* * *
110222
MIDDAY NAP
Someone wearing white stockings,
petticoats, and a gold silk pinafore
is tumbling down a long, cushiony hill.
Lying in bed and viewing this,
I know it’s me, gently bouncing down
from lush spring-green heights,
skimming over golden tufts
of autumn grasses, and approaching
a long, gentle out-of-view slope
that will end abruptly and culminate
in something wonderful or tragic.
110221
NEWS OF THE DAY
People- and earth-
quakes rumble.
Dictators and buildings tumble.
Thinkers fumble.
Doers stumble.
The world is all a-jumble
[ASIDE: Uprisings in the Middle East,
Earthquake in New Zealand.]
110220
JUST DO IT
Coax bad habits
down the stairs?
Slow-mo tweeze
your nasal hairs?
110219
CAT: A TONIC (for Butterscotch)
What once was merely preferential
now is clearly near-essential:
a daily dose of cat to schmooze
(it hardly matters whose).
110218
"WHY" GENERATION (for Allan)
Why are unanswerable
questions the ones I pose?
Why, why, why
am I obsessed with those?
110217
IN BRIEF
Why use
long words?
Short will do.
Short is better;
four-letter…
three-letter…
look, too, to two.
PLAY, MATES!
To kinder spirits,
it’s one big garten.
THINKING ABOUT
NOT THINKING
I was born.
I talked.
I stopped to think.
Now I think
it may be better
not to talk,
not to think.
Such emptiness
may well be
death’s birth canal.
110216
CLOUDS FORMING
“Such a pretty sunrise—
but enjoy it; this may be
the only sun we see today.”
“What—are there more?”
PEACE BY PEACE
When belief causes grief,
this may make some sense:
seek contrary evidence.
110215
TREAD LIGHTLY
I don’t know what happened
to elicit this—but, dang!
“Don’t insult me, mister!
I’m the quiet type with fangs.”
[ASIDE: Encountered on Twitter.]
A WALK IN THE “PLARK”
That’s when play and work
run together indistiguishably
(walk together; same thing).
GOOD WRITING (for Christopher)
Take a simple story
with characters
you care about.
Tell it well. No doubt,
your readers will care too.
Face your fears.
Accept help, insights,
feedback, and advice.
Join others who
struggle like you.
Get unserious;
make it fun.
Go nuts!
Keep it simple.
Be bold.
Write with guts.
[ASIDE: Comment/synopsis made at:
http://www.fuelyourwriting.com/
power-of-words-the-kings-speech-and-good-writing/]
110214
LOVE IS BLIND
Chocolate candy, pink lace hearts,
red-red roses, cupid darts…
From dollar store to galleria,
valentine excess overflows.
Bows and arrows, ribbons and bows…
Surely, everybody knows...
had it been a fresh idea
(something neither myth-icized,
love-aligned, nor cute-ified)—
cupid would be stupid.
DEAR YOU… LOVE, ME (for Darby)
Beyond this world’s illusion,
we are in collusion...
enacting love’s inclusion.
Love is all we are.
Love is all we do,
even when not meaning to.
LOST IN THE MIDDLE
I like to piddle.
I like to twiddle.
I like to not make up my mind.
Or else, I find,
I like to make it up one way,
then down another,
again and again and again.
I like to piddle
and twiddle and fiddle—
but why? That’s the riddle.
NEW MEMBER (for LeaAnn)
“LeaAnn Van Winkle-Gisler”
…now, THAT name is a whistler!
How many other times
ya think this “LeeAnn” rhymes?
110213
DAY? OH!
Sun.
Him come.
Him wake up
everyone.
110212
RIGHT?
To believe a belief,
one has to believe
all contrary evidence
lies.
LEAD ON
How will You direct my day today;
what will You have me do?
How will You invite, incite;
what will You move me to?
NOT ALL THAT UNEXPECTED
Why do scientists keep discovering
fabulous things like quarks and quasars,
black holes, and distant planets?
Because we keep thinking them up.
[ASIDE: Some posit that the universe is made of thought
and keeps extending outward from our consciousness
as the range of our thought increases.]
DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
My latest rabbit hole
(a logo design contest)
was a lost cause
from the get-go.
So I got-gone—
or at least
my prospects did
(which means I’m still snagged).
Well, I will submit my superb
(trust me) entry anyway,
sure that it will be disqualified
on a technical technicality—
specifically, my lack of
the specific technology needed
to produce the design
in a specific software format.
But I can hardly call this
a “lost weekend"—
the difficulties were such
a satisfying challenge.
[ASIDE: My determination to do my best, once I’d launched,
resulted in a submission that did meet the design specifications—
thanks to contributions of knowledge and expertise by
some of my artist friends… may they be blessed!]
110211
AS EXPECTED
“What if?”
That’s the most
wonderful wonder.
What if… I’m okay?
What if… it’s okay?
