Lucky Strike

     Image by R.A.D. Stainforth 

I remember

gentle pressure of your lips.

Friction, spark, fire:

you ignite,

I burn.

But that’s past.

Turns out the brass ring

was only smoke.

A stale future

permeates my clothes and hair.

Ashes,ashes,we all fall down.

Check out more responses to the picture by R.A.D. Stainforth at The Mag weekly, online writing prompt provided by Tess Kincaid.

Merry Christmas

                 Let Heaven and Nature sing

              Peace on Earth, good will to all...

Apocalypse: Plan A

   Image by fanpop.com

   Here I sit at the end of the world

   with my bags packed and hair neatly curled

   I’m expecting the Doc’s

   great, big, shiny, blue box

   with its red carpet neatly unfurled.

   Plan B: "Go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for all of this to blow over." –Shaun of the Dead

  This is just a little fun for G-man's  FF55.  Go there to check out more 55's of wit and wisdom, and maybe even add your own.

Sandy Hook 12-14-12

    Image by cnn.com 

Bushmaster semi-automatic assault rifle - AR-15

- Charlotte Bacon, 2/22/06, female

Caliber: 5.56 NATO/223 Rem

- Daniel Barden, 9/25/05, male

Weight: 6.7 lbs.

- Rachel Davino, 7/17/83, female

Length: 32.5”
- Olivia Engel, 7/18/06, female

Barrel length: 16”
- Josephine Gay, 12/11/05, female

Muzzle: ½ x 28
- Ana M. Marquez-Greene, 04/04/06, female

Barrel: 4150 chrome-moly steel w/chrome-lined bore/chamber
- Dylan Hockley, 3/8/06, male

 The .223 caliber load is popular because it has better fragmentation upon impact…
- Dawn Hochsprung, 06/28/65, female

Parts, whether newly manufactured or surplus, are plentiful from dozens of companies - which will sell you non-restricted parts.
- Madeleine F. Hsu, 7/10/06, female

Ban Criteria Features: Post-Ban AR-15 rifles, by law, cannot have more than 2 of the following features:
- Catherine V. Hubbard, 6/08/06, female

a. Detachable magazine
- Chase Kowalski, 10/31/05, male

b. Pistol grip
- Jesse Lewis, 6/30/06, male

c. Threaded barrel/flash hider
- James Mattioli , 3/22/06, male

d. Collapsible stock

- Grace McDonnell, 12/04/05, female

e. Bayonet lug
- Anne Marie Murphy, 07/25/60, female

f. Grenade launcher

- Emilie Parker, 5/12/06, female

With a Bushmaster for security and home defense, you can sleep tight knowing that your loved ones are protected.

- Jack Pinto, 5/06/06, male

. Bushmaster offers everything you need to ensure the safety of you and your family.
- Noah Pozner, 11/20/06, male

Our high-quality pistols, carbines, and rifles are extremely reliable, easy to shoot, and include lightweight carbon models that are perfect for women.
- Caroline Previdi, 9/07/06, female

With the "Sunset" of the 1994 Assault Weapons Ban on Sept. 13th, 2004, Bushmaster can again offer features on the AR15 type rifle that had been deemed illegal for those 10 years
- Jessica Rekos, 5/10/06, female

such as

- Avielle Richman, 10/17/06, female

flash suppressors,

- Lauren Rousseau, 6/1982, female (full date of birth not specified)

 bayonet lugs,
- Mary Sherlach, 2/11/56, female

collapsing telescopic stocks
- Victoria Soto, 11/04/85, female

and high capacity magazines.
- Benjamin Wheeler, 9/12/06, male

Availability: As a result of the military’s adoption and continued usage of the rifle, the shooting public is blessed with a variety of manufacturers of AR-15 variants.
- Allison N. Wyatt, 7/03/06, female

The author - or Bushmaster Firearms, Inc. / Quality Parts Co. - assumes no liability for accuracy of the information herein contained.

Note: Victims’ information from Huffington Post 

Weapon information can be found on the Bushmaster Website, including an article, A PROSPECTIVE AR-15 OWNER/BUILDER'S PRIMER, by Ron Wu. 

This is linked to dVerse Poets and IGWRT where each has an open link night.

The Ride Home

    Image by Andy Magee

My throat tightens 

when I spot you waiting,

among the clump of students filled with

young, slouchy energy.

Then the mom-worry kicks in.

You look exhausted and rumpled,

smell faintly of stale beer and cigarette smoke.

I wonder how much sleep you've had this week,

this semester.

But finals are over and you’re mine again,

at least for the next three hours

while we drive home.

Your dark, 5-day growth

reminds me that you are a man now,

but still my baby - always my first baby.

