Escapism & Word Games

[Doreen Peri]

1.
Some people numb themselves with substances.
Some limit or increase their sustenance —
anorexia or obesity occur which could spur on
blood pressure elevation, heart disease, or worse.
Some people scream or curse to relieve stress.
Some confess their deepest, darkest secrets
to all who are willing to hear. Some disappear,
vacate to huge cities where they blend in with crowds,
islands where they stare at clouds, await peace.
Some freeze themselves in their rooms, create a tomb,
window shades drawn to dawn's incoming light,
rarely escape morning or night, their fight or flight reactions
cause a full-stop pause. They never go out since when
they do, panic attacks may ensue. Some people lack
any solutions at all and simply fall victim
to fears, paralyzed for years.

2.
Me? I play a word game on a 15x15 board, 225 squares,
dare myself to hoard the lower-scored pieces so I can create
a 7-letter word, earn 50 extra points. It's a joint effort
often videotaped at tournaments where players determine the
most lucrative coordinates to place tiles. Feel free to file this
under diary poetry. Poetry and Scrabble are my word games.
They keep me sane, which is their appeal.

But, verse is a curse 'cause it makes me feel.
May sound dumb, but I'd rather be numb.
That's why I dabble in Scrabble.

[mnaz]

I've always thought that escapism is highly underrated, and I love the possibility of words, even if I don't much like the word "word" itself-- seems a little dry. I like the Spanish palabra much more . . .

[the mingo]

palabra?
i love tidbits like this - specially when it comes to words and & things - ok gotta go follow this bunny trail out -

[the mingo]

doreen - the woman what puts up with me is into scrabble - and other word games like it - i'm not good at them - ain't that some shit? she can play them for hours with multitudes of enjoyment but me they make feel dumb - i couldn't scrabble my way out of a wet paper bag i've come to discover -

[Doreen Peri]

I love the word palabra. Much better than "word". I was told these should be 2 poems, not one, but I didn't listen. The first part is so depressing, I wanted to lighten it up with a different type of escapism. At any rate, thanks mnaz and mingo for reading and commenting. This poem (or these poems) are meant to be read aloud. I included a lot of echoing in the sounds which makes for music from a voice.

As far as Scrabble goes, I've wasted a number of years playing that silly game. It's good to challenge the mind but I believe it's actually changed the way my mind works in a negative way. It's total escapism. The poetry word game is much more lucrative for my spirit and is, in fact, not escapism, at all. It's an honest delving into life itself. It's an exploration of our place here and what the heck it's all about.

The time I've wasted on scrabble should have been better spent working out at the gym, writing poetry, painting, or writing a novel.

I hear the voice of Lrod in my head telling me to quit wasting my time. He called playing scrabble, "Pushing a peanut with your nose." He sure had a way with words.

I started playing online that long ago, way back in 2007, I think. That's a lot of years with wasted time. But there's been much to escape. I don't think escapism is underrated at all, unless you're talking about tripping around the world to vacate a humdrum existence. Any other type of escapism is cowardly. It's just running away from what needs to be done and all of the beautiful things which could make a person's life more fulfilling.

Not being able to sleep in the wee hours of this morning before the sun came up, I started delving into our previous jams. I copied something like 20 poems I wrote during a 2005 jam, poems I hadn't saved. I admit actually being awed by my own pen.

I don't know what happened to me but I want to write like that again.

Say a prayer or whatever you do to send some positive energy out to the universe so I don't end up like the people I described in part one.

I'm going to join the gym this week. I say that every week.

I'm grateful for Studio8. Thank you.

[the mingo]

definitely get out from underneath the covers - definitely do not berate yourself -
Studio 8 is grateful for you - definitely!

[theirishsea]

The last 3 lines humorously sum it all up. "dabble in Scrabble."

The first stanza gets at how others may try to escape but they really don't. The substances, the neuroses----they lock people in rather than letting them escape.

[judih]

like your shares - let em speak for themselves
talent has no hiding place - it hangs out where it feels loved
sometimes deep within, sometimes with others
...yeah

[Terri]

i identify with this so very much it's hard to comment. said well and said with directness.

[WIREMAN]

escape from doing life time.....its all important....its all not important.....its all that to be thang....wtf am i talking about....is palabra a legal scrabble word?.....maybe in the spanglish edition ...nice write or two Doreen....i seem to remember u dabbling in ze scrabble...