New Years Eve

Two friends sip champagne
Plows push snow piles down the street
The old year sneaks off.

December 26, 2009

Shroud

A winter white sheet
Shrouds the shoulders of silent
Trees waiting for dawn.

December 10, 2009

Wet Snow

Snow blue with water
An iceberg in my driveway
Stops traffic, the plow.



December 9, 2009

Blades

Blades of green grass poke
Through the virginal white snow
Beneath a bare birch.



December 7, 2009

Merry Christmas

Tonight children wait
Parents pray that they sleep soon
So Santa may come.


December 24, 2009

Blanket

A receding blanket
Of first fresh snow on the walk
Beneath the red door.



December 4, 2009

First Flake

The first small white flake
Floats out of a steel gray sky
To rest on black earth.



December 3, 2009

Around the corner

Around the corner
Just past the bare yellow birch
A deep white snow drift.



December 2, 2009

Border

The border between
Light and dark is a sharp chalk
Line neatly snapped.



December 1, 2009

Clouds

Clouds like venetian
Blinds slice the sky in ragged
Stripes of blue and white.



November 30, 2009

Deer

A deer stops stock still
At the edge of a clearing
Charged the gold grass.



November 25, 2009

Branch

A bare broken branch
Pirouettes in the crisp cold
Air, whirls on the wind.



November 24, 2009

White-wet Clouds

White wet clouds surround
Off balance, reach without touch
Earth and sky obscure.



November 23, 2009

Lying on my Face

Lying on my face
In a soft warm bed eyes closed
Dreams out of reach.


November 20, 2009

For Updike

Rabbit runs across

The garden seeking fresh greens

As Autumn recedes.

November 19, 2009

Sun Splashed

Sun-splashed landscape

Just beyond the cloud cover

Always out of reach.

November 18, 2009

Clear Skies

Clear skies, traces of smoke

Drift across a blackened

Prairie - embers fade.

November 17, 2009

Cloud

Cloud filled skies close

Above a dank grey clearing

Empty, windy cold.

November 16, 2009

Geese

Geese rest secreted

In chopped corn field, heads

Peek over the stalks.

November 11, 2009

Still October

A still October
Day, bare trees stand motionless
Awaiting the wind.



November 13, 2009

A Leaf Skips

A leaf skips across
The sunlit sidewalk towards
A open back door.


November 9, 2009

Lawn

Lawn cut in wide stripes
Fades beneath gold, orange and,
Red, sun cured leaves.



November 5, 2009

Wintry Skies

Wintry skies hang
Over a dry featureless plain
Lonely, vast, empty.



November 4, 2009

Bare Branch

Bare branch dry yellow

Grass, dry in the autumn sun

Winds, whisper winter.

November 3, 2009

Follow

To follow a leaf
Caught on the wind, freed from a tree
Smoothly sailing south.

November 2, 2009

Wren

A wren roosts in a
Burr oak, stares past gold-brown leaves
to a steel grey sky.


October 30, 2009

Afternoon succumbs

Afternoon succumbs
To evenings enticement
Twilight closes the drapes.



October 30, 2009

Harsh

Harsh headlights halos
Fail to pierce the fog's white walls
As autos race by.


October 27, 2009

Wet Leaves

Wet leaves stick to shoes
Like hitchhikers escaping
The cold forest floor.



October 26, 2009

A Naked Tree

A denuded tree
Leaves scattered on the ground
Like thirty silver pieces.



October 22, 2009

Rain Drips

Rain drips down a
Window making an Autumn
Abstract - red and gold.



October 21, 2009

Misty Morning

Misty morning, dew
Hangs in the air, swirling like
Frosted leaves that fall.



October 20, 2009

Leaves

Orange, yellow leaves
Circling, drifting, sailing down
landing on the grass.





October 19, 2009

Small Glimmer

Small glimmer of light
Pine scent, the sound of needles
Winter shivering.



October 16, 2009

Wipe Away

Wipe away the rain
spattering on the windshield -
Reveal what's ahead.



