Devious Metaphors 3-27-20

D MEVIOAUbSook of pEoeTtiAc iPdeHasORS
by
J SOHNNY ONIQUE

Eclectic poetry and thoughts for humans





Weavers

On these pages spiders weave Ideas they protect since man began
their silver strands of fate a bid to collect them all
For those willing to receive Trying to stem the rising tide
in silk the truth awaits of mankind’s free-for-all
Spiders weave their latticework The wisdom of a quiet weaver
to integrate ideas through circumstance and time
It is their sacred calling Connecting disbeliever
their mission through the years with mystery and rhyme
In and out the lines of rhyme So when you see a spider busy
they scurry to and fro doing what she’ll do
Knitting wisdom for our time Say a quiet thanks to her
allowing us to grow She’s only here for you

Devious Metaphors Weavers

MEVIOAUbSook of poEetTic AidePasHORS
D by

J SOHNNY ONIQUE

Eclectic poetry and thoughts for humans

See Author’s Notes for an understanding of the poems

These poems were written and edited in the

period from 2002 to 2019.

In the poems, any resemblance to persons living,
dead, or ... undead, unless noted, is purely
coincidental. The Universe does an extraordinary
job of mixing things up. So ... it could happen.

Layout, Design and Text by John Paynter

Published by Sonic Soup Music & Design

[email protected]

Printed by Sonic Soup Graphics

© 2020 John Paynter all rights reserved
This is a first edition

Set in Gentium Book Basic, Martina, Campbell, Curlz MT, Minion, Monotype
Corsiva, Kozuka Mincho Pro, MV Boli and Calfisch Script Pro. The software used
are Adobe InDesign, Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Word.

Devious Metaphors Copyright

This tome is dedicated to the two

most important people in my life

My wife Dawn
And

My best friend Jeff

Johnny Sonique Dedication

This First Edition is specially dedicated
to

Jeff Sadowski

who, on countless occasions,
has sung my song back to me
when I have forgotten the words.

An excellent self-help coach and business
author, he works hard to figure out the
Universe and divert its energy to where it

is most needed.

He is here for all of us.

Devious Metaphors Dedication

Devious Metaphors Johnny Sonique

ContentsWhats Where?

Devious Metaphors 10 Contents

About the Author 294
Acknowledgements 286
Afterward 292
Attributions 288
Author’s notes 276
Copyright
Contents 6
Dedications 10
End poem (The End) 7
First lines 296
Forward 22
Introduction 34
Opening poem (Weavers) 36
4

Johnny Sonique 11 Contents

Poems 12 39
Again?
195
Another Hit 197
Art Muscle
46
Bats
243
Bean Wine 215
Beast 216
Birthday 244
Bla 268
Blank Page 198
Blooming 199
Borrowing 245
Brain Dance 176
246
Brakes
Contents
Devious Metaphors

Brush Stroke 13 247

Cabaret 178
200
Censorship 52
Changing You 217
Chariot 218
CQ 179
Creativity 201
Crown
Cup of Time 56
Currency 234

Day Job 1 248
249
Day Job 2
Dayjobrant 64

Johnny Sonique Contents

Devious Metaphors 33
Dexterity 250
Diet 251
Digging 180
Dreamship
Dualism 42
Duality 219
220
Email
222
Embers 203
Everwar 223
Expired 224

Fall 226
252
Feel
Contents
Devious Metaphors 14

Finished Work 68
Fire 202
Fire Bell
Freedom 72
181
Gathering
76
Gold 182
Guitar 183

Heavy Metal 253
82
Homeosynthesis
86
I Want To Play 204
273
Inner World
I Speak To You Contents

Johnny Sonique 15

Jeff Lims 270
254
Johndering
Just Like Me 90

Kaleidoscope 94

Last Resort 100
227
Lessons 255
Life 228
Listen 1 230
Listen 2 232
Love 256
Lowbrow
106
Motto
Contents
Devious Metaphors 16

