Haiku Week: The Thanksgiving Finale!

Happy Thanksgiving, yo! And thanks to all who participated in Haiku Week! Namely, Deadspot, Skyler's Dad, Cormac Brown, Chris, Bubs and the Cap'n. Enjoy the gravy!


Walt Whitman was cool
Had a body electric
A beard and a hat

I can't resist you,
or the haiku's siren call.
Run away with me.

Haiku compells usto see
life's tiny beauties.
Let me get my keys.

Whirring props cut wind.
I grasp the armrests, breath deep
and choke on your Brut.

I used to wear Brut
Mom bought me some for Christmas
Back when I was ten

Low-flying airplane.
Four nervous friends glance upward:
This time no bombs fall.

you found a treasure
Three lines of strong visuals
I got the shivers.

Box, circle, and box,
Amid the shrinking houses,
Says my tribe was here.

Lavatory door:
It says you're occupado
but I gotta go!

Butter and shortnin;
Golden balls baked in a row,
Heaven in bite size

mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm
mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm mmmm
mmmm mmmm mmmm tasty

you said a mouthful!
those cookies were tasty, true
but very fragile.

I can not believe
with all that great taste and smell
it is not butter!

what else could it be?
playdough? Bacon fat? Swiss cheese?
it boggles the mind.

I've done smarter things
Than climbing in a hot tub
During a cold snap.

Terrible T.V.
and chicken soup's gentle steam.
This, Deadspot prescribes.

The Price Is Rigth, Friend
Soup and snuggles are just right
To ward off this bug.

Improve your meetings;
Puppets add flair and style
To boring topics.

Oh, hey, PowerPoint.
It's the devil's own software.
Please, please make it stop.

Transitions, clip art
Animated charts...and me
Sliding to stupor

with searching comes loss
and the presence of absence
"my novel" not found

A cryptic haiku
of personal loss and gain
I hope to read more

Water, yeast, flour
And some salt form stretchy warmth,
Yielding in my hands

bread is my weakness
I can almost smell it from here
when should I arrive?

bread dough in my hands
reminds me of Todd Rungren
beating boss's head

Was in your kitchen
waiting on a ride from Doc
flour everywhere

Uh, that last haiku
wasn't really true at all
SUGAR was left out

I prefer Doc's socks,
Warm, woolen; I pull them on
and he is with me.

Doc's feet freeze in Ohio cold
This must be true devotion
Is this correct?

Doc has tons of socks
But it bugs the shit out of
him when I snatch them.

True love/devotion, indeed.

Haiku Week: Doc's Socks!

I prefer Doc's socks,
Warm, woolen; I pull them on
and he is with me.

Haiku Week: Baking Bread!

Water, yeast, flour
And some salt form stretchy warmth,
Yielding in my hands

Haiku Week: Puppets!

Improve your meetings;
Puppets add flair and style
To boring topics.

Haiku Week: I'm Sick!

I've done smarter things
Than climbing in a hot tub
During a cold snap.

Haiku Week: Baking Cookies!

Butter and shortnin;
Golden balls baked in a row,
Heaven in bite size

Haiku Week! Airplane Edition

Whirring props cut wind.

I grasp the armrests, breath deep

and choke on your Brut.

Raz-a-ma-TAG!

My old pal, Splotchy, has tagged me and, being desparate for material, I accepted. So, while I will put a haiku up later, I'm taking a break and doing a meme!!!

1. Five names you go by:
a. Flannery
b. Jenny
c. Jen
d. Darlin'
e. Jerry (from a mis-addressed response to a support email)

2. Three things you are wearing right now:
a. Faux diamond earrings
b. Doc Martin hiking boots
c. Doc's socks

3. Two things you want very badly at the moment:
a. Comments
b. More play time

4. Three people who will probably fill this out:

As Splotchy did, I'll tag a few people and see who salutes.

5. Two things you did last night:
a. Ate some chocolate lava cake
b. Drove in the snow

6. Two things you ate today:
a. A handful of Kashi Fire Roasted Vegetable crackers
b. I will be eating pizza we won for having the best (only) group costume at our work Halloween party.

7. Two people you last talked to on the phone:
a. A needy irrational woman who needed help with reports
b. A very bright trainee who forgot to email me that she was cancelling our phone training

8. Two things you are going to do tomorrow:
a. Have Thanksgiving with Doc's family
b. Drive

9. Two longest car rides:
a. Canton, Ohio to Florida
b. Canton, Ohio to Morrisburg, ONT

10. Two of your favorite beverages:
a. Diet Coke
b. Mojitos

Okay, I tag:
Jeff
Spooky
Echo

Haiku Week!

