#782 take two every four hours maximum

antibiotics and lyposuction
prescription happiness
comes in a child-proof topped bottle
push and turn to unscrew
i have a cure for  95% of headaches
rest for 30 minutes in a quiet room
but no, we need the 30 second fix

#781 the poet's pledge

i promise
i promise to write crappy poetry
i promise to write poetry that will benefit others
i promise to call myself a writer, and a poet (especially when the title feels false and scary)
i promise to share poetry (mine and others)
i promise to notice the extraordinary in gum-wrappers and large leaves
i promise to beat Self-Doubt, Excuses, and I-Can'ts with a really cool whacker-stick
i promise to manipulate procrsatination
i am a poet
i promise to write

#780 it's over

a hollowness in her tone
like the hometown announcer
for a visitors' sudden death goal
and i know in that moment
whether i leave or stay
our game is over

#779 how the house turned blue

each brushstroke counts for nothing
one half-shingle on a two-story house
but somehow
the job finishes
each brushstroke counts for everything

#778 point A to point B

i put highway between myself and the mountains
they're visible on the western horizon if you strain your eyes
without the mountains as reference
the drive up the 22 feels like a treadmill
steals my energy, but takes me nowhere
monochrome and sameness whiz by me on a screen
as my matrix stands still in space and time
already
i await my return to the mountains

#777 CGY

remember the delicious single dorm bed
small for one
me falling off

that's what i'm thinking of
here in the king-size bed, gazing through the floor-to-ceiling windowed wall
down over the city

in a world of pastry souffles and mousses
i'm wishing for chocolate chip cookies
pulled from an oven by a mitt worn through in places

#776 hawks

how does a giant fall to a tic
first place bow to the last
nerves?
cockiness?
is it the tic that wins
or the giant that loses

#775 10:25

playgrounds at recess
my favourite microcosm
playing, sharing
shoving, fighting
turn-taking and monkey-budging
then they turn into adults
and nothing changes

#774 my dad

my dad never said i love you with his mouth
because he was so busy saying it with his life
my dad always washed the car for me before i went on any date
he worked hard 8-5 monday to friday to provide
he didn't say much but when he did
always worth hearing
did not believe in skipping to the second layer of chocolates
until the first one was done
was content leaving a book for supper
even if there were only two pages left in the last chapter
my dad lived the addage "a place for every thing, and a thing for every place"
he had dark fingernails from earning a living with his hands
my dad

#773 run on sentence

i run for the sense of accomplishment
that starts around 1k
and peaks on arriving back home
the accomplishment of winning against the voice that says
no, skip today, it's just one day
i run because i feel healthy
body yes, but especially spirit
i run for solitude, and for company
i run to think, and to escape thought
i run on crappy cold snowy days
because someone in a heated suburban will give an incredulous look at me
a look that makes me feel hard-core
i run because i don't always feel like running
i run because the alternative, is not running

#772 junior high dance class

hands and elbows and hips and sweaty palms
a racing mind and raging hormones
ymca, cotton-eye joe
wishing she'll be your partner
and being petrified out of your pants when she is

#771 sing to your dog

is there a tax on passion
is soul have a marketing scheme
is raw authenticity a slogan
is talent a manufactured product

is quality a facade

#770 destiny in his right hand

he rolled the dice
no matter how many black dots face up
he rolled the dice
he did not stand against the wall
watching with nervous heart
someone else roll
he rolled the dice
whether the odds are with him or with the house
he rolled the dice
and that made them his

#769 the books on my shelf

the paddle on the wall lies about all the rivers he wishes he'd paddled
above the shelf with the picture of him and her, perma-smiling
another lie of decorating
the cheery hues
the complimentary colours
lies, all of it
lies

#768 god has entered the building

chills and spills
entertain thrills on these hills
sounds turn into music that turns crowd members into instruments
that play the art of listening
rocking together
rolling individually

hours of practice and failed gigs forgotten
even the present moment is lost
because there is no object of relativity for comparison
when a crowd experiences Art through moments of music
eyes close, bodies sway, girls scream

#767 trash talk

hiding the worst of your community only works so long
the snow will melt
leaving you exposed
disposable coffee cups, ignored dogshit, discarded chip bags
and then comes the even uglier part
all blame, no responsibility
coffee-drinkers blame dog-owners blame junkfood-eaters
until winter returns

#766 not my god

like change under my children's pillows and gifts under balsam fir
the sunday hero from the cathedral of my youth
exists only in its strength of having been imagined
the bread is dry, and sticks to the roof of my mouth
the wine is dry too, and tastes cheap
the key to the tabernacle
hides travesties and tragedies committed in vestibules around the world

#765 me and my friends

heaven has no cover price tonight
best drink specials around
and the angels walk around in winter
with strapless tops and fuck-me boots
but i'd rather find a quiet pub
and make our own noisy corner

#764 mr teacher

the 3 o'clock bell rings
the little ones rush out
adding to hallway chaos
in their attempts to avoid it
the big tries to use time well
tidies, meets, sorts
but his brain was off duty at the bell

#763 hooked

words
as slippery as freshwater eels
at the heels of kids standing in rivers
and the right words
even slipperier

like spearing your first fish
the refraction must equal your error, in the right direction
and the excitement
your heart flipping like the fish
albeit much happier

#762 art

borders and edges blur my landscape
suggestions beyond the frame
actions continued
the brush is always present
even in its absence

#761 slow harmonica solo

people try
but optimism drops
as the number of birthday candles rises
did you want me to lie to you
no, the slow harmonica demands a truth

#760 the comeback

last night
when i eased into bed
the season was spring
greens fighting browns
showing signs of imminent victory
but i slept through a battle
and this morning
the world outside my window
sleeps under a white duvet

#759 with age

during youth, i hid inside myself
a habit i'm learning is hard to break
but now share and talk and initiate
are concrete words
verbs full of meaning