#182 we never grow up

behind the white hair

is a boy

behind that bent back

is a man who wants to make his wife feel special

behind those gnarled hands

is a provider for his kids

behind those wrinkles

are great stories from the outdoors

behind those stubborn wobbly knees

is a life of giving

#181 my community

people laughing and smiling and talking

taking their time

hurrying is as out of style, as being-in-style

rushing is rude

thirty minutes in overwaitea grocery

to get lettuce

car horns mean hello

there are few rules, more like... guidelines

the movie store only charges late fees if you sneak out

10 centimeters of snow is a valid reason for closing shop

and beer is borrowed not taken

'cause you'll give one to them the next time they visit

and if you're looking for someone

just ask on 2nd ave

#180 the first step is the biggest

a single step

a date in the diary

a number for the poetry blog

foot on the morning floor

opening the briefcase

filling the sink

#179 got with the program

my shoes slap the pavement

rhythmic

miles accumulate

and the tread wears

i started months ago and now

so few blank calendar-squares remain

before the big red circle

one more long run

then the taper

that seemed so far away

now so close

#178 sidewalk dandelion

life

has thrown some uppercuts to my jaw

but i've got love

love is my weapon

experience my ammunition

do what you want

i'll still react with love

i might cut you out of my life

but i'll feel sorry for you

wish well for you

love you

#177 building peace of mind

inner peace through swinging a hammer

relaxing thoughts through pounding pavement

building by hand

measure carve whittle

an active body helps a healthy mind

a happy being provides a solid foundation

run dig haul jump dance

go

#176 income and attitude

disposable.

