‘Dihydrogen Monoxide’ by Andrew Joseph The Society February 16, 2015 Humor, Poetry 3 Comments A mysterious substance is ruling our lives. It flows through our oceans and floats in our skies. “It’s good for you,” cries four docs out of five. It will keep your skin young for the rest of your life. It will grow your corn tall and make your kids bright. It will keep your drinks cold and improve your sight. Believe me my friends, don’t be fooled by the hype. There is something about this that does not seem right. Why would the great praises of this stuff be sung? When you breathe in too much, it can swell in your lungs. When frozen it’s deadly, an Antarctic knife. When used in some torture, they beg for their life. So my dear friends I beg you, don’t fall for their ruse and as for myself I don’t have to choose. For I shall not be a mere sheep led to slaughter Because I always prefer my whiskey to water. Andrew Joseph is an aspiring writer and poet from Lima, Ohio. He does his best to squeeze in writing between working full time, and being a full time husband to his wife Julie and full time father to his 4 children. Featured Image: “An Experiment on a Bird in an Air Pump” by Joseph Wright of Derby, 1768. NOTE TO READERS: If you enjoyed this poem or other content, please consider making a donation to the Society of Classical Poets. The Society of Classical Poets does not endorse any views expressed in individual poems or commentary. ***Read Our Comments Policy Here*** 3 Responses Jeri February 16, 2015 Cute and funny! Thanks for posting! Reply Gloria February 16, 2015 A hilarious extended metaphor! Reply Martin Elster February 16, 2015 Hi Andrew, This is an entertainingly droll poem! I love the jaunty anapestic meter. I found the last line a bit bumpy, though. Have you considered starting the line with “’cause” instead of “because”? Then you would have a nice anapestic pick-up: ’Cause I always prefer my whiskey to water. In any event, the last line is inspired. A fun poem! The title immediately attracted me, not just because of the dihydrogen monoxide hoax, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dihydrogen_monoxide_hoax but also because I, too, once wrote a poem with that title: http://newversenews.blogspot.com/2014/09/dihydrogen-monoxide.html Reply Leave a Reply Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published.CommentName* Email* Website Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting. Δ This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Martin Elster February 16, 2015 Hi Andrew, This is an entertainingly droll poem! I love the jaunty anapestic meter. I found the last line a bit bumpy, though. Have you considered starting the line with “’cause” instead of “because”? Then you would have a nice anapestic pick-up: ’Cause I always prefer my whiskey to water. In any event, the last line is inspired. A fun poem! The title immediately attracted me, not just because of the dihydrogen monoxide hoax, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dihydrogen_monoxide_hoax but also because I, too, once wrote a poem with that title: http://newversenews.blogspot.com/2014/09/dihydrogen-monoxide.html Reply
