mermaidcamp
Keeping current in wellness, in and out of the water
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The Tedium Trance
March 28, 2017
— 2 Comments
facade
What is the worst band of torture ever known to human kind?
I believe it is tedium, designed to numb the mind.
The orders and the triplicate files of meaningless transactions
Fill the time and suck the life out of the worker bees who serve
The whimsey of the ruling class with the resources and the nerve
To spend without repentance, to waste, to make improvidence
A privilege they perceive is granted to them for outstanding cognizance
hombre
rusty
Dream Riders
March 27, 2017
— 5 Comments
adobe
wheels
A breeze blew through our dining room, lifting curtains made of lace
We caught a glimpse of a horse and rider moving by at a galloping pace
The lawn filled up with curious geese squawking as they ran
Shedding down like snow flurries, they covered the corpse of the man
Who died suddenly from mysterious causes but then returned to life
His presence disturbed horses who all began to spook and bolt
Ghost riders dressed in fancy chaps mounted the steeds and rode them into the sky
Outlaw gunslingers broke through the kitchen door in a flash of flames and smoke
We had lost hope, trembling under the dinner table in mortal fear when I awoke.
#WeekendCoffeeShare Reaching Conclusions
March 25, 2017
— 8 Comments
horseshoes
horseshoes
If we were having coffee this weekend I would invite you to relax and take in the jasmine scent, still going strong in my front yard. I have ordered more tea (not that I was in need), so the selection has grown to epic proportion. The lazy Susan pantry literally groans under the weight of all the tea. I am digging a new blend called Hugs and Kisses, with a rose/caramel aftertaste that drives me wild. I also ordered a black passion fruit flavored tea that tastes delicious iced. We drink iced tea all year, but in summer I brew in the sun daily and we consume mass quantities. If you like, I can brew you a hot cup of roiboos jasmine to go with the flowers in the yard. It is one of my favorites, and there is a little chill this morning that will make a hot beverage feel just right. Please, make yourself at home while I fetch your drink of choice, and tell me how your life is. I want to hear what you have been doing, and how your writing is proceeding.
I have been trying to finish a non-fiction story that has unfolded over many years by creating a happy ending in real life. This is the nature of non-fiction, being just the truth. It limits one to facts. As I struggle to make my real life ending happen I am writing some fiction and poetry as a relief. I am a neophyte at both genres, and, if I do say so myself, pretty shitty at both. I like to practice to improve because I do find it liberating to just make up stories rather than try to influence hard reality in favor of a heroic outcome. It is so much easier to imagine an alternative vision than it is to bring one into being on the earth.
I spend a lot of time investigating my genealogy, discovering facts about my family tree. I have attempted some short historical fiction based on some factual data I know about my ancestors. I think this is a direction in which I could take my writing that would not only make use of the years of research I have done, but also allow me to create stories based on facts, but not limited strictly to them. All that has happened already, so there will be no changing the historical facts. Embellishing the truth, imagining the dialog and the settings, then bringing them to life seems like something I could really enjoy. I have a very famous poet ancestor, in whose honor I write 30 poems in 30 days in April as part of #NaPoWriMo. It is a challenge, but I think I owe it to her to give it a whirl for one month a year. She provided her DNA and poetry about her life and children (of which I am one). She was religious and wrote in olde English, so there is that. There are a couple other poets in the tree who lived in Tudor England. One was beheaded by Henry VIII. I tried to write a comedic ditty about his death a couple of years ago..it was one of my worst poems ever…but I published it. When I become an accomplished poet I will edit and spend much more time finishing each piece. Reaching a conclusion for a poem should be creative journey that has a universal ring. Someday I aspire to do that. My poetic muse has a short attention span that needs to be expanded. The fiction one is in the same boat. They are lazy, so they like to jump to conclusions rather than work it.
This year I am gearing up by writing some warm up poems and collecting some interesting images to use for illustration and inspiration. All I do is publish a poem each day. I only hope to improve over time and stir my genetic muse to awaken and say something profound and poetic. I keep the bar very low for quality, but do find lots of great ideas by reading the work of the other participants. I have finally finished my tax preparation and have returned to some written correspondence with a my new pen pals from February. I loaded up on stamps and plan to hand write and mail some of my shitty poems to my pen pals as a fusion of #NaPoWriMo and #InCoWriMo. They will be on great post cards, so even if the poems suck the presentation will be artful. This is the major lesson learned from the #InCoWriMo peeps, who tend to also be bullet journal, #BuJo, peeps…presentation counts, so don’t slack in that department.
