Haiku and Related Forms
Excerpts from Frozen Socks, selected haiku and related forms by Alan Pizzarelli
The book contains poems from 1970 to date, published and previously unpublished, herein re-arranged in a more unified format according to the original chapbook themes. Haiku related poetic forms include senryu, sequences, tanka, haibun, kyoka, visual poems and photos.
“On with the show! Dim the houselights! Start up the planetary music, sprinkle us all with Magic-man’s cosmic glittering dust! Ladies and gentlemen and children of all ages, it gives me great pleasure to present Alan Pizzarelli, himself.”
~Anita Virgil
from THE FLEA CIRCUS
1989
across the tightrope goes the star of the flea circus in a pink tutu
late in the evening
a midget hoses the sunflowers
slicing a ripe pomegranate
watching the horror movie
in the supermarket
the spinster smiles
at the cucumbers
the dog runs after the stick
i pretend to throw
carried from the car
the ventriloquist's dummy
looks around
reaching for
the wind-up toy
it rides off the table
done
the shoeshine boy
snaps his rag
from AMUSEMENT PARK
1974
under the boardwalk
sunlight brightens and fades
the tattoo'd man
walks onto the crowded beach
the setting sun
lights the top
of the high striker
spinning cotton candy
the girl with the teased-up hair
on the merry-go-round
that empty blue bench
the taffy pullers
the taffy pullers
the taffy pullers
skee ball
the kid with a fistful of tickets
wins a plastic bubble pipe
the ferris wheel turning
into the fog
drop of ocean
in my navel
reflects
the amusement park
from A SILVER HUBCAP
1976
“Call it, A Silver Hubcap”
—Allen Ginsberg
driving
out of the car wash
clouds move
across the hood
on the peddler's truck
an emptied scale swings
in the morning sunlight
tiny fish
swaying
into the current
shadows rippling
over a hubcap
nightfall
horse chestnuts hit the parked car
a moving van zooms
along the backroads
autumn
sun brightens
snow slides off
the car bumper
wiping the chrome
blue vapors fade
bitter cold
the car's horn blows
by itself
from CITY BEAT
1991
a bright awning is cranked
over the corner fruitstand
rain wet streets
cars k’plosh & splawsh
over the neon puddles
in front of the go-go bar
a broken umbrella
shakes with the wind
in the stream
a shopping cart
fills with leaves
in the rear-view mirror
tombstones
crossing the bridge
car wheels humm
over a metal grating
Vup!
a distant tugboat
Manhattan skyscrapers
the sun sets red
in all the windows
dik-duk dit-duk
a loose manhole cover
a hubcap
rolls down the midnight street
into its distant sound
twilight
staples rust
in the telephone pole
from BASEBALL POEMS
1988
at the produce stand
a kid with a baseball
plays catch with the awning
leaning for the sign
the pitcher rotates the ball
behind his back
at short stop
between innings
sparrows dust-bathing
the score keeper
peeks out of the old scoreboard
spring rain
game over
all the empty seats
turn to blue
from It’s Here!
1995
hottest day of the year
a breeze in the distant treetops
it’s here!
in the attic chest
a puzzle's piece of sky
falls from an old love letter
lying in the sun
she unties her bikini top
and falls asleep
rolls over
the flowers
i bought her wilting
and me with this illness
snow deepens
the barber shop pole
spins into itself
from THE WINDSWEPT CORNER
1998
on the windswept corner
traces of a puddle
fade
morning twilight
a truck driver gently unloads
sacks of clams
a billowing cloud
resumes its shadow
across the twin towers
fading across the grooves
of a glacial rock
a bird’s wet footprints
sudden rain reeled in on the wash line the doll's clothes
far down the railroad tracks
the brakeman's lantern
gets lost among the fireflies
starry night
the jeweler closes
the folding gate
on the windswept corner
stamping the snow
off my boots
From The Rising Mist
1976-78
a screen door slams
deer leap into the rising mist
a butterfly alights in her hair
wings unfold summer mountains
buzzZ
slaP
buzz
bending back
along the railroad track
tiger lilies
as the train passes
the heads of geese
pop out of the tall grass
sundown
each firefly
has its own blink
on the old oak
one branch of leaves
turned red
leaning on the car fender
winter mountains
meteor
the cloud fades back
into blackness
From Passing through Paterson
1975
Walking the snowy pavement
down Van Houten street
jingle jangle tire chains –
red brick factories billowing smoke
into pearl white sky —
blue plaque at the corner:
“Samuel Colt, inventor of
The famous Colt revolver
Patented in 1836, made
his first finished guns
in a factory here”
cold wind
at the knotted end of the flagpole rope
a washer clinks
blue mailbox corniced with snow
hint of red hydrant
buried in plowed street snow ─
across Mill street
deep mists rise
above redbrick rooftops
from the Passaic falls ─
Crossing the frozen bridge
the falls fall
down & seemingly upward
in one continuous motion
thundering white
with a sound that says “GOD”
billowing mists
& arching rainbows ─
it begins to snow
with no money
i go
snow viewing
taxicabs
passing through
an empty wine bottle
car beep
birds fly off
evening
in the empty concert hall
the sound of radiator pipes
From Hike
1984
just before dawn
a beach ball floats
across the stillness of the pool
lightens
flinging the frisbee
skips off the ground
curving up hit’s a tree
petals
a piece of buttered popcorn
floats in the garden pond
swirling colors
under the boardwalk
bullet shells glint
below the shooting gallery
squinting
to read the sign
"optician"
opening the mailbox
nothing but a screak
snow falls from trees
rumble
of passing boxcars
from Taku Wind
2008 (eBOOK forthcoming)
A collaborative sequence by Al Pizzarelli & Kaakwdagaan.