Murphy 110
My Reality 184

New Idea 173

Ode To Ele 114
193
Open 257
Open Mic 185
Out There
120
Painting the World 126
130
Pen to Paper 258
Pied Piper
Play 38
Poetry
Contents
Johnny Sonique 17

Politicalrant 136
Ports 259
Punny 260

Quantum 187

Reading 235
142
Reaper’s Rebirth 152
Recycle 261
Relief 205
Religionrant 262
Rose 236
Rotation
237
Safe Harbor
Contents
Devious Metaphors 18

Science 188
Sculpting 158
Status Quo 208
Stretch 189
Strings 263
Sweet Revenge 264
Symphony 192

The End 296
265
The Plug 239
Time 240
Time-Coin 164
Time’s Tragedy 168
Tomorrow 266
Tripping
Contents
Johnny Sonique 19

Weavers 4
211
Work To Do
267
You
Zombie 213

Devious Metaphors 20 Contents

Devious Metaphors 21 Johnny Sonique

First LinesOut of the gate

Devious Metaphors 22 First Lines

A book cover is the present 235
217
A chariot of white 245
A limerick writer supesrb
Ah distinctly I remember 73
Ah the fiery breath of art 203
An assignment finally came along 216
An idea will bite 188
Any port in a mind storm 259
As the days go by 254
At Wordslingers bar a poet 257
A book cover is the present 235

Brains transcend the daily stuff 181

Can I borrow? 211

Johnny Sonique 23 First Lines

Coffee-the nectar of the gods 215
Captain Rochester 69
Cherish your visions 43

Digging under the rocks of life 180
236
Dammit Janet 182
Do you have great things to say?

Einstein’s train 187
38
Epic poetry and the sonnets 226
Eyes overloaded

From the core of time and randomness 83

Give me an idea any day 192

Devious Metaphors 24 First Lines

He bowed to the food machine 251
169
He painted everything under the sun
Here’s to another 91
His license expired 224

I bring something into being 179
222
I feel your 1’s and 0’s
I got a good buzz sipping pleasure fuzz 95
I have a habit of hanging out 87
I have a shiny time-coin 240
I have no illusions 185
I keep my mind open 193
I raise my cup of wisdom 228
I reach across the unyielding years 165
I speak to you as a caring friend 273

Johnny Sonique 25 First Lines

I spend my time seeking rhyme 198
I tried to wipe my shadow off 232
I went traveling one dark day
If you really don’t care 101
I’m a mind musician 219
Into your mind insight has flown 184
It was on a young day in almost May 227
I must use my time to write my rhyme 143
I’ve got big plans in lots of lands 246
I’ve got to have my Murphy fix! 57
111

Jeff was that real kind of guy 271
265
Johnny had the computer from hell

Left hemisphere feels so dear 176

Devious Metaphors 26 First Lines

Like a rushing freight train 239

My mind is in the fragrant breeze 33
65
My real day always starts at dusk
200
Neural-net nannies
4
On these pages spiders weave 178
131
Our repartee feels to me
Out of the west came the pest 247
195
Painting the universe in your mind 213

Please crush the boring 187
Poems spew forth

Einstein’s train

Johnny Sonique 27 First Lines

Reality must have an arc 255

Seeds of doubt sowing 223
137
Shield me from these revelations 159
Some sculpt in sound 263
Someone’s jerking my strings 183
Sound waves crashing 204
Spending our time before it’s given
201
Take the long way home 53

Thanks for the readings 202
The artist is out of her element 77
The books gaze down in celebration
The brain is important, that’s true 267
The coldness of the working tomb 199

Devious Metaphors 28 First Lines

The economy tanks 234
The eye buzzing down 121
The large collider as seen by outsider 153
The liquid glass of the timeless sea 220
The status quo is like a tyrant 208
The sting of the bee 258
The unknown is scary 205
There once was a bat named Dean 243
There once was a bla bla bla 268
There once was a candy machine 264
There once was a guy named Cody 253
There once was a Jeff I’m told 271
There once was a Jeff with a brain 271
There once was a Jeff with vision 271
There once was a lady named Rose 262