Please join us on the weekend to sip and savor digital beverages with kindred spirits around the globe. Nerd in the Brain hosts this jolly group of writers. Please visit the party here to read, comment or submit your own post.
#WeekendCoffeeShare
Inclined To Glory
March 22, 2017
— 3 Comments
sky
Tomorrow I might decide to fight but now I am inclined
To let the ship of fools sail out of the harbor without a word
They have enough rope and madness has made them blind
There is no stopping the clueless, no redemption for the herd
There is a stampede rumbling and roaring over the cliff so steep
The fog hides their destiny, Davey Jones awaits them in the deep
Neptune will have his way with them, drowning, gasping death
Takes them from the perils of living, choking out their last breath
Mechanism Of The Cosmos
March 20, 2017
— 1 Comment
opening
The mechanism drives forward through the cosmic dust of seasons
Waking the flora and the fauna of each time of year is a serious task
Few moments of equilibrium contrast with plunges into disorder
Filling the months and years with primary planting and development
Fruition of every harvest begins a new cycle of reaping and sowing
The rushing of planets though nighttime sky continues unabated
What kind of seasons will follow these? Will there be more drought?
opening
#WeekendCoffeeShare Fire Rooster Edition
January 29, 2017
— 5 Comments
Smokey Takes A Stand
Welcome to my home on this cold sunny morning in Arizona. Make yourself at home while I put the kettle on. I can serve you coffee, an assortment of teas, and a wonderful combination of grapefruit,orange,and tangerine juice that I am drinking. Citrus season is in full swing here, so we are enjoying our harvest as well as some of our friends’ fruit. I have found a recipe for red grapefruit salsa that sounds really tasty, so I plan to whip that up later today. Please take some citrus back home with you when you go, since we have a super abundance to share with you. Relax and tell me about your life and writing. Did your week turn out as planned?
The year of the Rooster is here to signal a new beginning. Fire rooster is feisty and proud by nature. We have all witnessed the political season and the wild start of the new administration and knew we had crossed some kind of Rubicon. Things have changed radically and quickly in ways nobody really anticipated when the election began. As Hill correctly observed we are more divided that we thought. Although the war with the intelligence agencies was unprecedented, it is nothing in comparison with the National Park Service movement to publish scientific facts. The forms of protest are reinvented and refined daily. The year of the cock is all about reinventing everything. We are seeing that happen, whether we like it or not. Change is here. I did support the women who marched, but I feel very passionate about supporting the scientific community freaking out on behalf of science. I am afraid of dark ages without facts. We can’t afford to wipe out any more knowledge for political expediency. I feel like we all just jumped off a very steep cliff without our flying suits. We need science more than ever.
I wrote another photo prompt piece this week. I went with a free verse. The picture was intriguing, as they always are. That is the point of using the prompt. Maybe this week I will write two pieces of fiction. It is a freeing experience to be able to just make up anything you want from your imagination. My muse will eventually get warmed up to this new way of expressing myself. In the meantime I am retweeting all the @altNationalPark accounts, and joining the army of comedy on twitter.
Baddass Park Employees
War with the Park Service
Thanks for stopping by today to share coffee and some angst. I wish you all a happy and prosperous year of the rooster. May the cock be with us. Join this coffee sharing party each weekend hosted by Diana. Please visit to read, comment, or share your own post with this diverse group of talented writers. Add your two cents here.
Weekend Coffee Share, Of Poets And Politics
October 15, 2016
— 10 Comments
If we were having coffee I would invite you to sit down and tell me about your week over your favorite beverage. I am loaded with chai, roiboos, green, white, and herbal teas. For me, this season is perfect for jasmine roiboos. It is floral with a full rich flavor of harvest. Jasmine makes me swoon. Today is the full moon known as the hunter’s moon. There will be a lunar eclipse. With all that drama in the heavens I am sure some stories will be brewing down here on earth. What is happening in your world?
