imagination

 the sun

moves across 

south east in the sky

it clearly moves above as the day

minutes tick away

an imaginary tale of spinning

a bit unnecessary 

in an age of high tech devices

showing us

what once depended on 

our imagination...

passed the shortest day

nearly cold enough to freeze the ink

picked a great day to pull a book off the shelf

all dusty with old thoughts in them

the pages that came before 

should have warmed the book up 

when the weather was more outside inviting

most of the writing done under the natural sky

and tonight it couldn't be any clearer

thankfully passed the shortest day of the year

don't mind the long nights

but the shortest day 

can be someone else's favorite

day because it is not mine

if the wind wasn't blowing

and would maybe stay still 

for 20 minutes

it wouldn't be so hard to enjoy

winter and get some thought out

brought back twenty year thoughts 

of walking campus end to end

and result was a frozen moustache

as wind picks up and freezes the corners

of my eyes

glad I am not at the south pole

it never warms up

allegedly... 

most of the day

great day

pretty low key

nothing over the top

simple tradition

of thankfulness

amazing meal with

the greatest people on earth

the family circle is tight

like clothes straight

out of the dryer

outside since 8 am

fire blazing most of the day...

vacation fire #6 and super fight

     Today started a day that has been planned for months now.  My longest oldest friend, Mark Altieri came down to hang for the day and then stay for the "money" fight tonight.  Aside from my family Mark is the person I have know the longest in my life.  We have known each and hung out for almost 30 years.  

     We had to eat, so we decided at Mark's request to go to an old spot that most Brocktonians know all about.  The Italian Kitchen, a place that everyone in my family loves so much that we buy their stuff for all of our family parties.  Today was a special night because it's been a long time Mark, my bro and I have seen a great super fight in the boxing category.  Growing up we were lucky to have a grandfather who was into boxing.  Historically my brother and I saw many amazing fights.  Hagler vs. Leonard, Hagler vs. Hearns, Pazienza vs Camacho, Tyson vs. Holmes, and so many more.  

     This was a special kind of fight.  Connor McGregor, the two time UFC champion challenged the retired, but undefeated Floyd "Money" Mayweather.  After months of back and forth initiated by a challenge from Connor to Floyd, the fight was made.  It was a boxing super fight and the build up to the fight was epic to say the least.  Connor convinced a huge portion of the boxing fan base that he had more than just a chance to take away Floyd's unblemished record.  

     The fight was better than most imagined and Connor stood his ground, but Floyd has so much composure and stamina and experience in the ring that in the 10th round Connor could not recover and went nearly a minute getting banged around the ring without throwing a punch and the referee stopped the fight.  Winner by TKO the undefeated Floyd "Money" Mayweather!!  50-0!!  Not only was it a great fight but it was a great day.

vacation fire #6

     I got a fire going.  Then we ordered pizza for the fight.  My cousin David came over and our friend Claudio came by and Mat, Kristen and the boys (Nando & GG) were here.  It was a great night and no one regardless of who they wanted to win went home disappointed.  It was a great fight and an amazing night.  

vacation fire #5

fire #5

     Tonight's fire was started with my brother Mat here and my brother-in-law Rodrigo and our friend Claudio.  Rodrigo picked some of the corn from his property in Easton and was cooking it for dinner.  It's really good corn.  

     Tomorrow night is a big night in the combat sports industry.  Connor McGregor the UFC champion has challenged and is fighting Floyd "Money" Maywether, in a boxing match super fight.  The WBC has sanctioned the fight and it will be under boxing rules and there has been weeks and weeks of hype surrounding this fight.  Floyd retired 2 years ago undefeated at 49-0.  Connor has lost in MMA but not when standing and throwing punches.  Connor is super confident and swears he will leave Floyd unconscious in less than 4 rounds.  We shall see Floyd wasn't 49-0 because he fought weak fighters.  He has beat many legendary Hall of Fame boxers.  This is Connor's first professional boxing match.  It's gonna be an event.  Mark, DJ, Mat & the boys will be coming over.  I know I will have a fire too, but watching the fight will be exciting.  