You stretch and push the seat back to its furthest  position,

as we head west out of the city

listening to System of a Down.

It should be snowing, you say.

I agree as we look past the windshield wipers

into the grey December drizzle.

I turn up the defrost, as the atmosphere

inside the car is changed by the warm breath of two.

Then the special magic of a long car ride begins.

You shift in your seat, turn down the volume

and start talking…

And then

everything is all right.

This is prompted by The Mag creative writing group.  Check it out.

A Tolkien 55

We shouldn't be here,

if we'd known…

but it's often that way;

a habit of the old.

Their paths were laid

from ashes,
from shadows

both sweet and bitter.

Brave things, old tales, adventures,

ones that really mattered

they had forgotten.

Turning back, inside the story,

can we change 

the course of the future?

Written for G-man's Friday 55, this is a variation of Erasure poetry, which is a form of found poetry created by erasing words from an existing text in prose or verse and framing the result on the page as a poem. It can be allowed to stand in situ or arranged into lines and/or stanzas.  The poem I've assembled above is from the works of J.R.R. Tolkien, as a tip of my cap to him on the opening day of The Hobbit movie. If you're interested in Erasure Poetry I suggest you go to dVerse Poets Pub.

To read more 55 word tidbits click on FF55

Lost in You

     Borders  drawn, 

     points plotted,

     artificial boundaries

     matter not.

     All you need to know is

     YOU ARE HERE

And now for another edition of the "Top 10 Immature and Inappropriate Comments" List (all 12 of them!)

    1.       Go West young man!

    2.       What do you mean the borders are being re-drawn?

    3.       Who says there’s nothing left to explore?

    4.       No wonder the polar ice caps are melting…

    5.       Hmmm…I think maybe I’ll get a piercing in Belarus.

    6.       So, what about continental drift and tectonic plate movements?

    7.       No wonder there’s always a waiting list to get into the new geography teacher’s classes.

    8.       He’s got the the who-o-ole world in his hands…

    9.       How the hell do ya fold that?

   10.   Gives a whole new meaning to a year abroad…

   11.   Henry Miller’s inspiration for Tropic of Cancer?

   12.   And always remember: be good to Mother Earth!

    This inspirational image was provided by Tess Kincaid at The Mag.  Join us there!

Reflections

Image: Google images

I wonder who looks back at me

When two-way pane is all I see.

Who’s hidden there behind the glass

watching me as I walk past?

From underneath the polished sea

I wonder who looks back at me

My eyes can’t see what swims below;

what worlds are there that I can’t know?

And walking through the misty night

beyond the edge of pooling light

I wonder who looks back at me;

my shoulders hunch, protectively.

With everything that’s come to pass,

reflected in the looking glass

while it’s my features that I see,

I wonder who looks back at me.

This is an example of a Quatern, which is made up of four quatrains with the first line appearing in descending order in each stanza, ie: Aabb aAcc ddAa eeaA.  It one is also iambic tetrameter.  This is the Form for All over at dVerse.  I'm too late to like up but you should still check it out; you won't be disappointed.

Dear Santa

I’m trying to be a good girl and not expect too much

but do you think that you could manage a little Prada clutch?

and a shoe or two by Jimmy Choo

would keep away the holiday blues

Although…

the geek in me wants a ‘Big Bang’ T

and blue box next to the Christmas tree!

This is my Christmas list in 55 words for both Mr. Knowitall's FF55 and Mama Zen's IGwRT prompt.  Check them both out!  And for all you non-geeks out there, the last two things on my list refer to 'The Big Bang Theory' and Doctor Who.  And I actually already have the big blue box  :o)

 This is me helping keep the Universe safe.  You're welcome.

About Time

Image: Object to be Destroyed by Man Ray

Object

to be Destroyed

keeps watch over me with

disdain as I practice my scales.

I never did like piano lessons

in that room that smelled of cabbage.

So go on, destroy it;

you know I won’t

object.

Here's another take on the image:

Tick,tick, tock

scolded by the clock

I never could keep time…

And then I got long-winded:

Tick, tick, tock

scolded by the clock

I never could keep time…

Keep it, spend it,

measure it, treasure it

race it and chase it,

but never erase time.

If I could

I woul leave,

lose my place

in this line of time -

coil my time line

like a lasso

and tie it in a lovely knot.

Then my 70-year-old self

could remind the 7-year-old

to floss and study hard,

and 26-year-old me can

reassure me-at-13

that Jeanette is only a mean girl,

and not really important.

And just perhaps, 14-year-old me

could remind the 41-year-old

to lighten up and have some fun.

But, tie as I might,

the knots won’t hold;

my time line

is cut into snippets

by clocks and calendars.

