tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post1620901603562416624..comments2024-01-26T13:12:55.520-08:00Comments on Feel Free to Read: Burbs BlurbGlenn Buttkushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680725814199700692noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-64208169571270079912017-02-23T01:37:23.818-08:002017-02-23T01:37:23.818-08:00a rambler home behind a white-washed
pocket fence ...a rambler home behind a white-washed<br />pocket fence on wide tree-lined streets<br />with two-car garages & separate bedrooms<br /><br />for the kiddies, walking distance from lovely<br />parks & safe schools, rife with milkmen,<br />postmen, & door-to-door salesmen....these lines tell so much...and then the boredom...<br />.... it is best to be with nature, if at all it will remain.....sigh...Sreejahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01395234979504881964noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-27635282955463257642017-02-22T20:12:52.957-08:002017-02-22T20:12:52.957-08:00Yes, love the history of suburbia in this, as it c...Yes, love the history of suburbia in this, as it comes full circle...my poem's title was similar, Glenn ;)lynn__https://www.blogger.com/profile/03991892804149727665noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-59846047365288268402017-02-22T06:51:58.191-08:002017-02-22T06:51:58.191-08:00I tried to send you a thank you for your comment, ...I tried to send you a thank you for your comment, it came right back? So I will thank you this way.annell4https://www.blogger.com/profile/07629830133868270690noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-31031632167686444772017-02-22T06:47:05.920-08:002017-02-22T06:47:05.920-08:00The quote was so good....it was in the back of my ...The quote was so good....it was in the back of my mind, that the suburbs were the "enemy" of the American dream, with it's lack of individuality.annell4https://www.blogger.com/profile/07629830133868270690noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-48871504656190389432017-02-22T04:19:02.631-08:002017-02-22T04:19:02.631-08:00Ah Glenn....I am slow to the posting and slow to t...Ah Glenn....I am slow to the posting and slow to the reading on this prompt....Bermuda (so the opposite of the suburb or the city) has been calling me to enjoy our last week here! But this....ah I am smiling here as I read. You've described in one poem, the cycle....why the burbs came to be and the movement now to city life -- full circle. And brought so many memories to me...as a boomer also. Those Saturday Evening Post and Look magazine covers...in the days when magazines were big too...I mean in size. And those adds....I remember the washing machine adds making laundry seemingly a blissful task to do :) And can you believe it, I was an Avon Lady one summer between college years! Yep -- I went door to door in our little "subdivision" -- that's what we called it instead of "suburb." I sold perfumes and lipsticks to housewives who opened their door, wanting to add a little glamor to their lives...and I won an entire set of dishes for selling so much. Those were also the days of green stamp booklets...remember those? Ah Glenn....I so enjoy your writing! :)lillianthehomepoet.wordpress.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12664830773553716989noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-6396884881640969752017-02-21T22:28:07.587-08:002017-02-21T22:28:07.587-08:00It's a wonderful picture of Time--then and now...It's a wonderful picture of Time--then and now and the element of change in between. What struck me most are the two apparently insignificant words: safe schools, that seem to rise from the subconscious to offer a contrast between what was and is.Sumana Royhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17333363799083094084noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-80912236361875226652017-02-21T18:01:32.321-08:002017-02-21T18:01:32.321-08:00We live in a trailer park, but I'd be all abou...We live in a trailer park, but I'd be all about not having to cut grass or fix this old trailer anymore. This park was built in 1960. It has seen better days. Thankfully though, it saves us from homelessness. I remember the 1950's and 60's. Every serviceman's dream was to become a double dipper in the suburbs. What a crazy idea. It went with a lot of notions popular at the time, the best cigarettes, whisky, a color tv, etc.Waltermarkshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16619428258264938946noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-77081014074621177682017-02-21T15:16:06.964-08:002017-02-21T15:16:06.964-08:00I don't know if it has come full circle yet bu...I don't know if it has come full circle yet but you pointed out the main problems of suburban living: "We are tired of mowing lawns, stressful<br />commutes to work--tired of the damn<br /><br />cookie-cutter ticky-tacky blandness of<br />the housing"Frank Hubenyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18058591172624203875noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-6766218356577877212017-02-21T14:55:20.156-08:002017-02-21T14:55:20.156-08:00A full circle indeed but I think it comes with lif...A full circle indeed but I think it comes with life's choices ~ Some like the convenience of living in a condo, while others like the cottage/simple house kind of lifestyle ~ I have seen though a revival of the green among the city dwellers, and i think it has to do with gaining back the connection to nature, though far it may be ~ <br /><br />Enjoyed your read Glenn~Gracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02213172239590722747noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-5998656051535247542017-02-21T14:24:25.765-08:002017-02-21T14:24:25.765-08:00This is a great take on the prompt and for me the ...This is a great take on the prompt and for me the best line is 'tired of mowing lawns' because in those few words you catch the whole cycle from new suburbs to disillusionment. Great write! I have quite a large garden all the way down to the river .... with NO lawns! Just shrubs, trees, fruit bushes and flowers!!paul mortimerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17053458852523674877noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-22065482440155950662017-02-21T14:15:12.771-08:002017-02-21T14:15:12.771-08:00My goodness you paint so masterfully life in the s...My goodness you paint so masterfully life in the suburbs with your words! Sigh, the contrasts between; "walking distance from lovely parks & safe schools, rife with milkmen, postmen, & door-to-door salesmen" and "stressful commutes to work--tired of the damn cookie-cutter ticky-tacky blandness of the housing, new developments stretching clear to the horizon, blurring city limits" is deeply evocative!Sanaa Rizvihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06681404650477409830noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-6214533556301496042017-02-21T13:54:40.627-08:002017-02-21T13:54:40.627-08:00I still aspire to what came and went....here we di...I still aspire to what came and went....here we did back to back, terrace, semi-detached...they were badges of status and life experience... we had a similar journey with tents..now we go full circle...I would settle for my first ever small mill cottage. Alison Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08215158863724691355noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-91088182260498953902017-02-21T13:31:27.525-08:002017-02-21T13:31:27.525-08:00I was so attuned to your poem, Glenn. My city see...I was so attuned to your poem, Glenn. My city seems to be spreading in both directions, with young professionals flocking to inner city, and young families flocking to far-out suburbs with houses larger and larger with each new subdivision in a sort of "can you top this" mentality. Where will it all end, I wonder!indybevhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05505539407819784525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-20257002855849419472017-02-21T13:15:24.323-08:002017-02-21T13:15:24.323-08:00The suburbs are a foreign land to me. Even the one...The suburbs are a foreign land to me. Even the ones here where I live. People are different, lead lives ruled by transport. I like this poem. It sets the suburbs in context and digs into their fabric.Jane Doughertyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14700193165487305298noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-84817890035753207462017-02-21T12:45:59.261-08:002017-02-21T12:45:59.261-08:00Indeed, a full circle. Your poem makes me wonder w...Indeed, a full circle. Your poem makes me wonder will I love the suburbs when I am 70, as much as I love it now? I already think I love it less than I did when I was 15, or 10.Olorielhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15044992487719348932noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-13001250941719046982017-02-21T12:34:57.787-08:002017-02-21T12:34:57.787-08:00I love that painting and the quote, Glenn! They co...I love that painting and the quote, Glenn! They complement your poem, which is a wonderful commentary on American life after the war. I always learn something new from you! I love that phrase 'cookie-cutter ticky-tacky blandness', which has me humming 'Little Boxes'!Kim M. Russellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16668459794787447606noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6327165758377801408.post-78106260520849761212017-02-21T11:32:34.690-08:002017-02-21T11:32:34.690-08:00Indeed a full circle... the inner city revival, pr...Indeed a full circle... the inner city revival, proximity to everything and shunning cars for feet. The living becoming easy... though I guess still the suburbs grow as well... (at least they do so here).brudberghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12563403553536472377noreply@blogger.com