SELECTED
POETRY
by Owen Roberts

'DON'T EVER GET MARRIED!'
by Owen Roberts

“I haven’t seen you all day and this is the time we spend together?”

I’d prefer not to spend any time together,
especially when she wears that face

The face that looks like a boxer on his way into the ring

I tracked in dirt from outside,
I didn’t say hello,
I forgot to bring home milk...

anything will set her off

I drudge marriage like the first day back to school
at least school had an ending,
this appears to be timeless,
not timeless like a classic Beatles album
or the first two Godfather movies

but timeless like herpes
or MS...

I laugh
because I know crying
doesn’t do any good

© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'DASHBOARD KIDS'
by Owen Roberts

I sit in traffic
a lot
not by choice,
I sit in traffic a lot
to get to work, to pay bills,
to eat and sleep comfortably

from inside my car
I see people on their phones,

drinking coffee,

picking their noses,

eating bagels and pizza

I see baby boots hanging from the rear view mirror
and family photos on the dashboard

strategically placed
to give a reason to this insane
daily commute
we commit to each day

© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'109'
by Owen Roberts

Florence Himes
just turned 109

her secret she says is to be happy,
avoid stress, keep faith and look to the stars…

I'm stressed out and rarely happy
I have no faith and can't be bothered looking up to the stars

I think I've found out the secret to living to 49
or maybe 50…


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'HIGH'
by Owen Roberts

the car
is a few thousand kilometres
past an oil change

haven’t got around to it...

too busy

killing
myself


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'TORONTO'S FINEST'
by Owen Roberts

sneaking peeks
out a basement window

positive
that passing police car
is waiting for me

of course
it’s not

it’s random,
a simple pass by

but when you’re
guilty

anything
is
possible

© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'YOU WERE SOMEBODY’S BABY, LONG AGO'
by Owen Roberts

you wondered onto a subway train
but forgot your pants were at your ankles
men are glaring at you,
ready to kill
women look away
sniffing paint remover and getting high on
household cleaners

you were somebody’s baby, long ago


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'I WANT OUT OF THIS CONVERSATION'
by Owen Roberts

dad
drunk
me
10 years old and sober
took me to KFC,
he ordered too loudly
flirting and hitting
on the 17 year old counter girl

dad
the only one of the three of us
not embarrassed


© Owen Roberts

Reproduced with permission

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'SOS'
by Owen Roberts

Larry is back
he has lung cancer

he came in for a beer
and a smoke

everyone is happy to see him
they pat him on the back,

“Good to see ya Larry!”

Larry will die
and no one will come to his funeral
no family,
no real friends

Larry will just disappear
Sammy will just disappear
Tina will just disappear

they will leave nothing
and be remembered
by no one

we will
all just disappear


© Owen Roberts

Reproduced with permission

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'DUFFY'S'
by Owen Roberts

the white people
sit down
at the end of the bar by the big screen T.V.
with the hockey game on

the black people
are further away
7 or 8
side by side
sitting much closer,
all the conversation
emanates from their side

the bar has an invisible
center ice

Me,
I sit in the middle

nothing to say
nothing worth saying to either side

my silence
may be my only charm


© Owen Roberts

Reproduced with permission

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'SHIT ON THE SIDEWALK'
by Owen Roberts

2 guys
2 drunk

they try to work the room
they speak to anyone who will listen
they speak to those ignoring them
everyone,
anyone

their personalities
are like
stepping on shit on the sidewalk


© Owen Roberts

Reproduced with permission

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'NO TITLE'
by Owen Roberts

I convinced you to do it
I made you do it

it was not your fault

I brought you there
helped you fill out those forms
we sat and we waited
silenced

I was hoping you would not change your
mind

they called your name
you had to take your shoes off
and follow them up the staircase

when we left
I needed a beer
but had a chocolate bar instead

in the car
the morphine was wearing off

‘They said it was going to be a boy...’


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'GARBAGE BINS SHOULD BE USED FOR GARBAGE - NOT HUMAN BEINGS'
by Owen Roberts

Sunset and Western

she emerges
from a garbage dumpster
shifting her skirt down
as she walks
behind her a bum
exits with his fly undone
and his belt flapping
from side to side

she sleeps in that dumpster
at night
fucks homeless and tricks
in it by day

her face is a festering sore
surrounded by a nose,
a few teeth,
and sunken eyes

one day
the garbage truck will discard her

she will disappear
with moldy hamburger buns
half eaten cheeseburgers
and dirty napkins


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'I DON’T NEED YOU TO SEE ME THIS WAY'
by Owen Roberts

Jay Leno
another tired routine
people are laughing
people will laugh at anything
Jay with a pretty guest
she’s telling dull tales
about her toes and her height

pretty girls
get away with those stories

a pretty face will always
find an audience


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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'ENTERTAINMENT TONIGHT'
by Owen Roberts

“You must know people want you to have a
baby?”
“I do!” She giggled

Who wants Sharon Stone to have a baby? I
asked the TV
When were we polled?
I don’t even want her to make another movie
let alone
Procreate

Sharon Stone
our hero
we are all awaiting
her Golden Child

Sharon Stone
you stupid, shitty actress


© Owen Roberts
Reproduced with permission

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OWEN'S TOP 4 PLACES TO VISIT

If you live in the city of Toronto and don't want to spend more than 5 hours in the car...

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1. MONTREAL, QUEBEC

(Total driving time = 4.5 hours approx)

The closest thing you will find to Europe.. outside of course of being in Europe. Other than New York, the most restaurants in North America. Easily, the most beautiful women in North America. A terrific walking city, park the car and roam freely. Other than that annoying French accent thing, you can't go wrong in Montreal...

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2. DETROIT, MICHIGAN

(Total driving time = 5 hours approx. Could be much longer if Customs doesn't like your face...)

Love burnt out homes and buildings? You've gotta check out Detroit. America's most decayed city (that's a fact!). The population went from over 2 million in the 70's to approximately 900,000 today... Tons of wonderful old Taverns, IHOP, Woodward Avenue and hourly motels. Most people are extremely friendly and no two visits are ever the same. A car is a must in Detroit, not a good walking city.

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3. NIAGARA FALLS, ONTARIO

(Total driving time = 1 hour approx)

Canada has the best side to view the Falls; America hasn't gotten around to taking that from us, yet! If it's your first visit, go see the Falls. If it's your 100th visit don't bother, it's boring as hell! They put up all these wax museums, scare houses, Guinness Book of Records museums in the early 1970's and basically it's remained the same ever since... Except for the Casino, because we all know there is an unwritten law that every city must eventually have a casino, starbucks and a blockbuster. It's pretty retro and very cheesy, check out Club Rialto, with a disco dance floor surrounded by a mini river. Niagara Falls is best if you decide to spend a 1/2 day; a full day is overkill, unless you plan on lots of drinking then stay the night. Plenty of cheap motels, get one with a pool (unless of course it's winter.)

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4. BUFFALO, NEW YORK

(Total driving time = 1.5 hours approx)

Okay, I'm struggling for a top 4 list! Check out the National Buffalo Chicken Wing Festival (no joke!), highly recommended each Labor Day weekend. Plus there are usually a few fires a day to look out for. Elmwood Avenue is nice in the summer; a variety of book, record stores, the Albright-Knox Museum. Don't forget the Walden Galleria; tons of shopping and no children allowed (unsupervised) under the age of 18...

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