the blueshift journal
blueshift / ˈblo͞oˌSHift / noun
the displacement of the spectrum to shorter wavelengths in the light coming from distant celestial objects moving toward the observer.
It's the humming--not notes.
Not a melody. It's a signal. A rattle
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nesting in my joints.
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Like the snarl of yard mutts,
the clipped chirp
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of an unhinged ceiling fan.
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When they sit near me
some brown, soupy ditty
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scurries down my spine.
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Like they've trapped a rusty
robin in their elbows.
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Modulated and molded.
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Pored. Pock-marked. Smooth
as an infant's innocence.
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Skin.
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There's this thing I see every morning
on the AM bus.
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Who sees twelve-year old legs?
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A book bag? A girl?
It says "Come."
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It sings, "I am your now."
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This high-pitched lilt
chucks its volume down the street.
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Its trickster, blow-pop smile is a mistake,
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is anger, a wily, guttural ruse.
Deep under her skin, her hollow jingle jabs my ribs
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makes me want to slam a face to the ground
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Such danger in those open hands.
Can't you hear the quiet composition?
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The falsetto pitch and thrust?
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Oh, to have that song
Running running running through me.
AMERICAN FAMILY, A SYNDROME (SINGING SKIN DISORDER)
NANDI COMER
Inconclusive Disorder—Patients under
observation have displayed
symptoms of Singing Skin
Disorder (SSD) where
patients’ pores emit a melody-
like auditory sound, much like
that of a bird or whale call.
Patients with darker
pigmentation appear to have
larger pores, and often times
their skin emits an offensive,
less melodic tonal pitch than
those with less melanin.
Under microscopic evaluation
of skin samples, there seems to
be no distinguishable markers
in any of the documented SSD
patients that differentiate them
from non-SSD patients.
All of the doctors in our
observation facilities have
heard the songs. Patients
under observation report
hearing skin songs of other
patients, however all evidence
point to a lack of auditory
recognition of their own,
leaving us to believe this is a
type of auditory pheromone or
territorial marking made by
the body wherein the host is
unaware.
On occasion we have tried
to record the music of SSD
patients, but upon playback,
the recordings
contain no sound. Along with
no evidence of patients
hearing their own skin, the
lack of documentation leaves doubt
as to if the songs
actually exist.
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Whether SSD is temporary,
permanent or actual is
inconclusive.