By Pale Screen Light
In days of old
from neck was drained,
sucked from punctures,
to pale, hungry undeath.
In flush refrain, now
fantasy, foddered myth.
Yet modern vampires still exist.
We stare into their
pixelled eyes,
minds jammed
through cable and wifi,
keyboarding evermore
into drooling golems.
Dora is today’s host for dVerse’ Quadrille Monday. In celebration of Dora’s daughter’s novel being published, today’s word to write a 44-words-total poem (not including title) is vampire.
Tao Talk 
I thought about that Sting song, but I have used it so many time before, but my poem was a still a bit inspired by that song.
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I have the album its on (an excellent album) and have listened to it many times. Cool to learn you have used it many times before and based your poem on it. I like this version as he is backed by a full orchestra. Love that howl at the end :)
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I love the phrase ‘pale, hungry undeath’, Lisa, and the image in the second stanza – a familiar one!
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Thanks much, Kim :)
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You’re welcome, Lisa!
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Nice vampire poem. I like the link to energy draining technology
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Robbie, I couldn’t help but think of the connection to it. We’re all being drained :( Thank you.
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Yes, we are all being drained.
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Willing victims, aren’t we, to those “pixelled eyes,” to our everlasting shame?! The second stanza’s indictment rings all too true.
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I’m not so sure how willing we are over time. Just like the heroin addict pulling out the kit as we boot up our machines :(
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Ha! Well done, do very true, and you liked them in at the first stanza before the hit
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Ain, thanks!
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I need less screen time…..
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Nolcha, I’m trying to taper off, but not at all easy.
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Not easy at all. An awful addiction. Or, maybe writing is the addiction.
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OMG
This is so scary
much🤍love
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Thank you, Gillena.
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Wonderful imagery you have evoked. We are fascinated by them, aren’t we?
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Dale, thanks. Yes, like a moth to a flame :(
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💞
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Such truth in the closing lines. Nicely done Jade.
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Maria, thanks much.
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Ha! That’s the new reality
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It sure is! Have you seen the movie, “The Matrix”? I see it kind of like those pods.
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Yes, a few times 😛
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A very clever verse, Lisa!
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Steve, thanks much :)
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That is the truth. (K)
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Thanks, Kerfe.
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So excellent Lisa, and I love the perspective. 🙂✌🏼🫶🏼
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Rob, thanks much, buddy :)
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I did enjoy the parrallels, very apt!!
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Thanks, Di. The crackling truth of the times.
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“minds jammed / through cable and wifi,” – excellent reference to one of the vampiric powers mentioned in earlier vampire lore, but not always included in more recent iterations of the lore.
Fantastic poem, Lisa.
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Nicole, please say more about the “vampiric powers mentions in earlier vampire lore” will you? Thanks and glad you liked the poem.
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In the novel Dracula, vampires have hypnotic and telepathic abilities, using mesmerizing gazes to entrance their victims.
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Oh ok, I see where you’re coming from. That’s a hella good novel. One of the few I’ve read more than once. Have you seen the HBO series, True Blood? In it, they call it “glamouring.”
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No, I haven’t. But I’ve heard that term used in connection to fae illusionary magic.
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That must be where they got it from.
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Lisa, your poem cleverly reimagines the timeless allure of vampires through the lens of our digital age, blending old fears with modern realities. You truly never disappoint :-D
~David
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David, high praise. Thanks for the kind words.
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Although I don’t like scary movies, I have always been fascinated by vampires..so I identify with your poem, Lisa.
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Judy, I understand the (morbid?) fascination with them.
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I am not a fan of horror films generally but vampire films are a special category which express some deep human aspect, Li – well captured…
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Andrew thank you.
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Well-done, Li, with the allure of vampires and the connection to modern technology draining people.
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Thank you, Merril.
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You’re welcome, Li!
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Gotta love, ‘drooling golems’!
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:) :::pardon me while I dab my chin:::
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Keyboarding evermore … grim reality in a disconnected world – the irony and the self doubt – who is the vampire really is the question this poses for me.
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Thanks for your thoughtful comment, Paul. Perhaps we are the Draculas and the screens are the Renfields?
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