haiku

below carbon clouds
veils of rain evaporate
before reaching me

for Daily Discover Prompt

poem

what is the relationship
between beauty and wisdom
tough to tease out because
nobody i know
seems all that beautiful or wise

for Putting My Feet in the Dirt

haiku

funny video
cat at play then next morning
dead rat on doorstep

for Daily Addictions

tutor

come on greg. grasp the concept.

[groaning]

grit your teeth. you want to graduate. this is within your grasp.

[grumbling]

i’ll graph it. grapple with it. get a grip on it.

{grousing]

you’re going great. grok it.

[gruff growling]

it’ll come to you gradually. they’re going to grill you on it.

[grim]

grin and bear it. it’ll grow on you.

[gagging]

grope your memory. grep in it. it’s all grist for the mill.

[grossed out]

times up for the day. grammar is tough.

 

For Daily Post

captivating

what do you think of marci?

dude, she’s captivating.

what? who says captivating? that’s something you’d read in a fashion review… so you think she’s pretty?

i don’t know about that. cute, maybe? interesting? the main thing is, she seems nice. she’s… perky? does that sound dumb?

nah. she’s perky. they say she’s also smart.

yeah, that too. she’s, you know, got my interest. i’m captivated.

so you going to ask her for a date?

i think she’s out of my league.

how can you be captivated if you won’t ask her out for a date?

because i can’t stop thinking about her.

 

For Daily Post

meander

my blood pressure was high. my mind was confused.

you’re stressed, said my doctor. reduce your stress.

you should leave the city, said my shrink. take a vacation. get away from your job. go back to your roots. meander in the countryside.

so i booked passage to southern turkey.

there I found the ancient maiandros (mαίανδρος) river, whence comes the word meander. by strolling along the banks of this winding river, i would by definition be meandering. the river’s modern name is büyük menderes, the turks having owned it these last five hundred and fifty years or so.

where to start, the river’s source (dinar, where are found the ruins of celaenae-apamea) or mouth (on the aegean near samos)? i couldn’t worry about this, as it would cause stress, which i was to avoid at any cost, so i flipped a coin (a turkish lira, 1989; atatürk’s head) and began my meander at dinar.

the river being 341 miles long, it took me some time to negotiate it at a slow pace (i never took more than ten steps without pausing to contemplate the water and my life).

by the time i was done, i felt a lot better.

 

For The Daily Post

suddenly

glacier withdraws at
glacial pace then suddenly
green grass blades appear

 

For The Daily Post

uncompromising

if we’re going to live together, you’ve got to be flexible.

i am flexible, but you get an idea in your head and you’re unshakable. look, you’ve got to bend a little once in a while. bend but not break.

i bend every day. i’m determined to make this work. i’m not stubborn but nevertheless, i do have principles.

you’re obdurate. you’re headstrong. you’ve got to understand that different people are different. i’m not you.

you are not me. you’re pigheaded. you’re a bloody-minded man.

aha. so that it’s. you’re firm and uncompromising, but i’m intractable and immovable. you’re a woman, resolute but fair, unyielding but willing to meet me halfway. i’m the typical guy, intransigent, obstinate, rigid.

that’s about it. you’ll make a deal with another guy. you’ll come to an understanding, you’ll make concessions. i know i’m single-minded. all i’m asking for is give and take.

ok. i take back what i said. let’s find a happy medium. i love you and respect you.

same here. i got a little carried away. compromise is good.

let’s go out and do it over dinner.

a cocktail and dinner.

or a beer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For The Daily Post

fact

We live in a post-fact world.

I don’t pay any attention to facts anymore, and I’m a teacher.

I give the kids what they want – a smooth ride. Entertainment. Nobody cares about the teaching part.

Once in a while, a student will “fact check” me, but a word or two to them about their grade for the semester shuts them up.

I just say what I want to say. Whatever comes into my head, fact or fiction. Who cares? Folks just want to believe.

I may sweat a little in the doctor’s office, waiting for the verdict. You need your good health.

In the same way, I pay attention to my tax guy and my car mechanic. I’m not stupid.

The kids don’t have to worry about any of that, though. With them, I’m fact-free.

 

For The Daily Post

branch

honey, i’ve been promoted.

wonderful! to what?

branch manager.

wow. the company’s branching out? opening a branch office? where?

some little town in the middle of montana.

huh. how many in the office?

just me at first.

that’s a branch? sounds more like a twig. or a bud.

they told me branches start out small like that, and branch managers too. for example, branch rickey signed with the st. louis browns in 1905 and look, he went on to introduce jackie robinson to major league baseball. the branch davidians started out small and…

whoa right there. aren’t those the guys that were at waco?

well, yeah. but that was later and they had a compound there, not an office.

i need a drink.

bourbon and branch water?

 

for The Daily Post