What if it’s okay
if I’m okay
with whatever is?
110210
QUI SUM
Throwing off fear,
shame and sham,
I claim myself.
I say who I am.
PIQUANT
To a poem,
time is spice.
Read it slow.
Read it twice.
DEFLATED
Sixteen inches this morning,
compared to twenty yesterday:
a too-quick collapse of our
wonderful snow soufflé!
COLD, HARD
LIGHT OF DAY
Last night, I placed paper
and pencil by my bed.
In the dark, I wrote a poem.
There was no pencil lead.
NOLA PRIMA DONNA (for Valerie)
Alligator... hurricane...
you'd think she was a bold one.
No, she's mean and vain;
she taunts;
she flaunts good fortune.
She's the cold one!
[ASIDE: Valerie, my niece, contrasted her fine evening
in New Orleans with the circumstances of Arkansas relatives
blanketed under 20” of snow. Why? Because (she said) she is mean.]
* * *
Showing posts with label fun. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fun. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Friday, February 4, 2011
The Lions' Share
* * *
110203
GREETING CARD IDEAS
FOR MY LIONS CLUB
We heard your news…
NOT BAD, NOT BAD!
In fact, it makes us
GRANDLY GLAD!
You may be strong.
You may be smart.
BUT…
You’re our friend
‘cuz you got HEART!
We’re smiling WIDE
and roaring LOUD!
Your Lion pride
is Lion PROUD!
Your LION friends are on alert.
We don’t LIKE it when you hurt!
Our concern will not end
till you’re well… till you mend.
The one you lost,
so dear to you,
was our friend…
We hurt, too.
CONGRATULATIONS!
We’re happy for your happiness
and wish you even more success.
GET WELL SOON!
We want you well
We want you strong.
We’re glad you’re on the mend.
We want you back
where you belong.
We want you back again.
Our club sometimes is like a zoo,
but when you hurt, we hurt too.
Do you miss us? Well, we miss you!
If you want to know the truth,
we miss you like a missing tooth.
When one of us is sick or sore,
how we WISH we could do more
than fuss and faunch and rant and rave
…and ROAR!
We heard that you are sick in bed.
We WISH that you were here instead.
SHARING YOUR SORROW
We grieve with you
and share your loss.
Life, so priceless,
has such cost.
IN SYMPATHY
We are among the many
who share your pain and loss.
We, too, grieve
and feel bereaved.
LION and LAMB…
Now there’s a pair
who learned to form a bond!
We LION friends
know ‘bout your KID.
Already, we feel fond!
We heard there was an operation
with you as a leading star.
We assume its success
with nary a flub;
we've seen you in action
supporting our club...
What a smooth operator you are!
* * *
110203
GREETING CARD IDEAS
FOR MY LIONS CLUB
We heard your news…
NOT BAD, NOT BAD!
In fact, it makes us
GRANDLY GLAD!
You may be strong.
You may be smart.
BUT…
You’re our friend
‘cuz you got HEART!
We’re smiling WIDE
and roaring LOUD!
Your Lion pride
is Lion PROUD!
Your LION friends are on alert.
We don’t LIKE it when you hurt!
Our concern will not end
till you’re well… till you mend.
The one you lost,
so dear to you,
was our friend…
We hurt, too.
CONGRATULATIONS!
We’re happy for your happiness
and wish you even more success.
GET WELL SOON!
We want you well
We want you strong.
We’re glad you’re on the mend.
We want you back
where you belong.
We want you back again.
Our club sometimes is like a zoo,
but when you hurt, we hurt too.
Do you miss us? Well, we miss you!
If you want to know the truth,
we miss you like a missing tooth.
When one of us is sick or sore,
how we WISH we could do more
than fuss and faunch and rant and rave
…and ROAR!
We heard that you are sick in bed.
We WISH that you were here instead.
SHARING YOUR SORROW
We grieve with you
and share your loss.
Life, so priceless,
has such cost.
IN SYMPATHY
We are among the many
who share your pain and loss.
We, too, grieve
and feel bereaved.
LION and LAMB…
Now there’s a pair
who learned to form a bond!
We LION friends
know ‘bout your KID.
Already, we feel fond!
We heard there was an operation
with you as a leading star.
We assume its success
with nary a flub;
we've seen you in action
supporting our club...
What a smooth operator you are!
* * *
Monday, November 1, 2010
Fear and/or Sanity
* * *
101031
CUED TO FOOD
Am I hungry? Am I not?
How to tell, I forgot.
I eat on cue (from them, me, you).
Sometimes the cue is them, me, you.
I eat whenever prompted to.
Can there be a way not to?
101030
FRIEND OF A FRIEND
(for Andy)
Zounds,
the man does astound!
Happy birthday,
Ezra Pound.
FEAR AND/
OR SANITY
All is well on the Mall
(here as well—all, all, all).
101029
OPEN GATE
The you
that you are meant to be
is now— at least, can be.
