You gave up, leaving
all defenses in my hands
while the pyroclasts
approach, spewing gas
and glowing things all around.
I'm turning tail too.
So much for your trust,
toots. I'm headed for higher
ground if my hot feet
permit. As for you
guys, I recommend you all
book it, toot damn sweet.
April 11, 2016 2:33 PM
Pyroclasts (or " tephra ') are any volcanic fragments that were hurled through the air by volcanic activity. A pyroclastic eruption is one in which the great majority of activity involves fountaining or explosions.
Book it: Fairly common slang for at least the last sixty years meaning as used here: to get out, run!
Toot-sweet: This word pair is a corruption of the French 'tout de suite', which literally means 'all at once'.
Thus the whole phrase is another way to say, "Run! Right now, Damn it!"
This would seem to be a bit melodramatic to some but I live in the vicinity of Mt. St. Helens and pyroclastic flows were not that far away. When we moved into the house we bought, I had to go on the roof and clean volcanic ash out of the gutters. We were grateful in those days that the weather flow in this area tends to come from the southwest to the northeast, more or less. That's how we missed most of the grit.
one of my first poems ever went something like; the volcano burst
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not knowing where it will land.
Now i know, it was on your roof way back before we met
Not cool... That was hard unhappy work and also a little scary to have sharp little sand bits all over everything. Wearing masks and all that... At least it wasn't as bad down here as it was out north and east of the volcano. I have much happier memories of you, dear.
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