never eat a free
Mexican taste testing lunch
of new recipes
and think you’ll get a
good night’s sleep because you won’t
(neither will your spouse)
Resist
Making Soup
what is it about
making soup that brings comfort?
heartiness, warmth, taste?
when days feel untied
I take out the steel kettle
fire the front burner
pour in chicken stock
add vegetables and spices
let it simmer……..breathe
Write the Poem: Day 5 of 5 of The October Open Write
Our host today for the last day of our October Open Write is Donnetta Norris of Arlington, TX. She shares her inspiration and process, which you can read below or here.
She encourages writers to write a poem on a theme using word associations. I’ll be hosting the first day of the November Open Write on November 16, so I’m using the day to set the stage for my prompt on that day – an invitation to a fantasy writing retreat in a location of the poet’s choice in a list style format, offering location, a snack, a companion critter, a writing utensil, an outfit, and a gift for everyone. Come join Donnetta today at http://www.ethicalela.com, and then November 16, return and join me as well. We’re having all kinds of fun!
An Invitation
save the date: November 16
you may choose to arrive by stretch limousine
we’ll be gathering in style for a writer’s retreat
whether castle or cabin or on your own street
we’ll spend the day writing in fantasy places
day one: a packing list poem ~ what’s in our suitcases?
so gather your words ~ select them with flair
I’ll be the door greeter to welcome you there!
you’ll need your location and writing utensil
something to wear, and perhaps a spare pencil
we’ll all need a critter (think Hogwarts style)
and a snack to share to write all the while
and then let’s bring one thing – a gift for the group
something to make us all laugh, cry, or hoot
what’ll it be? oh, I can’t wait to see ~
here’s a basket of tickets – take some – they’re free!
let’s keep Donnetta’s theme words sparking and growing
return in November, keep writing ongoing!
Paint Chip Poems: Day 4 of the October Open Write
Seana Hurd Wright of Los Angeles is our host for Day 4 of October’s Open Write at http://www.ethicalela.com.
Seana shares her process, which you can read fully here, or the synopsis here: Choose 4 -8 colors and brainstorm names of the many synonyms and color shades that are similar to the ones you chose. Write a poem or short story, in any form, using colors and as much figurative language as you’d like. I decided to choose two main colors, red and blue. Then I selected various shades and hues that compliment them. Then I selected a topic and enjoyed playing with words.
I took my inspiration from a friend’s Facebook post. He shared photos of a long-held tradition in Bluffton, South Carolina, a town where I used to live. Each October, a gathering of paddlers all dress as witches and take to the waterways at sunset to greet autumn in style. It’s quite a sight to see, full of color and peaceful festivity. This year, a tour boat passed by and someone on the boat blasted the song “Witchy Woman” as they passed, bringing laughter and setting the mood.
Witches’ Paddle
On October Sunset they ride
Onyx-caped waterproof witches
paddle out on Supermoon tide
admiring autumn’s swell riches
Bop ‘Til You Drop: Day 3 of October’s Open Write
Wendy Everard of New York is our host for Day 3 of October’s Open Write, inspiring us to write Bop poems. You can read her full prompt here.
The Process
Here are the basic rules for The Bop:
- 3 stanzas
- Each stanza is followed by a refrain
- First stanza is 6 lines long and presents a problem
- Second stanza is 8 lines long and explores or expands the problem
- Third stanza is 6 lines long and either presents a solution or documents the failed attempt to resolve the problem
My poem is inspired by a friend’s Facebook post. She’d found Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cake donuts and thought it would be a good idea to share ~ to tempt her friends, of whom I am surely the most temptable.
Little Debbie Donut Bop
{the problem:}
in a word:
willpower!
why?
Who made these
Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cake Donuts?
{expand the problem:}
oh, that’s easy to expand:
just open the bag.
eat.
weight increases.
waist and hips expand.
arms expand.
thighs expand.
{the failed attempt to resolve the problem:}
taste bud EXPLOSION!!
the sugar-grit of green glittery garland
white snow-pearl smoothness
red-ribbony-wrapped tinseling
savoring the sensations of Christmas in October
Ode to Change: Day 2 of October’s Open Write
Our host for Day 2 of the October Open Write is a group of students at Aquinas College in Michigan, inspiring us today to write odes to change. Stefani Boutelier, an instructor at AC, leads them in their prompt offering today, which you can read in its entirety here.
Ode to Letting Go in Chained Haiku
the leaves show us how
on our morning driveway walks
straight into the sun
how to let things go
bidding the branches goodbye
flitting to forest
floor beneath, seeking,
stirring, gathering in groups
with others who’ve held
onto things for far
too long to know weightlessness
untethered freedom
to roll on gentle
breeze to take to bright blue skies
on blustery gusts
to change their small view
and see the whole world anew. ~
a new perspective
Questionable Products – October Open Write Day 1 of 5
Scott McCloskey from Michigan is our host today for the first day of our October Open Write at http://www.ethicalela.com. He inspires us to write Questionable Products Poems – the kind with a slant of an ode to something that raises our eyebrows in wonder, disgust, or utter surprise. You can read his full prompt here. Be sure to check out the links, too, at the bottom – for those strange things we all need.
My Mark on the World
speaking of unboxing gifts
I’m inventing the next big thing
because of all the things that
annoy me like the partially squeezed
twisted toothpaste tubes or
velcroed soap with melded slices sticking
like a bloodletting leech to a larger bar or
handwarmer mugs that brand palms or
already-used weekly sandwich bags or
damp half-paper towels drying to be recycled or
all those other quirks like the holy
t-shirts because they’re good for tractoring
what annoys me the most is the simple
kitchen dishtowel that never
-do you hear me? never –
and I mean never, ever, ever not once
not once –
makes it back to the oven handle
where it is supposed to hang out
unless I put it there myself
it’s not really even a dishtowel, per se,
it playfully pops behinds and serves as a napkin
for powdered donuts and
wipes counter messes and
occasionally dries a dish
but it naps, crumpled in comfort on counters
on the table
on the bar
on the coffee table
and so I’m inventing one
with invisible GPS homing strings
to draw it back
to where it goes
so that I will have left
my mark in this world
right in the hearts of
kitchens all over
the world
in the smiles of wives
worldwide
time to see the vet
see it in his eyes?
Boo Radley doesn’t feel well
time to see the vet
up all night: coughing
hacking up white foamy phlegm
time to see the vet
didn’t have jeans time
skipped his loving during socks
and his morning treat
time to see the vet
I’m worried for him this time
see it in his eyes?
On Our Walk
on this crisp, cold morn
I take the dogs on a walk
into the sunrise
just the beginning
of the changing of the leaves
brings joy to my heart!
a country sunrise ~
its beauty is breathtaking
Home from Kentucky
The drive took 8 1/2 hours with only one stop to fill up the gas tank and to get an iced mocha and a Rice Krispy treat as a snackish meal to avoid making a time consuming stop. When I blew through Nashville without any significant delays, this should have been the signal flag that I was in traffic trouble in Chattanooga and Atlanta.
Standstill traffic in each of those two cities set me back by two hours – about an hour each with stop and go brake lights and watching the rear view mirror in case I needed to brace myself for a texting driver not paying attention. I finished my audiobook and talked to family on the phone, catching up from the few days I was away.
A return to my own bed and flatter memory foam pillows was bittersweet. I miss my daughter and her fiancé already, but I rest in the comfort that they are continually building their new life together a few states away, while mine is here. There is great blessing in the peace of knowing that she is deeply happy and that so many prayers have been answered.
they moved in today
opened new doors to new life
forever as one
Common Threads 