Pain Pills and Poetry

Jozef Cain breaks down his poem, darkstar, and gives insight into the chaotic thought process of a poet.

Jozef Cain

and

Black Coffee Poetry

Apr 20, 2025

Transcript

Darkstar - Jozef Cain

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incense burning
ashes falling
tea is brewing
orange clock ticking
in the futon touring
Sirius for the rest —
pill bottle overturned
hands and legs strewn
blanket-cold-sweat-body-pressed
a warm pulse slowly
exalting sanguine streams
eyes in back of head
all the while
the kettle screams—
—pieces of everything —
puzzling ponderance
nowhere;
everywhere;
somewhere
in rural Canada
crying out for touch
ignoring any sign —
reading misanthropic
clutch-ing
books of disdain
for corporeal time—
the need to stack
stuff on top
of other stuff
to save space —
can’t eat the cake
and have the cake
dimly lit yellow room
breathing ape.