Arctic Air Haiku
cooling Arctic Air
aimed at my face as I sleep
my hot flash savior
ice water fill-up
freeze the gray spongy filter
turn it on: comfort!
the house can be cold
the husband can be freezing
I still need this blast!
Patchwork Prose and Verse
Old Hound Haiku
Dirt road pick-up truck
Old hound mutt riding shotgun
through the countryside
Windows down, nose out
Muzzlecheeks flapping in breeze
Living his best life
He was abandoned
Rescued from the county dump
Taken in and fed
A recycled life –
Dewormed, flea dipped, unticked and
proudly named Buckshot
He feels his worth now
Chases critters, patrols home,
Eats the table scraps
All he needed was
someone to care about him
Oh, the difference!
May 20, 2021 #nationalrescuedogday
Worker’s Haiku 2
Virtual visit
to discuss all my symptoms
diagnosis made!
Prescriptions called in
Steroid, antibiotic –
Glass of water: gulp!
On my way back to
feeling better once again
All I want is sleep!
I have to get up.
I have to go in to work.
My eyes won’t budge.
I hit snooze again.
And again, knowing work is
Inevitable.
Niceties
a mirroring Nonet
Nope.
Not one
“Nicety”
Throughout these years.
No hurricane prep?
No utility bills?
No exorbitant taxes?
No yard and debris maintenance?
Not even any toilet paper?
And who was responsible for these?
A false-hope investor misled
By a negligible heir
Is a criminal act.
Whose receipts mattered?
Your parents would
Be ashamed
Of you
Now.
Bird Rhapsody Haiku
Tower of Babel
in the forest this morning
blissful bird babble
all different calls
chirps, tweets, chitters and chatters diverse winged chorus
birds of a feather
birds of another feather
sing in one accord
an off-key whistle
joins in this festive glee club
a Barney Fife bird!
“Peter, Peter,” from
Tufted Titmouse sopranos
fully robed in joy
“Pretty Bird,” trill the
cardinal tenors singing
praises to the King
alto mockingbirds
impersonate all species
universal chords
one bass frog croaks out
clearly too early for him
his disdain is heard
morning rhapsody
performed from overhead pines
free back porch ticket
if birds can figure
out how to sing with all kinds
why, oh why can’t we?
Regrets
its idyllic charm
lures spellbound landseekers
with lush flora
and trickling creeks
like a siren enchants sailors,
her long hair
distracting
with her
naked beauty
the maelstrom
churning
beyond
then when beauty transforms
as Scylla
and Charybdis
daughters who sought what wasn’t theirs
the ugly truth springs forth:
a father regrets a farm
there is such a thing
as cursed land
where the ghosts of soldiers
still battle
just as those
who still dwell there
Wrestling Writing Haiku
I’m not feeling it
so I’m not writing today!
Back to bed I go.
No inspiration –
my fairy lights don’t sparkle.
My prompt well ran dry.
No motivation –
my brain feels tired and lazy.
I’d rather not think.
I’m not feeling it
so I’m not writing today!
Back to bed I go.
I’m capping my pen –
no need to waste any ink
when words just won’t come.
I’m closing my book –
keeping journal pages blank
for another day.
I’m not feeling it
so I’m not writing today!
Back to bed I go.
I pull back the sheets
to settle back in the warmth
and turn off my thoughts.
But they’re not water.
They don’t stop with a knob twist.
They keep on flowing.
I’m feeling awake.
I can’t go back to sleep now.
I need to get up.
Leaky thought plumber?
There’s no such miracle fix –
My brain mouth won’t hush.
A conversation
between me, myself, and I
is unstoppable.
I’m feeling awake.
I can’t go back to sleep now.
I need to get up.
The struggle is real.
Inspiration comes in the
unlikeliest ways.
….uncapping my pen
….opening my journal page
and the ink now flows……
I’m writing today.
I tried to wrestle writing
…it unrested me.
Morning Celebrity
A morning
sofa celebrity
never sits in peace
drinking coffee
checking email
posting blogs
admirers relentlessly
throw themselves
at her feet
beg for attention
whine for affection
paw at her arms
drape themselves
over her shoulders
she crinkles paper
they freeze
ears perk up
eyes scope hers
eyebrows raise
in a question mark
of anticipation
tails wag like
cautious stalkers
they wait
for her to make a move
finally
a biscuit for each
sends the paparazzi pets
off to remote locations
to eat their treats
in peace