October 15, 2009

Skip

Skip between the rain drops
Side-step the puddles, watch wet
Leaves plummet to earth.



October 14, 2009

Frost Dresses

Frost dresses basil leaves
Now white - soon brown and brittle
As Autumn passes by.

October 12, 2009

Golden Brown

Golden brown leaves drift
To earth - blanketing the grass
Crinkling under foot.

October 13, 2009

Off White

Under an off white
cloud blanket, red sumac bursts
Amid fading grass.



October 8, 2009

Forest Burns

A forest burns bright
In the autumn sun which rises
Late in a pale sky.



October 7, 2009

Mud Swallows

Mud swallows yellow
Boots - sucking the soles down deep -
Souls glued to the earth.



October 6, 2009

Puff Ball

Puff Ball clouds float past
Scrapping the tree tops, shaking
Loose leaves as they pass.



October 5, 2009

Slate Gray

A slate gray ceiling
Peeks, between the turning leaves
That dance, spin and fall.



October 1, 2009

Sun Dries

Sun dries the fallen
Leaves that crunch beneath our feet
Summer falls away.



September 30, 2009

Quail

A quail pecks pebbles
The tall yellow grass reveals
It's meandering.



September 29, 2009

Dark Clouds

Wet dark clouds race by
Winds beats upon the windows
Which whine and whistle.



September 28, 2009

Trees

Trees bright red yellow
And orange are veiled by
A pearl grey tulle fog.



September 24, 2009

Thank You Carl Sandburg

Imperceptible
Movement like the sound of a
Cat's feet on the hunt.



September 25, 2009

Umbrella

An umbrella whips
Wildly in the wind- rain drops
Pelt people passing.



September 23, 2009

Bone Cold

Bone cold deepening
Mists thick as the ocean enfold
Us, Autumn descends.



September 22, 2009

Monotone

Monotone skies drop
Behind red tinged oak trees
Like a cold grey shroud.



September 21, 2009

Green Leaves

Green Leaves blushed red
Others turn a pale yellow
All will fall with grace.


September 17, 2009

Gopher

A head rises above
The earth and inspects the grounds
The gopher as king.


September 16, 2009

Bubbling

Bubbling fountain spray
Surfs on the crest of the wind
Moistening our cheeks.


September 15, 2009

A Hill

A hill overlooks
A yellow blanket that graces
The field at our feet.


September 14, 2009

Red, Green Yellow

Red, Green, Yellow and
Purple mounds of vegetables
Bounty on display.


September 10, 2009

Sidewalk Shadows

Sidewalk Shadows bounce
From side to side beneath the trees
Swaying in the breeze.



September 9, 2009

Sun Dappled

Sun dappled sidewalk
Slides beneath my freckled feet
On an early fall day.

September 8, 2009

Fog Hide

The fog hides the green
Launch the ball and see it dive
Into a white pillow.



September 3, 2009

Banana

Eat a banana
A fruit that grows in Ghana
Share it with Nana.


September 2, 2009

Fog Leaps

Fog Leaps and rolls while
Frost ices greens and fairways like
A child's birthday cake.


September 1, 2009

Brisk Breezes

Brisk Breezes bring bright
Cheeks color, as leaves turn
Orange and yellow.


August 31, 2009

Forest III

Cold winds rip needles
That come ticking through tall pines
To the forest floor.


August 27, 2009

Forest II

Lie down on the pine
Scented forest floor, from here
All trees are giants.



August 26, 2009

Forest I

In the hardwood forests
Summer shimmers in the leaves
Of a very old oak.



August 25, 2009

Traffic

Men in their cars sit
In traffic honking their horns
Like manic ducks.



August 24, 2009

Augusta in the Rain

Swinging in the rain
Conducting lightening it
Was his final stroke.



August 21, 2009

August Rain

Heavy downpour in
August - corn screaming for more
Under slate gray skies.



August 20,2009

Breakfast Symphony

Sweet golden honey
Dripping from a spoon on toast
As the butter melts.

