A poem by Alan Dugan
As an American traveler I have
to remember not to get actionably mad
about the way things are around here.
Tomorrow I’ll be a thousand miles away
from the way it is around here. I will
keep my temper, I will not kill the dog
next door, nor will I kill the next-door wife,
both of whom are crazy and aggressive
and think they live at the center of culture
like everyone else in this college town.
This is because I’m leaving, I’m taking off
by car, by light plane, by jet, by taxicab,
for some place else a thousand miles away,
so I caution myself: control your rage,
even if it causes a slight heart attack.
Stay out of jail tonight before you leave,
and don’t get obstreperous in transit tomorrow
so as to stay out of jail on arrival tomorrow night.
Think: the new handcuffs are sharp inside
and meant to cut the wrists. You’re not too old
to be raped in their filthy overcrowded jails
and you’ll lose your glasses and false teeth.
How would you eat, study and be
a traveling lecturer if you got out alive and sane?
So remember to leave this place peacefully,
it’s only Asshole State University at Nowheresville,
and remember to get to the next place peacefully,
it’s only Nowhere State University at Assholesville
and you must travel from place to place for food and shelter.
A few random poems:
- Convalescent poem – Ambrose Bierce poems | Poems and Poetry
- Reply to the Threat of a Censorious Critic by Robert Burns
- On Certain Ladies poem – Alexander Pope poems | Poetry Monster
- A Token by Robert Creeley
- Ribblesdale poem – Gerard Manley Hopkins poems
- Yarrow Unvisited by William Wordsworth
- Ballade Of Dead Ladies poem – Andrew Lang poems
- Fire’s Reflection by Rainer Maria Rilke
- Noe more unto my thoughts appeare by Sidney Godolphin
- English Poetry. Madison Julius Cawein. In June. Мэдисон Джулиус Кавейн.
- The Breaking Point by Stephen Vincent Benet
- My Country Place by Thomas J Camp
- Николай Заболоцкий – Летний вечер
- Жан де Лафонтен – Павлин, жалующийся Юноне
- English Poetry. Thomas Moore. From “Irish Melodies”. 58. Farewell! – But Whenever You Welcome the Hour. Томас Мур.
External links
Bat’s Poetry Page – more poetry by Fledermaus
Talking Writing Monster’s Page –
Batty Writing – the bat’s idle chatter, thoughts, ideas and observations, all original, all fresh
Poems in English
- The Fascination Of What’s Difficult by William Butler Yeats
- The Falling Of The Leaves by William Butler Yeats
- The Everlasting Voices by William Butler Yeats
- The Double Vision Of Michael Robartes by William Butler Yeats
- The Dolls by William Butler Yeats
- The Delphic Oracle Upon Plotinus by William Butler Yeats
- The Dawn by William Butler Yeats
- The Dancer At Cruachan And Cro-Patrick by William Butler Yeats
- The Curse Of Cromwell by William Butler Yeats
- The Crazed Moon by William Butler Yeats
- The Countess Cathleen In Paradise by William Butler Yeats
- The Coming Of Wisdom With Time by William Butler Yeats
- The Cold Heaven by William Butler Yeats
- The Cloak, The Boat And The Shoes by William Butler Yeats
- The Circus Animals’ Desertion by William Butler Yeats
- The Choice by William Butler Yeats
- The Chambermaid’s First Song by William Butler Yeats
- The Chambermaid’s Second Song by William Butler Yeats
- The Peacock by William Butler Yeats
- The O’Rahilly by William Butler Yeats
More external links (open in a new tab):
Doska or the Board – write anything
Search engines:
Yandex – the best search engine for searches in Russian (and the best overall image search engine, in any language, anywhere)
Qwant – the best search engine for searches in French, German as well as Romance and Germanic languages.
Ecosia – a search engine that supposedly… plants trees
Duckduckgo – the real alternative and a search engine that actually works. Without much censorship or partisan politics.
Yahoo– yes, it’s still around, amazingly, miraculously, incredibly, but now it seems to be powered by Bing.
Parallel Translations of Poetry
The Poetry Repository – an online library of poems, poetry, verse and poetic works

Alan Dugan (1923 – 2003) an American poet, a contemporary classic of American poetry.