From Soup to Nuts

#1 The List

Let’s see… I’ll take:

-3 cans of Courage

-2 cans of Confidence

-4 cans of Not a Nerd

-1 can of Whoop-ass

#2 Shopping at the Specialty Store

Imagine going to the store and

finding a can of 

Extra Time

on the top shelf.
I’d take the family size

Or maybe I’d pick up

a case of

Autumn Mornings,

extra crisp variety

And of course I’d grab me

a big ole’ can of 

True Love

(in heavy syrup)

But just my luck 

I get home,

unpack my purchases,   

and find the can opener  

broken

#3 Schmitz Market

Schmitz Market

at the corner of Washington and 12^th

always smelled

like hard salami and jump rope

Walking into its coolness

on a hot summer day

was as good as licking the dust

off a stick of Doublemint gum

Mr. Schmitz had dancing eyes

 and a smile that showed his delight

with his lot

beneath the bloody apron

 behind the meat counter

in his little shop

At the cash register

Mrs. Schmitz,

round and smiling,

always threw  a Saf-T-Pop

into the grocery bag

(she remembered my favorite flavor was green)

The last time I left the shop

the sound of bell,

ringing as it hit the glass door,

was cheerful as ever

But the clinking of wine glasses

in the chic, upscale wine bar it is now

just sounds wistful

These are for The Mag and dVerse open link night, both great places to check out if you are a writer or reader.  (Photo prompt is from Tess Kincaid at The Mag).

Photo credit: Bob Adelman, 1965

Blood Work

   Doctor Charles Drew

   swam against the current

   when he first banked blood

   The Red Cross

   was at cross purposes

   with the  business of

   saving lives

   They forgot

   (or pretended not to know)

   that blood cells

   are red and white,

   not black and white

   The job at hand is to transfuse

   blood not bigotry

Dr. Charles R. Drew was an African-American doctor who developed methods for blood storage and transfusions in the 1930's.  He was an outstanding person in many areas, and well worth reading more about.  One place to start is The Black Inventor Museum.  And these 55 words about him are for G-Man.

Psychedelic Superman

    It’s been a long day on the

    road to evolution

    The bad guys don’t take bank holidays

    and phone booths are  scarce

    Superman is tired;

    he no longer knows how to save us

    In a world of titanium and silicon

    even speeding bullets get left behind

    What’s your kryptonite?

Image by epic mahogany

This writing prompt is provided by Tess Kincaid.  Go to The Mag to read the gang's responses.

I thought of Kryptonite by Three Doors Down; click on it if you you'd like to listen.

Cabin Fever

February in Wisconsin

gets old.

This is time for tropical vacations,

this is why we are the fifth drunkest state

in the US.

Outside it’s snowing fluriously;

not the fresh, hopeful snow of December,

not the ‘each-flake-a-unique-miracle’ snow,

or even the big flakes children cut with

blunt-nosed scissors

to decorate classrooms…

just more damn snow

This is for G-man's Flash Friday 55.  Go check it out.  And, just for the record, this has been a very mild winter in Wisconsin, not much snow at all.  In fact yesterday it was about 45 degrees F (which is just not right).  It's just that 'cabin fever' time of year.

Image from stillwatertheatre.org

Home

So, when Poets United gave us the writing prompt ‘home’ for their Thursday Think Tank two different thoughts came to mind.  One was from my sappy, romantic heart, which is this:

My home is

the size

of your heart

The other response comes from my bleeding heart:

Some food for thought:

1. There are approximately 6.1 Million vacant houses In America

2. Approximately 3.5 million people are likely to experience homelessness in a given year

(Now the thinking part)

3. So, what’s wrong here?

(Vacant house statistics from blog.wsj.com 11/5/11, Homelessness statistics from National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty)

*Please follow the link at the top to Poets United to find the responses of other poets.

Cold Shoulder Trio

1.     

          autumn mist softens

    the bleak forest cathedral:

    visual incense

2.        such beauty in death

    golden, crimson, and umber

    descend as fall leaves

3.      intricate, lacy

   artwork for my window pane

   thank you Mr. Frost

I'm not a haiku master, but I have girded my er..self, and these are my attempt for Grace at IGRT

Images by wallpaperswide.com, thelonggoodbye.wordpress.com, weathersavy.com

Valentine Offerings

     Will

     you be

     my true knight,

     bright though rusted;

     brave as a tiger,

     one I’ve always trusted

     to save me from my nightmares

     with your own prancing, dancing tongue?

     Hold me tight and kiss away my cares.

     Will you be my true knight, bright though rusted?

     Image from marxist.com


There's a nice, romantic-ish poem for Valentine's Day for all you old school romantics out there.  The  form is a Dectina Refrain created by Marion Friedenthal, with each line containing the following number of syllables: 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9 and the refrain repeats lines 1-4.  Go to the Imaginary Garden with Real Toads to see other love poem that don't use the word 'love' in them.  This next one doesn't fit the bill, but it's just for fun.  Those of you with a slightly more twisted and humorous view of the day, this one is for you:

     My Love

     My love is like a red, red truck,
     All he wants to do is...


          drive around


     C'mon, what did ya think I was gonna say? 


       Image by magnoliamerryweather.tumblr.com