Tick - there goes another golden moment

tick – and another,

tock…

Thank you for taking the TIME to read this and thanks to Tess Kincaid for this prompt at The Mag.  

November

   November strips down to her essence-

   a dozen shades of brown and grey.

   October’s color-riot fades into memory,

   while a spare, somber beauty remains.

   Geese call mournful farewells

   as they retreat to the southern kingdom.

   The spring will bring an agony of birth

   but now, Earth folds in upon herself

   as she prepares for sleep.

Written for FF55 writing prompt.  Join us with 55 words of your own.

Image by Mary Bach 

Fit for a Queen

    Photo source can be found here

The Queen of Chaos sits upon her throne.

She looks out through the window with disdain

at these mere mortals crossing her domain.

The Queen of Chaos sits upon her throne.

She looks out through her window with disdain

then summons churning forces of the dark

to seek out innocents,  and leave her mark.

She looks out through her window with disdain.

She summons churning forces of the dark.

The Queen of Chaos sits upon her throne.

High in her crumbling castle all alone

she summons churning forces of the dark.

The Queen of Chaos sits upon her throne.

She looks out through the window with disdain

at these mere mortals crossing her domain.

The Queen of Chaos sits upon her throne.

Written for The Mag creative writing group.  

This form was created by Robin Skelton, academic, writer, poet and anthologist. It is a Quatrain, and the second line forms a rhyming couplet with the third line and is also used as the first and fourth line of the following stanza. Any number of stanzas can be created this way and the final stanza is a repeat of the first. This gives a rhyme scheme of: A. B. b. A..... B. C. c B…. C. D. d. C .… D. A. a. D...... A. B. b. A.           (capital letters are repeated lines, and small letters are rhymes)

            THANKS!

Never Mind

Have you made accommodation

for gradual hurt?

Are there places

you no longer frequent

in your own mind?

Places that are too treacherous,

too raw, too honest...

Have civility and formality

calcified your best intentions

into a cage you can no longer escape?

Has it become too dangerous

to even think

of escape?

This is for G-man's FF55.  Go there to read other 55 word long pieces, and feel free to add your own. 

Image: Health.howstuffworks.com

One Smooth Stone

One smooth stone

I hold in my palm,

yet it remains

discrete, separate.

Filled with potential energy

and a history I cannot access,

I touch only the cool, outer surface.

Secrets within remain hidden;

giving up nothing.
It simply is.

Silent and unyielding,

an inscrutable mystery,

I hold in my palm

one smooth stone.

Image: peterbolland.blogspot.com/2010/07/smooth-as-stone.html 

This is for G-man's FF55.  Check it out for 55 words of wisdom, humor or pure good storytelling.  Maybe add your own.

I Got the Low-Down-Political-Dead-Lock Blues

"Meet the new boss

 Same as the old boss"

Mama Zen directed us to tell her how the presidential election turned out in twenty words or less for IGwRT, but Pete Townshend already said it better than I could.  Listen to 

The Who sing it on youtube.

*Disclosure: While I think Barack Obama is basically a good man and the lesser of two evils, with the system we have even the best president is rather ineffectual.

Image: 123rf.com

Late Groom

She smoothed her skirts of ivory lace

while pondering their recent tryst,

and made sure things were all in place.

Her marble features showed no trace

of all the places he had kissed.

She smoothed her skirts of ivory lace.

 His love was spirited, not base,

some discipline was all he missed;

she’d make sure that was all in place.

Six hours late - she was disgraced -

he stumbled in completely pissed.

She smoothed her skirts of ivory lace.

She saw he was a desperate case

when she reviewed her growing list

to make sure things were all in place.

A glacial smile upon her face,

she gave her bridegroom’s neck a twist,

then smoothed her skirts of ivory lace

and made sure things were all in place.

This Villanelle is for dVerse open link night.  Click on the link to see more.  
Also, thanks to Christi Moon for help tweaking the meter.  Here is the Villanelle form using capitals for the refrains and lowercase letters for the rhymes: A1-b-A2/ a-b-A1/ a-b-A2/ a-b-A1/ a-b-A2/ a-b-A1-A2

Image: photo.net

f/64

    Image: Charis, Lake Ediza, California, 1937 by Edward Weston

Take me as I am

unrefined and unretouched;

not a vessel to hold

your feelings,

or a mirror

 to reflect yourself back

to you.

Do not oppress me with your

need for perfection.

Accept my beautiful scars

and creases.

They are me.

Do not superimpose

your romantic notions on me,

but see me as I am:

brave, sharp, focused.

I will not flee;

I will not fly into the sun.

I am here.

Written for The Mag where Tess Kincaid provides a weekly writing prompt.  I highly recommend it.  