It’s not too late;
why wait?
LET GO
I had a job but it got zapped
and now my energy is sapped.
I feel so tired, but not from toil—
more like a frog that’s slowly boiled.
STRENUOUS DREAMS
Each morning begins
as a wake-up, an emergence,
a recovery from dream-trials
of the night—
trials of exploration,
trials of evaluation,
trials of endurance.
Each morning begins
as an achievement.
101028
NEWLY BEFRIENDED
(Poems through my left hand.)
Let me be your poet.
Let me write your words.
Let me change your heart to sky
and all your thoughts to birds.
* * *
Tell you what…
let’s be friends.
Life is play
that never ends.
* * *
My way
is
the high way.
* * *
Here’s what
every finger knows:
the heavy work
is done by toes.
* * *
Sleep is what
a body needs.
"Sleep!" is what
this body pleads.
* * *
Cat on bed—
be careful, please!
Some cats sleep.
This one pees.
* * *
Oh, me. Oh, my!
Oh, my. Oh me!
She came with the name
Sweet Trouble,
but should be called
Sweet Pee.
[ASIDE: Written with my left hand
in a befriend-your-body exercise.
The premise is that doing so improves
contact with the creative right side of the brain.
Also, Emma-cat has begun to think the bed is her
new pee-place, freshly laundered after every use.]
101027
OH, GOOD NIGHT!
“Bats in the belfy,
worms in the books,”
somebody said.
“Bugs in the bed!”
“Rent the belfry.
Lease the books,”
another said.
“But—oh, good night!—
don’t let the bed;
bugs bite!”
101026
EMPTY EYES
How we hurry—
how unwise—
with unfilled hungers,
empty eyes.
101025
VOIDED
What I take up,
I set down.
What takes me up
sets me down.
That is the cycle.
I am handmaiden
to nothing.
[ASIDE: I’d just listened to a TED talk by Elisabeth Gilbert
on creativity and decided to loan this time/space/venue
to my daemon/genius/muse: “Here, say something.”]
101024
SLOW STARTER
Sunday
is my lazy day
(more so than the others).
The best part
is to read in bed
(or just stay under covers).
101023
FOREVER FUTURE
Two futures
are furiously unfurling:
bliss and misery.
Two futures
are furiously unfurling,
or seem to be, eternally.
101022
COCOA CAMO
Hi, Mom, where ya been?
I been hidin’. Look, it’s me!
Wanna lick my cheek or chin?
I been busy—come an’ see.
[ASIDE: Written in response to an on-line photo challenge.]
101031
CUED TO FOOD
Am I hungry? Am I not?
How to tell, I forgot.
I eat on cue (from them, me, you).
Sometimes the cue is them, me, you.
I eat whenever prompted to.
Can there be a way not to?
101030
FRIEND OF A FRIEND
(for Andy)
Zounds,
the man does astound!
Happy birthday,
Ezra Pound.
FEAR AND/
OR SANITY
All is well on the Mall
(here as well—all, all, all).
101029
OPEN GATE
The you
that you are meant to be
is now— at least, can be.
It’s not too late;
why wait?
LET GO
I had a job but it got zapped
and now my energy is sapped.
I feel so tired, but not from toil—
more like a frog that’s slowly boiled.
STRENUOUS DREAMS
Each morning begins
as a wake-up, an emergence,
a recovery from dream-trials
of the night—
trials of exploration,
trials of evaluation,
trials of endurance.
Each morning begins
as an achievement.
101028
NEWLY BEFRIENDED
(Poems through my left hand.)
Let me be your poet.
Let me write your words.
Let me change your heart to sky
and all your thoughts to birds.
* * *
Tell you what…
let’s be friends.
Life is play
that never ends.
* * *
My way
is
the high way.
* * *
Here’s what
every finger knows:
the heavy work
is done by toes.
* * *
Sleep is what
a body needs.
"Sleep!" is what
this body pleads.
* * *
Cat on bed—
be careful, please!
Some cats sleep.
This one pees.
* * *
Oh, me. Oh, my!
Oh, my. Oh me!
She came with the name
Sweet Trouble,
but should be called
Sweet Pee.
[ASIDE: Written with my left hand
in a befriend-your-body exercise.
The premise is that doing so improves
contact with the creative right side of the brain.
Also, Emma-cat has begun to think the bed is her
new pee-place, freshly laundered after every use.]
101027
OH, GOOD NIGHT!
“Bats in the belfy,
worms in the books,”
somebody said.
“Bugs in the bed!”
“Rent the belfry.
Lease the books,”
another said.
“But—oh, good night!—
don’t let the bed;
bugs bite!”
101026
EMPTY EYES
How we hurry—
how unwise—
with unfilled hungers,
empty eyes.
101025
VOIDED
What I take up,
I set down.
What takes me up
sets me down.
That is the cycle.
I am handmaiden
to nothing.
