**Form W-9 in a Velvet Envelope** The copy machine lurches like a dying ox while Janet from Payroll discusses her nephew’s rash— not metaphorical, though it could be— the rash and the nephew are real, unlike the performance review you drafted in your head on the way back from the vending machine that squalled when…
The Dark Flower: Krishnakali
### Krishnakali by Rabindranath Tagore In the village they call her the dark girl, But to me she is Krishnakali, in full bloom. On a cloudy afternoon in the fields, I saw the dark gleam of her gazelle eyes. No veil upon her head, Her loose hair cascading down her back. Dark? However dark she…
Escaping the Grid: A Soulful Journey Through Saxony, Germany
This article is based on this Dutch article of Martinus Benders Sachsen, Germany for Adults 13-05-2025 Pietje is a small stocky fellow from Geldrop, also known as “Popeye” because of his superhuman strength. He doesn’t talk much but mostly crows. We found him through the neighborhood app, where he had offered his services for waste…
Kali, Mushrooms, and the Forgotten Gods: Visions Beyond Soma
### Amanita 21 Good Lord, Benders, what in Heaven’s name does this prehistoric Man in Black claim? You write of mushrooms, mystic rites— what’s he to do with Amanita’s heights? These ancient ones, ‘tripping balls’ as you say, but what can their visions show us today? Friedrich, please, take heed and see: in their world,…
Amanita and the Cosmic Hymn: Myth, Mushrooms, and Alien Lore in Ancient Texts
### Amanita 20 Ally: Zap it, baby. Alpha Romeus. When do legs get wobbly like snakes? This goddess born from frothy seas, Whose beauty brings men to their knees, Now finds herself in weakened state, As Sappho’s words reverberate. My legs of serpents, long and sleek, Grew wobbly, quivered, trembled weak, For in her voice,…
Full Flower Moon: A New Musical Journey Begins as Martinus Benders Departs Dutch Soil
This article is based on this Dutch article of Martinus Benders Full Flower Moon Tomorrow, as our journey begins, it coincides with a so-called full flower moon, during which the moon also happens to be at its farthest point from the Earth in its cycle. I’ve finished the tracklist: All the tracks are finished and…
The Golden Hind and the Serpent Queen: Myths, Mushrooms, and Mystical Paths
### Amanita 19 * In Cerynea’s glinting woods, the hind did glide— A golden flash, by Artemis supplied. Fed on ambrosia, quiet in her tread, A sacred deer the gods had gently bred. Eurystheus, ruler wrapped in petty pride, Threw Hercules to traps from which none hide. “To seize this hind,” he whispered with a…
The Grocer’s League: A.I., Identity Commodification, and the Death of Literary Merit
This article is based on this dutch article of Martinus Benders The Work Ethic of the Grocer’s League Someone called my post ‘rage-bait’ because I asked whether A.I. played a role in the huge number of bands I encountered through Popronde. But I didn’t say it lightly: in quite a few of those bands I…
The Great Journey Begins: A Poetic Road Trip, Family Memories, and Artful Merch by Martinus Benders
This article is based on this Dutch article of Martinus Benders Just two more days. Homemade meatloaf sandwiches, the scalding hot backseat. Don Williams on the stereo, the big holiday book on my lap. The Great Journey is about to begin. My father was a Ford man. After an initial small Daf in the late…
Poetry, Protest, and the Poetic-Military Complex: When Verse Meets State Violence
This article is based on this Dutch article by Martinus Benders A police dog bites a student protesting against genocide in the leg on the campus of Radboud University. Geert Wilders posts a declaration of love to the dog on X—and inside, the professors are tapping out their bland little essays, failing to mention what…