In preparation for the Thanksgiving Holiday, I plan on writing a haiku a day for a week. If you care to comment, please do so in haiku form.

Walt Whitman was cool
Had a body electric
A beard and a hat

February Snow In November

I'm ready for winter...I think. Just two weeks ago, we were still having weather in the 60's and 70's and this week? 20 degrees and inches of snow that seems to be staying put, at least until Sunday when temperatures will start to climb again.

Over the past five or six years, winter has taken it's toll on me. Of course, for four of those years, I was living and/or working in Cleveland, where winters are far more brutal than they are here, a mere 60 miles south. So, I always approach fall with trepidation, foreseeing what's around the corner. But I'm trying to avoid letting dread of the future step on my wa.* I don't need extra, unnecessary angst baggage, thank you very much.

On Monday, snow tumbled from the clouds and filled the windows in our office with static. We periodically craned our necks to get a look and proclaim, "Wow, look at all that snow." When lunchtime rolled around, I toyed with the idea of jumping in the car instead of walking to the grocery to get my salad lunch. But, I was wearing my boots, I had my gloves and winter coat...why not walk?

So, Jeff and I made our way to the Iggle in a light snow. On the way into the produce section, we were treated to a spectacular display of mullets. There was an older couple where the man had your standard mullet and his lovely lady friend had a modified femmullet (feathered on the sides, long in back). We sighed in delight and fought the urge to snap a picture. It's really the small miracles, isn't it? I got my salad and we tromped back to the front door and exited into a swirling snow extravaganza.

"Wow, look at all that snow!" we both said.

We continued our return to work, talking about this and that. But I couldn't help interrupting Jeff and expressing my amazement. The snowfall was so perfect: big, one-inch flake clusters, spiraling around us like fairies on crack. It seemed to have been choreographed by some crazy genius, maybe Paula Abdul.

Making our way across the parking lot, we were walking into the snow, so we had to look down, lest we take snowflakes in the eyes. It was so odd, because the snow was blowing by fast and it looked like we were not moving forward at all. It was a cool illusion of perspective. I wanted to notice this, point it out to everyone around me and remember it.

Throughout my journey through the snow globe, I could sense rumblings in the back of my mind: this snow is going to cost me money. I'm going to need to run the furnace more. I'm going to have to turn the lights on earlier in the evening. I'm going to have to heat the car up and leave it running. Yeah, maybe. But I'm ready for that. And I'm done being angry at the amount of money it takes to live. I've determined that it's my job to compartmentalize that shit and get on with life. I've learned I can't silence my negativity, but I can quiet it by acknowledging it's there and moving on, kind of like you would do with the arachnid exhibit at the zoo. As much as I don't like spiders, I recognize their value and I don't dwell on them. And my negativity does have value...it keeps me from blowing all my money on stupid shit...for the most part.

But getting back to Monday's snowfall...I think I will always remember it, especially if I see the likes of it again. It's the kind of thing that could inspire me to write a poem. Maybe I will...


*This will probably be the only footnote you see from me. Ever. I'm using it because I don't want to break the flow of my paragraph defining what you'll probably understand if I just let you find your way in the context of the paragraph. But for those who get lost: "Wa" is a term of general well-being. I think it's from Doc's bag of phraseology, but it may be a bit of new-agery.

Tuesday

Well, it's Tuesday.

"A court of equity will not assist a person in extricating himself or herself from the circumstances that he or she has created."

Doc and I were just discussing maxims. He believed he had just come up with one. Observe:

Upon reentering the garage after an al fesco whiz, Doc declares, "I have just come up with a new maxim."

"Oh?"

"You should never piss on your own firewood."

"A maxim, huh?"

"Yes," he replied.

"It's really more of common sense, don't you think?" I asked.

"Well, that's what a maxim is..."

"Huh...but I'm not so sure..." I replied as I headed off to look it up.

Long story short: This is a maxim.

What was particularly interesting was an example of a legal maxim, which became the title of this post:

"A court of equity will not assist a person in extricating himself or herself from the circumstances that he or she has created."

And yet we bail out Wall Street.

"If the courts were handling this shit, they'd say, 'Let 'em dangle," I said. "But think about who's handling this: The current government."

"And who's been in Big Business' pocket for eight years? W..." Doc said.

