The Terraces (Das Arquibancadas) by Joe Milazzo

THE TER R ACES (DAS ARQUIBA NCA DAS)

THE TER R ACES (DAS ARQUIBA NCA DAS)

©Joe Milazzo 2012

L R Llittle red leaves textile editions

www.littleredleaves.com

©Joe Milazzo 2012

L R Llittle red leaves textile editions

www.littleredleaves.com

The Terraces ( Das Arquibancadas)

Joe Milazzo

The Terraces ( Das Arquibancadas)

Joe Milazzo

“ ”

“ ”

2

2

, it f lies upward.

we held our ground.

and plunged past the foundations of any periphery.

, it f lies upward.

we held our ground.

and plunged past the foundations of any periphery.

3

3

“”So I imagine she is strolling those rows under a parasol whose hue turns on her wrist, and as one’s focus does. There, initially, in the slope of the dawn, her silken carapace is as white as a church.

I sought you, yet

To speak of the waterworks here:rain-catchers never go hungry.

“”So I imagine she is strolling those rows under a parasol whose hue turns on her wrist, and as one’s focus does. There, initially, in the slope of the dawn, her silken carapace is as white as a church.

I sought you, yet

To speak of the waterworks here:rain-catchers never go hungry.

4

4

The bouquet betokening truce and, so much as to saythe imminent brokering of a posterity that respects no borders, that rattling nosegay will not remain a centerpiece for long. The fieldsshall be strewn with the bloomsof denuding, the ribbon of decor shall be sowninto a sallying banner, and the pastel shall be pasted upon the earth where it is most pitted and burning with nettles.Seeds may be for g ypsies and moths. But such is the royal deployment of f lowers.

The bouquet betokening truce and, so much as to saythe imminent brokering of a posterity that respects no borders, that rattling nosegay will not remain a centerpiece for long. The fieldsshall be strewn with the bloomsof denuding, the ribbon of decor shall be sowninto a sallying banner, and the pastel shall be pasted upon the earth where it is most pitted and burning with nettles.Seeds may be for g ypsies and moths. But such is the royal deployment of f lowers.

5

5

“”Get away from the noise and smut and disease.

Come, get back to EVERYTHING.

we called for court.

“”Get away from the noise and smut and disease.

Come, get back to EVERYTHING.

we called for court.

6

6

Clarice, to learn that a locale desires you as badly as you long to visit it, it makes salt of the bread in one’s mouth, it leads one into

mistaking one’s tobacco for one’s tea, it jams one’s neck up into one’s sinuses, it causes all your dearly held addresses to spill into a

jumble, it erases the billboards with a brush as broad as a shack, it renders the notion of an electorate, however green, preposterous, if

not irresponsible.

Clarice, to learn that a locale desires you as badly as you long to visit it, it makes salt of the bread in one’s mouth, it leads one into

mistaking one’s tobacco for one’s tea, it jams one’s neck up into one’s sinuses, it causes all your dearly held addresses to spill into a

jumble, it erases the billboards with a brush as broad as a shack, it renders the notion of an electorate, however green, preposterous, if

not irresponsible.

7

7

So I imagine these waning mornings her lingering is hardly ever soon concluded, as, being ashrugging provocateur, she is not quite past the tables of silver and yellow. Nor the rakes with their many delicate hooves pawing, pawing, twinkling. Nor the hulling drums. Nor where the shade has been cut clear, and the presentation of leaves mimics thesun. Nor the yards where the wind, unable to catch a fire, slaps at the chaff. It is the climate there, or over here.

So I imagine these waning mornings her lingering is hardly ever soon concluded, as, being ashrugging provocateur, she is not quite past the tables of silver and yellow. Nor the rakes with their many delicate hooves pawing, pawing, twinkling. Nor the hulling drums. Nor where the shade has been cut clear, and the presentation of leaves mimics thesun. Nor the yards where the wind, unable to catch a fire, slaps at the chaff. It is the climate there, or over here.

8

8

we surrendered to the transport we hoped had been arranged for us.

What restricted palette?What misery will the roots pull up? As related issues arise? What unseen?What margin?What non-attainment status? What rust?What robust? For here is what it resembles. Is it attractive to you?

Only in the new tissue.

we surrendered to the transport we hoped had been arranged for us.

What restricted palette?What misery will the roots pull up? As related issues arise? What unseen?What margin?What non-attainment status? What rust?What robust? For here is what it resembles. Is it attractive to you?

Only in the new tissue.

9

9

“”The houses were once without number,

the street, it rambled anonymously, but now all is good

because the more makes, the more wants.

I reaped you, yet

“”The houses were once without number,

the street, it rambled anonymously, but now all is good

because the more makes, the more wants.