[ASIDE: I’d just listened to a TED talk by Elisabeth Gilbert
on creativity and decided to loan this time/space/venue
to my daemon/genius/muse: “Here, say something.”]
101024
SLOW STARTER
Sunday
is my lazy day
(more so than the others).
The best part
is to read in bed
(or just stay under covers).
101023
FOREVER FUTURE
Two futures
are furiously unfurling:
bliss and misery.
Two futures
are furiously unfurling,
or seem to be, eternally.
101022
COCOA CAMO
Hi, Mom, where ya been?
I been hidin’. Look, it’s me!
Wanna lick my cheek or chin?
I been busy—come an’ see.
[ASIDE: Written in response to an on-line photo challenge.]
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
Floral Scented Potpourri
* * *
100420
READING BETWEEN THE LIONS
Stopped in my tracks
by dandelions—
yellow circles coming into flower,
white spheres going into seed—
I start to track
the over-long overlooked;
that missing phase between.
100419
BIZARRE BAZAAR
Well, Mr. Omnipotent,
I hope you’ve enjoyed
your little game.
About what to believe,
about how to behave—
you’ve stumped me.
I give up.
100418
OCCUPIED
You know the kind:
immersed in passions
at which they flounder.
Critics pan.
Leeches pander.
Life and livelihood get sucked in.
Do they mind?
Nah—happy as clams.
100417
FINAL TANDEM
Not fallen petals
carpeting the orchard,
mirroring pink above with pink below,
but branches pruned at winter’s end—
they flower now in final tandem
with former fellows
reprieved short weeks ago.
100416
SEPARATE WORLDS
Do you want the left world
or the right? the up or down?
the dark or light?
Take whichever pleases you.
I don’t want to fight.
100415
MOST FAVORED
Book or pen,
pen or book?
How hard my life, if I forsook
book or pen, pen or book.
100414
IMPACT
Thunk!
By the time I raced outdoors
the bird was in the jaws of the cat,
who released it to me on request—
a woodpecker.
The long beak,
knocked sideways into the chest
by force of impact,
was plastered with breast feathers.
The breast muscle had been split.
The body was limp and lifeless
except for one eyelid blinking,
one eye roving.
Now—
now that the body, recovered, has flown,
where does the eye rove;
and, over what, the mind?
100413
ONE IOTA FOR MY QUOTA
My five-
dandelion bouquet is three-
fifths faded, my day is four-
and I am more.
One thing left: this poem chore.
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
You can know too much.
At least I can know too much.
Knowing, for instance,
that the least-used restroom stall
is nearest or farthest from the restroom door,
I stop, in spite of urgency, to consider:
which stall do I actually use most often?
Which least? Which did I use last time?
Do I want variety,
so as not to fall into habitual ruts?
Why—if I choose number one this time—
do I do that? am I afraid of something about
numbers two, three, four…?
But let me assure you—
considering my total life experience,
I conclude quickly and accurately about one thing:
any women's stall is more likely to be clean
than any men’s.
100412
BOOK-COVER DESIGN ADVICE (for Cathi)
How much to kern is a matter of concern.
Visual vibration causes consternation.
Fonts should be few; in fact, two will do.
Zap all-caps QUICK in italic or script.
Let images illustrate (not negate or duplicate).
Avoid cliches, plus clip-art way out-of-date,
plus fonts too overused and tame.
Don't use your title as a frame.
[ASIDE: Commenting on a fellow writer's website.]
100411
ODD COUPLE
Raven roved, on the road
from Pittsburgh to Poughkeepsie.
Every time he went away,
that gypsy came back tipsy.
Elephant, his stay-at-home,
was plump from trunk to rump.
She never would be svelte;
at least that's how she felt.
[ASIDE: Wisdom House Books - Challenge:
use the words trunk, svelte, raven, gypsy]
100410
LOOTED
Tempted by a spray of golden forsythia
cascading over a country dirt-road fence,
I draw near, only to find the outermost stems
already snipped off and a cluster of
deer prints in the mud below.
100409
ALL THINGS OLD
MADE NEW AGAIN
Ah, the beauty of the world;
the bounty of our lives!
But Oh—first glimpse, first touch,
first whiff—the beauty of surprise!
100408
HARD TIMES
dandelion bouquet
HARD TIMES
at thrift store;
shopping specials only
HARD TIMES
pondering
less is more
HARD TIMES
in lap of luxury;
then luxury stood up
100407
DEPTH PERCEPTION
In dreams or visions,
what does mind's-eye know?
And does it see things plane
or in stereo?
100406
HER OWN SELF (for Annette)
Frida wore a nose and mouth;
that is how God made her.
Frida wore a unibrow;
no one could dissuade her.
* * *
100420
READING BETWEEN THE LIONS
Stopped in my tracks
by dandelions—
yellow circles coming into flower,
white spheres going into seed—
I start to track
the over-long overlooked;
that missing phase between.
