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live, Regina’s Place 01/15/10 Chicago
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or watch this in part 3 of the YouTube show
live at New Year’s Unplugged
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llive at the Café in Chicago 08/10/10
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of the intro from the open mic @ the Café in Chicago 08/10/10, w/ Kuypers reading her poems “Kurons” with guitar
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read 11/30/10, live at the Café in Chicago
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of the intro and the poem Like I was Never There live 11/30/10 from the open mic at the Café in Chicago
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See YouTube video
of Janet Kuypers reading her poem Like I Was Never There 5/22/16 at the Austin open mic Kick Butt Poetry (from a Canon Power Shot camera).
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See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her poem Like I Was Never There 5/22/16 at the Austin open mic Kick Butt Poetry (Sony camera w/ a Hue Cycling filter).
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See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her 3 poems Where Does The Love Go, Don’t Go To Denny’s and Like I Was Never There 5/22/16 at the Austin open mic Kick Butt Poetry (Canon Power Shot camera).
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See YouTube video of Janet Kuypers reading her 3 poems Where Does The Love Go, Don’t Go To Denny’s and Like I Was Never There 5/22/16 at the Austin open mic Kick Butt Poetry (from a Sony camera).

Like I Was Never There

Janet Kuypers
12/20/09

so I decided to sneak off one night
to go camping with Sam and Vern

we all rolled out our sleeping bags
out on the far side of a field at night

Sam had brought a hurricane lamp
but he didn’t have any oil for it
so
    him and Vern went down the street
broke into a garage there
got a can of lawn mower gasoline

because, you know, it makes perfect sense
to use gasoline in your oil lamp

but anyway, in the shadows,
by a street in the dark,
they planned to fill the hurricane lamp with gas
but in the shadows,
they couldn’t see what they were doing

so Sam said that he needed more light
so he cold see, to fill the oil lamp with gas
so Vern decided to pull out his lighter

Vern, the bright one,
was going to light the way,
I suppose

and Vern lit his lighter,
but there still wasn’t enough light

keep in mind
that they were hiding
in bushes, by a street
with a lamp post

what to do, what to do

Sam asked Vern to move the lighter closer

I mean, these two flunked their eay
through a couple of years of school
and I know I was young
but I knew this wasn’t a good idea
so I started to back away

after I turned around
Vern
            apparently
got the lighter too close

I was already twenty feet away
when I felt the heat
and saw an orange glow from the fire ball

I started to run
but as I was running I looked back
and saw two fireballs in the air

one was the lantern
and the other was the gas can
and I swear to God, the lantern
crashed down on the street
and set the entire street on fire
the gas can landed uphill from the lantern,
pouring gasoline down the street
so flames then ran up to the gas can
further spreading the street fire

I grabbed my sleeping bag and ran
I heard the sirens
and had to act like I was never there


Copyright © 2009 Janet Kuypers.

All rights reserved. No material
may be reprinted without express permission.

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