Image by Glenn Buttkus
Abandoned ages ago,
the circus remained
but a colorful memory
before breakfast.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Abandoned Ages Ago
Image by Glenn Buttkus
Abandoned ages ago,
the circus remained
but a colorful memory
before breakfast.
It Was Memorial Day
It was Memorial Day
and the Thunderbird
rose early to
salute the flag.
They Say It Was
Image by Glenn Buttkus
They say it was
Clyde Barrow who left
it in this field
seventy years ago.
Even an Earth Mover
Image by Glenn Buttkus
Even an earth mover
will be held hostage
by mere weeds
given enough time.
More a Tower
More a tower
than a barn,
it perched high
above the shaggy herd
laden with bison chow.
Greetings From the Garden
Greetings from the garden
along Melva's rockery
as a plethora of purple
blossoms kiss
the dawn.
Youth Smolders
image by yi ching lin
youth smolders
youth smolders
in self-contained
gravity, not yet
understanding
the formulaic
constant pulling
us all along
the same
curved paths
.
Yi Ching Lin
Posted over on her site Yi's Bits
Power Outage
Power Outage
The hummingbirds buzz
on the feeder behind me.
A black fox saunters past,
looking up, unimpressed.
A few finches flit nearby
but are too timid
to land on the railing,
which is laden with fresh seed
every morning as my coffee brews.
A seal snorts and glides by my feet.
And moments later, a bald eagle soars
right over my head
All that is missing are the whales,
who are doing their whale-thing
further up the island coast this day.
The notes flow.
I’m not only in my zone,
I’m in everyone’s zone–
much to their dissatisfaction,
but to my delight.
This is a truly amazing way to work,
to breathe,
to be inspired,
and to think.
To hear the flutter
of tiny wings moving the air,
and to feel the puff of breeze
from the flap of much larger ones:
this is where the music comes from.
To hear sea mammals before even seeing them,
the sound of their breath traveling
easily over the water:
this is where the music comes from.
And to nearly weep
from the beauty of it all
and my great fortune to live this life:
this is where I’m hoping that eventually,
if I am lucky, the music will come from.
I love it when the power goes out.
Everything else,
comes in.
Alex Shapiro
Posted over on her site Notes From the Kelp
Linebreaks for her incredible prose
by Glenn Buttkus
Puck's Quadrangle--Part Three
Puck's Quadrangle--Part Three
26. When a Building
27. There's Something About
28. Sky Trains
29. Tall Locomotives
30. She Died Alone
31. Even a Great Chimney
32. The Stairs to Nowhere
33. Some Caskets Wait
34. Steel Bridges
35. A Great Ship
36. Balconies Gathering Dust
37. When You Find
38. When She Pierces
39. Grandiose Without Gargoyles
40. Ceramic Train
And here is fifteen more, with Part Four to come later:
Puck's Quadrangle--Part Two
11. Four Buck Gas
12. When the Farming Stops
13. Sometimes It Takes
14. Mission Bell
15. Plough Shares Pounded
16. It Is Not Just
17. Old Friends
18. A Moose On the Roof
19. There Is a Citadel
20. Ancient Stairways
21. Stone Elk
22. The Patriot Box
23. Something New
24. Blue Firebox
25. From the Harbor
Let's do 15 of them, what do you say?
Puck's Quadrangle--Part One
I finally am taking photographs, thousands of them,
and some have driven me to write captions under
them, like telling fairy tales to children.
For the present I found the first forty, and have
recorded them for your auditory needs.
Puck's Quadrangle: Part I
1. Fresh Paint
2. Both Bridges Laughed
3. Miss Melva Found
4. A Dodge Workhorse
5. Sometimes Entering
6. When A Locomotive
7. Muscle Wrapped Around
8. A Fordson Tractor
9. In The Wilds
10. Old Churches Once
And here they are; short, varied, iconic.
Both Bridges Laughed
Both bridges laughed
as they stepped
across the Puyallup.
A Dodge Workhorse
A Dodge workhorse
will continue to
carry your loads
long after your
nest is empty.
Sometimes Entering
Sometimes entering
the back door
allows one to peruse
danger before
it detects
you.
When A Locomotive
When a locomotive
is this close,
you are either
dead or visiting
a train museum.
Muscle Wrapped Around
Muscle wrapped around
metal still stirs
the loins of
the teenager
within.
A Fordson Tractor
A Fordson tractor
makes a fine sculpture
in the manicured courtyard
of the past.
In the Wilds
In the wilds
of Montana,
a pioneer prison
now houses antique cars,
starlings and tourists.