     I will end tonight's thoughts with a picture of the moon as it set in the western sky tonight.

vacation fire #4

fire #4

     Tonight's fire was started with a visit from my long-time friend Julie Grant.  We went to high school together but a year apart in grade.  I knew her earlier than that though back when my brother and friends were all young teenage skateboarders.  

     When she left I added a few more logs and watched them get eaten by my fire.  I am going share a few picture from the garden this morning as the sun came over the tree line.

vacation fire #1-3

fire #3

     

     I find myself by another fire, successfully having my 3rd in three nights to celebrate being on vacation from my job.  Most, no all of my journal writing is done with a pen and a blank page.  Every once and a while I think I should write directly to my blog and I have attempted a few times with no luck.  This time I am going to incorporate pictures into my journal.  This too is something I have done with the blank page a pen some prints and clear tape.  This makes it easier which should mean more content.  In this day and age on the internet, content is everything.  

     

     

     My blog is packed full of content but it has been strictly poetry & random thoughts until now. Publishing my books has been my thing for almost 20 years now and that is not going to change.  I simply want to be me add another level to my writing.  Since summer vacations in the white mountains of New Hampshire, Woodard's Cabins to be exact, I have been keeping journals of daily events.    

     I am on vacation and I had fires last night and on Monday night so I want to share a few pictures from those nights too.  I am going to try keep up this journal style writing.  I will call it FRO-ZEN because I was given the nickname NiceFRO and although I have pretty much outgrown the nickname I still use it for my thoughts because that's where it came from originally.  

fire #1

fire #2

the only thing we know how to do

someone once told me
nothing very good
or very bad
lasts for very long
so enjoy every moment you have 
but be patient too
-a laugh and smile
that twenty years time
couldn't erase in the mind
sitting back now
nearly the same spot
doing nearly the same thing
with the pen trying to capture
it all with words
like it was back when
in my early twenties
she was my inspiration
the muse for the thoughts
of the time now memories
have become those life lessons
learned and old words
take on new significance
taught me about love and heartbreak
then a life time of friendship
for our born days are a week apart
and I can't remember one
where I didn't think 
of this random fact
for now the only thing 
we know how to do
is keep on keepin' on
and if we listen hard enough 
with the right kind of ears
laughter like thunder can be heard
blowing in the wind...

Rest In Peace my beautiful friend
much love eversince!!

Jolena Golemme Driscoll
5/3/1975 - 6/27/2017

perch on the porch

 the days warmer air

has not disappeared as the darkness creeps

extremely comfortable

finally have a fire going 

and it's still spring

don't need it for light or heat or food

just for something to do

night off from having to wake before dawn

will still hear planes overhead

and the occasional helicopter

and below the crackle of the fire

looking down from my perch on the porch...

putting in hours

 putting in hours

2 separate places

trying to stack some of those riches

they speak of

and of course it is never enough

by design

holding the balance better

than ever before

maybe it's taken too long

but lesson learned

can only take it from here

moving onward and upward

maybe older does bring the wiser thoughts

the smokey haze creates called

this too requires putting in hours...

eve of forty-2

on the eve of forty-two
not even sure how it happened
youngest member of the family
home merely forty-eight hours old
watched my mother holding her
she looked at me remembering
forty-two years ago
it was I being held as first born
somewhat saddened a bit
without my own progeny
but it won’t slow me down
still push on every day
and appreciate every branch
of the family tree with roots
running deep and true
on the eve of forty-two
years I appreciate
my spot in this reality
and all of my surroundings...

pushing up green knuckles

pushing up green knuckles
spring brings warm
and the ground is ready
to spring forth new life
pushing up myself
twenty five at a time
four times a day
keeping the core strong
hoping to replicate
last years crop
and push out some more
pushing up green knuckles
reaching for the sun
even though it’s been
separated from us
by layers of clouds
every week for a month
many hours of rain and clouds
with hope pushing up
green knuckles
seeing sun soon...

spring night sounds

chill in the air
but the day was warm
night cooled it down quick
but cold nights seems
to be gone
fire from across the yard
hear it snap and pop
along with all the other
spring night sounds
we all know the sound
night silence makes
especially being here
forty years same childhood
sounds watching my nephews
and niece grow up on the same
land and rolling through
the memories
how these forty years have
brought about so much change...

