what he has to hide.

Brian Miller said...

bourbon on santas breath....ugh....well now is probably not a good time to tell you i was once a traveling clown....is it? smiles....people def sit on either side of the fence with clowns....some fun with rhyme and cadence in this....very nice write...

Anonymous said...

I enjoyed this - the way you set out the words worked very well, and caught me by surprise several times. I like the frown/clown too.

Anonymous said...

Whoa. Very strong poem. Well done. k.

(Can't help thinking of Sondheim - Send in the Clowns.) k.

Helen said...

Close up, the face of a clown is somewhat grotesque .. better to stand waaaaaaay back! I enjoyed your poem!!

Mary B. Mansfield said...

Great take on the prompt! Can totally relate to the mango-margarita spinning and the creepy clown hitting on Mommy. Very well written poem, thanks so much for sharing this with us over at Poetry Jam!

Sherry Blue Sky said...

Oh, now the clowns sound as sad as the bears! Good capture!

RMP said...

those are definitely some interesting clowns–a tad "IT"-ish. I guess Stephan king had to get his inspiration from somewhere.

Sarav said...

Jennifer, I'm with you--keep those clowns away. :-) You created a story here (kinda flash fictiony), very well written.

Jennifer Wagner said...

They creep me out, what can I say? :) Thanks for coming by and commenting Peggy!

Jennifer Wagner said...

lol on the laundered uniforms...and I agree--distance is better. Thanks!

Jennifer Wagner said...

I won't hold it against you Brian :-) Thanks for commenting on the piece!

Jennifer Wagner said...

Glad you enjoyed it :) Thanks much!

Jennifer Wagner said...

I guess I did go a bit strong lol...thanks k!

Dave King said...

A very stimulating write. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Maude Lynn said...

This is exactly how I feel about clowns! Excellent write.

Jennifer Wagner said...

Agreed! Thanks Helen, very much :)

Jennifer Wagner said...

lol Sherry...and those bears do look sad...

Jennifer Wagner said...

"IT"-ish...ha...they are even creepier now that you brought King into it :-)

Jennifer Wagner said...

We kind of went the same direction on this prompt, eh? I agree with yours...no circus for me :) Thanks Sara--as always, appreciate your words.

Jennifer Wagner said...

Thanks Dave, your thoughts on my writes are always encouraging to me.

Jennifer Wagner said...

Thanks MZ, I think we're not alone ha...and I love your profile pic btw.

Jennifer Wagner said...

Thanks for the awesome prompt Mary, I really did enjoy writing to it. And thanks for commenting on my piece :)

Dana Dampier said...

I have come across clowns similar to this which has caused me to become very leery around them. They are not all so grotesque though!

Jennifer Wagner said...

I think most of them are a touch creepy, just personal opinion...not so much grotesque, though I agree...thanks for popping by Dana.

hyperCRYPTICal said...

Love your take on this - excellent write.

Anna :o]

Jennifer Wagner said...

Anna- glad you do, thank you!

my heart's love songs said...

i'm not a fan of the clowns or the circus either ~ wonderful take on the prompt!

thanks for joining in at Poetry Jam!

Jennifer Wagner said...

Thanks Dani--really enjoyed your circus offering as well.