August 19, 2009

Star Strafing

Skies strafed with stars
Clouds hug the the darkness like men
Hug the battlefield.



August 18, 2009

Cloud Cover

The blanket of clouds
Insulate a hot humid
World - a solar shield.



August 17, 2009

Fog

A dense fog erases
The horizon - a pure white
icy cold blindness.



August 10, 2009

Mulberries

She picked berries
From the tree eagerly and
Ate them fresh picked.


August 6, 2009

An Arbor

Grape vines crawling up
Over the arbor foliage
Gives shade from the sun.



August 5, 2009

Losing Petals

Black-eyed susan's
In bright bunches along the road
One has lost petals.


August 4, 2009

Road Work

Futile work ahead
Trucks, tractors, and back hoes belch
Carbon dioxide.


August 3, 2009

Fantasy Football

Fantasy Football
101 - a new course in
Required for men.


August 11, 2009

Yellow Sun

A yellow sun shine
Butters a tall field of corn
Popping in the heat.


August 14, 2009

A Humble Vase

Rust stained tin can
Filled with rain water and
Rose buds - red on red.

July 30, 2009

Mid-Summer

A mid-summer breeze
Strums the stalks standing tall
In the green corn field.


July 29, 2009

July 2009

Gentle summer day
Follow a humid night of
Sweet sweat soaked sheets.



July 28, 2009

Morning Light

Morning light first makes
One side of the leaf bright then
Lightens the other.



July 27, 2009

Over 50

Drive 50 miles per hour
Feel the wind whip your hair
As other cars pass.

July 23, 2009

Office Workers

Gray suit and white shirt
Arrives at the office
Always unnoticed.



July 22, 2009

Waking

The light breeze tickles
Me, as I lay on clean white
Sheets, that smell of you.

July 21, 2009

Clues

Crossword puzzle clues
1 across - What is one down
What is one down.



July 20, 2009

Autumn in July

Geese pass overhead
In a bright blue summer sky
A very good Auspice.



July 16, 2009

Stillness

Still, leaves do not move
In the early dawn nothing
Moves - Dawn lifts the shade.



July 15, 2009

Branch

Branch breaks as a bird
Lands, it falls like a stone till
Beating wings give lift.



July 14, 2009

The Sun

Sun-washed waving
Wheat whirling in thee wind - light
Shows hundreds of hues.


July 13, 2009

Beauty

As she rolls over
In bed the rain drops applaud
On the window sill.


July 10, 2009

WInds

Winds whips grass and brush
Into whirling dervishes while
Trees stand still and quiet.

July 8, 2009

Rising Sun

Rising Sun blinding bright
Sharpens the shadows edge till
It's gone with the dew.



July 9, 2009

Ancient Flute

Ancient flute of bone
Pale white whispering wings of a
Mute swan cut with stone.



July 7, 2009

Ruins

Ruins rest on dry plains
Sun burnt grass, brush, and blown sands
Near it's sun burnt walls.



July 6, 2009

Overcast Summer Day

A chickadee glides
Beneath ponderous pillows
Hinting at Summer.



June 30, 2009

Dry Grass

Grass dries in the summer
Sun baked bricks tumble down
Tipped by arid winds.


July 6, 2009

Wall

Light floods white washed
Walls of stone. Rainbows stains dance
Over the edges.



July 2, 2009

Wild Bunch

Mustard in wild bunches
Runs off, over the fence line
Into the tall corn.

July 1, 2009

Kodachrome

Kodak Kodachrome
A brownie box camera
Summer memories.

June 23, 2009

A Table for One

Just set the table
One plate, a chipped cup, a knife
All alone, at home.



June 4, 2009

Satchel

Satchel Paige pitches
Today Mr. Paige will take the mound
In dusty Des Moines.

June 8,2009

Remembrance Day

Remembrance day
Dark wreaths, white crosses, grassy fields,
Poppies on lapels.


June 3, 2009

Red Lantern

A small red lantern
on a glass patio table
Invites summers dawn.

