streetwise

09 October 2012

WAITING FOR MOHAMED ALI

WAITING FOR MOHAMED ALI
© Farouk Asvat

They did not gather for God

But for Mohamed Ali,
But it was the same thing,
It was like waiting for Godot

The excited crowd

Closed in on the mosque
Only to be technically knocked out
By his nonappearance

For Ali, like God,

Did not come
He was on a magic carpet ride
With the merchants of the realm

composed 1995 [Johannesburg, South Africa under new apartheid]

[] Acknowledgements:

Waiting For Mohamed Ali was previously published in:

The Wind Still Sings Sad Songs (piquant publications, p66, 2006). *

____________________________________________________________

[] WIETIE WHAT-WHAT

Bra Frooks is ...

                                [] nes 'n skollie
                                [] 'n egte skollie
                                [] 'n tsotsi
                                [] a real scamp
                                [] streetwise
                                [] the jokerman

Bra Frooks ...

                                [] praat soos 'n skollie
                                [] wietie soos 'n joster
                                [] wietie what-what
                                [] tunes like a durbanite
                                [] speaks like an englishman

Farouk Asvat asserts his moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

No part of this publication may be reproduced by any means whatsoever, or transmitted in any form or any means whatsoever, mechanical or electronic, including recording, printing, photocopying, or via any computerised means or media, including the internet. This publication shall also not be stored in a retrieval system. And the writing shall not be sold, lent, hired, resold or circulated in any form or binding or cover other than that in which it is published,
without the prior permission of the author in writing.
Permission to publish or reproduce the writings in any format can be obtained from the author.
Reproduction of this work without permission, except for scholarly purposes,
is liable to a payment of 10, 000 ren men bi or US$ 1,500.

farouk asvat can be contacted at: farouk.asvat@gmail.com

[] please check out my blogs @:

farouk asvat : poems

faroukasvat-poems.blogspot.com/

WEAPONS OF WORDS

faroukasvat-viewpoint.blogspot.com/

streetwise
faroukasvat-lingo.blogspot.com/

piquant publications: BOOKS by FAROUK ASVAT

piquantpublications.blogspot.com/

[] also see my profiles on:

FAROUK ASVAT - Google Profile

Farouk Asvat | Facebook

FAROUK ASVAT | LinkedIn

FAROUK ASVAT - Twitter [for the latest list of poems a& essays published]

[] and see my new poems on:

Farouk Asvat (Author of A Celebration Of Flames) - Goodreads

Farouk Asvat - Requiem Magazine

02 October 2012

THE DIRECTOR OF FUNERALS

THE DIRECTOR OF FUNERALS
© Farouk Asvat

The shrewdest

smoothest
conman
in town
is the director of funerals

like an angel of death

            he is always there
            driving you to your death
            in his green hearse

dressed in holy white cloth

and a neatly trimmed beard
he sells you the loveliest fantasies
and the sweetest intrigues
scented with the fragrant essence
of rose petals
and death

composed 1995 [Johannesburg, South Africa under new apartheid]

[] Acknowledgements:

The Director Of Funerals was previously published in:

The Wind Still Sings Sad Songs (piquant publications, p65, 2006).

____________________________________________________________

[] WIETIE WHAT-WHAT

Bra Frooks is ...

Bra Frooks ...

Farouk Asvat asserts his moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

farouk asvat can be contacted at: farouk.asvat@gmail.com

[] please check out my blogs @:

farouk asvat : poems

faroukasvat-poems.blogspot.com/

WEAPONS OF WORDS

faroukasvat-viewpoint.blogspot.com/

streetwise

faroukasvat-lingo.blogspot.com/

piquant publications: BOOKS by FAROUK ASVAT

piquantpublications.blogspot.com/

[] also see my profiles on:

FAROUK ASVAT - Google Profile

Farouk Asvat | Facebook

FAROUK ASVAT | LinkedIn

FAROUK ASVAT - Twitter [for the latest list of poems & essays published]

[] and see my new poems on:

Farouk Asvat (Author of A Celebration Of Flames) - Goodreads

Farouk Asvat - Requiem Magazine

25 September 2012

MAJESTIC HAIRDRESSING SALOON

MAJESTIC HAIRDRESSING SALOON
© Farouk Asvat

The township comes to town

In their Saturday best
To a calendar full of foreign places
I have stopped dreaming of
Where it is still a wonder to behold
Amitabh Bhachan embracing Elizabeth Taylor
On the peeling walls of the barber shop
In defiance of the laws of the land