I reaped you, yet

10

10

The lenses of the post’s aviators compass crosshairs around no Red-rumped Caciques, no Russet-winged Spade-bills, no Black-and-gold Cotingas, no Laughing Falcons, no Sooty Barb-throats, no Hyacinth Macaws, no Golden Con-ures, no Brown-backed Parrotlets, no Hoary-throated Spinetails, no Three-toed Jacamars, no Band-tailed Antwrens, no Stresemann’s Bristle-fronts, no Buff-browed Chachalacas, no Stri-ated Softtails, no Brown Tanagers, no Alagoas Fo-liage-gleaners, no Tyran-nulets, no Spot-breasted Antvireos, no Kaempfer’s Tody-Tyrants, no Buff-

The lenses of the post’s aviators compass crosshairs around no Red-rumped Caciques, no Russet-winged Spade-bills, no Black-and-gold Cotingas, no Laughing Falcons, no Sooty Barb-throats, no Hyacinth Macaws, no Golden Con-ures, no Brown-backed Parrotlets, no Hoary-throated Spinetails, no Three-toed Jacamars, no Band-tailed Antwrens, no Stresemann’s Bristle-fronts, no Buff-browed Chachalacas, no Stri-ated Softtails, no Brown Tanagers, no Alagoas Fo-liage-gleaners, no Tyran-nulets, no Spot-breasted Antvireos, no Kaempfer’s Tody-Tyrants, no Buff-

11

11

“”There are many nice reasons to visit.

The altitudes are beautiful and interesting. They have beautiful monuments.

backed Fire-eyes, no Slender Antbirds, no Cone-billed Tanagers, no Forbes’s Blackbirds, no Chestnut-bellied Guansno Mantled Hawks, no Pearly Parakeets, no Blue-cheeked Amazons, no Saw-billed Hermits, no Hyacinth Visorbear-ers, no Saffron Tou-canets, no Harpy Eagles, no Rusty-necked Pi-culets, no Ochre-rumped Antbirds, no White-browed Antpittas, no Spotted Bamboowrens,

throated Purpletufts, no Banded Cotingas, no Fringe-

“”There are many nice reasons to visit.

The altitudes are beautiful and interesting. They have beautiful monuments.

backed Fire-eyes, no Slender Antbirds, no Cone-billed Tanagers, no Forbes’s Blackbirds, no Chestnut-bellied Guansno Mantled Hawks, no Pearly Parakeets, no Blue-cheeked Amazons, no Saw-billed Hermits, no Hyacinth Visorbear-ers, no Saffron Tou-canets, no Harpy Eagles, no Rusty-necked Pi-culets, no Ochre-rumped Antbirds, no White-browed Antpittas, no Spotted Bamboowrens,

throated Purpletufts, no Banded Cotingas, no Fringe-

12

12

no Slaty Bristlefronts, no Scaled Ground-cuck-oos, no Sickle-winged Nightjars, no Brasília Tapaculos, no Bare-throated Bellbirds, no Pale-throated Pampa-finches, no Azure Jays, no Creamy-bellied Gnat-catchers, no Araucaria Tit-spinetails, no Great Xenops, no Peruvian Recurvebills, no South-ern Bristle-tyrants, no Grey-backed Tachu-ris, no Swallow-tailed Cotingas, no Hooded Berryeaters, no Unico-loured Thrushes, no Green-chinned Eupho-nia, no Greater Rhea, no Solitary Tinamou. Only kites, swooping, tearing, silently escap-ing. And Clarice out-thrust amid the strings.

no Slaty Bristlefronts, no Scaled Ground-cuck-oos, no Sickle-winged Nightjars, no Brasília Tapaculos, no Bare-throated Bellbirds, no Pale-throated Pampa-finches, no Azure Jays, no Creamy-bellied Gnat-catchers, no Araucaria Tit-spinetails, no Great Xenops, no Peruvian Recurvebills, no South-ern Bristle-tyrants, no Grey-backed Tachu-ris, no Swallow-tailed Cotingas, no Hooded Berryeaters, no Unico-loured Thrushes, no Green-chinned Eupho-nia, no Greater Rhea, no Solitary Tinamou. Only kites, swooping, tearing, silently escap-ing. And Clarice out-thrust amid the strings.