Old Churches Once
Old churches once
harbored hope,
but now too many
are owned by
the park system
and there is a fee
to visit them.
Four Buck Gas
Four buck gas
has been embraced twice,
and it is tempting
to let the cars rust,
and learn to walk
again.
When The Farming Stops
When the farming stops,
something organic
is lost to the ages.
Sometimes It Takes
Sometimes it takes
three padlocks
to keep us out
of paradise.
Monday, May 30, 2011
Mission Bell
Mission bell
long silent,
let your voice be
heard at last;
toll
for all of us.
Plowshares Pounded
Plowshares pounded
into patriotic swords,
we will stand strong
for centuries to come.
It Is Not Just
Image by Glenn Buttkus
It is not just
our war dead we
should remember today,
for all those who
traveled on ahead
can still touch us,
if we let them.
Run To Remember
Run To Remember
Lisa Hallett runs along a path lined with 42 flags honoring
fallen soldiers at Powder Works Park in Du Pont, WA.
Mile after mile she runs to remember the man she's adored
since she was a teenager.
She fell for John Hallett on a church trip to Mexico in 1996.
She lost him on August 25, 2009, when an improvised explosive
killed the Army captain and three others while they rode in
a Stryker on a mission in Afghanistan.
Taken from the front page of The Tacoma News Tribune
Progress
Progress
My knees went out and never came back.
My brain waves hit the beach and evaporated.
I can't find a cd with a Louis Louis cut,
and all the light bulbs are flickering
on and off as if there's a short
in the whole system.
Outside it's like one of those days
where zombies might be wandering around in a daze,
looking for sunshine to dry out in,
but instead there's a damp haziness
with just a tinge of sun glare
trying to break through the near- mist
and mommies pushing strollers up and down
with the older kids yelling
and the doggies dragged behind on a short leash.
Now, five minutes later, it's finally raining,
but nothing else has changed for better or worse.
That's progress.
Jim Mall
Posted over on his Facebook page.
Because
Because
Ngat’e mana chjajo ‘an jaa.
Because
I can speak with your eagle.
Maria Sabina
Posted over on Poems and Poetics
Melting In Our
melting in our
melting in our
mouths – remnants
of past memorial
day weekends
looking for a BBQ
.
Yi Ching Lin
Posted over on her site Yi's Bits
Out of the String
image by yi ching lin
out of the string
out of the string
of spontaneity, you
unwind
like a pink
kite, snagged
by the corners of
our eyes
.
Yi Ching Lin
Posted over on her site Yi's Bits
Old Brick Is Nothing
Image by Glenn Buttkus
old brick is nothing
old brick is nothing
like new brick –
sturdy,
dependable,
stained
by memories
.
Yi Ching Lin
Posted over on her site Yi's Bits
Old Friends
Old Friends travel
hundreds of miles
to meet at Deer Lodge,
and consume a consummate
chicken fried steak
Friday, May 27, 2011
A Moose on the Roof
A moose on the roof
is not so strange;
we are used to
such sights midway
down River Road.
There Is A Citadel
There is a citadel
in the heart
of the city,
filled with children
searching for
the affection of the gods.
Ancient Stairways
Ancient stairways
still can convey
on back streets,
though moss demons
choke their
stone risers.
Stone Elk
Image by Glenn Buttkus
Stone elk
live a long time,
more majestically
than those
gargoyles.
The Patriot Box
The patriot box
stands ready
at the foot
of the Spanish Steps.
Something New
Something new,
something blue,
dwarfs
the squat style
of the early
twentieth century.
Blue Firebox
Blue firebox
hides deftly in
a brick corner
down an alley
I frequent.
Sky Trains
Sky trains
rumble on high
over our heads,
delivering commodities
for our lives.
From the Harbor
From the harbor
climbing up
the steel shins
of a great bridge
one enters
the city.
When A Building
When a building
stands more than
a hundred years,
we need to
acknowledge it.
There's Something About
Image by Glenn Buttkus
There's something about
a red car,
something passionate,
something sensual,
that I cannot disregard.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Tall Locomotives
Image by Glenn Buttkus
Tall locomotives
move about
oblivious
beneath our cars,
beneath our feet,
toiling tirelessly.
She Died Alone
She died alone
and the cats dined
on her gray flesh
before they boarded
up the windows
to hide the shame.
Even A Great Chimney
Image by Glenn Buttkus
Even a great chimney
will crumble
as the earth
turns its back
on brick ardor.
The Stairs to Nowhere
Image by Glenn Buttkus
The stairs to
nowhere will fall
into disrepair
in mere decades.
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