Doug Draime has been a presence in the 'underground' and small press since the late 1960's. He was part of the notorious Los Angeles poetry scene of the latter 20th century. Most recent books include: Spiders And Madmen, (Scintillating Publications), Next Exit:Three  w/Misti Rainwater-Lites (Kendra Steiner Editions). Forthcoming from Tainted Coffee Press, Dancing On The Skids and Last May coming out from Kendra Steiner Editions. His wide range of writing, including poems, short stories and plays, continues to appear in print and online publications worldwide. Awarded
PEN grants in 1987 and 1991. He currently lives in the foothills of Oregon.

Questioning The Insane

Stranded on a highway
in Rogue River, Oregon;
pounding on
the keys and
hitchhiking,
at age 44,
up and down it
for work,
beer and
groceries.
The poems coming like
a disease,
keeping me weak,
sweating,
and shut up
in the room
for weeks at a time.
Smoking grass, drunk,
masturbating,
writing and ...
insane.
If you’d asked me
who the president of
the united states was,
I wasn’t sure.
Was it
Robert E. Lee,
W.C. Fields,
Al Capone?

 

This poem was first published in The James River Poetry Review, Volume 1, Number 2, 2000.

 

 

earth bound: world

moving always in the skull


of time, rattling our rotting


white washed bones


at each other:


bone upon bone
war upon war


earth upon earth
spirit upon spirit


blood upon blood
hate upon hate


twisting perpetually


in the slavery of lies:


we do the deed


dead upon dead,
dead upon dead.


dead
upon


the


dead

 

 

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