13

13

So I imagine these winter harvests, the specifi c operations of the plant, the requirements of the ground, the hooked overfl ow and the fruiting that is caught between. In the planting season, she is careful not to trod in the soft shovelfuls of quicklime. In the planting season, and aft er, there is a hint of copper in the mist that lazes about until well aft er the noon repast. But, now, in the coldest regions of the autumn, so much else obtains. She carries a ledger under her arm, a record of grayish paste and grayish boards. Dirt percolates on her tongue as she bluntly abbreviates her path past every stripped branch. Th e

So I imagine these winter harvests, the specifi c operations of the plant, the requirements of the ground, the hooked overfl ow and the fruiting that is caught between. In the planting season, she is careful not to trod in the soft shovelfuls of quicklime. In the planting season, and aft er, there is a hint of copper in the mist that lazes about until well aft er the noon repast. But, now, in the coldest regions of the autumn, so much else obtains. She carries a ledger under her arm, a record of grayish paste and grayish boards. Dirt percolates on her tongue as she bluntly abbreviates her path past every stripped branch. Th e

14

14

light feeds the page cyan, an-notations bloom in hoops and eukaryotes of ratio, mass is scal-able per persuasion. So I imagine that in these letters is a singular character, a stroke of strokes, and lying unsuspected, like a homicide that has gone unreported.

If only I could be all that she has lost in those precious scant decades to come. My own words, never drunk deep, turn cold, only to molder. Neither blue, semi-dark and fl orid, nor yellow, parchment-like and not very clear, have any root in the familial fazenda.

light feeds the page cyan, an-notations bloom in hoops and eukaryotes of ratio, mass is scal-able per persuasion. So I imagine that in these letters is a singular character, a stroke of strokes, and lying unsuspected, like a homicide that has gone unreported.

If only I could be all that she has lost in those precious scant decades to come. My own words, never drunk deep, turn cold, only to molder. Neither blue, semi-dark and fl orid, nor yellow, parchment-like and not very clear, have any root in the familial fazenda.

15

15

“”A jungle of favors

and your guide for a most memorable evening, Carmelita.

I coveted you, yet

as peach-white as the moon.

we pled that

we did what we did for the sake of the f ledglings.

“”A jungle of favors

and your guide for a most memorable evening, Carmelita.

I coveted you, yet

as peach-white as the moon.

we pled that

we did what we did for the sake of the f ledglings.

16

16

whose hueturns as do fingers that appear rosy only if held behind the thinnest of pretexts.

to trample it, it transforms all one’s most dearly

guarded monsters into bland sacraments,it spurns all trains,

even the earliest among them, and takes its leave.

whose hueturns as do fingers that appear rosy only if held behind the thinnest of pretexts.

to trample it, it transforms all one’s most dearly

guarded monsters into bland sacraments,it spurns all trains,

even the earliest among them, and takes its leave.

17

17

“”we werenovices

Where else to retire once a full day’s workhas come to an end?Here’s a pick-me-up.

A nice fix as regular as the mail.

“”we werenovices

Where else to retire once a full day’s workhas come to an end?Here’s a pick-me-up.

A nice fix as regular as the mail.

18

18

as waxy orange as a little servant.

The machinery of constructionpaints itself with the fiery iron of the blood,is parked in a peculiarly doubled intimacy of circulation. Aa welling aff licts the terrainand is prevented from erupting save a pox of eff lorescence.Walls and shingles squat, bleeding reserve, alignment, stiffness nailed shut together. If what is madeis drawn, then it is quartered. A penny sucked upon long enoughwill fil l the gulletwith the necessary taste of fuel. The tools are in the shed,or they are soldfor the return of a few spurts.

as waxy orange as a little servant.

The machinery of constructionpaints itself with the fiery iron of the blood,is parked in a peculiarly doubled intimacy of circulation. Aa welling aff licts the terrainand is prevented from erupting save a pox of eff lorescence.Walls and shingles squat, bleeding reserve, alignment, stiffness nailed shut together. If what is madeis drawn, then it is quartered. A penny sucked upon long enoughwill fil l the gulletwith the necessary taste of fuel. The tools are in the shed,or they are soldfor the return of a few spurts.

19

19

as wheat-colored as the burro that is running away.

as wheat-colored as the burro that is running away.

20

20

Clarice, I awoke this morning to a dog howling his un-f inished song. I miss the cooler evenings, the passers-by, the crooked balconies crackling one above another. The

bedclothes are newly laundered and, worst of all , now I have no one with whom to play.

Clarice, I awoke this morning to a dog howling his un-f inished song. I miss the cooler evenings, the passers-by, the crooked balconies crackling one above another. The

bedclothes are newly laundered and, worst of all , now I have no one with whom to play.

21

21

“”And plunged, never formed to lip or sky.And plunged in the soft and regular reeling of a catcall. And plunged past the night’s own descent.And plunged into the groves of Tijuca.

I knew you, yet

Do not meter directly.

“”And plunged, never formed to lip or sky.And plunged in the soft and regular reeling of a catcall. And plunged past the night’s own descent.And plunged into the groves of Tijuca.

I knew you, yet

Do not meter directly.

22

22“”

as cinnamon as cherries.

as greenish as patches

as li ly as Cabral ’s sails

as brown as a barn’s side

The upper elevations are picturesque and captivating.They have many beautiful monuments.

There are many nice reasons to visit.