100419
BIZARRE BAZAAR
Well, Mr. Omnipotent,
I hope you’ve enjoyed
your little game.
About what to believe,
about how to behave—
you’ve stumped me.
I give up.
100418
OCCUPIED
You know the kind:
immersed in passions
at which they flounder.
Critics pan.
Leeches pander.
Life and livelihood get sucked in.
Do they mind?
Nah—happy as clams.
100417
FINAL TANDEM
Not fallen petals
carpeting the orchard,
mirroring pink above with pink below,
but branches pruned at winter’s end—
they flower now in final tandem
with former fellows
reprieved short weeks ago.
100416
SEPARATE WORLDS
Do you want the left world
or the right? the up or down?
the dark or light?
Take whichever pleases you.
I don’t want to fight.
100415
MOST FAVORED
Book or pen,
pen or book?
How hard my life, if I forsook
book or pen, pen or book.
100414
IMPACT
Thunk!
By the time I raced outdoors
the bird was in the jaws of the cat,
who released it to me on request—
a woodpecker.
The long beak,
knocked sideways into the chest
by force of impact,
was plastered with breast feathers.
The breast muscle had been split.
The body was limp and lifeless
except for one eyelid blinking,
one eye roving.
Now—
now that the body, recovered, has flown,
where does the eye rove;
and, over what, the mind?
100413
ONE IOTA FOR MY QUOTA
My five-
dandelion bouquet is three-
fifths faded, my day is four-
and I am more.
One thing left: this poem chore.
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
You can know too much.
At least I can know too much.
Knowing, for instance,
that the least-used restroom stall
is nearest or farthest from the restroom door,
I stop, in spite of urgency, to consider:
which stall do I actually use most often?
Which least? Which did I use last time?
Do I want variety,
so as not to fall into habitual ruts?
Why—if I choose number one this time—
do I do that? am I afraid of something about
numbers two, three, four…?
But let me assure you—
considering my total life experience,
I conclude quickly and accurately about one thing:
any women's stall is more likely to be clean
than any men’s.
100412
BOOK-COVER DESIGN ADVICE (for Cathi)
How much to kern is a matter of concern.
Visual vibration causes consternation.
Fonts should be few; in fact, two will do.
Zap all-caps QUICK in italic or script.
Let images illustrate (not negate or duplicate).
Avoid cliches, plus clip-art way out-of-date,
plus fonts too overused and tame.
Don't use your title as a frame.
[ASIDE: Commenting on a fellow writer's website.]
100411
ODD COUPLE
Raven roved, on the road
from Pittsburgh to Poughkeepsie.
Every time he went away,
that gypsy came back tipsy.
Elephant, his stay-at-home,
was plump from trunk to rump.
She never would be svelte;
at least that's how she felt.
[ASIDE: Wisdom House Books - Challenge:
use the words trunk, svelte, raven, gypsy]
100410
LOOTED
Tempted by a spray of golden forsythia
cascading over a country dirt-road fence,
I draw near, only to find the outermost stems
already snipped off and a cluster of
deer prints in the mud below.
100409
ALL THINGS OLD
MADE NEW AGAIN
Ah, the beauty of the world;
the bounty of our lives!
But Oh—first glimpse, first touch,
first whiff—the beauty of surprise!
100408
HARD TIMES
dandelion bouquet
HARD TIMES
at thrift store;
shopping specials only
HARD TIMES
pondering
less is more
HARD TIMES
in lap of luxury;
then luxury stood up
100407
DEPTH PERCEPTION
In dreams or visions,
what does mind's-eye know?
And does it see things plane
or in stereo?
100406
HER OWN SELF (for Annette)
Frida wore a nose and mouth;
that is how God made her.
Frida wore a unibrow;
no one could dissuade her.
* * *
Monday, March 22, 2010
Snow Days with Pirates
* * *
100322
WHITE LAWN
The lady
drops
her handkerchief.
The gentlemen
watch,
cold and stiff.
[ASIDE: Mother Nature brought a foot of snow;
menfolk immobilized.]
100321
UNSEASONED
Flinging snow like an apprentice,
Mother Nature came, this solstice,
like some newbie, fool, or novice;
some amateur in need of practice.
100320
WHAT MAE BE
Mae West was well blessed
with what let's call a chest.
And here is something more—
“Mae West” as "life vest"
started out as simile,
became a metaphor,
then turned so eponymous
they’re practically synonymous.
[ASIDE: Wisdom House challenge entry]
100319
STUCK BECAUSE NOT
What is missing?
I have no clue—
except one thought:
my life needs glue.
100318
VISITED
Do you suppose Mary
went around
explaining to the neighbors
what God had wrought,
so as to not
scandalize them or
keep them in the dark?
Do you suppose
we neighbors now
are being made privy
to miracles gestating
in the Marys and Magdalenes
next door or down the block?