Johnny Sonique 29 First Lines

There once was a man from Salisbury 260
There once was a man named Jeff (1) 271
There once was a man named Jeff (2) 271
There once was a noise 107
There once was an artist from Mass 248
There once was an artist of worth 249
There once was paper and pencil too 250
There once were two heads named Jeff 271
They tell that my mental reach 189
Thinking blindly, I suspect 266
This form of poetry I’m told 256
To put pen to paper 127

Want a new idea, one that might hurt 173
218
We have a theory for everything

Devious Metaphors 30 First Lines

We say Hooray! 115
296
What is the end ? 237
252
When life’s voyage gets the best of me
When you sigh I want to cry 47
Whether it’s a flam paradiddle 197
Work nights are too short 244
Work on birthdays is a sin

You just have to ask 261
230
Yo, listen, I gotta say

Johnny Sonique 31 First Lines

Devious Metaphors 32 Johnny Sonique

Devious Metaphors

My mind is in the fragrant breeze
With metaphors and similes
Twisting, turning
Always yearning
For the brilliant mental sneeze
They congregate in secret places
Wearing handsome frisky faces
Mind unbound
Creation found
They feel like heaven’s graces
~ From the Book of Voluminous Thoughts

Devious Metaphors 33 Devious Metaphors

ForwardWhat did he say?

Devious Metaphors 34 Forward

You are about to embark on a quite a marvelous journey.

One that’s full of wit, wonder, and mystery. For this isn’t just
another poetry book, dear reader.

In my 25 years of knowing the author personally, I can hon-
estly say that I’m still amazed and amused by his wisdom, and
his unique way with words. By drawing on the inspiration of e. e.
cummings and Dr. Seuss (with an occasional splash of Walt Whit-
man), Devious Metaphors will take you to places that you’ve
never been, and to places that you didn’t know you needed to go
until you arrived!

By carefully mixing the perfect blend of big ideas, weird but
wonderful words, and ways to put them together that will make
you smile, I’m sure John would agree that any one of his poems
are only here for two very good reasons. To entertain you, and
to expand your mind.

Ever since I’ve known him, we’ve both had the same goals in
mind. To understand life as much as possible, and to enjoy the
experience of sharing that together. And that’s exactly what
he’s done with this book. Through his lens, you’ll see life as the
magical, beautiful, and sometimes dark and ironic place that it can
be, without ever losing your sense of wonder.

And if that’s not a great place to begin any worthwhile ad-
venture, then, what would be?

All that you’ll need to do from here is to keep your mind
and your eyes wide open, and keep your hands and feet safely in-
side, until the ride comes to a complete stop. And with that...

Enjoy the Trip! ~ Jeff Sadowski
“A Place Where we Love To Be”

Johnny Sonique 35 Forward

IntroductionWhat could happen?

Devious Metaphors 36 Introduction

Ahh...the wonderful lyricism of rhythm, words, and ideas.

These playful idea snippets have been circulating in my
overactive brain for decades. I finally had to create a way to
organize them that so they could speak to the world. They
were threatening to burst through my already thin line of
sanity.

Keeping to a standard poetic format is also an excep-
tional form of mental exercise and, as I’m entering the age
of risk for dementia, a way to possibly gain a few more
protective brain cells. Incorporating a flow to the words is
a holdover from my songwriting discipline and serves well for
readability and entertainment.

A poem should have either rich language, vivid meta-
phors or a rhyme scheme to lend musicality, flow and for-
ward motion. Not having these, the words are merely an
essay.

Putting abstract ideas in a coherent form also allowed
me to experiment with communication and the playful con-
cepts my imagination, always waiting under the rug, might
come up with.

May you find something useful to put in your cup of experi-

ence.