June 1, 2009

Summer Storm IV

Leaves spin light to dark
Like fishing lures in the water
Rabbits stop. Stillness.

June 29, 2009

Summer Storm III

Leaves spin in the wind
Flip light to dark on spider limbs
An Invitation.

June 29,2009

Summer Storm II

Gray gathering clouds
wind spins the leaves in the air
Changing their color.

June 29, 2009

Summer Storm I

Gray gathering clouds
Stillness settles silently
Squirrels seek cover.

06/29/2009

John the Baptist II

The disc squeal and scream
A lone voice shouting out
In the wilderness.

May 19,2009

John the Baptist I

Discs drag the dirt
slit silt and shove stones a side
Make way for the plow.

May 19,2009

Summer I

Summer morning dew
In late June, is gone to soon.
Grass is soon crunchy.

June 22, 2009

Memorial Day

Carved white stones rest
Where poppies wave scarlet hats
Above crowds of grass.

June 2, 2009

Memorial Day

Carved white stones rest
Where poppies wave scarlet hats
Above fields of grass.

June 2, 2009

Spring Skies

Spring skies, drift over
Shadowless landscapes observe
Not the burst of green leaves.

May 22, 2009

Buttoned Down II

The button down man
Recoiled from the pierced priest
Like a gun.

May 20, 2009

Buttoned Down I

The buttoned down man
Recoils from the pierced priest
Like a snake.

May 20, 2009

The Crab

Flowering crab tree
White with blossoms this morning
Green by afternoon.

May 14,2009

Spring III

Hungry to work
Impatient to slice earths crust
Seeking fertile soil.

May 18,2009

Spring II

Implements which
Wintered in the woods must
Now forage in the fields

May 18, 2009

Spring I

Spring means muddy fields
Sloppy shoes and dirty
Ankles - Plow and plant.

May 18,2009

Fresh Start

A robin is small
His actions hardly noticed
The fresh new rose blooms.

May 12, 2009

Rain

Today it rains
Smell the air, rain-rinsed fresh -
Peonies bud.

May 13,2009

Twilight Sleep II

The alarm rings not
No blankets rustle - just one
Finger down the back.

May 4, 2009

Twilight Sleep I

In the twilight sleep
A hand encounters cold sheets
Groping what's not there.

May 4, 2009

Unnoticed

A silly little guy
He hardly maters
He wouldn't get noticed in a crowd.

April 30,2009

Students

Students honor your
Teacher - stand on your own take
the necessary steps.

April 8,2009

A Good Book

Open a good book
Sail a thousand seas without
Leaving the library.

April 7, 2009

April First III

Around the lake shore
Huffing & puffing out of breath
She purls one stitch more

April 1, 2009

April First II

She is making a cap
On needles he bought her
As he takes a lap


April 1, 2009

April First I

Small boat in tow
Joe's toes wiggling i n the water
She knits a row


April 1, 2009

Egypt V

A procession fades
Pallid faces, glow in the dark
Illuminate the nave.



March 26, 2009

Egypt IV

A sanctuary lamp
Flickers and snuffs it's tiny flame
Overcast skies darken.



March 26, 2009

Egypt III

Grey smog curtain
Chokes the inhabitants as the
Dust storm approaches.



March 23, 2009

Egypt II

Pale sun lit pyramid
Towers above the belching buses & B&W wrecks
That pass for cabs.



March 23, 2009

Egypt I

Pyramids and tombs
Cheops, Sakkara - all yesterday
Defiled long ago.



March 23, 2009

March Snow

The snow recedes
The shadow of the swing set
Interupts it's path.



March 4, 2009

Temples

A procession that fades
Pallid faces, glow in the dark
Illuminating the nave.



March 26, 2009

Show Time

The show must go on
Plants still grow, waters still flow
The kitten stretches.



March 3, 2009

Today's Menu I

A stolen juice box
Block of cheese from the food pantry
And sliced spam sandwiches.



March 27, 2009

Mandarin IV

Now all monetary
Flows feed these polluted Rivers
China's colon.



