Paul Davis

Listening to the Radio

I need to learn the lessons
of 30-second expediency
sex lives
with as much weight
as megahertz
ways to understand Martian static
the music of space's vacuum
holds more meaning
how to beguile lonely housewives
what are you really doing
where you can't be seen
why do you dress up
to buy perrier and sushi
that voice you never see
a fat man
moonfaced kid
sexstarved nympho
must be a werewolf, a vampire
the real monsters
are what you think
you hear
speaking any language you need to hear
traffic
weather
sports
crime
incidental entertainment
lions in the coliseum
incipient cuteness
don't look
at the car
next to you
creeps under my fingernails
if only I liked conversation
my intelligence is traded
massive deficit
the japanese
wire
for the latest gossip and top 40

Paul R. Davis lives in Central New York. He has been writing
poetry since 1963. Paul has had numerous poems published
in Poetpourri, the precursor of The Comstock Review, as well
as several other print and electronic magazines, such as
Comrades. His poetic philosophy is simple: the joy of
expression and the necessity of communication. He does not
follow any popular trends or formal poetry conventions, but
lets each poem take its own form and find its own images
according to the feelings he wishes to convey. Since he
started writing, he has composed more than 600 poems. His
writing runs the gamut from humorous to edgy and covers a
broad range of subjects. He gets his inspiration from books
he reads, sometimes from a piece of music he hears, or what
he sees by simply staring out a window. He shares his love of
writing with his wife, who is also a poet.