420 all day anyway

six strains in the bag
the day began early
absolutely above the clouds
talked to the former Mrs
the guilt wave never misses
any day and with herb eye pray
Jah saw another path
able to maintain above the clouds
years never missing a day
today is a day for everyone to step
up and raise one up to the sky
burn one down to be high in the mind
plant put here no different
than all the rest
six strains locally grown
all the derogatory comments
have now become compliments
to the confidence in the healing
properties of the herb
no matter four twenty or not
riding on another plane
as one roars overhead
like the clouds blown
they are my own
started off with
six strains in the bag...

escaping time

time just escapes
at times ironic, no?
time never stops
but days pass between writings
in the book
thoughts pop up
like colors
the flowers start
to pop too
around the pond
the landscape is
constantly changing...

confusion

dropping bombs again
who knows who
is lying now
what’s the point
trying not to hurt anyone
in my daily journey
to where I need to go
delivery on the way
something needs to be done
as the wind picks up
ten pages to slap the writing hand
and lose the train of thought
the wind picks up
and delivers confusion…

sixteen years

hard to believe
it’s been sixteen years
trying to bring back memories
without bringing back sadness
for those tough years
we could never forget
standing in the rain
shoes are going to get wet
hard to believe
sixteen years have passed
and it seems but a little more
than a blink of these eyes...

helps me figure out

don’t know where
things are headed
only can prove
what is provable
only know where I have been
see how much
everything has changed
watching everything
around me grow
this time of year
the little green tips poke through
in the flower gardens around the yard
don’t know everything
only what these eyes
help me see
and what this mind
helps me figure out...

falling behind

overcast and colder
hoped for spring today
but it hasn’t quite arrived
falling behind editing
the thoughts hoping
to break through someday
and come up with another idea
one that will take off into space
inward traveling to find out
where I am going
and where I have been
probably get down
with a quick nap
then build something great…

sending smoke signals

these days it seems harder
digging to get up on some
thoughts can’t wait
until new thoughts
begin to grow
some days it’s easy
to drop down some thoughts
on science or the lack there of
at least experimenting again
with a brand new crop
hopefully it will be fruitful
these day the mind doesn’t stop
but the pen arm page creation device
has been lazy I must say
don’t even mind the weather today
overcast is what they call it
but I am sitting solo
sending smoke signals
to someone who sees
the stars as I do
and visits me every morning...

can't abandon myself

can’t abandon
the pen and the page
been with me through
the toughest of times
still standing here
feet firmly planted
again as if spring
begins a rasta vibration
within thoughts
some twenty-five years old
can’t abandon the self
at times I know I would like to
lost in the wind watch
the bare trees bend
how long now until
everything springs into
new life...

evidence of un-truth

it’s not
that I have run out
of things to write
haven’t run out of inspiration
everyday the world around me
inspires me to push on
despite any and all hurdles
first book is fifteen years old
second book is thirteen
might be time to bring out
some of the older thoughts
in the stacks of dusty books
random thoughts in very
different frames of mind
always necessary to be willing
to change and it’s obvious
once sen in hindsight
helps in the editing process
as much as visionary thoughts
forward full steam
sometimes I do wish it made sense
why would they lie
and how could no one
question it when looking
at the evidence of un-truth...

stuck in the mind

pen stuck in the mind
style inside while
a blizzard visits
supposedly four or five
inches maybe more
expected before rain
interrupts pi day
in case it really is
some sort of code
to interpret
what it all means
pen moving still stuck
moving slowly
until free from the
mind funk keeping those
thoughts on the other side
behind a wall and snow
today rain tonight
or so they say
but do they ever
really know...

flip it to page

under bright sun
trying to flip it
to the page
can see myself
exhale with that
holy smoke and even without
because that air
is still cold
March is holding on
to it’s cold edge
the lazy afternoon
probably deserves a nap
as well under a thick blanket
flip it to an unconscious
state or so they say...