March 3, 2009

Mandarin III

On the banks of the
Yangze & Yellow river
Now America's sorrow.



March 3, 2009

Mandarin II

It's a dialect
Spoken by the elite of Bejing and taught
At Harvard and Yale.

March 3, 2009

Mandarin I

Learn Mandarin
Prepare for the future and
Name your child Mao.



March 3, 2009

March Snow IV

Whose gnarly knuckles
Grasp each day desperately
Straining to hang on.

March 31, 2009

March Snow III

A drum-like dalliance
measuring the last minutes
Of wining winter


March 31, 2009

March Snow II

Misty windowpanes
Reflect icy tips that like
Fingers tap the glass.


March 31, 2009

March Snow I

Freezing rain drops shine
Shivering silver branches
Tapping on the window.

March 31, 2009

Snow & Spring

Water wells like tears
As the snow retreats in the sun
As we wait for spring.

March 30, 2009

Winter Tree

Newspaper adorns
the branches and rustles like leaves
As we wait for spring.

March 30,2009

Guy from Corporate II

He reads the signals
Pitches a low deadly curve
You swing - it is a miss.

January 30,2009

Guys from Corporate I

Guys from corporate
features sharp, all right angles
They pitch new ideas.

January 29, 2009

Snowstorm

Snow blows down the street
Head lamps highlight circles of white
Slow cars creep homeward.



January 6, 2009

Birthday Wish

Birthday are empty
Occasions - McDonald's when
You want a good meal.

Birthdays never live
Up to expectations - you
Want roses but get weeds.

A birthday is best
Forgotten - if not marked
It passes gracefully away
Like any other day.

February 9, 2009

January Thaw

The snowy blanket
Shrinks from the shoulders of the
Dowdy faded grass.

February 12,2009

Snowman

The snow man shrinks
Shoulders round, head sags and chin
Rests on his breast.

February 10, 2009

Snow Removal VI

Fingers barely bend
Pain cracks gnarled knuckles as
Hands grip the shovel

December 29, 2008

Snow Removal III

A frigid sword of
Damocles that precariously
Dangles overhead.

December 30, 2008

Snow Removal II

Insinuates a
Drop from an icicle
Hanging from the eave

December 30, 2008

Snow Removal I

Chills spill down the spine
Snow slithers into your boots
And under the collar

December 29, 2008

Mime IV

A minor ripple
In a busy babbling brook.
A pebble in a stream.

January 28, 2009

Mime III

No one sees nor notes
He is invisible - all traffic
flows around his site.

January 28, 2009

Mime II

Like an obstruction
In the middle of the walk
Pedestrians pass by.

January 28, 2009

Mime I

A street mime frozen -
Stuck in one place - People pass
No one notices him.

01/26/2009

Mid-Winter VIIII

Lost and languorous, we
Clutch each other, hold the warm
Between you and me.

January, 15, 2009

Mid-Winter VII

Within Burns a fire
Near by, we lie inured to the
Winds whispers and turns

January 15, 2009

Mid-Winter VI

The eaves creak under
The weight of icicles that cleave
To our warm cottage.

January, 15, 2009

Mid-Winter V

The horizon fades
Into a soft-focus blue -
Pre-dawn snow fall.

January 14, 2009

Mid-Winter VI

An inky dead leaf
Jigs and reels on snow white stage
Lit by the full moon.

January 13, 2009

Mid-Winter III

New snow covering
The soiled white blanket that
was once pristine.

January 12, 2009

Mid-Winter II

Fresh flakes in flight light
Gently on yesterdays snow
Reviving the icy plain.

January 12, 2009

Mid-Winter I

The pale yellow grass
Rises over the fresh snow fall -
A shivering sheaf.

January 12, 2009

Boy II

Bruises always new bruises
It seems appear so often
Spinning in circles.


August 25, 2008

Boy I

A two-year old who
Spins in circles with mania
And joy squeals true.



August 25, 2008

Suggestions for the future of the Bush Adminstration

Separation of search and state.