and cameras and and pampers

jumbo plastic cups

with lids and straws

maybe we're due for a market crash

a full on depression

force us to care

about our gross amount of stuff and waste and crap and plastic

#175 tic-toc

a packed lunch

homework almost done

i walk to school

sit in my desk

busy day

at lunch i chat with friends

the afternoon clock moves slower

just like when i was a student

#174 september

when did the leaves turn

and my hair turn white

when did the days grow colder

and my eyes grow older

the days shrink in daylight

and in quantity

a crispness in the breeze

something in the wind

autumn has begun

and i'm enjoying every moment

#173 proctor and the sisters

indecision cost him life

a mountain forever

but his ladies stand by him

a still line

happy to be near

they're the ones in all the photos

the ones everyone first notices

but their space would be empty sky

if not for his procrastination

in choosing

among three beauties

#172

mums on the table

but she's not here

bright and cheery

homesick and gloomy

the bubbly acquaintance

when you just want to be alone

so lonesome

as pathetic and out of place

as one lobster in a grocery aquarium

#171 side profile

my favourite shape

the small of her back

makes geometry exciting

a well-proportioned curve

invites my hand

#170 a neighbour

dark windows and a closed door

no roaming cat

no borrowed baking ingredients

no lamp glowing on midnight dog walks

all gone

chats on 2nd ave

borrowing tools

spontaneous bike rides

and he only moved down the street

#169 194 to go

fresh binders and crisp pages

clean erasrs and long pencils

even lunches demonstrate extra care

hopeful goals,

organized math-and-compass sets

septembers resolutions

self-promises

new starts

straght A's

textbook numbers assigned

seating plans strategized

Welcome Back

blu-takked to the door

and written

meticulously

on fresh-washed boards

in every room

#168 good little citizen

i wear happy clothes, stay clean-shaven

drive to work, drive home, add to my shopping list

i read the paper a few times a week

i'm involved in my community

i'm a good little citizen

but i'm angry

angry at humanity

myself included

angry for putting ourselves first

for ignoring large-scale depression

for encouraging Sprawl-Mart

and all the chains we lock on ourselves

Convenience, Luxury, Lowest Price

we know that Lowest Prices comes at highest costs

but we're contented by our distance

off-line for a week... gone travelling... juan de fuca

#167 the art of handling the aggressive talker

standing on the wharf

seaweed and saltwater

demand olfactory attention

then i see the boat

heavier than anything

i could ever budge an inch

hull aiming 12 o'clock

for the now fragile wooden dock

collision course

a wave from the steering wheel

suggests i save the disaster

and i do

not with strength

not much at least

but by deflecting the dory's momentum

and the boat

now parallel

kisses the dock

#166 moments between moments

we hiked a trail today

and one of our crew said

this is my favourite time for waterfalls

but there was no waterfall to be seen

we'd passed it several minutes before

i asked him to explain

when its not so intense on the ears

when its in the distance a bit, soothing

there are moments in life

between the big events, before and after

these moments are life, no expectations

these are the moments

that if freedom was lost tomorrow

we would spend nights dreaming of

#165 a.m. prep

my eyes want to close

unadjusted to the early hour

i force them open

guilty for not showing them more sunrises

my feet want to walk back to bed

but i shuffle them to the kitchen

to pack sandwiches and gorp for the hike

my stomach pleads for pepto-bismal

instead i feed it orange juice

my Lab wants to go

I open the door

#164 something good must come

rain covered our street last night

while i tossed and turned from my thoughts

alone in a bed for two

now, mid-morning

dips, potholes, and cracks

hold the only evidence

and soon, all will be dry

no sign of the dark and glum night

but some morning

from this rain

from one of those cracks

will spring a remarkable daisy

#163 grief details

how long after the coffin is covered

before you delete her Contact info

recycle her mail in the bin under the sink

forget her laugh

one month?

six?

a year?

when do you remove her blu-tacked photo from the wall

move her e-mails to the Trash Bin

for whom would we keep them

she's gone

wasted space

#162 baggage and trash

i still sleep on the left side, habit

stretch

trust is slow

and might never return to its former glory

rumble of the approaching garbage truck rushes me

everyone knew

i'm in time, at the curb

sky one hundred percent blue

the only sign of rain-

everything is wet

must've rained an hour before i awoke

sometimes we see a thing happened

only after it is done

standing, i watch the man empty my metal bin

then his truck drives drives, ten yards

and the scene replays

again

and again

#161 a choice

the 8-ball awaits

he stands

bent, poised

sliding the cue-stick
back-forth, back-forth

his elbow a pendulum

a decision to be made

to smash or to tap

strength and authority over opponent

or finesse and understated power

back-forth, back-forth

his eyes blink

#160 the clean-up job / the hit man needs an "s"

no matter how many times

i never like this part of the job

i cover my hand in black plastic bag

wear it like a glove

i glance

ahead

left right

hoping for no witness

then

I

bend

at the knees

and scoop

her poo

#159 goodbye teacher

he cleaned toilets and changed the world

wore simple clothes and affected world leaders

stopped the British Empire, with salt

einstein said

there will come a day when it scarce be believed

that such a man as this ever did walk upon the earth

einstein

and still we failed to learn

#158 in my head

words spiral

hail mary

slip

flip

invert

convert

the homynym track is endless

the synonym track is parallel

puns appear

double-meanings abound

but what errand did my wife suggest 

twenty minutes ago..?

i have no idea

 

#157 one writer's argument against the Law of Conservation

my world

a radius of 30 inches

my mind my hand my pen

working at fever

time 

is an empty word

a non-existent phenomenon 

during these zone moments

energy cannot be created nor destroyed?

falsehood

ideas and images and sparks 

jump and dance and explode

in my inner space

if the energy leaves in the form of heat

a mammoth hole exists above my desk

in the ozone

#156 levels of participation

to watch golf re-runs from a couch

to watch a basketball game live

to play in a softball rec league

to join a competitive hockey team

to host a marathon

these re all participation

any one only better than the others

by situation

the recovering patient

the caring father

the new community member

the introspective teen

the injured athlete

#155 haiku2

write five syllables

write seven more syllables

then finish with five

#154 haiku

body and mind balance

mind walks: apples, gravity

i stretch, write a story

#153 the writing body

 isaac (mr newton)

