Oulipost #29: Canada Dry

And that’s when things got weird

a mistake in wording
fixing the glitch
a surge
sounding the alarm
scrambling this summer
skeleton crew
backed into a corner
outlandish
vicious waves of
laughter in the air
empty and silent
feeding that paranoia
saying ominous things
(I’ll whisper it in your ear)
Your community thanks you
(Lean in a little closer)
an extra dose of
non-drowsy
formulation
safety.

 

 

Sources:
Cohen, Jodi S. “Pension law sparks retirements: Cuts in benefits and a mistake in the bill have state’s universities facing an exodus.” Chicago Tribune. 29 April 2014: 1.

Huppke, Rex W. “Fearless gun owners scared of people armed with pens.” Chicago Tribune. 29 April 2014: 2.

Acura Pharmaceuticals. Nexafed advertisement. Chicago Tribune. 29 April 2014: 3.

The prompt:
The name of this procedure is taken from the soft drink marketed as “the champagne of ginger ales.” The drink may have bubbles, but it isn’t champagne. In the words of Paul Fournel, who coined the term, a Canada Dry text “has the taste and color of a restriction but does not follow a restriction.” (A musical example is Andrew Bird’s “Fake Palindromes.”) Be creative, and write a poem sourced from your newspaper that sounds like it’s been Oulipo-ed, but hasn’t.

http://www.foundpoetryreview.com/blog/oulipost-29-canada-dry/

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