up early again

up early on a day
without work
still cold and even though
February brought higher
than normal temperatures
today it’s cold again
the sky is clear
and so is my mind
and for so long
was told the opposite
that I might in fact
be clouding it up
but truth has revealed
itself to me…

up early and out with
a true friend
and I could be her son
we are friends that work
at the same place
we talked up early
for good reason
spoke for sometime
then parted ways…

up early as the sun
warms the patio and table
moved from the porch
twenty feet away
merely pointing out the obvious
but it’s like push-ups
for no good reason
except to keep up the strength
trying to strengthen all
the aspects of my life
once again up early
for that reason as well...

completely possible

wouldn’t say I have
given up completely
on poetics but sometimes
the random thoughts are all
I have left wouldn’t even say
that’s a bad thing
just where it is going
from here on out
always kept it journalesque
but now the life living
has become somewhat dull
wouldn't say my mind has but
the day to day has become mundane
wouldn’t say I am unhappy
this wouldn’t be true
just hard to get excited
when everyday seems the same
wouldn’t say I don’t have the will
and power to change all of this
at times motivation avoids my table
my spot in this place
have to make a point
to activate and somehow
harness said motivation
wouldn’t say this is impossible...

days go by

days go by
and frustration
sets in when the pen
doesn’t move
and only one reason really
because I didn’t pick it up
and move it
days go by
and fatigue is hard to shake
enjoying the warmth
knowing the chill
will return another few weeks
before a layer can be
peeled back and warmth
enjoyed but days go by
quickly luckily in the blink
of an eye ninety-two years
not gone a month
thoughts still strong...

once was

no idea what might come out
but it’s the truth as far as
I see it because
these are only my thoughts
and my thoughts
might play tricks on me
but they no longer lie
for any reason lies only
lead to digression no room
for progression
no idea who is going
to reach out from where
after how long sorry if I am not
as nice as I once was...

take anywhere aspect

sometimes I am too lazy
to go back inside after
I find a spot to write
and grab my book
but not tonight
even in the cold usually
I have no idea what thoughts
will come up and words will
come out when I sit quiet
this book is probably too
big more of an artist style
sketch book but with lines
to write on and it’s probably
because I get used to the smaller ones
then decide I need a big one
only to remember why I write in
smaller books usually
they fit with me better
and I can take them anywhere
this one is a little too big on the
take anywhere aspect of things...

out of view

no need to be reminded
that I am alone
feel the solitude daily
don’t need a special day
to feel more alone than usual
by the end of the day
I will have risen above
any loneliness
that tries to creep
position myself out back
hard to spot
out of view...

need sunglasses

the sun overpowers
the cold air and all the snow
is beginning to melt
been away from the book
almost two weeks
watching the last elder pass
and laid to rest while it was cold
even as the sun melts the snow and ice
I don’t own a pair of sunglasses
and never thought I needed
them until today...

G-Ma

we have lost our last elder
in our small family
we all watched that final light
from the oldest generation
flicker and fade and silently disappear
five generations
in one moment became four
the energy in that small room
around that small woman
that meant so much
was anything but small
chills surrounded and somehow
calmed my heart
despite the intense sadness
knowing what we all witnessed
was her final gift to us
a moment to wonder
if that energy
with the calming chill
was her energy
the final Elder
being passed to those present
a moment to appreciate
that room filled with love
despite watching her
take her final mortal breath
a moment to feel her energy
and hold it in our hearts
from this day forward...

same kind of sunshine

sit back with my cone
like a kid with an ice cream
well not anything like that
but it came out like that
when I put the pen to the page
afternoon sun melts
what is left of the snow
the green grass pokes through
visions of spring minus
the twenty-five degree temperature
somehow sunlight still manages
to turn solid to liquid
before eyes as I sit back
put flame to the cone
soon to hit the sit still zone
saw my dad sitting pensive
and asked what he was thinking
he said sometimes I sit and think
and sometimes I just sit
watching a neighborhood beach ball
blow around in the wind
without direction
only the fences keep it trapped
in the corner probably
be gone by the weekend
if that long sit back
with my cone diminishing
in the same kind of sunshine...

what's next

the snow is all but melted
and gMa still holds on
it’s the saddest part of life
to witness the end
the uncertainty of what’s next
we all have our own thoughts
on what’s next and wouldn’t
it be strange if
we are all right...

