Home How to Order Authors Titles ISBN Contact Us

  way

ISBN: 0-86547-320-X
TITLE:
way
AUTHOR:
Leslie Scalapino (Carried by O Books / Distributed by Small Press Distribution)
$12.00
Excerpts

Description: Poetry
"...she makes everything take place in real time, in the light and air and night where all of us live, everything happening at once."
-Philip Whalen

"This window - of displacement, of alterity - is the way things are seen through language. It's not the sense of having been there, even though you always were. The 'anti-perspective' of Scalapino's poetics is realism in its contemporary manifestation."
Barrett Watten

 

“Leslie Scalapino has developed great expertise in presenting a hard-edged picture of the world.  We are constantly made to realize that what she’s showing us is the world as we have constructed it:  we’re the responsible parties; we’re the policemen, bums, burning automobiles upside down, pond lilies, men ‘in new wave attire.’ Sometimes her words look vacant and many of her statements are outrageous, but she makes everything take place in real time, in the light and air and night where all of us live, everything happening at once.” –Philip Whalen


Excerpts

from bum series

the men––when I’d

been out in the cold weather––were

found lying on the street, having

died––from the weather; though

usually being there when it’s warmer

the men

on the street who’d

died––in the weather––who’re bums

observing it, that instance

of where they are––not my

seeing that

*

cranes are on the

skyline––which are accustomed

to lift the containers to or from

the freighters––as the new

wave attire of the man

though not muscular

––but young––with

the new wave dyed blonde

hair––seeming to

wait at the bus stop, but

always outside of the

hair salon

*

the bums––the men––having

died––from

the weather––though their

doing that, seeing things from their view when

they were alive

so not to

be upper class––the new

wave baggy pants––the

man with the dyed blonde

hair––who’s always standing in

front of the hair salon on

the corner

*

the public

figure––as gentle––as

the freighter and

their relation

that

of the man with the dyed

blonde hair and

new wave attire––and

the freighter

*

of our present

president––who doesn’t

know of the foreign

environs––as vacant––and

to the freighter and

his and its relation

when our present

president is in an inverse

relation to them––when there’s

a social struggle in their

whole setting, which is

abroad

the bums––who’ve

died––but could be only when

they’re living––though it

doesn’t have desire, so inverse in

that one setting

*

to their

social struggle in their

whole setting, which is

abroad and its

relation to the freighter

to the person of

new wave attire––that

person’s relation to

the freighter

when the bums are not

alive––at this time––though

were here, not abroad––and

not aware in being so of a

social struggle

*

the man in the new

wave attire––as the relation

of him

being another person––as

the freighter and

his and its relation

the inverse

relation to the freighter

only occurring when that

person is living

the man––who’s

accustomed to

working in the garage––

as having

that relation to

their whole setting

*

I have been––am––

dumb––as the way

in which that would occur––the

bums––not their existence or

dying from the weather––though

the effect of that

for me to

be dumb––to have

been actually stupid––so that

really could occur––the

bums––in an event

so––dumb as an

active relation to

the bums or to the freighter and

the still oil

rigs––on the ocean

*

to the repair of

the car––so inverse in that

setting––though

it doesn’t have desire––of

the present

as the oil rigs––which

are the freighter––on the ocean––pushed

up to be the relation

with me, by my being––am––dumb––their

to have that occurrence

*

to have that––for them, some

people who’d had an attitude

of snobbery––always––so that they’re dumb––when it’s

senseless––that relation with

them

I almost

froze––and realized I

could die from it––when the bums

were in the situation––and then not

caring, though that’s not possible

which had been repaired

––to the car––as I

am––when that’s

senseless––though

it doesn’t have desire––of

the present

*

the bums––

found later––in the whole setting

––though when the car

hadn’t been repaired––and so

their grinding and

movement in relation to it

 

 

The floating series

 

                                                Floating Series I

 

                        the

                        women–not in

                        the immediate

                        setting

                        –putting the

                        lily pads or

                        bud of it

                        in themselves

 

 

 

 

 

                        a man entering

                        after

                        having

                        come on her–that

                        and the memory of putting

                        in

                        the lily pad or the

                        bud of it first

                        made her come

 

 

 

 

 

 


having put

the

lily pad in

herself–

encouraging the man

to

come inside

her

 

 

 

a man to

come on the woman

gently–her

having

put the lily pad in

herself

with him not

having entered

her yet

 

 

 

 

 

people who’re

there

already–though

the other

people aren’t

aware of that

 

 

 

not

being able to

see the

other people–and

to be sticking the

lily pad

in

themselves

 

 

 

 

 

the man–though

the woman had

come

with

the bud of it

in her

–not having done

so on

that time

 

 

 

 