“”

as cinnamon as cherries.

as greenish as patches

as li ly as Cabral ’s sails

as brown as a barn’s side

The upper elevations are picturesque and captivating.They have many beautiful monuments.

There are many nice reasons to visit.

23

23

as dusky-milky as cashews.

as bronze as a mouth full of smoke.

as burnt and as whitewashed as an illicit palmful.

wecaressed unison instead

as dusky-milky as cashews.

as bronze as a mouth full of smoke.

as burnt and as whitewashed as an illicit palmful.

wecaressed unison instead

24

24

In deeds,

and so

no single artificer

no corpulent mixtures

ever sang thus of their angers or the numberless il ls

their campaigns inf licted.

They crawled on their backs, mere diviners

of water, tardy chewers

of thick leaves and figs salvaged from the Indes.

Their providence congratulated by the glare

and little else rising.

Neither epic; neither idyll.

Jogging dogs

imposed disgrace.

And fecal murals.

In deeds,

and so

no single artificer

no corpulent mixtures

ever sang thus of their angers or the numberless il ls

their campaigns inf licted.

They crawled on their backs, mere diviners

of water, tardy chewers

of thick leaves and figs salvaged from the Indes.

Their providence congratulated by the glare

and little else rising.

Neither epic; neither idyll.

Jogging dogs

imposed disgrace.

And fecal murals.

25

25

Surmounting nothing, they poured their instincts,

interchangeable

(as wattle from daub applied beige)

(as sand unpacked from clay)

(as timber from the kilned facets of brick)

(as hanging canvas from corrugated steel)

in excess of the land

and plunged across the medley of the upended ultramarine.

What if these commemorations were to hem

where they stand within the ample tumbling

of what they overlook at such liberty?

And then, what?

Extending what?

What?

Surmounting nothing, they poured their instincts,

interchangeable

(as wattle from daub applied beige)

(as sand unpacked from clay)

(as timber from the kilned facets of brick)

(as hanging canvas from corrugated steel)

in excess of the land

and plunged across the medley of the upended ultramarine.

What if these commemorations were to hem

where they stand within the ample tumbling

of what they overlook at such liberty?

And then, what?

Extending what?

What?

26

26

“”So I imagine that in

these aughts and naughts are the commodities of the season, these auguries or warnings of the yieldaround the corner; the bend. If only I could be all that she haslost in those precious scant decades to come. My own words, never drunk deep, turn cold, only to molder.

Revelry each Saturday night.Unction every Sunday morning.

“”So I imagine that in

these aughts and naughts are the commodities of the season, these auguries or warnings of the yieldaround the corner; the bend. If only I could be all that she haslost in those precious scant decades to come. My own words, never drunk deep, turn cold, only to molder.

Revelry each Saturday night.Unction every Sunday morning.

27

27

In the dregs, Clarice, pictures of you and I, Clarice, arguing when the forfeiture and straying we had so

carelessly adopted could have been nourished by the contest, but, whether out of cowardice or deference

to words so spiced, we did not.

In the dregs, Clarice, pictures of you and I, Clarice, arguing when the forfeiture and straying we had so

carelessly adopted could have been nourished by the contest, but, whether out of cowardice or deference

to words so spiced, we did not.

28

28

“ , is where

“ , is where

yet wherever I am, Clarice, .

To occupy, to be occupied:

yet wherever I am, Clarice, .

To occupy, to be occupied:

29

29

” I wish to be.

: that permission is never granted.

” I wish to be.

: that permission is never granted.

30

30

Yes, , it fil ls upward.

Yes, , it fil ls upward.

Joe Milazzo is co-founder of the interdisciplinary arts organization Strophe, co-editor of the online journal [out of nothing] (http://www.outofnothing.org) and propri-etor of Imipolex Press. His writings have most recently appeared in H_ NGM_ N, Super Arrow, The Collagist, kill author, and at Exits Are. You may also find his writings in or at Everyday Genius, LIES/ISLE , Drunken Boat, and Black Clock. Joe lives and works in Dallas, Texas, and his virtual location is http://www.slowstudies.net/jmilazzo/.

This little red leaves textile series chapbook was designed and sewn by Dawn Pendergast in Houston, TX.

Joe Milazzo is co-founder of the interdisciplinary arts organization Strophe, co-editor of the online journal [out of nothing] (http://www.outofnothing.org) and propri-etor of Imipolex Press. His writings have most recently appeared in H_ NGM_ N, Super Arrow, The Collagist, kill author, and at Exits Are. You may also find his writings in or at Everyday Genius, LIES/ISLE , Drunken Boat, and Black Clock. Joe lives and works in Dallas, Texas, and his virtual location is http://www.slowstudies.net/jmilazzo/.

This little red leaves textile series chapbook was designed and sewn by Dawn Pendergast in Houston, TX.