California Fall

California Fall- - 
swarthy men smoke in the sun, 
taking off their coats.

Red leaves falling...

Red leaves falling -- 
Cat watches birds in the rain 
from the window.

10/30/84

The night I was raped for the second time,
a girl was killed
by a man with worn out shoes
and an even more frayed sense of morality
for $600 that stayed in a safe he couldn't open
so she was murdered for nothing
while, in other places,
people bought candy and hung effigies of ghosts
and prepared for costumed children's visits.
Her name was Robin,
and, if you are reading this, you know mine,
and now you know why some people
don't like Halloween.
There are some things
even fun-sized candy
cannot fix.

A sliver of moon...

A sliver of moon

and the dawning sun--

gray outlines of trees.

Fog rolls in...

Fog rolls in--
a soft, warm sweater, and
the rustle of leaves.

Summer's last hurrah....

Summer's last hurrah--
songbirds, the smell of peaches,
and careless sunburns.

A Couple Versions

Cat head disappears
into a ball of fur --
apples bake, birds tweet.

------------

Cat head disappears
into a ball of fur --
winds blow browning leaves.

------------

Winds blow browning leaves--
cat's head disappears
into a ball of fur.

A Couple Versions

Cat head disappears
into a ball of fur --
apples bake, birds tweet.

------------

Cat head disappears
into a ball of fur --
winds blow browning leaves.

------------

Winds blow browning leaves--
cat's head disappears
into a ball of fur.

Diana the Cat Is Gone

Juliet

1 day ago in Pinole, CA 

Hands clasped, 
we cry over her frame to 
the sound of traffic.

Internet's down.

Internet's down.
Cyber complaints quiet--
at least for now.

#senryu

Trash day

Trash day --
in the bottom of the green bin,
ants scramble about.

Rushing Thought River

Rushing Thought River --
sometimes I've lain down in it,
sometimes just a toe.

A Tanka & a Senryu

Ugh, this heat!
Everything smells like dust,
even in the shade.
So look up to the green leaves,
the sanctuary of trees.


#tanka

------------------------------------

The loveliest walks
can result in blisters.
Take them anyway.

#senryu (I think!)

Written Yesterday

Solstice sun still hot --
geese cross the twinkling lake,
never mind the glare.


-----------

Old woman, rushing - -
she stops to smell a rosebush
and hurries away.

Above the barb wire...

Above the barb wire,
the chain link fences - -
glorious sunset. 

Written This Day Last Year

Tired of slogging ,
like I live underwater--
not like a Bond villain,
like an extra walking the bottom
of a polluted bay.

#CFS #ME #SEID

Believe it or not....

Believe it or not - -
atop the tallest pine
a bird sang.

CFS Senryu

Beyond exhausted.
Coffee hasn't helped a bit.
Damn, damn, damn.

I love my neighbors' blackberry bushes.

Thorny green branches - - 
white flowers, but no berries. 
The blackbirds will wait.

- - - - - - - - -

Thorny branches stray 
over the old gray fence - - 
no blackberries yet.

Bee bumbles...

Bee bumbles 
on little purple flowers--
why is he alone?

Outside my window...

Outside my window --
one white flower grows
on the biggest bush.

For Paul

Thoughts of you --
blue dragonfly touches my arm --
I am doubly blessed.

While pulling weeds...

While pulling weeds,
tired, clumsy hands
grab some flowers too.

Written Yesterday

Two cats sleeping --
one using my foot
as her pillow. 

------------------------------------

Two cats sleep -- 
one balled-up ball of fur snores,
one a silent oval.

I hope that some of the love for these two I feel has come across. I love my cats SO MUCH! 

Soft, rain-soaked earth...

Soft, rain-soaked earth --
pulling crabgrass by the root --
so many ants.

Muddled puddle thoughts...

Muddled puddle thoughts --

brain of oatmeal--
nothing sharp here!

#spoonie #cognitivedissociation #brainfog #senryu

Joy of being fat...

Joy of being fat:
cat lies on my hip, happy
to find padding there.

A Sorta Kinda Haiku & a Sorta Kinda Tanka

Night comes, and
those little yellow flowers
have closed up shop.


-------


Tufts of green with
those little yellow flowers,
settled in the cracks
between pieces of gray cement--
and people call them weeds!

Some Senryu about What I Feel Like Physically Most of the Time

Exhausted slumping

and slogging and schlumping

day after day.

----------------------------

Dowager's hump, 

sore throat, brain fog, body aches --

Jealous of me yet?

-----------------------------

Getting horizontal.

Afraid Dowager's hump

will become my schlump.

------------------------------

My beloved Coffee

cannot help this exhaustion.

Maybe I need meth.

February

 

February,
but through the open window
birdsong. 

Plunk, plunk of dripping...

Plunk, plunk of dripping
into a plastic bucket--
Yay! Home ownership.

For Carol

As the rain drums down,
may the sound lull you to sleep,
silence your worries.

Carol

She rambled a lot
even before she got sick.
Silenced today,
and now I ramble of her
to the tune of rain
and sobs and sniffles.