100317
THE USUAL
Feeling
unusually glad—
about feeling glad,
as usual.
100316
INSTRUMENTAL
By reading, I know
words can ring—
as, on your stage,
mine dance and sing.
100315
PILING ON
Oh, by the way,
this day of Caesar-cide
(this Ides of March and “Brutus Day”)
now coincides
with “Buzzard Day.”
Well, to my mind—
the birds are much maligned.
100314
PIRATE TECHNICS
Pirates have at their disposal,
as they plunder on the sea,
quite a number of choices
in arsenals of weaponry:
flashing swords and gashing knives
(of which they’re such aficionados);
cannonballs, canisters, stinkballs, and mines;
pomegranate-shaped hand grenados;
blunderbusses, muskets, and musketoons,
plus pistols of every description;
fire-arrows, torches, rockets, and flares.
These all must be used with discretion.
Their best measure
is to seize without a fight.
Fire backfires—
they lose treasure
when they set a ship alight.
100313
REFLECTION
All my parts I daily meet
(the ones that meet my eye)
are slender: arms, hands, wrists;
my calves below the thigh.
“Envision,” say my diet books;
learn to “Think yourself thin!”
Well, were it not for mirrors,
I would think myself thin.
100312
JUST JOY
Joy, joy, joy!
Just joy I find—
Someone’s playing
with my mind.
* * *
100322
WHITE LAWN
The lady
drops
her handkerchief.
The gentlemen
watch,
cold and stiff.
[ASIDE: Mother Nature brought a foot of snow;
menfolk immobilized.]
100321
UNSEASONED
Flinging snow like an apprentice,
Mother Nature came, this solstice,
like some newbie, fool, or novice;
some amateur in need of practice.
100320
WHAT MAE BE
Mae West was well blessed
with what let's call a chest.
And here is something more—
“Mae West” as "life vest"
started out as simile,
became a metaphor,
then turned so eponymous
they’re practically synonymous.
[ASIDE: Wisdom House challenge entry]
100319
STUCK BECAUSE NOT
What is missing?
I have no clue—
except one thought:
my life needs glue.
100318
VISITED
Do you suppose Mary
went around
explaining to the neighbors
what God had wrought,
so as to not
scandalize them or
keep them in the dark?
Do you suppose
we neighbors now
are being made privy
to miracles gestating
in the Marys and Magdalenes
next door or down the block?
100317
THE USUAL
Feeling
unusually glad—
about feeling glad,
as usual.
100316
INSTRUMENTAL
By reading, I know
words can ring—
as, on your stage,
mine dance and sing.
100315
PILING ON
Oh, by the way,
this day of Caesar-cide
(this Ides of March and “Brutus Day”)
now coincides
with “Buzzard Day.”
Well, to my mind—
the birds are much maligned.
100314
PIRATE TECHNICS
Pirates have at their disposal,
as they plunder on the sea,
quite a number of choices
in arsenals of weaponry:
flashing swords and gashing knives
(of which they’re such aficionados);
cannonballs, canisters, stinkballs, and mines;
pomegranate-shaped hand grenados;
blunderbusses, muskets, and musketoons,
plus pistols of every description;
fire-arrows, torches, rockets, and flares.
These all must be used with discretion.
Their best measure
is to seize without a fight.
Fire backfires—
they lose treasure
when they set a ship alight.
100313
REFLECTION
All my parts I daily meet
(the ones that meet my eye)
are slender: arms, hands, wrists;
my calves below the thigh.
“Envision,” say my diet books;
learn to “Think yourself thin!”
Well, were it not for mirrors,
I would think myself thin.
100312
JUST JOY
Joy, joy, joy!
Just joy I find—
Someone’s playing
with my mind.
* * *
Friday, March 12, 2010
Joy and Pain
* * *
100311
"O’ WAD SOME POWER"
Hello, again, everyone.
I am happy to report
that my 24-hour lipstick does,
in fact, adhere for the duration.
I have learned to apply it
without resorting to a mirror
and (thanks to a bulletin I received
just moments ago), I can attest that
it adheres equally well to teeth.
100310
CRAMMED
Hurry, hurry,
don’t be late!
There’s no room
to ruminate.
100309
FISHY
I only looked;
he was a winker.
When he said
we would wed,
he had me hooked—
lyin' stinker!
WHY?
"Where is the city?
I hear that it's pretty,"
the chicken asked the road.
"Several miles north,"
the road sent her forth.
But road was just trickin'
and so the plot thickens.
Why did the road
cross the chicken?
100308
MORNIN’, SUN!
Hello,
my mellow
yellow fellow!
EXERCISED
Check me out—
can anyone tell,
do you suppose?
I feel like I smell!
What?
With your nose?
100307
PEST ASIDE
Just a comment:
I haven't thought it through,
but I suspect
some awful trade's been made;
that you earn your life
by signing on
as God's assassin;
that he doesn't do his own
dirty work.
