Poetry
published by Retort Magazine, on June 9th, 2012#302: security
pujols tenses up and thinks
“unfortunate & sad”
boogiemen of every stripe
behind concrete barriers
guards with guard dogs
chain link fences
hidden cameras snapping
managers who come undone
freakouts causing panic
shes afraid
hes afraid
im afraid
youre afraid
everyone afraid
quality of life
squarely headed
down the tubes
security
security
security
—
#202: loop
tiny in a shiny
éclair flavored envelope
gooey stuff this demi gloss
running down my knee
rolling in absurdity
a palinode thats angst inducing
pumps me full of stress
opening my notebook up
this is how i get
disagreements throb inside
pains perceived in triplicate
tussling with a horrid
shrieking gargoyle in my head
the nastiest of entities
whose goal it is to torment
peering at me from behind
slattern window frames
screw this otherworldly claque
skulking round alleyways
planning to attack
close to dis i stumble over
armies of fantastic demons
evil doers by the zillions
sinking in my flesh
moving beyond fleets of hardship
slamming down the ocean waves
pounding all arounding
dour echoes hitting me
in unlikely cargo holds
this is an invasive
unkindness to myself
an out of balance character
compulsively propounding
a drift i’d rather not repeat
this slippery loop of poetry
—
#9: mans unhealthy ways
in spite of what zem pinheads think
the woeful whirring blades of commerce
really do destroy
with inane brio each day
chasing after dominance
leaving an infinitude
uh stink for you and me
hard pressed journalistas
endeavoring to document …
nailing down with gravitas
the whys and wherefores underpinning
mans unhealthy ways
—
#116: the defiant ones
this gritty & pugnacious story,
something emblematic of
the civil rights movement
sidney poitier and tony curtis
the defiant ones
two escaped convicts
running for their lives
flinty bugged out basket cases
chasing after the elusive holy grail
freedom
wriggling out of killing
situations worse than death
sidney poitier and tony curtis
the defiant ones
day & night two anti hero
desperados frantically
traipsing swamps & bayous
shadowed by starvation
running though exhausted
pursued by a posse,
a herd of grim babboons
clutching hunting rifles
ceegar chomping cops
knuckle dragging creepazoids
drooling for a chance to
shoot somebody anybody
after waging pointless battles
simply over skin complexion
these two found a way to trust
trust and also tolerate
determined to transcend
in a furious climax
throwing off their chains
dredging up from steamy
pits of fear and hate
humanity
dogged by imbecilic monster
forces of authority
sidney poitier and tony curtis
the defiant ones
#305: a fauxbrow action poetry hiccup
in another universe
not real far away
keanu reeves rocks a role
only he can play
punky funky
dipping toes into
riverines of fauxbrow
this will make it known
this will make it known
paunchy & cigar smoking
moguls fixing up
a fauxbrow action poetry
hiccup
—
© KC Wilder
About KC Wilder
The poems above come from an unpublished manuscript. In 2009 prominent historian and Harvard scholar Howard Zinn read through an early version of this manuscript and called it “outrageously delightful.”
Recent publishing credits include The Seattle Review, Poetry New Zealand, Pacific Review, Chronogram, Space and Time, Barnwood, Feathertale, Jerseyworks, Semaphor, Cordite Review, Liquid Imagination. Other Wilder influences include studies with Pulitzer prize-winning poet Louis Simpson.
In the 1990s Wilder was helped by Allen Ginsberg on a first amendment battle over the rights of artists to create posters. This led to an important, art and poetry affirming legal victory for free speech. Wilder’s continued free speech activism has recently helped to keep some noteworthy artists out of jail.
Wilder has taught writing at the State University of New York. He’s edited and published a number of award-winning literary journals. Since the 1980s his work has appeared in hundreds of publications. He’s toured the U.S. and performed his poetry and music in over 30 cities nationwide, accompanied by his own guitar.
He currently pursues a pacific coast muse.