was garden-walking

an apple fell

a catalyst 

for the theory of gravity

elite athletes 

visualize 

perform mental relaxation techniques

i write

and i stretch

i juggle 

i run

i eat apples

i walk

hoping to find My poem

#152 introspection

grey

raining

no cars travel to my ears today

just the plip-plip-plop

of drops drop-dropping

on metal roof and eavestrough

a day that begs you to  stay inside

to be inside

to look inside

#151 how progress has altered my day

wake up 

check my e-mail

lounge 

watch tv

check my e-mail

surf the web

check my e-mail

lounge

microwave lunch

check my e-mail

#150 the bravado of the male

as i near the tree

he shouts and screams

to convince me 

he's of colossal size and reputation

the nearer i get

the louder he gets

bullying me out of his territory

this happens everyday

as i pass by his home

the bravado of the red squirrel

#149 the measure of a boy (*accepted in "message in a bottle")

the boy strides outdoors in rubber boots

fishing rod in hand

it might not be far

but it's out of his mother's calling range

forbidden just last summer

his boots squeak-clunk down the trail

through still evergreens to the silent lake

he attaches a worm and casts

no people talking

no tv

no brothers

just the lake

later

on the picnic table in front of the house

he measures his one catch

it passes the halfway of the ruler

will be shorter after he cuts and guts

fish don't look so alive until you stare at their eyes

inside his chest, he is proud

mother watches out the window

nervous about the steak-knife

she bends to a lower cupboard and then brandishes a frying pan

happy to see her boy

enjoying something

#148 looking down on her overturned 4-runner

sirens wailing in drivers' ears

vehicles pulling onto shoulder

the jaws of life arrive on scene

but the jaws of death just left

is there some new understanding

some knowledge of the bad things in this world

the medic moves from joanne 

nothing left to do there

to her daughter

so much blood

but

the medic is relieved

all mother's blood

#147 monday morning, sunday long-run

hips swollen

quads screaming

stairs taking forever

even my arms hurt

why do my arms hurt?

i'm glad today is a rest day

not sure i could tie my runners

#146 sometimes

better teams lose

good people are pricks

jerks do nice things

rain is relief

#145 a nation asleep

the people's voice

the people's parade

undesired by those in power

montreal

seattle

then nothing

why?

someone

take back our streets

#144 learning the process

poetry is a habit

a poem is a plant that grows

from a lot of decomposing matter

poems and poetry are what happen 

when someone thinking

holds a pen

a poetry book then

ample unseen rot

#143 tenth anniversary

her ring has lost shine

but gained meaning

if she lost nine years ago

replacement would be an option

now

though the shine is gone

so many everydays 

and stand-out memories attached

sleeping in Saturday

skydiving

the ring goes to the right of the sink now

automatic 

without thought

the ring has lots its shine

but is part of her now

#142 the beast about to strike

king of pop

to butt of all jokes

then death

now social hero again

we all know he was odd

struggled with his childhood

even up to his death

what was he

singer

entertainer

icon

pedophile

father

son

chameleon

all these and more

he had a dark side

a private side

a result 

in part

of being a consumer product

a commodity

and whose fault is that?

the consumer.

you

me

and it will happen again

#141 us and nature

square buildings

boxy cars

straight lines and right angles

round trees

unsymmetric beauty

fluid lines and curvy angles

#140 float like a butterfly

from clay he grew

his words and fists mesmorized all

once so fast

now so slow

an honourable reminder of mortality

he lived

his life burst at the seams

he stung and was stung

but learned through it all

and now he's in a long battle

which he will surely lose

but their is a victory

in losing against impossible odds

if you are graceful 

and honourable

#139 pizza and poetry

first, mix all the ingredients together

get some words on paper

then place it, center of the pan

re-read it

play with the dough in your hands

switch things around

work the ball from the center out

add sentences, change words

when the pan is covered take another look

when the poem feels done take another look

fix thin parts

tweak

put it in the oven

let the page sit for a while

enjoy

share

#138 cycling to break the cycle

at home

alone on the couch

small fears grow big

upcoming appointments and assignments and commitments

the air

only goes as far
as my throat

and before i slip too far

down that dark mineshaft

i stand up

open the door

step outside

unlock my bike

unlock the grip that was on me

#137 a word on the street

spare some change?