fading surrounded by love

she is fading
and it’s sad to watch
my mother by her side
every night
we really have no idea
what is next
and that is undoubtedly
the scariest part
of the entire process
the last in our family
of her generation
she is fading
and I can only hope
her husband
of fifty plus years
is waiting for her on
the other side
in some form
everyone feels different
as we watch
the process unfold
everyone of us remembers her
in different ways
I am the oldest grandchild
and she said my name
two days ago
in response to a kiss on her forehead
she is fading
surrounded by love...

twenty minutes

four strains
one cone
twenty minutes
listening to the rain
twenty minutes back
the sun was just finished
drying the rain soaked porch
from earlier in the day
gloomy all but
twenty minutes of today...

eternal sleep

crazy times for sure
watching gMa’s last days
wishing she could see
the newest member
arrive before April
highly unlikely
judging from the passed
week’s decline but
she has enjoyed ninety-two years
and she is ready to join
her husband on the other side
wherever we might end up
after this life is over
crazy times as we all
share different beliefs
no idea what happens
after this life ends
I do know when I sleep
my mind continues
without my control
and although I do not
always understand my dreams
or lack of dreams
I tend to view death
as an eternal sleep...

powerful insights

finally starting to see
the powerful insights it can bring
how quickly it turns
a headache into the past tense
and don’t remember how you
got to the chair still comfortably
aware enough to rest and enjoy
hard to believe it has taken
so many this long to discover
but still glad many have come
along for the ride
back into the mind
for a look into what life is all about
from the inside out
learning myself daily
soon to be producing more
than just the 9-5
which is 4-12 for me
only I would notice that
cold enough for the winter hat
and hood glad it came as rain
instead of being snow and all
it could have been
inside cooking with RSO
healthy medicated butter
what do ya know...

Political Thoughts - new boss

the ceremony is over
oath taken and promises
made to the nation
something different
the new boss
leading the nation
for the people
and plenty did protest
and it changed nothing
hopefully a calm will settle
or maybe things will be
business as usual
new boss just like the old boss
maybe nothing will change
and we will see that rulers
just rule and say what they need
to say to get to their power position
or maybe will be surprised
by the new boss of the nation...

minor details

almost too big
too much space
to spread thoughts on
but it doesn’t stop me
from playing on
without a sport to follow
trying to instead
unravel the truth
today’s technology
allows us library size
knowledge at our fingertips
at any time almost too big
to catch all the minor details
of the day that makes it
specifically today and
different somehow from
yesterday and tomorrow
no one thinks like this
most of the time hear them say
almost too big but I don’t mind
a challenge to better the self...

Political Thoughts - 3 days out

three days from now
a new era will begin
and for at least the next 4
a successful business man
will be the president of the US
from the moment he announced
he was going to run, and win
the power structure
already in place
has done everything they can
to prevent his confidence
and nationalistic ideals
from catching on
fever pitched spreading
like a cold in an elementary school
the mainstream media
did everything it could
to derail the train of thought
trying to bring about a change
that neither side of the political
coin wanted and after all
everyone threw his way
he still won and in three days
he will take his spot in history
as number 45
and truth be told
I have never had much respect
for the system in place
but know from research
that it would probably easier to change
from within
and it seemed hopeless because
both sides have been compromised
more than 30 years now
and I never had much hope
that the government
was going to help me
live out my dreams
and I do not think it is
the job of any government
younger days I bought
the line left of center
thinking social justice
was a viable answer
to the state question
do we even need a state
and protested the UN
in 96 and in 1997
protested the cozy relationship
with the Communist Chinese government
protested the war in Afghanistan
and the war in Iraq
an never liked or voted for GWB
nine eleven 2001 left more questions
than answers and I never believed
the official story never believe
any story said to be the official one
research on my own learning
and unlearning at the same time
in a search for truth
that will not end in 3 days
with the changing of the figurehead
leading the US for the next
4 years at least...

not, nothing

counted twenty high
planes crisscrossing the sky
all afternoon yesterday
every one of them
leaving a straight line
trail white gray in color
each one of them spreading
across the clearest sky
seen in days
it’s probably nothing
is what I always hear
when I point it out to others
but what if by the slightest chance
it is something we can clearly see
what it is because it’s
obviously not nothing...