Send Bush, Cheney, Rove, and Rumsfeld to Guantanamo for interrogation.

Water board Cheney.


July 23, 2008

Cheap Hotel, Hot Night V

From the other side comes
A twenty year old ball game
Droning on again.


August 23, 2008

Cheap Hotel, Hot Night IV

The TV next door
Mumbles and shouts the crime news
On the cable station.

August 23, 2008

Cheap Hotel, Hot Night III

Sweat soaked sheets stick
Bed springs creak as you roll over
The toilet runs.


August 23, 2008

Cheap Hotel, Hot Night II

Muffled voices
Motel rock band with groupies
In tow - poping beers.


August 23, 2008

Cheap Hotel, Hot Night I

Echoing concrete
Hals, electro-hum singes the air
Two in the morning


August 23, 2008

Policy Exam II

Personal faxes may:
a.) Not be pictures from the joy of sex
b.) Grocery lists
c.) Notes from your wife and her boyfriend
d.) Photos of your wife and her boyfriend
e.) Divorce papers
f.) lawyer bills
g.) None of the above.

08/04/2008

Policy Exam I

Personal phone calls:
a.) Should all have rapping ring tones
b.) Play the same hymn

08/04/2008

True Crime II

Should be in True Crime
Magazine, a sordid place
Not a child's home.

July 21, 2008

True Crime I

B&W photo
A filthy place littered room
No place for babies.

July 21, 2008

Tahiti April 28 IV

With her. Maimiti
naked when she appeared
Her eyes endeared

April 28, 2008

Continued next week

Tahiti April 28 III

Tahiti women
To much time ashore tending
Trees, building report

April 28, 2008

Tahiti April 28 II

Tattoo. Captain Bligh
is adrift in the long boat
The Bounty still afloat

April, 28, 2008

Tahiti April 28 I

Washing over her face -
Drenching the dreams clothes
Revealing a rose

April 28,2008

Falls

Falls rushing, crashing
Roaring rapids, spinning swirl
cleans an oysters pearl.

April 22, 2009

Ice III

Each track, a wrinkle
Marking the passage of time
Between snow falls.

January 5, 2009

Ice II

Skis crunch the crusted
Snow carving a fresh feature
In the mountain's face.

January 5, 2009

Ice I

Skiing down icy slopes
The rain drizzles softly on
Moonlit snow glistens.

January 5, 2009

Georgia On My Mind V

A perfect stillness
Slams into place like a door
Motion suspended.


August 20, 2008

Georgia On My Mind IV

The silence shatters
As tanks take positions
Armies advance.


August 19, 2008

Georgia On My Mind III

Shutters slam closed
And a silence as dense as oak
Fills the empty space.


August 19, 2008

Georgia On My Mind II

As the clouds grow more
Ominous the citizens
Vanish behind doors.



August 19, 2008

Georgia On My Mind I

The darkening sky
Made the tree-lined square
Close and foreboding.

August 19,2008

Warm Up

In the Ice Hotel
With an electric blanket
Look for an outlet.

December 29, 2008

Mosquito Trap II

That queer electro-hum
That penetrates any attempt
To rest - sleep or dream.


August 24, 2008

Mosquito Trap I

A mosquito trap
Zaps randomly, arrhythmic
Breaks a constant buzz.


August 24, 2008

Angry Gods

What an angry God
A sea full of cod, you hook
A shark on your rod.


08/04//2008

Wolves

Timber wolves slink
Through the dense green forest thirsting
For a crisp-Cool drink.



08/01/2008

Pup

A careless wild pup
Drives pheasant out of the grass
A hungry tired pup.


07/29/2008

Saint MacDonalds II

Swatting swarming flies
Unwashed unshaven rabble
Voice penitent cries.


July 15, 2008

Saint MacDonalds I

Like Big Macs and fries
The bl'est bread is disbursed
With sweet wine and lies.


July 15, 2008

Mosquitoes

Under the pale gray skies
Mosquitoes buzz-bomb your ears
The summer sound dies.

08/17/2008