This ache
deep in my muscles and bones
is just the black kiss of karma
having a laugh
while balancing the scales
after dosing my path
with good fortune
for the past few months.
These cold chills
from the hot flash flu
are just the product
of that trickster Loki
trying his damnedest
to get me to sing the blues,
but that’s just something
I don’t intend to do
because my songs of sorrow
are really just
cries of peace
from down in the marrow,
the synapses, the blood, and the core
where the fire continues to roar
eternally and evermore.
So break my system down into chaos
where I can howl and dance
with the symptoms of severe madness
as the temperature rises,
for there is simply no other place
such as the lowly abyss
that will serve to bring forth the seed
which, once nurtured and cultivated,
allows for the emergence
of the type of righteous order I’m starting to crave.
My weekly Sunday poem at Dissident Voice came out yesterday. As always, a huge thank you to editor Angie Tibbs for continuing to publish my work at the site. I’ve said it before, I’ll say it again now, and I’ll continue to say it until the cows come home: Angie’s confidence in my work helped spark the righteous fire that has led to the past year of publications and success. I will be forever indebted to her kindness. The new poem can be read here:
The wicked cool Johnny Longfellow has honored my work once again by featuring it for the second time at his always amazing site Midnight Lane Boutique. If you think I’m just flapping my gums for the hell of it, I’d urge you to follow the link below and then check over on the right side of the screen where the list of past wheelers and dealers who have rolled through those parts can be found. Midnight Lane is legit, and I’m well pleased to have three poems there right now…
Thank you to Siddharth Sehgal at Indian Periodical for publishing “A Shift, A Sneeze, A Spin Around the Cycle” yesterday. Always a pleasure to appear at his site.
It’s been the oddest damn thing the past couple of days as I’ve been sick for the first time in around five years. I’m feeling back on top of my game this morning, thankfully…but that achy, cold chill, down and out sort of vibe that rolled through my system for a short time definitely made me slow down over the weekend and rest. Like all circumstances that arise in life, I just take them as they come. Flow and flux with the waves. Keep sights set on the shoreline in the distance. Whether feeling sick as a dog or filled with the radiant fire of health, the mission remains ever the same…and it’ll continue to be a forward march until the goal is reached.
If you’re looking for new journals to read or publications where you can send submissions, be sure to check out the Links Page here at 17Numa which has a continually growing list of over 150 literary venues. If you operate a literary site that isn’t yet on the list and you’d like it to be please let me know and I’ll get it added on posthaste.
Feel free to leave comments here at 17Numa with your thoughts, feelings, suggestions, critiques, compliments, or even curses of my name unto the fiery pits of hell…I get a kick out of it all in one way or another. Also, I love connecting with new people on social media, so hit me up on Facebook and Twitter so we can start making waves together.
Selah,
Scott Thomas Outlar
17Numa 
“So break my system down into chaos
where I can howl and dance
with the symptoms of severe madness
as the temperature rises,”
Such tribal raw energy and a fusion of senses! Spinning stuff once again Scott! Rage On!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you much, Don. Sometimes the only thing to do when vitality sinks to the abyss is write a poem in an effort to bolster immunity. Come to think of it, writing a poem is usually the best idea no matter what the circumstances are…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I constantly need inspiration to actually sit and pen the words down! I keep notes and reminders of flashes of inspiration for a later burst of writing! It calms me, as I went through years of work stress in the UK as a teacher for 10 years and did not even realise it until the doctor diagnosed clinical stress back in 2011. I refused to take medication and glad that I did!
LikeLike