a hoarse whisper

from the smelly guy 

sitting indin-style on the grimy sidewalk

huddled under a stained sleeping bag

a father of three

a schizophrenic

a self-medicator

he hears get a job and bum

several times a day

before sleeping in the Royal Bank ATM room

with empty pockets

i shake my head

sorry man

and i hope that soon

the world can spare some change 

#136 big family supper table

one on couch for TV

one at badminton practice

one reading upstairs

one helping prep

one at work

two playing outside

but then

they all join

round the rectangle

one family

#135 women's weekend

dog underfoot

cold beer in hand

quiet

except for the tv commentator's voice

this is the life he thinks but man

i miss her

#134 sandwiches are beautiful

i made mother a mayonnaise sandwich

with peanut butter and pickle

because she wasn't feeling well

she said it looked to good to eat 

that she'd eat it 

after she finished appreciating its innate beauty?

#134 #3 3/8"

from a warm autumn Sunday

i enter

i sit

middle of the kitchen

mother walks round and round

she the moon

my noggin the Earth

scrutinizing my head

clumps of brown

(long since white) 

drift to linoleum

arms folded

my nose tickles 

i blow 

she leans in

i focus 

the hum

electric scalp massage

the drone

bass note of the didgeridoo

finished

she brushes me off

hands a mirror

i nod approval

sweep the fallen

to dustpan

then dump 

to grocery bag

she vaccuums the tiny remnants

and i'm good 

for another few months

later i walk the bag 

to the garden and spread

a deterrant for unwanted ungulates

i rub my head

it feels cold out

#133 travellers

know how 

to make every backpack item count

know how to make a pint last

never turn down free meals or showers

and

maybe most importantly

know how

to make a friend 

in a room full of strangers

#132 the man inside

just gave me an F

unhappy

with my effort and performance

knows i can 

do more

do better

be kinder

be stronger

says this is unacceptable

says i am wasting my gifts

is tired of excuses and self-lies

is about to lay down the law

#131 last call

listening to her voice

cell phone message

i hang up

order another

stare at my left digitus medicinalis

no mark left anymore

no sign that the band was ever there

when did the last trace leave

i swallow liquid medicine

not enough to be the drunk

just enough to blur the pain

and to stop looking at my finger

trying to forget why i'm drinking

#130 inverted oceans

at first

i tried the muskokas

where the pines 

pointed me east

back to ocean

but i was pulled away again

and found fernie

where i feel at home

in mountains

which display 

ancient inverted oceans

everyday

#129 after bedtime-snack

tunnels

carniverous amphibians

a reverie's version of childhood home

chutes and adventure and danger

and victory

aunt

ordinary

gone wrong

unhuman

a child's stuffed animal

massacred by keeper of the trust

kindergarten teacher

#128 large family, kitchen table

sharing news

hoarding dessert

laughs

arguments

before departing 

to our own lives

the table is the family

homecooked meals

mud and blood on white 

for the picky

dad at the head

mum to his left

oldest at the foot

i didn't realize then

that i was being shaped

that i was so lucky 

#127 each had a yellow sword

two yellow swords

battle of the bowl

two young brothers

swords crossing through

one another's

manhood displayed

the battle 

short

ends 

in two smiles

and one flush

before dinner

#126 bless you

in kootenai mountain time
a day is a sneeze in history
an ocean floor thrust upwards