The story we all want to bring to an end is the election. The population is weary. We can’t take much more of this bickering. People are short-tempered about everything now. Any social discourse can end in controversy for no reason. I spent most of my time this week at home to try to avoid the total breakdown of society. Of course, this tactic was futile. I did write a few short poems, trying to get in the swing of a more productive practice as a poet. I am hoping to ease into a poem a day for life without setting a firm discipline…wondering if that will work. I bid adieu to my Audible account without regret, after my free three-month trial. Alexa is still able to read any book in my kindle library for which I purchase the audio component. Amazon has also launched a new free trial which I snapped up right away. Prime members can now pay 7.99 a month for access to the entire catalog of music in the Amazon system. This is very similar to the Apple music deal I took last year. I will not keep this one after my free month either. For the time being I am having Alexa play Bob Dylan songs. She can play his songs all day and never repeat herself. I am thrilled to fill my home with the works of our new Nobel Prize winner, Bob. In my youth I memorized all his songs and could play them on the guitar. He was an idol. He is inspiring me now to practice being a poet. His early songs are so funny and brilliant. Many fit perfectly with this election too. I am so glad he was not a lazy poet like I am.
The healthy trend continues in the kitchen. We had a tasty walnut spinach nut loaf this week, and I found a recipe for nut crisp crackers I believe will be the bomb. The only ingredients are ground up nuts of your choice and egg white. I look forward to rolling some out next week because I think they will replicate those nut crisp commercial crackers I love. I also discovered that the pesto shortbread dough makes a fine topping for savory cobbler dishes. I think the nut crackers could go either sweet or savory as a crust on the top to add crunching excitement. I am planning very nutty meals until all the old nuts have been consumed. I will let you know what I learn about preparing and eating nuts. We will learn everything there is to know about nuts on November 9. I wish everyone forbearance and wisdom.
To join the international coffee party this weekend click here. Read, write, opine with a group of congenial writers of all kinds.
#NationalPoetryDay, 140 Character Challenge
October 6, 2016
— 1 Comment
Today is #NationalPoetryDay, a time when good, bad, silly, and stuffy poets come out of the woodwork. Twitter is all a twee with creative use of language, both in rhyme and free verse. All the classics are on hand from the bard to Lisa Simpson. The political rhymes are flying along with Rumi at his best. If you have not followed a hashtag or written poetry before, today is your day. The Japanese form known as haiku is often attempted on twitter, but there are more forms from which to choose. Try your hand at a short poetic statement and join your fellow poets on this special day. You will find that 140 characters is more than enough to express sincere sentiment. Be part of history. Join #NationalPoetryDay October 6, 2016 to stretch beyond your current limits and have some fun. Here is my first of the day:
Creative Meausures
October 4, 2016
— 1 Comment
prisma
Writing, music, art, and cuisine are integrated into my daily routine. I am inspired by creative projects of all kinds. I hope my study and practice keeps life fresh and stimulating. I am comfortable writing facts and stating my own opinions. I adore investigating my family tree because I constantly learn about history in a direct and personal way when I discover more facts about my ancestors. I also imagine myself inheriting some spark of talent from each and every one of them. I wish I knew more about the kinds of arts they might have pursued during their lives.
prisma
In April I join poets around the world to write 30 poems in 30 days. During the rest of the year I am a sporadic poet, and feel a tinge of guilt about it. This week I will go to a reading at our world-famous U of A Poetry Center. The theme for this series is poetry and climate change. The poets present in an ideal setting for the purpose, then answer questions posed by the audience. The caliber of the talent is outstanding. We are lucky to have this presented to the public here free of charge as part of the Poetry Center’s ongoing work. When I go to the center, either for a reading or to read part of the amazing collection, I feel extra guilt. My famous ancestor poet, Mistress Bradstreet, is represented in the collection. She wrote in colonial Massachusetts and wonders why I am not more prolific as a poet. Life as well as writing were not easy for her because the 1600’s were far less care free for women. She managed to crank out poems that told about historic events of the time in the language of the time. She thinks I should do the same, especially since I have all these electronic devices and twitter. She had nothing so convenient.
I have no real excuse to give to her. When I get into the practice of it I enjoy being a poet. I especially like to hang out with other poets, all of whom are better and more thoughtful then I am. Perhaps the reading this week will prime my poetic pump. Synesthesia is one of my daily goals in life. To create fusion of the senses, then mix them all into memory in order to make them verbal is a fun practice of self discovery. Poetry and music lend themselves to capturing the essence of sensory experience. I am not sure why I don’t do it all the time.
What do you like to do to employ your native creativity, gentle reader? Did you inherit any of your artistic talents (of which you are aware)?
