North Dakota Suicide

A rambling, poetic narrative about life in my home state. Inspired by Chuck Klosterman.

Wasting away on a barstool in Downtown Owl
The Dog Lover's mission: to make the patrons scowl

Every night imbibing gallons of Lord Calvert and Coke
A simple pattern of action becomes a long running joke

This is your life and it's slipping away in meteoric fashion
Your date with the grave, the metaphor of a car crashing

Into a concrete piling that keeps the path sedate and flush
So comes the random resolution to a buffalo rancher's crush

Three simple rules that even the largest moron can know
Stay in your vehicle and keep the tailpipe clear of snow

Keep the window cracked as long it is away from the wind
This is the awful truth, there is no room for political spin

Stupidity, like the state, is a leading cause of unnatural death
That one miserable flaw is how one is remembered the best

Locked in a unbroken routine of earning pay and drinking it down
There is a probable chance that one can become the class clown

But, the death certificate is signed and the burial plot is chosen
Short-circuit the process by walking into the air that is frozen

The reverse of tachycardia is the pulse of life in the open plain
Just the same discussions of weather, football and the price of grain

Whether slugging down black sludge coffee or black label whiskey
The monotony of earthen existence is pointless, that is the key

Another set of statistics, just barrel laughs for those that died
Not being prepared, just another atypical North Dakota suicide

Reviews

[Liza]

hmmmm; sounds like North Dakota inspires some kind of depression? not enough excitement? opportunity? freedom of expression? i kind of felt like the chaos empire state caused too much turmoil in me that i craved for a slower state...hence - i'm now in the garden state...thankfully

[Hello, Goodbye]

Another great write... darkly curious..

[KimLove "The Beautiful ..]

Ken you weave words of so much truth within it so much imagery. Excellent and powerful write.

[ButterflyWonderland]

This is amazing. I love the rhyming.

"The monotony of earthen existence is pointless, that is the key."

This was my favorite line. Great line.

[Blue Moon Ice Cream]

This makes North Dakota sound like an awfully depressing place to live. A very cutting analysis of how so many lives turn out, though.

[Rene Velez]

drunk driving, or drinking without responsibility is dangerous, funny how responsibility of one's actions are numb by the action of drinking, kind of ironic i guess, I personally am not a fan of alcohol, but that doesn't mean I don't do stupid things LOL, thanks kenneth

[Robin]

sometimes i wonder how people 'accidently' step in front of trains .

Routine . yeh ..

[joshua deathdealer]

This is excellent. Direct and to the point. Unforgiving truth. I enjoyed this, I've had my battle with alcoholism and "This is your life and it's slipping away in meteoric fashion" is so very true. For me at least. Good stuff.

[Ruth]

Woahh, this is harsh, but portrays reality, real life, so to speak! A powerful one hon! xx

[Coyote Poetry]

I have contact with some of the tribes in N.D. A lot of death from alcohol. Native American lost their path. Many had fell to booze then slow and painful death. A sad poem. I like the advice you gave. Good advice for the cold states. A lot of people die and they just don't wake-up because of human error. A excellent poem.
Coyote