over time

overhead

over all

trilobytes and friends invite discovery

the world, Earth

turning over in her sleep

#125 missing out

i'm a musical snob

i like it independent

undiscovered

no top 40

i like their older stuff

their first album was the best

but what do i miss out on

i'm a social snob

only interact with visible characters

dreads

free-spirits

no to name brands

#124 the couple i hope we are

the farmer holds his wife's hand

under the small-town bar table

his eyes happy, relaxed

and she

white-haired, youthful, energetic, free

they split a burger special

when the waitress returns

with two plates

his eyes hint disappointment

after the waitress leaves

with mischievous moustache, he steals a fry from her plate

with hearty laugh, she steals one fry from his

then, under the table, their hands find each other

#123 thank-you, friend

i nurtured

loved 

and encourged

then i grieved 

as i let that part of me die

then

a friend came along

a stranger then

but now a great friend

and saw life in that part of me

#122 against all odds

on a raft flowing down a medium river

i feel tiny

walls on both sides cut off the world

but for a strip of sky straight above

walls of rock

i'm at the foot of enormous cliffs

my neck stretches back

three quarters way up one wall of rock

is a tree

a tree

i see no dirt

the tree grows out a bit at its base

and then up

how does this life exist in that place

#121 love

making the bed when you won't be there

a note with the lunch

doing a chore that's not yours

eating the heel of bread because they don't like it

warming their side of the january bed

#120 long live the book

to fall asleep upon

to host a bookmark

to appreciate in stores and libraries

the sound and feel of turning a page

to give

to receive

the smell of new

all this and more

#119 windows

pull down menu

Clear History

or

Show All History

what if life was like my Mac

windows into my father's childhood

options to omit life-regrets 

one click

Home

Back

Help

Save 

Edit

Quit

#118 midnight

another liquid heart-to-heart

passes my window

loud

mostly decipherable

two male voices

@#$@ her man

#$@! her

drunk guys talk about girls

drunk girls about guys

misunderstandings 

and differences 

and need

and the voices float away

#117 my lobster fishing career

4am alarm clock

drunk with tiredness

i somehow roll out

angus is there

coffee and smile on

are my eyes even open

by 5am we're on the water

the sun paints the sky

an easel 

changing every minute

i'm a university student

called as an extra hand

the last day of the season

today cement-weighted traps 

hauled up for the season

the catch is small

both men 

twice my age

work quiet

the weight of the traps is too much for me

after an hour of pretending

poorly

that i'm okay

i flop

are you faggin' out

i'm mad

not because of the rude comment

but because i can't meet their challenge

i need another minute

they send me home 

with a story to tell 

anytime i hear someone call fishermen lazy

#116 the wait of apples

when will we learn

some apples are to be eaten

but we label those that fall without giving us nourishment

a waste

round irregular trees

we humiliate into ordered rectangular orchard

feed them water stolen from river

river knows

apple knows

tree knows

but they are older, wiser

#115 delete

sunday morning

stressing over our telus bill

i grab my bike and close the door

two empty cotton bags

balled between fist and handlebar

sunday market, rotary park, 11 am

in time for lemon cupcakes

the sun, i grin

came for the cupcakes too

kids go wild on jolly-jumper rafts

dogs sniff dogs

people pay cash

all as i load up on the vegetables

our sofa-size garden lacks:

chard, peppers, corn-on-the-cob

then a snack

and a warm loaf of bread,

unsliced

the walkabout, smaller than a softball infield

equals fifty minutes of smalltown conversation

how's your summer

oh, hey how're things

we should ride together tomorrow

what're you up to today

et cetera

until

i wander to my waiting townie-bike

unlocked

i balance the bags

precarious

one per handlebar

shades of garden-green overflow

i wobble home

comical version of a strongman farmer's-walk

open the unlocked door

check my e-mail

message from a buddy

suggesting my girlfriend and i

move to the city, calgary

attached is a high-paying job posting

ridiculously high paying

i look to the cotton bags

smile back to the monitor

poke the key

#114 searching for a three-leaf clover

why

when man meets at a mountain

his eyes are drawn to the peak

and his being is tempted to the summit

ignoring the foot

a boy in a field of clover

spends hours searching for a four-leaf

attracted to the rare

but how beautiful the three

two identical wines

side by side

with different price tags

we rate taste according to the tag

the unattainable

the rare

the expensive

can we see 

and appreciate

the beauty

the miracle

in the simple

the ordinary

the mundane

letters

straight lines

a single breath

all amazing

 