DAILY REVOCATION
from sleep sublime,
dawn pries my mind—I rise
then comes the crime—I fall
back in; back into time
100306
COMMON QUEST
to make play pay
but still stay play
100305
INCREMENTAL
Major griefs
from minor beefs—
how they load us;
those petty hurts
we never used to notice.
* * *
100311
"O’ WAD SOME POWER"
Hello, again, everyone.
I am happy to report
that my 24-hour lipstick does,
in fact, adhere for the duration.
I have learned to apply it
without resorting to a mirror
and (thanks to a bulletin I received
just moments ago), I can attest that
it adheres equally well to teeth.
100310
CRAMMED
Hurry, hurry,
don’t be late!
There’s no room
to ruminate.
100309
FISHY
I only looked;
he was a winker.
When he said
we would wed,
he had me hooked—
lyin' stinker!
WHY?
"Where is the city?
I hear that it's pretty,"
the chicken asked the road.
"Several miles north,"
the road sent her forth.
But road was just trickin'
and so the plot thickens.
Why did the road
cross the chicken?
100308
MORNIN’, SUN!
Hello,
my mellow
yellow fellow!
EXERCISED
Check me out—
can anyone tell,
do you suppose?
I feel like I smell!
What?
With your nose?
100307
PEST ASIDE
Just a comment:
I haven't thought it through,
but I suspect
some awful trade's been made;
that you earn your life
by signing on
as God's assassin;
that he doesn't do his own
dirty work.
DAILY REVOCATION
from sleep sublime,
dawn pries my mind—I rise
then comes the crime—I fall
back in; back into time
100306
COMMON QUEST
to make play pay
but still stay play
100305
INCREMENTAL
Major griefs
from minor beefs—
how they load us;
those petty hurts
we never used to notice.
* * *
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Words of Fun
* * *
100218
LEXICONSTRUCTION
Need a word? Just make one
(it’s a democracy).
Then add two or three.
I needed a word,
for example.
I present it as a sample:
Simplicity plus happiness?
That’s “simblissity.”
100217
A HOST OF DAFFY DEALS
I wandered only as The Cloud
that floats on high o’er th' Internet
(that vast e-commerce-dealing crowd).
With virtual virtue I was endowed.
By data streams I roamed, and got not wet.
100216
COACHING SESSION
“Depend upon your higher power,”
my guru/coach suggested.
“Assign one dream-goal upward.
Let your uptight self be rested.”
“Use intuition to set that goal.”
Well, that’s how I got flustered.
My inner whisper told my soul—
“Go, ye. Speak of buzzards.”
100215
RISE ‘N SHINE, YEP!
Hello, Sun, how do?
Liftin’ up them clouds, are ya,
movin’ everthang along?
Guess I best git up, m’self—
ta start my own day strong.
100214
PEAR-TREE
Morning is its blossom.
Noon, its honey-bee.
Evening is its harvest:
the pear called ecstasy.
Night has come,
has come, my love,
drawing you to me.
Come, my love—
come share this night.
Love, come pear with me.
[ASIDE: Shall I come-pear
thee to a summer’s night?]
ANY ART
If you plan to pick it up,
know how to put it down.
Progression can be obsessive.
If you plan to stick with it,
know when to put it down.
Obsession can be progressive.
100213
GUEST, LIST!
This is a private party,
not a banquet or a ball,
and if you want a lecture,
go find a lecture hall.
[ASIDE: Scrapped…
This is a private party,
intimate and small—
open just to kindred souls
(but open to them all).
This is a private party
for the select few
who manage to gain entry.
So, welcome. That is you.]
100212
BEYOND THE PALL
The sheet that skims my skin tonight
requires the moon to make it white—
and more than moon; for, though so bright,
moon but reflects more brilliant light.
100211
CHERUBIM TO CHERUBIMBOS
Wondrous, sonorous signs and symbols!
Words are heaven’s mighty cymbals
sounded by angels at their gambols
to babbling mortals at their rambles.
-------------------------------------------------
[SONG LYRICS FOR LIONS INTERNATIONAL]
LION PRIDE WORLDWIDE
If you know one Lion, you’re bound to know a few.
You find them on savannahs, in the jungle, at the zoo.
You find them in the circus, and other places too.
But can you guess—more or less—what these Lions do?
Lions meet and Lions talk.
Lions work from dawn till dark,
Raising help and hope and funds,
Especially for little ones.
A Lion is a lady. A Lion is a man.
Dogged as a shepherd, gentle as a lamb.
Lion vision helps all see—
The world is one community.
If you know one Lion, you’re bound to know a few.
You find them on savannahs, in the jungle, at the zoo.
You find them in the boardroom and on the factory floor.
They do good in neighborhoods—Hear those Lions roar!
Lions meet and Lions talk.
Lions work from dawn till dark,
Raising help and hope and funds,
Especially for little ones.