"Right...him and those fuckers in the Senate...excepting one, of course...he ain't been there long enough to be invested. But now that they're on the way out, Big Business is calling up and saying, 'We want our money back."

So, after this discussion, I'm thinking, "Don't piss on your own firewood" would be a pretty good maxim to hand over to the new administration. 'Cause when you pee on your own firewood, the odor will haunt you. Or maybe, "Don't shit where you eat." Or are those aphorisms...

Sweet Home Ohio

I'm back! I'm burried in work! I've got lots to say and no time to say it. Check in with me late tonight...perhaps I'll get a chance to post my adventures in Nashville.

Missed you all!

Science Lessons

When I was in Kindergarten, I learned that water boils at a certain temperature, but in places of high altitude, like, say, Colorado, you have to wait longer or heat it higher for it to happen. It gave me this habit of mind, whenever I have to boil something, my mind wanders to Colorado or the Continental Divide (featured in the movie with the same name). Then I'd move on to other things.

But tonight as I was waiting for the water/milk to boil for mashed potatoes, I did go to Colorado...but it didn't stop there. My mind turned to Skyler's Dad, and GKL (both of them). It made me smile to have a reason to think about you away from the computer.

This recent Halloween Pagent was great fun, thank you officially Beth, from the bottom of my heart. I found some new blogs and reconnected with some old pals. (Cormac Brown, I'm talking to you.) The spirit of fun and commaradarie generated by this pageant were a breath of fresh air in this dire time. It was a fine example of what's best in blogging.

So to anyone new out there: Hello and welcome. I'm looking forward to holding you in my thoughts.

To everyone who stops in: Hello and I read your blog today...it was AWESOME.

I Was Wrong...Winning Is Bliss!!!

As a lifetime Browns and Indians fan, I'm no stranger to heartbreak. I was prepared to go home an also ran tonight. While anticipation of a thing might be wonderful, it is nothing compared to the the thing itself. Congratulations to Barak Obama and to all of us.

I am inspired and so proud of this country right now; the tears won't stop. Instead of feeling like the only hope I had was to endure and survive, I now feel like we can thrive. I believe that the personal feeling of responsibility for the people around me and the caring I receive in return is reflected in this new leader. Let there be no more talk of bootstraps and refusal to meet half way. Let's sit down together and figure this world out. And let's do it with everyone at the table.

We can make it happen...yes, we can.

Ignorance Is Bliss

As I sit here waiting for the polls to close, I am savoring the possibility of a future where Barak Obama is president, Issue 8 passes, libraries are funded and schools can keep operating. I really want to know the outcome, but I can wait. Right now the future is wide open. Let's cross our fingers and hope for the best.

May The Best Candidates Win

So, then, who would the wizard be?

List of Good Things That Have Happened Recently

When I'm not busy working, I'm usually busy with household administrivia, crocheting, or playing one of the many iterations of the "Dash" games (Diner Dash, Wedding Dash, Fashion Dash, etc....really, I have a problem and will need an intervention soon). This means less time for blogging. When I used to work for the government, I had plenty of time. Now, I'm engaged in my work and have no good reason to procrastinate. Things happen instantly in a paperless world, so I don't have the lag time inter-office mail used to give me. Damn you efficiency! Thy name is blog-killer!

At any rate, I feel compelled to post. So, as I remember the good things that happened this week I'll continue to add them to this post. Here is my first iteration:

• I got to eat hot French Onion Soup in Doc's bathrobe and my slipper socks at John's Bar on Friday, due to the fact that I was "in constume" as a hobo. It was a delightful experience that I highly recommend


• I got to cook uninterrupted on Saturday night. My parents had the kids and I was making a special meal for Doc's birthday: Homemade pizza and chocolate cake. I do believe I have perfected my pizza recipe. It's so good that no take out/delivery pizza could stand next to it without whithering in shame. The next time you're here, I'll make it for you


• Lucy helped me make cornbread last night, which also turned out perfectly; I remembered to add the sugar this time.


• Doc's got his license so I can remove a layer of anxiety I've been carried around which caused me to imagine him calling me from jail and asking for huge amounts of money to bail him out.


• I did the bills and had some left over


• I paid 20 bucks to fill my tank, which was on E. Gas is $1.99 a gallon around here.


• Tomorrow is the election and we will be looking forward to a new president named Barak Obama. All talk of "mavericks" and "hockey moms" will be quietened

I've got a lot to be happy about. How about you? What's on your list?