really just ramble

most of the time being alone
is not a big deal
sometimes it is rough
but most of the time
it’s easier based
completely on my own
experiences that should be
obvious and I really shouldn’t be
so redundant wearing gloves
as I write because I still have yet
to put down the smoke
and I do not blow smoke indoors
most of the time
I do not torture myself with too much
cold done that for many years
shaving away the hair that grows
but always wear a hat anyway
never minded the cold
always just prepared for it
and rarely complain about it
even when it becomes unbearable
by then spring is only weeks away
most of the time I really just ramble...

5 am moon & starlight

the table has ice
crystals all over the surface
and one by one they turn
to wet spots soon dried by
the creeping sun coming
overhead from behind the trees
and warms everything
enough to be a peaceful
wind free winter day
hoping to end the day
with the same clear skies
and the same stars
that met me in the back yard
earlier before dawn
everything had a frosty
coating couldn’t find a spot
to sit just wandered around
the back yard
the only light was the moon
and stars...

cold as expected

cold is back again
but it’s winter
and it is expected, no?
nowhere to escape
if outside
it’s where I blow my smoke
so cold I will be again
but it’s winter
so I dress for the chill
sitting so still
hidden from any wind today
found a spot trying to
fill up the end of this book
before onto the next
historically speaking
coming up on another milestone
soon if they are kept track
of like laps in a race
only it seems as if I am running
backwards at times
if it is January
it is expected to be cold...

warm afternoon

another warm afternoon
watching the dawn of the moon
last night as it disappeared
into the clouds
and hope to see it again
tonight but the clouds
but the clouds have started
to mount up earlier than
twenty-five hours ago
another warm afternoon
but how long before the cold returns
because we know it will
all we can do is soak up
the warmth and not waste time
wondering if it would work
just build it and they will
grow especially inspired by
the warm afternoon...

this pen

probably not
going to make it
to the end of this book
tonight
but every now
and then I surprise
myself with
the amount of thought
that comes from
this pen…

30 minute thought

it’s not as if I am tearing them out
just filling them up one by one
some days its ten to one
very rarely skipping days
rocks maybe
never with my feet steady
stomping new boots and all
every three or four years
have to protect these feet
been on them for over forty years
it’s the least I can do
guessing there are plenty of steps
to take or not take
as the case may be
one I can’t carry alone
but I will drag it
if I have to move
anywhere it will probably
be up not quite the tower
where I once sat
but possibility only above
where I rest my head now
and again I could be wrong
direction driving myself crazy
because even though I work
for someone else I still
want to do a good job…

nine days left

nine days until
number forty-five
takes the reigns of power
question remains
will he be any different
will he be the one
everyone hates the most
or could he possibly be one
who exposes the system
for the corrupt control
device put in place
to do exactly that
we will always be pawns
unless we just detach
and try our best to live
our lives for us and
those who are closest
left or right
neither is right
and most times they are both
dangerously close to flat
out wrong by every
measurement...

watching overhead

watching overhead
ten years or more
wondering what is going
on with the planes
no one I know can answer
none of us know
and I do not know any pilots
in less than 3 hours
there have been 6 planes
same direction same high altitude
white straight line of cloud
behind a white plane
two more last five minutes
opposite direction
same height same details
as the previous six
so many years back
started snapping pictures
and now it is easier
everyone having cameras
on their phones
to stop and snap a few
pictures and maybe
it is for our own good
but I prefer to make
my own choices
good or bad...

pondering wind and wood

standing on this porch
at this moment in time
no stranger than any other
just as strange as each
and everyone the sun highlights
the melting snow
and can be blinding
if stared at for too long
sitting on top of a wooden structure
on a wooden chair
writing at a wooden table
noticing how all of it is
sturdy in the wind
simultaneously watching
all the trees bend
and sway in the wind...

much to learn

do not know
how it could work
being so far away
at this moment
never had the luck
necessary to make it
strong enough to it last
even close by
dawn brings light
renewed daily
and the stars right
before dawn are always
the brightest
somehow I find the warmth
in those facts alone
knowing there is still
much to learn...

