They group up

protected by numbers

they race around

hurling bricks

bottles

rocks

anything that hurts

or breaks

the idea is not to protest

the idea is to destroy

a savage inclination

a basic instinct

setting fires

burning businesses

looting stores

spraying graffiti

the ugly truth

they are the Barbarians at the gate

and no one stops them

...

Read and leave comments (2)

In the depths

of grass and ground

Insects thrive

without a sound

In parting blades

new worlds are found

Looking deep down

such worlds astound.

Read and leave comments (0)

Our Community Library will be opening Monday.

The following guidelines will be in place:

Only two people will be allowed in at one time and both must be in Hazmat suits.

Reservations must be made 4 weeks out, so that we can check your background in the FBI data base.

Patrons will be required to wear clean underwear.

Restrooms will be open, but no toilet paper will be provided d...

Read and leave comments (1)

People think they have to leave home

to find what they are missin' in their lives

but home is where the heart is and

it's also where all your stuff is

All the stuff you liked and bought

and brought home from the store or the garage sale

or ordered on that there Amazon

stuff you accumulated through the years

that brought you joy in havin'

It's all the stuff that you ...

Read and leave comments (2)

Just like an old satchel

worn out and forlorn,

he lies on the porch

looking out on the lawn

His best days behind him

youth and vigor all gone,

still Satchel is faithful

and bravely carries on

As many will tell you

a dog's love never ends,

he'll stay by your side

and so fiercely defend

His loyalty proven

on him you depend,

Satchel the ol...

Read and leave comments (0)

We are a non-profit

at least on paper

silently we take cash

in small bills

we also ask

the government for help

and they are dumb enough

to give it

we have buildings to maintain

and lots of staff

we have an advertising budget

and a stable of lawyers

we also have huge conventions

at high-priced resort hotels and

our boss makes more that the President

Read and leave comments (0)

Patches of black

webs of deceit

collected legs

thin as needles

lying in wait

until disturbed

then they explode

in every direction

do not go near

or they will crawl all over you

get in your face

your hair

and drive you mad as a hatter

a mass of creepy legs

suddenly vibrates and springs to life

disgorged in frantic spasms

from corners and ove...

Read and leave comments (1)

We must social distance

they tell us

keep 6 feet away from those

you come in contact with

my wife says even that is too close

she would prefer I stay further away

in order to protect her from the dreaded Virus

and also to save her the stress

I bring into her life

she has a sign in the kitchen

KEEP YOUR DISTANCE!

"A half-mile minimum!"

Read and leave comments (0)

We are like prisoners

within our own jails

We are the supplicants

confined to our cells

Accepting authority

though freedom compels

We have become prisoners

at home in our cells.

Read and leave comments (2)

There it sits

on the burner

a pot of rice

nice and warm

looking so pale and passive

but suddenly steam pours out

the pot blows its lid

and rice boils over

and spills all over the kitchen floor

turns out this was not

your regular tame white rice

but "Wild Rice"

which is undomesticated

and can turn on you in a moment

you never know

it's unpredictable

Read and leave comments (1)

Wash your hands

they admonish

yet when you go to the men's room

people rush in and out

some never stop to wash their hands

they take their germs with them

to spread around town

their mothers obviously failed

they were not taught

or if they were

dismiss the advice as just another rule

to be ignored

they have no common courtesy

no sense of decency

there...

Read and leave comments (2)

The rush

the swoosh

the sound of

cars on the freeway

disturbing the peace

that dreaded sound is everywhere

you hear it constantly

the drone of cars and trucks

hell bent on getting there

before the next guy

you can't escape that sound

the ever present noise of traffic

it permeates our existence

it has crept into our DNA

we have slowly adapted

grown ...

Read and leave comments (1)

You can fry it

if you want to

but it still don't taste

like ham

Can't forget

the very taste of it

the revolting thing

called Spam

It's not animal

or vegetable

who knows what

is in that can

But once you've had

a slice of it

the aftertaste is

owed to Spam!

Read and leave comments (2)

Old men like me

have seen more than

we dare repeat

have grown too old too fast

we spent our lives going to work everyday

like robots programmed to work

to accept the routine and not complain

scratching out a living

paying the bills

it all happened so fast

years went by without a pause

I could not catch a breath

I never thought about it much

I was on a tr...

Read and leave comments (3)

I had some notes

that I once wrote

Cliff ate the notes

yet didn't croak,

Cliff is my dog

all I can hope

when truth comes out

there is Cliff's notes.

