Screen Dump 67

The marks on the floor designate your movements . . .
There are marks on the floor designating your movements . . .
The marks on the floor . . . are they your movements? . . .
The rationale will become as clear as the marks . . .
Just play along, yes? . . .
OK, I understand ties that bind . . .
Seriously, though . . . with bated breath . . .
You assumed the role . . . embraced it? . . . for how many years? . . .
Next time . . . follow the script . . . to the letter, as it were . . .
To the letter writer . . . if need be . . .
To the underwriter . . . bankrolling your role . . .
To the undercurrent . . . carrying you to secret rooms . . .
brimming with autoeroticisms . . .
Really? . . . Can you tell the difference . . . once you're seized? . . .

Paolo Roversi

Screen Dump 66

You try to tease a narrative out of the earwormed tune . . .
Putting words to music, yes? . . .
His/her words . . .
Materializing late at night . . . keeping you up . . .
The failed metric . . .
Running the numbers . . .
Naming things . . . to possess them . . .
Morphed into a diorama . . .
With you as principal unprincipled player . . .
Cutting the Gordian knot . . . binding the two . . .
Leaving you speechless at checkout . . .
The inevitable pileup . . .
You penned the lines . . . then lost them . . .
They're here . . . somewhere . . .
They have to be . . .
You can't help but search . . .
for meaning, hidden intentions, what have you . . .
And still at it, yes? . . .

Screen Dump 65

Unread pages fly past . . . corners folded . . .
How could you have missed so many? . . .
Element collectors thin the air . . . with regrets . . .
small, medium, large . . . extra large . . .
Periodically, a table is turned . . .
the adjacency sputtering search engines . . .
Your past . . . appears at the door . . .
costumed . . . and ready . . .
Reshoot the desktop scene . . . x+1 times . . .
For the fun of it, yes? . . .
Little will happen inside the Russian novel . . .
that has not already happened . . . to you . . .
You hop on your tricycle, backpedal . . . stall for time . . .
preparing your opening . . .
You have 60 seconds . . .

Paolo Roversi

Screen Dump 64

Trying to get it all down . . .
The people . . . artificially illuminated . . . barely moving . . .
awash with languor . . .
Continents apart . . . but not estranged . . .
You know the feeling . . .
Obsessively bookish . . . in sumptuous robes . . .
The Jaguar XJS . . . strumming gloomily along the boulevard . . .
answering retro prayers . . .
in the order they were received . . .
converting them to vinyl . . .
for custom turntables . . . and such . . .
This is all part of immortality, yes? . . .
You are here . . . now . . . later . . . where? . . .

Tilda Swinton  in Only Lovers Left Alive (2014)

Screen Dump 63

You worry portraiture in an age of abstraction . . .
The narrative . . . reductive . . . unreliable . . .
omitting the minor albeit valuable occlusions . . .
as in the convenience of a convenience store . . .
Irrevocably ascertainable . . .
Yes, include that in your little purple moleskin . . .
You have erased all nuance with your prefigured reportage . . .
What to do now? . . .
Not nearly as obscure or unnoticed . . .
Your world as being ever-so-slightly askew . . .
Have you attracted big names to your stable? . . .
Hand-held cameras, by all means! . . .
You ended it, after encouraging multiple interpretations . . .
with your carefully orchestrated texts . . .
Intimidation feeds trashing, yes? . . .
Nonetheless, you remain a perspicacious analyst . . .
At least in your electra glide in blue eyes . . .

Hailey Clauson

Screen Dump 62

You find zodiacal fantasies intriguing . . .
the creepy violins . . .
the dowagers with heads full of strangers . . .
There are 20 people at this table . . .
name-tagged and color-coded . . .
Who are they? . . .
Why are they here? . . .
The game of chance . . . out the door . . .
You picture your dream house . . .
and hope that he/she will agree . . .
The building codes are like Mary Magdalene . . .
They require a full head of steam . . .
Strange but you could swear . . .
you've been here before . . .
Your feet seem to know their way around . . .
even in these tight shoes . . .
which you regret wearing . . .
Outside, the moon keeps getting bigger . . .
Soon it will threaten the oldest members . . .
of the household . . . who drink tea . . .
out of complimentary Census cups . . .
You've had some great tutors in your time . . .
kindly attentive in their ministrations . . .
and hope they will hear of your admiration . . .

Paulina Otylie Surys

Screen Dump 61

Your advanced degrees in truthiness . . .
blow away the competition . . .
Picnicking at this stage may be iffy . . . but what the hell . . .
When Reveille sounds . . .
Where will you be? . . .
Where will I be? . . .
Where will we be? . . .
Pick one . . .
Moments like these arrive . . . ever so flimsily . . .
And do not hang . . . trust me . . .
Please don't trot out those timeworn harbingers . . .
You have more important ___ to ___ . . .
You owe it to yourself . . .
And to the memory of your shades of gray . . .
In the mirror with your multiple personalities . . .

Paolo Roversi