#113 questions of home

an ocean, a mountain

a battle without arms

my family, my community

my struggle within

home

more than words and numbers on an envelope

can home exist anywhere

can it be multiple places

is home a place or a feeling

are nomads and travelers never at home

or always

is anyone always at home

buddha, dalai lama

or have they transcended home

what of the home with adults yelling

or worse, not talking

if a home is broken, is it still a home

what makes one more homeless,

dirty cardboard box

or painted concrete facade

born on the ocean

living in the mountains

across the miles

within myself

a mountain, an ocean

ebb and flow

rise and erode

ebb and flow

rise and erode

#112 is there?

is there a home for me in your scars

i won't yell or hit

is there a spot for me in there with the tears you fight to keep

i won't break trust

are you willing to accept an umbrella

under the thick rain-cloud that sits above you

everywhere

i don't mean to scare you

i just see the little girl

i understand your anger and your shell

i want to find a home in your scars

#111 supper rush

loud music

changing

hierarchical battle

some sing

some curse

timers and sizzling and shouting

fractions multiplied

portions divided

tempers and flambes flare

then

breaktime

breathe

and back again

#110 campfire audience

empty dock

beside laugh-filled campfire

a still night

but no one's still enough to notice

busy having fun

making friends and living memories

the sun retired two hours back

but enough light still reaches

to make a dusk

i search the lodgepoles

for movement

for sway
none

a quiet act ends

to a thunder of applause

and i watch dusk

change to darkness around me

alone

i listen to the fun

#109 bedtime

exhausted

i stumble up stairs

keeping my eyes

from pulling shut

my body

feels like 

i downed a fistful of sleeping pills

but i just 

i had 

a long

hard 

full day

i open bedroom door 

enter

too tired for happiness

i look at the bed

and remember

the sheets

down in the laundry

in the wash-machine

#108 i thought you were happy

behind tears are tears

behind smiles are smiles

or sometimes tears tears

we hide sadness anxiety frustration

with smiles

but not laughter with tears 

#107 stuff

stuff fills my life/clothes rarely worn, fill drawers and closets/books, already read, fill tables and shelves/trinkets, useless and unnoticed/own walls and corners\\as i look at all these belongings, all this stuff/i think, there is something to be said for