Read and leave comments (0)

I am in the high risk group.

Too old to change.

Too old to care.

I am non-essential.

That means I don't count.

They can get by without me.

Stay in your room they order.

Do not leave your cell.

At this late stage it doesn't matter.

I still have my wits about me.

Still have a few tricks up my sleeve.

Despite the wagging fingers, I proceed.

I still think I am ...

Read and leave comments (1)

Thank you for your order.   I know it was traumatic for you having to call in

and listen to the recording and the 14 prompts.  We just hope the ordeal

did not weaken your immune system to the point that you are now susceptible to the Virus.

Isn't it it ironic that you called for our computer Virus Protection,

and now you may have the actual Virus yourself!

So maybe by early nex...

Read and leave comments (1)

Thanks for that.

I noticed you did something

before I could get to it.

I was going to do it.

I just never got around to it.

I was always thinking about it.

I just kept putting it off.

I was glad when I saw it already done.

It meant I would not have to do it.

One less job for me.

You saved me the work.

You saved me the worry.

How nice to find a task already ...

Read and leave comments (0)

Once in a lifetime

beauty rises

a double rainbow

arcs the sky

so high

so perfect an arch

bridge to

wonder

there

beyond the hills

it makes

its mark

of joy

and hope

seeing once

is never enough.

Read and leave comments (0)

How my

heart quickens

with the smell

of fried chicken

In the kitchen

it beckons

with hunger

I'm stricken

It's drumsticks

I'm pickin'

then breasts

in addition

By my own

admission

no act of

contrition

Don't ask for

permission

soon fingers

I'm lickin'!

Read and leave comments (1)

Stay away from me

please keep your distance

you could infect and

and I have no resistance,

Don't get too close

there's no admittance

your very presence

threatens my existence!

Read and leave comments (2)

I'm always direct

in a roundabout way

don't give too much thought

to what I have to say,

I don't know very much

and though it sounds strange

I've never been wrong

so why should I change.

Read and leave comments (1)

When people don't respond

to an e-mail

it makes you wonder

what happened

did they not get it

was it so bad they could not respond?

did they want to

and then forget?

did they leave a burner on?

the water running?

or is it just that what you sent

was not worthy of a reply

expectations

sometime exceed reality

I expect

Read and leave comments (1)

Like most husbands

I am afraid of

my wife

she holds my fate

in her hands

if I screw up

there is the dreaded

silent treatment

then there is

that Look

but worst of all

is the fact

she holds the power of life

and death over me

meaning the food supply

if I don't behave

she won't make supper

and I will starve to death

on the...

Read and leave comments (0)

Make an appointment

to see the doctor

only the doctor pays no attention

to the appointment

he takes his time seeing you

because he is a Doctor

and above reproach

they call your name and escort you

to a small room

where you sit and wait

and wait and wait 

someday the doctor will come

but only when he's good and ready

it's like being in a confess...

Read and leave comments (1)

We welcome thoughtful comments

offensive comments will be removed

do not comment if you have an opinion

counter to ours

we are the final arbiters of offensiveness

which is pretty much anything we don't agree with

we have teams working 24 hours a day

making sure no independent thought or comment gets through

we get by with it because

we are s...

Read and leave comments (2)

Stay safe

they say

everybody

says it now

as if we were

facing war

or pestilence

or mean jungle cats

our basic lives now

have so little risk

we lead such easy lives

everything delivered to our door

it is not like in the past

when people actually had

to face physical harm

it was a struggle to survive

against all odds

our big...

Read and leave comments (0)

If Buttercups

were not enough

wild flowers bloom

surrounding us

Rainbows of color

bright and lush

why we enjoy

Springtime so much.

Read and leave comments (1)

Wander across a field

in the morning

full of spring grass

and spring flowers

and soon

your shoes and pant-legs

are sopping wet

from the morning dew

like wading in the shallows

like crossing a puddle

when you get to the end

you wring out

two gallons of water

and it all goes back into

the ground

to store for another day

for July.

Read and leave comments (0)

From now on all poets

will be required to wear face masks

this is a precautionary move

designed to protect the innocent poet

from insults, infections

and rotten fruit

we recommend a mask made of steel

one which covers the entire head and neck

this will give them more protection from

angry crowds with pitchforks and torches

plus they can r...

Read and leave comments (0)