A Lion is a tiger, fighting for the right.
A Lion is an eagle, searching with true sight.
Lion vision helps all see—
The world is one community.
[ASIDE: Lyrics for our local club, which LOVES to sing
“Happy Birthday” in as garbled a fashion as possible…
Lions meet and Lions talk.
Lions sing in Rogers , Ark. ,
Raising voices to a screech,
Growling this for all and each—
“Happy Birthday to you…”
or “Hear Those Lions Roar” ]
-------------------------------------------------
100210
HAPPENSTANCE
Whatever happens
happens (in one theory)
to be good, so that
whenever whatever
shouldn’t happen happens,
it just so happens
that it should.
100209
KNOWSEY NEIGHBORS
Love that saying.
Is it your own?
Inquiring minds
want quoted sources known.
100208
SNOW ON SNOW
Overnight snow falls afresh,
slipping from branches
to meld with melting snow below.
* * *
100218
LEXICONSTRUCTION
Need a word? Just make one
(it’s a democracy).
Then add two or three.
I needed a word,
for example.
I present it as a sample:
Simplicity plus happiness?
That’s “simblissity.”
100217
A HOST OF DAFFY DEALS
I wandered only as The Cloud
that floats on high o’er th' Internet
(that vast e-commerce-dealing crowd).
With virtual virtue I was endowed.
By data streams I roamed, and got not wet.
100216
COACHING SESSION
“Depend upon your higher power,”
my guru/coach suggested.
“Assign one dream-goal upward.
Let your uptight self be rested.”
“Use intuition to set that goal.”
Well, that’s how I got flustered.
My inner whisper told my soul—
“Go, ye. Speak of buzzards.”
100215
RISE ‘N SHINE, YEP!
Hello, Sun, how do?
Liftin’ up them clouds, are ya,
movin’ everthang along?
Guess I best git up, m’self—
ta start my own day strong.
100214
PEAR-TREE
Morning is its blossom.
Noon, its honey-bee.
Evening is its harvest:
the pear called ecstasy.
Night has come,
has come, my love,
drawing you to me.
Come, my love—
come share this night.
Love, come pear with me.
[ASIDE: Shall I come-pear
thee to a summer’s night?]
ANY ART
If you plan to pick it up,
know how to put it down.
Progression can be obsessive.
If you plan to stick with it,
know when to put it down.
Obsession can be progressive.
100213
GUEST, LIST!
This is a private party,
not a banquet or a ball,
and if you want a lecture,
go find a lecture hall.
[ASIDE: Scrapped…
This is a private party,
intimate and small—
open just to kindred souls
(but open to them all).
This is a private party
for the select few
who manage to gain entry.
So, welcome. That is you.]
100212
BEYOND THE PALL
The sheet that skims my skin tonight
requires the moon to make it white—
and more than moon; for, though so bright,
moon but reflects more brilliant light.
100211
CHERUBIM TO CHERUBIMBOS
Wondrous, sonorous signs and symbols!
Words are heaven’s mighty cymbals
sounded by angels at their gambols
to babbling mortals at their rambles.
-------------------------------------------------
[SONG LYRICS FOR LIONS INTERNATIONAL]
LION PRIDE WORLDWIDE
If you know one Lion, you’re bound to know a few.
You find them on savannahs, in the jungle, at the zoo.
You find them in the circus, and other places too.
But can you guess—more or less—what these Lions do?
Lions meet and Lions talk.
Lions work from dawn till dark,
Raising help and hope and funds,
Especially for little ones.
A Lion is a lady. A Lion is a man.
Dogged as a shepherd, gentle as a lamb.
Lion vision helps all see—
The world is one community.
If you know one Lion, you’re bound to know a few.
You find them on savannahs, in the jungle, at the zoo.
You find them in the boardroom and on the factory floor.
They do good in neighborhoods—Hear those Lions roar!
Lions meet and Lions talk.
Lions work from dawn till dark,
Raising help and hope and funds,
Especially for little ones.
A Lion is a tiger, fighting for the right.
A Lion is an eagle, searching with true sight.
Lion vision helps all see—
The world is one community.
[ASIDE: Lyrics for our local club, which LOVES to sing
“Happy Birthday” in as garbled a fashion as possible…
Lions meet and Lions talk.
Lions sing in Rogers , Ark. ,
Raising voices to a screech,
Growling this for all and each—
“Happy Birthday to you…”
or “Hear Those Lions Roar” ]
-------------------------------------------------
100210
HAPPENSTANCE
Whatever happens
happens (in one theory)
to be good, so that
whenever whatever
shouldn’t happen happens,
it just so happens
that it should.
100209
KNOWSEY NEIGHBORS
Love that saying.
Is it your own?
Inquiring minds
want quoted sources known.
100208
SNOW ON SNOW
Overnight snow falls afresh,
slipping from branches
to meld with melting snow below.
* * *
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