 

or her not

having

put it in–and

the man

coming on her

gently

lying on her

in that

situation

 

 

 

people having

been

there–being

from

the city–already

–and

others not

aware of them

 

 

 

 

 

 


or

having

put in the bud of

it

and

the man not

having

entered her

coming first

 

 

 

that in

the city as in

the middle–to

 

 

 

someone who’s

death comes from

age

 

 

 

 

 

having

nothing to

do in

a place

–as having

been crazed in

his life–

time

 

 

 

and

having been

aware

before

of others

–who’d

been in

the setting

all along

 

a man

putting

the lily pad

in her–

after he’d

come–and

she hadn’t

on that time

 

 

 

that in

the city as in

the middle–to

 

someone

 

 

 

 

 

the thought

that

they–should be

treated

well–if they’d

paid

their money–or

not

 

 

 

a man’s

sense–of–when

he’d come and

she had

the lily pad in her

and

hadn’t come then

 

 

 

 

 

 


the man–on

whom the boy

spit–from him riding his

bicycle by over and

over–was lying on

the sidewalk

 

 

 

not

having

anything to do

as

his having a blockage

with others around

in

the setting

 

 

 

 

 

having the

high rents

with

an attitude that

they

shouldn’t live in

this

place–who’re poor

 

 

 

 

Floating Series 2

 

to foresee

the man’s

response–when

the woman had

come–him not

having

done so–and

had

the bud of it in her still
the relation

of the public

figure

and

the death at

some time of

the person who dies from

age

 

 

 

and–

–an attitude that

they

should have

a job–

whether they’ve

means

or not

 

 

 

 

 

and

their–or one’s–

having the means

to take care of

oneself or

someone–as

what should

be done

 

 

 

 

 

 


told of

someone   being

lower in social

value–that

and in

a setting which defined

us all–when

at that point

 

 

 

their not

to have

a child

–as it happens

–and the bud of

the water lily

in her–when

they’d

been doing it

 

 

 

 

 

her having

had

the lily

pad in her still–after

she’d

come–and when there

wasn’t

that from it

 

 

 

 

 

 


the crowd

returning when

the man–of their race, though

in the police–he’d

left the van

was immolated by them–on

a field

 

 

 

myself or

a person

aging and dying when

that’s seen by

a setting

from–that

of–when

we were young

 

 

 

 

 

our

being

that

 

–as in

the middle

 

 

 

the man–who’d

come

and

with the bud of it

in

her still–when

she had

 

 

 

 

 

 


and–their

sense of the

city–as some

ideal spot

and–where

we’re

not going to

be able to live

 

 

 

 

 

Third Part

 

having

swallowed the

water

lily bud–so having

it in

him–when he’d

come on some

time with her

 

 

 

 

 

a man’d

swallowed

the bud

of the water lily–and

had

it in

him that way

 

 

 

 

 

 


there

being an

aftermath to                                           and–

something                                              a public

occurring                                               figure–and

                                                            their–not

                                                            based

                                                            in that

 

 

 

the attitude

that

someone–should

be

in

an army–to

democratize that

 

 

 

 

 

–her

coming

when with him–the

lily bud’s

being in

the man from

his earlier swallowing

it–him not coming

 

 

 

so that–

with

him

not coming–but

had the

lily’s bud in him

as in

other instances

 

 

 

 

 

the attitude of

in a setting

aging and dying at

some time

as–that

we

should be

that

 

 

 

 

 

–and–a

break through from

a state–of being

crazed–but

which someone

was in

 

 

 

to’ve gotten

through the

sense–of

being crazed–and

which occurred

 

 

 

 

 

and–they

should–be

able

to find some

livelihood–when

they’d been

here awhile

 

 

 

 

 

 


Later Floating Series 1

 

as

then–what

would be sought after

as valued

by

so many

people–there’s

not enough

 

 

 

in

the middle–no

matter–what

the age of

someone–or

if close

to their death–from

age

 

 

 

 

 

–and–their

not to be

in it–by virtue

of the

small store–the

setting

 

 

 

 

Later Floating Series 2

 

someone–

as

choosing the

means–

in starting–the

small store

 

 

 

 

 

–and–

the attitude of

the people frequenting

the shops–as their

a livelihood

for them–the

others

 

 

 

their–wanting

that–the

people frequenting them–for

those

who’d opened the

small stores

 

 

 

 

 

his

being

depressed–and to

have

some release from

that–as what

occurs

 

 

 

a break in

–someone’s being

depressed–for

him–so

at the time to

have release

from it

 

 

 

 

 

 


in the state that’s

his being depressed–and

getting

some charge from inside–that

would get some

release

from that state

 

 

 

 

 

–and–the

opening of the

shops–when

many of them

haven’t

means–as

for that

situation

 

Copyright © 2002 O Books