Enjoy... Johnny S

Florida

2020

Johnny Sonique 37 Introduction

Epic poetry and the sonnets

all have their wonderful place
Honored lines are written here
for none are ever disgraced
A playful rhyme, a lazy thought
they do have something to say
Twists and turns of clever words
show a mind at play

Devious Metaphors 38 Poetry

D Mevious etaphors
The Poems

The flow of words mirrors the flow of life

Johnny Sonique 39 The Poems

Devious Metaphors 40 Johnny Sonique

L Fong ormRattling on

Devious Metaphors 41 Long Form

*Dreamship *

For all blessed with the magic of looking forward

Devious Metaphors 42 Dreamship

Cherish your visions

and make the decisions
to be a dreamer now
It’s a magical day
when you can say
you’ve sailed on the creative scow

A ship so fine
that in its prime
finds gold in the minds of men
Sailors on high
reaching a sky
as mighty as the pen

Ideas do flow
as does the crow
from sea to shining sea
We all are joined
and new words are coined
from just our passion to be

Long Form 43 Dreamship

We part the waves
for so many slaves
to the common and concrete
We set a new course
and are a force
for the abstract and new beat

Yes, completing ourselves
like magical elves
is a thing you and I can do
We’re now recovered
and we’ve discovered
it feels so incredibly new

All do the same
we’re never to blame
for the ups and downs of life
We steer by firm hand
until we see land
and the end of our stress and strife

So come on board
and bring your hoard
of wants and hopes and dreams
We are never blind
in this state of mind
it’s all as fun as it seems !

Devious Metaphors 44 Dreamship

Long Form 45 Johnny Sonique

*Art Muscle *

Perfected skills are the ultimate high!

Devious Metaphors 46 Art Muscle

Whether it’s a flam paradiddle

or the voice of a fiddle
artistry is enjoyed
It’s the ultimate toddy
for mind and body
a subtle magic employed

On the music computer
I’m a slick commuter
building my songs to hustle
No time to dare
to find what’s there
and rebuild my lost art’s muscle

The magic was real
fingers were steel
played for days at the Palace
I’d give up a song
for the times long gone
I had more than my little mouse-callous

Now there’s no flow
computer songs grow
building sound upon singular sound
I long to play
songs all the way
body with emotion crowned

Long Form 47 Art Muscle

Why can’t they stay?
and not slip away
skills so hard to keep
The things we learn
midnight oil we burn
still out of our minds they creep

So now I’m rusty
my mind is dusty
flow has gone away
Fingers on strings
are alien things
when I try to play

Being ready to go
And in the flow
Is a wonderful thing
Honing a talent
Is so gallant
Makes my light heart sing

We’re all very special
And sometimes wrestle
With a unique way to be
Spreading my thoughts
With odd little plots
Is the way for me

Devious Metaphors 48 Art Muscle

So I’ll use what I have
And as a light salve
Remember it’s an artist’s pain
We are panoramic
And art is dynamic
I’ve got so much to gain

We learn by doing
But maybe I’m chewing
Off more than I can say
I did it once
And I’m no dunce
Might as well go all the way

They say there’s time
but I’ve projects on line
I won’t disappoint my clients
You may have guessed
I’m a perfectionist
I rise up in stark defiance

Of losing a skill
and unique thrill
once I thought was perfection
Could I do it again?
what would I win?
maybe regain my direction?

Long Form 49 Art Muscle

Now with gray hair
bringing wisdom to bear
I learn from long-past years
I’m so much smarter
I’ll be a self-starter
pushing past the fears

The art lives on
when skills are gone
we are but transient things
But if we’re clever
the work is forever
and gives to others, wings

So, no ‘pology
to young biology
I’ll take my place with the rest
I’ll learn from the older
and mimic the bolder
until I’m at my best

The flame of my focus
has at its locus
the joy of being alive
I may get fried
but At least I’ve tried
art will always survive!

Devious Metaphors 50 Art Muscle