space

#106 old farts, old wives, whippersnappers, and spring chickens

has there ever been a generation 

that didn't worry about its young predecessor

are we the only species that does this

kids will be kids

and

like adults

they'll have moments 

of incredible brilliance and promise

and moments of sheer idiocy and stupidity

and

at some point

they'll worry about their predecessors

#105 after rain

sky 

shades of grey-and-white, dark-and-bright

ground

wet and puddled

air 

clear and quiet

people and the other animals

hiding in stores and shelters

the sky is already brighter

soon blue will conquer the sky again

but 

for now

i enjoy the moment

#104 three-ticket ride

that ferris-wheel stomach

just before the smile

2 o'clock angle

the feeling

it doesn't go away

little things cause it

paperwork, phone calls, outings

anxiety fills my perspective and my lungs

inhaling restricted

for me, the cure is three-part

movement
getting outdoors

and letting go

#103 running, trains, and poetry

it's a marathon

not a sprint

to keep a train moving

requires more energy than

get

ting

it

started

to move a ton one inch

is harder than the next ten inches

a poem a day is better than

twenty poems once a month
maybe better than
forty poems once a month

#102 mine-town train

a horn cuts the white noise of the everyday

locals hardly notice

tracks shake

before a garland of cars chug through

going west

a million dollars worth of black

going east

nothing

the black shakes my bed at night

woke me for the first three nights 

and never since

#101 bitter perspective

what can i say of a place and a sound

whose  best redeeming qualities

are 

white squall

mosquito-breeding havens

and #4

the hooters' streets are tired

though imitate life for summer 

yes

there are good clips too

loon's bleat

paddle's gurgling tornado

but i'll not rush to return

#100 (yeah, that's right) one thing

i run

10-minute miles

never been called fast

running teaches me things

i'm amazed 

how easily 

one day off

turns into 

one week off

like a freight train

so much more energy

to start

once momentum

is broken

#99 at home in distant mountains

june fifth

mountains 

green but snow-dipped

nestle me

here

as home sneaks around me

#98 small town

friday night

8 o'clock

kids dropped off 

two blocks from their friends

as if parents don't exist

or hiding the decade-old family car

they meet

in fields

under bridges

at playgrounds

by quiet streetlight

hours later

chewing chocolate bars

masking smell

chatty with parents 

but trying not to breathe

#97 hot feet and sprinklers

lounging

lazing on a tube down the river

beverages in tow

warm evenings and cold beers

water games and fireworks

racing your melting ice-cream

green everywhere

and trails filled with life

hats and mitts are forgotten

in a box

back of closet

forgotten evidence 

another world 

another life

forced out of mind

blizzards and flurries and snow-cones

a different language

#96 when the other far doth roam

she's back

whirlwind of life

items invade, floors and counters disappear

his inner compass spins, as though at a pole

routine

wiped out

calm existence

shattered

she's back

he feels life and smiles

#95 THIS IS A DEAD END

armed with blueprints

made by his hand

and a sack of supplies

and a vision

he turns left

the lot at the end of the cul-de-sac

his

had been for 3 hours now

he reaches in his sack

removes duct tape and a sharpie

marks

BEGINNING

and continues to the road sign 

#94 a shining armour

her beautiful panoply 

gets her in trouble

and protects her

in bars after midnight

the girl 

half a wedding-reception

stares at

the half that includes the groom

she will cause mens fists

to hit mens faces

and a few will see beneath her tight sarong

but none beneath her panoply

#93 irish metal music

clank

clank

tink 

tink

then 

a rhytm

1-2 3-and-4

clank-clank clank-tink-clank

1-2 3-and-4

clank-clank clank-tink-clank

warmed up 

now come the tricks

antics

for the audience

lightning gallops

and head-banging rakes

metal

on metal

one instrument

two spoons

#92 revolutionary

poetry

poet tree

poe at three 

po' at three

poet tree

poetry

#91 deep in the woods

thank you

to the people who have turned their backs on us

the people who have left us

for unknown unmarked cabins

deep in the woods

places that we would rather

hang on the wall

than visit

thank you

you give me hope that when we fail

worthwhile will still exist

and we will fail

i am afraid of the day or night

our gluttony and plundering and pillaging

fail

but i hope its soon

#90 embracing procrastination

would schoolbags ever get clean without 

procrastinating studying for exams

would this poem get written

if not for the overwhelming sensation 

my novel brings me

and reading

all those great books and words

absorbed and forgotten

all excuses out of daunting to-do lists

dishes

cleaning

phoning friends

getting outdoors

all benefits of procrastination

#89 when you're done reading my poem

when the world puts you down

when your couch lures you to laze

get up

when you're procrastinating on the computer

when you're a boxer on the mat

get up

get up

when you're in bed missing out on your day

when you're sitting there watching injustice

when your tv sucks your brain

get up

get up

get up

do something epic

#88 misleading

she has no clue

what i've done

she smiles

unknowing

secrecy

lies

hidden encounters

deceit

our friends know

but they won't tell

they wouldn't

want

to ruin

 

the birthday surprise

#87 don't yawn

i stare 

through the glow from my alarm clock

at sleepless ceiling 

stressed

i try deep-breathing

ovine counting

relaxing

but trying to relax 

is like pushing yarn

i resort to praying

with

and without

expletives

then

the sleep-deprived ceiling

offers a suggestion

i try my hardest to stay awake

to keep my eyes staring

through the neon light

and

i fight sleep

like the 10 year-old me

willing my eyelids 

to stay open with dad's

for the tv

third...  

third period

and just...

#86 time, money, and raspberry jam

mum had a theory

the theory of raspberry jam

every sunday 

she filled a grocery cart 

for a family of eight

her well-tested theory:

jar is empty on thursday

whether a small 

or jumbo