Notes: f/64 was a group of American photographers, including Weston, who usually set their lenses to that aperture to secure maximum image sharpness in the foreground and distance. In 1934 Weston  resolved to make only unretouched portraits.  This was taken in 1937, the same year Amelia Earhart disappeared.

Leaden

   Dark and threatening

   hammered tin November skies

   split and fall on me

Image: Kreuzberg'd blog 'Spotted in Passing'

Dilution

The world is filled with echoes of

tissue paper sighs;

littered with

soft, sibilant requests

and soliloquies that wither on the lips.

Hope is stored on the top shelf

of a closet

safely wrapped in old newspapers,

only taken out for special occasions.

With desire sketched in pencil,

longing diluted,

it only hurts a little.

For G-man and his FF55.  Go there to find 55 words of wit, wisdom and whimsy from a variety of bloggers.  Maybe add your own!

The Drought is Over

Kiss me

to the bone

with your

rosebud lips.

Make me oblivious

to thunder.

Dance through my veins

as I breathe you in.

Drenched and dripping,

surely I will drown

in you.

Enfold me in

your arms

as rain

puddles at our feet.

Gene Kelley

ain’t got nothin’ on us.

This is written for The Mag where Tess Kincaid provides a weekly writing prompt.  Join us there.

Galilei

Push aside the curtain of day

looking to eternal night:

breathless sight.

Longing sigh, clutch the sky;

hold me to you tight.

Smitten with the inky blue

I give this night to you.

This is for IGwRT Sunday Mini-challenge.  The challenge is to use the rhyme and meter form created by Paul Lawrence Dunbar.  Specifics can be found at the site. Go read what everyone did and give it a try!

Image from: lakeobigwater.com

Willow Manor Ball

How exciting – my first Willow Manor Ball!  Thank you for everything Tess; you are the perfect host.

I carefully chose my dress

from the tree where they grow

behind the house.

The gloves I knit of

licorice laces.

As music saturates me

the elephant in the room

sits at my side on the couch,

imploring me with absinthe eyes.

How could I possibly say no?

At first I couldn't find a thing to wear

until I remembered the dress tree out back:

It was a tough decision, but in the end I chose this black and white number...

...and elephants of course.

And the mask I will be wearing looks like this: 

Of course to go with elephants I must have the simple elegance of pearls:

Finally, to complete the ensemble, I've opted for these tied up heels...

...so there won't be any lost shoe incidents.

I promised to save the last dance for Babar, but could I have THIS dance with you?  Please won't you join me at the ball?

What Were You Thinking?

I feel a difference in the air.

if you go out, please have a care;

All Hallows Eve’s within the week;

when spirits rise, your soul to seek.

The undead, ghosts and demons

will be upon us soon, but

 I’ll take my monsters hairy, wild

and hoOowling at the moon!

Image: top10films.co.uk

Here is a FF55 for G-man in keeping with the spirit(s) of the upcoming holiday.  Follow the link and check it out, or add your own 55 words of poetry or fiction.

Eckleburg

Does anyone look on

as we fashion

our monuments to death?

Decorate our bodies like sarcophagi;

arrange the canopic jars:

liver, lungs, intestines, spleen.

Lay out bones like dominos,

triangulating the distance 

between soul and abyss.

Written for The Mag and also linked to IGwRT open link Monday.  Both are well worth your time to have a look.  The above image is from Tess Kincaid.

Karmageddon

I have the list that karma missed,

penned the last time I got pissed:

dog-kickers, boot-lickers,

whiney little nose-pickers,

men who say they’ll call then don’t,

or promise to be true but won’t,

tattletales, bullies, hypocrites, thugs,

global warming doubters, litter bugs.

I’m attorney, judge and jury,

and you know well, hell hath no fury…

This is for everyone's favorite G-man and his FF55.  Check it out, and leave your own 55 words of wisdom or folly.

*Disclaimer:  This is only a partial list, other infringements and character flaws may be subject to Karma (or me) without prior warning.  Especially if it's a day that I'm having a snit.  Always be sure to read the fine print, cause you just never know!

Image: Karma-recto by Corporatecounsel.net

Midnight Snack

There is homely magic

in this late-night kitchen.

We gather

in a communion of teacups

resting on worn Formica,

encircled by elbows

and infused with cinnamon and safety.

Warm, buttermilk light wraps

around our shoulders

like a 60-watt blanket.

It spills from the windows

carving shapes in the night.

Together we weave

our disparate stories.

They rise like steam before us,

between us;

twisting and converging

until we belong.

The image Midnight Snack, by Curtis Wilson Cost is offered as a writing prompt at The Mag.  Join us.