Just before midnight, I wandered through Nancy’s whimsical corner of The Elephant’s Trunk, where her poetic mischief nudged me over the fence of common sense. In that soft hour, a playful spark took hold — and this anecdotal poem tumbled out as my midnight excuse.
For Nancy >> Poet’s Excuse – The Elephant’s Trunk
And because midnight rarely behaves itself, here’s Nick Cave’s “Night Raid” slipping in with its dark velvet mood before the poem leaps the fence again.
There Are No ‘Cents’ in Pretense
None of it needs to make sense
no matter present tense
or past tense
Your quill has a license
to leap the pretense fence —
forget about common sense
And write delicious nonsense
in future tense
with imaginative effulgence
And to round out this midnight ramble, here’s the song I shared with Nancy — Leonard Cohen’s wonderfully unusual “Ballad of the Absent Mare,” a wandering little masterpiece that trots alongside any poet willing to leap the fence of pretense.
Ivor Steven © August 2026
Ivor.Plumber/Poet 
To be given a nod of poetic appreciation by you, my dear friend, is like The Maestro, Leonard Cohen himself, choosing to sing a new, unknown song composed by someone else. It’s a great honor and a thrill. Thank you for choosing my poem, dear poet. 🥰🎶📝💙😍
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Thank you for your outstanding message of appreciation my dear friend , it’s 1.45 am and it’s nonsense that I’m still here blogging 🥰🎶🐶📖💙💕🤗😴
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Sending these lines back to you and appreciation.
“Your quill has a license
to leap the pretense fence”
Don’t wait for someone else’s permission
Glad to see you still shining your light.❤️
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Haha, nonsense is my best sense, and thank you for appreciating my somewhat sensible poem, Ali 🥰🌏📖
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