The blinds of the lowlands are holland or
Blind hopes that conflation will give;
As a suitor impatient to call on her,
(Doesn’t passion decay to obliv…
To oblivious, lying, oblivion?
And our spirits are mineral, polymer,
Not the birds and the bees as the pollen are
Raisins, dates — raisons d’être to live,)
I’m marking the dates on the colander,
And the calendar leaks like a sieve.
Holland – A kind of linen or cotton cloth, often glazed, first made in Holland; it is used in window shades.
Conflation – In speaking, the incorrect fusion of two idioms. For example:
- On the top of my fly
= on the fly + off the top of my head - A dead spitter
= a dead ringer + the spitting image - Slim to fat
= slim to none + fat chance - I’ve got the whole oyster in my hand
= I’ve got the whole world in my hand + the world is my oyster
our spirits are mineral – A play on “spirits” meaning 1) souls; and 2) chemical distillations. “Mineral spirits” is a petroleum distillate used as a paint thinner. The term “spirits” for distillates goes back to medieval alchemy; stones and metals were considered to have bodies and spirits as men did.