Juneau Alaska May 31 – June 14, 2008.
AP: Al Pizzarelli
K: Kaakwdagaan.
the taku wind flails the bullwhip kelp AP
on the rocky beach
another eagle feather
completes the dance fan K
in the still silence
the slow fall
of cottonwood seeds AP
touching the flower
of a salmonberry
wishing it was summer K
trying to forget you
I see your face
in a passing cloud AP
where the glacier waters
meet the clear stream
our fingers entwine K
bear scat
we link our arms together
to look bigger K
in the beaver dam
a small branch of budded blossoms AP
sharing your coat
remnants of a landslide
on a distant mountain K
a raven flies off
spruce needles scatter
into a drift of snow AP
Note: Kaakwdagaan, is the Thlinget Indian name of Donna Beaver.
Copyright © 2008 by Al Pizzarelli and Donna Beaver.
from Haiku Cowboys
2003
A collabroative narrative sequence
of Haiku & related verses
by Alan Pizzarelli and Cor van den Heuvel
Scene 9: On the Trail
in Dodge
The Lone Rider hears of the reward
from the new marshal
removing his hat
he asks for a shave
in the barbershop
sound of a gunshot
the razor poised to flick the lather
into the sink
he leaps to the door
his colt in his hand
the white cloth falls to the floor
in the street
no sign of the gunman only
a bullet hole in the barber pole
before dawn
packed & saddled again
he rides out on the dim trail
Dodge City fading
far behind him
only the distant peaks
between the horse’s ears
{INTERMISSION}
Key to authors verses:
Verses 1-5 Cor van den heuvel
Verses 6-8 Alan Pizzarelli
from TANKA BLUES
& other poems
1994
i'm sitting here
watching an old westernall of the actors are dead
they are ghosts
riding out of tombstone
a passing cloud
darkens the tavern window
still thinking of her
i lift my beer mug
the coaster sticks to it
all summer long
looked for the bald eagle
later
stopt looking
saw two
troubled…
i gaze
at a slender maple
with its branches snow-bent
in spring
clipping gray hairs
in my mustache
white narcissus
droops
by the garden pond
painting windows
i dream
of better things to do
still
painting windows
gray november day
i sneeze
and hundreds of starlings
fly out
the bare trees
summer's almost gone
a yellow leaf
clings to a long strand
of spider silk
twirling in mid-air
visiting her grave
snow falls
on the white carnations
in time
even the stars’ll be gone
all day
cutting off
fishheads
knowing nothing
lasts
from SEEDS
Early Poems 1970-‘73
sunrise
an old woman
picking mushrooms
scarecrow
coughs
butterflies
a stranger passing
starts saying something
his hat falls off
scraping his shoe
against the curb
the passing parade
the fat lady
bends over the tomatoes
a full moon
a spark
falls to the ground
darkens
that's it
tonite
nothing to write
but this
from Senryu Magazine — Out to Lunch
2001
at the community hall
one old lady shouts “BINGO”
the others say “shit”
At the brassier factory,
the busty receptionist
says “Can we help you?”
Wearing her
“Worlds Best Mom” T-shirt,
she wallops the whining kid.
“I’m serious!”
he shouts
wearing a pinwheel hat
burying a dead bird
the small boy
hums the wedding march
after the divorce
she fits back into
her old dress
in the tv store
on all the screens
cloned sheep
Two Parodies
Lily:
out of the water…
out of itself
Nicholas Anthony Virgilio
Lily:
out of the water…
out of her suit
Alan Pizzarelli
The turnip-puller
Showed the way
With a turnip
Kobayashi Issa
the gas station man
points the way
with a gas nozzle
Alan Pizzarelli
from THREE POUNDS OF FLAX
2006
"What is the Buddha?
Three pounds of flax."
─ T'ung Shan
Zen Catholic
asking the zen master
"what is the sound of
one hand clapping"
no use turning
the other cheek
read a book on zen
THAT THICK
learned nothing
snow blows off the paper birches
nobody cares
planting a garden
the sky nightens
octopus in the wash basin
new moon
CHOKA
well worn ruts
well worn ruts
over here over there
they drive me nuts
well worn ruts
well worn ruts
A Koan
Make a sound with no movement
the shade springs open
frozen socks on the line
Copyright © 2009 by Alan Pizzarelli
All rights reserved