A Small, Plain Poetics of Those Days

After training at School No. 4 or 5,
that is, at elementary school—years later
the numbers blur together from afar—
when at night or in the twilight

we wandered slowly back home;
our good habit was to stop
at the buffet in the corner of the square,
and there, just inside at the beer tap,

to order a mineral water in a glass
or a black, fizzy Kofola—
all for exactly one crown—

and slake our thirst.
That was our small, indulgent ritual
as the neon will-o’-the-wisps gazed in silence.

What Grok, Western AI, "Thinks" about My Latest Poem on This Blog

Grok: "The post links to a poem titled "Bohemian Hermione," published on July 11, 2025, which uses vivid imagery of a marble throat and ancient dreams to explore themes of beauty and hidden meaning, reflecting Vladimir Suchan's background as a Czech writer known for poetic and philosophical works.

This aligns with a surprising trend in 2025 where AI-generated critiques, like the "MechaHitler" controversy tied to Grok, have sparked debates about technology's role in art, with a 2024 study from the Journal of Creative Technologies showing 68% of artists feel AI threatens authentic expression.

The timing, coinciding with global political tensions (e.g., Trump's provocative statements about bombing Moscow and Beijing), suggests Suchan may be using poetry as a subtle counter-narrative to mainstream militaristic rhetoric, a tactic historically seen in dissident literature during the Cold War." July 11, 2025