loud birds behind

just like that
the sun is back this morning
it’s causing quite an uproar
in the bird community
behind my spot
probably not anything
too bad they must be excited
for the warm window
today brings to the winter life
these birds don’t leave the area
for long at all when cold weather
arrives just like that
two days ago blizzard warning
and it being the first snow
of a new year and everyone forgot
that they don’t need to freak out
and just like that in 48 hours
most of the snow is gone
made this morning’s sun
feel so good after days of single
digit temperatures
most likely it won’t last
but why would we expect it to
it’s okay though I don’t mind
winter because just like that
it will be gone as spring
arrives again...

moves like it does

never been hard
for me to believe
it’s the current year
just hard to believe
how many have actually passed
beneath this hand
moving as if it had
somewhere to go
and even if it doesn’t
it moves like it does...

few more months

it had to snap like
a streak of cold days
and then some rain
and warmer weather
six days away from
the pen and page
after thirty plus days
without fail
it had to snap like
the rubber band beyond
it’s furthest reach
all of the snow is starting
to melt quick as if the rain
needs help it’s only January
chances are snow will be around awhile
back to the little green table
on the small green porch
overlooking the little green
poking through the snow
in a couple spots on the lawn
most likely covered
for a few more months...

rightly so

twenty minutes late
doesn’t matter
as much as getting
it done as the sun
light fades the house
faces in that same
direction as it goes everyday
trash by the sidewalk
to be picked up tomorrow
notice the sunset sky
will be up before
the sun comes into view
even on the off days
twenty minutes before
sun breaks through
those winter skeleton trees
to the east awake in the cold
fighting one off at the same time
place importance on fulfilling
a twenty year old dream
and rightly so...

fighting to feel better

fighting off the feeling
of sickness and using
the day to rest actually
able to notice the longer
day as sun emerges
for a second time today
being out on the porch
at this time daily allows
me to track the position
of the sun still trying to fight
fatigue at every angle
from sunrise to sunset
it’s a severe heaviness
maybe brought on by the rain
it seems necessary to lie
down to regain some strength
back to the early grind
in the morning hopefully
it passes fast like it usually
does for now enjoying
the sun shining on the small pond
in the corner of the yard
gives me the energy and the motivation
to fight harder to feel better...

they might, I say

back to the front porch
only dry spot to find
with some light
using my knee
as a desk new hat in the mail
coast to coast three days
what a deal
back to the front porch
coffee and some smoke
join me here creating
written content for
the current year
because someone has
to keep track of the thoughts
won’t stop might as well
put them down hope
someone sees me here
knowing they won’t
says everyone I know
but they might
I say...

new year determination

determined to make
a personal impact
in this new and soon to be
current year a new book of
random but organized thoughts
not going to let the night go by
idle without putting it down
for someone in the future
to see this is where the poetry
hides in the idle moments
of the working man life style
twisted at the ends
to keep it neatly packed
getting full like the winter
wool grown despite the white spots
some call gray and still others silver
but they look white in the mirror
determined to see clearer in the new year
soon to be current only new for about
a week then current returns
to regularity but I remain
determined to make
these words relevant...

no other choice

great day to be
first of the year
no other choice
supposing the calendar
won’t lie
great day to be
home with the family
on the first of the year
no other choice
time pauses for no one
ten years since the biggest
wrong choice made
never again be that blind
not seeing the entire picture
only the parts that look good
and seem to be exactly what I
needed wanted etc.
but it was all a lie
and so very wrong
from the first moment...

dreams to reality

the thoughts are like
bubbles in the water
and grains on a beach
stars in the night sky
so many existing all at once
hard to hold onto something
solid as the ground beneath
some thoughts are so short
they stand out from the rest
gained from a day off from
work need to begin work
on the permanent home
for a perpetual garden
the thoughts won’t stop
enough to consider
it a dream that needs
to become a reality…

new year's sun

last night’s rain
and wind brought
a new year just
as expected
but the blue sky
and the sun
this morning
warming still
at forty degrees
a new day dawns
and I always
think of her too
far from here
connected by the stars...