"We Do Not Allow Credits Here"

We know all too well
Watching Overcoat Chacha reading the horses
Through a magnifying glass
While hen-pecked barber clip-clips away
In spite of the modern unisex salons across the road
As Enver Notorious
Who still bumps with the swagger of his youth
Comes in
And takes his usual seat rather obtrusively,
While the child looks with apprehension
At the dentist's chair upholstered in maroon:
Clerk, wife and two children,
All seated neatly in a row
Patiently waiting for their turn
Dreaming of the fading promises on the green wall
Before returning to their homely ghettoes

'I have been in all

The racecourses of the country,'
Mandrax Kapoor boasts,
'I know about horses, I tell you;
And I know about bets.
You just ask me.'

'Yes. But don't ask me for money.

              People don't give you money
              To pay your rent;
              In that I've passed my matric,'
            The Balding Barber asserts
            With forced dignity.

"Allahnah Goodana kassam.

But Hot Curry got no chance,
I tell you,"
Junior Shariff predicts with confidence,
"Biryani is the horse for today's race;
Ask me.
And if you don't believe me,
Ask Kaka.
But where is that squint bastard anyway?
I haven't seen him for weeks."

'Kaka is in jaihl,'

Mandrax Kapoor informs him absently.

"Yes, I've heard.

              Pulling time at the Fort;
              At Number Four,"
            Enver Notorious confirms.

"Is that true heh?"

Junior Shariff feigns surprise;
"Kaka in jail heh?
But what was wrong with that bastard,
Staying with us?
But very independent,
Ridiculously independent,
I tell you.
And what he does?
Gets involved in drugs.
Is that now something for our people to do?
I ask you,"
Junior Shariff continues

As the snip-snip of the barbers carries on

And the bright colours
Of another Saturday morning
Pass by in their hustle-bustle
To the cinemas

composed 1995 [Johannesburg, South Africa under new apartheid]

[] Acknowledgements:

Majestic Hairdressing Saloon was previously published in:

The Wind Still Sings Sad Songs (piquant publications, p62, 2006).

____________________________________________________________

[] WIETIE WHAT-WHAT

Bra Frooks is ...

Bra Frooks ...

Farouk Asvat asserts his moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

farouk asvat can be contacted at: farouk.asvat@gmail.com

[] please check out my blogs @:

farouk asvat : poems

faroukasvat-poems.blogspot.com/

WEAPONS OF WORDS

faroukasvat-viewpoint.blogspot.com/

streetwise

faroukasvat-lingo.blogspot.com/

piquant publications: BOOKS by FAROUK ASVAT

piquantpublications.blogspot.com/

[] also see my profiles on:

FAROUK ASVAT - Google Profile

Farouk Asvat | Facebook

FAROUK ASVAT | LinkedIn

FAROUK ASVAT - Twitter [for the latest list of poems & essays published]

[] and see my new poems on:

Farouk Asvat (Author of A Celebration Of Flames) - Goodreads

Farouk Asvat - Requiem Magazine

18 September 2012

TO BURY THE DEAD

TO BURY THE DEAD
© Farouk Asvat

To bury the dead

You have to dig deep
Into your pockets

These days

It takes very little
To bury the dead

You only need: 1 marquee

                                    1 catering firm
                                    20 tables
                                    200 chairs
                                    1 ox
                                    and lots of champagne
Plus:                            2 municipal buses
                                    10 socialites
                                    20 official mourners
                                    250 official guests
Plus:                           Some handsome mortuary fees
                                    Some preparation of the body
                                    to make a beautiful corpse
                                    The hiring of a long hearse
                                    And an expensive coffin
                                    made of genuine oak
                                    with brass handles
And:                            1 ordinary grave

To bury the dead.

So that at the bargain price

Of a few thousand rands
You can have a wonderful burial
For your dearly departed
At the most fashionable funeral parlour in town
Whose inviting motto is:
"Call Us Before You Go."

Yes, it takes very little

to bury yourself these days

Because

            "You can have a memorable funeral
              For your loved one -
              For just R20 a month"

Paying for the rest of your life

composed 1995 [Johannesburg, South Africa under new apartheid]

[] Acknowledgements:

To Bury The Dead was previously published in:

The Wind Still Sings Sad Songs (piquant publications, p76, 2006).

____________________________________________________________

[] WIETIE WHAT-WHAT

Bra Frooks is ...