Somewhere in the Cattails

leaky faucet the mid-term results keep trickling in

snow predictions rush hour will be longer than an hour

red-winged blackbird a trill hidden somewhere in the cattails

impeach biden on the truck with a georgia license plate

contrail the airspace getting ready for trump's big announcement

sunset the shadows grow until they disappear

the good evening moon introduces itself

sleep rehearsal I'm one owl hoot away from my dreams

rescue mission

music lesson the cricket's impeccable timing

good morning, humidity! the steamiest thing in my life right now is this window

transister radio he saved everything including me

let's do this again says the sinkful of dirty dishes

a party of dragonflies after the rain

night terrors the cat decides when I should sleep

mojave desert a flash flood wider than the rio grande

rescue mission more milkweed for the monarchs

morning light a strand of spider web freed from its moorings

bluebird box the small space of survival

cottonwoods cluttering the air with their seeds

after the rain the dog-day cicadas start up like lawn mowers

political climate hotter than global warming

tiger lilies all orange and no drama

early august some part-time relief from a fair-weather cloud

Sulphur Springs' memorial the 100th anniversary of Missouri's worst train wreck

yesterday's rain

weather extremes the crow pointing its beak at me

traffic jam the water rising and nowhere to turn around

political ads with guns, how many children they have, and their family values

late july women protesters insulted in ways no male protester would be

the earth's spin some days wilder and shorter than others 

sunflower license plate kansas gives us hope

bird watching what's left of nature

yesterday's rain with the same refrain

Roe v Wade reversal the conservative justices ruling based on their interpretation of the Bible not the US Constitution

cuttin’ the rug at 4 am

 

ding of the microwave sometimes it’s our only conversation

January 6^th hearings the Fox ½ of America doesn’t want to hear anything

democrat or republican no matter who you vote for it only gets worse

tons of medicare literature how many trees died for this

gray rocks mossing around in the shade

school’s out the calvey creek bridge with new graffiti

gunshots and fireworks everything starts to sound the same

triple digits in mid-June the daylilies dare to bloom

the latest conspiracy maybe the boosters are giving covid-19 a boost

cuttin’ the rug at 4 am, the cat wants out, the cat wants in, the cat wants out, the cat wants in

mozart cd I invest in something that brings me peace

movie theater the farther back we go the better the seats

GHOST LEAVES

maple tree the ghost leaves from last year in the moonlight

future plans both of us running away from the same thing

red sky a cardinal's song at 11 o'clock

april news I'm tired of hearing about biden's poll numbers

a friendly reminder is a thinly guised warning

phone, lint, and some quarters found in pockets of time

car wash I'll let the rain take care of it

more fatalities the war novel without a surprise ending

fragments of news stories

passing car a groundhog stands its ground

the blank pages of a book asking me to finish it

unmade bed my quick descent into chaos

one fall day mistaken for spring

the mice nesting in fragments of news stories

paralysis too many hours start with the same sentence

tax for parks if you want service, you have to pay for it*

exercise bike I need a change of scenery

*Proposition P, Jefferson County, MO, which will most likely be defeated because Jefferson County voters almost always vote 'no' on any tax no matter what it's for.

April is the Month of Sorrows

a silent epidemic Emmilee Risling is still missing*

Tiananmen Square and Bucha April is the month of sorrows**

Xiong Yan the Chinese government neither forgives nor forgets***

clear blues skies not everyone gets a chance to enjoy spring

trees in bloom if my father were here, we'd be hiking

*Indigineous women face murder rates almost 3 times higher than white women. Friends and family of Emmilee are hoping she's still alive, and that they will find her.

**Bucha, Ukraine

***Xiong Yan was a dissident who escaped the Tiananmen Square massacre. He is running for public office. Evidently, the Chinese government feels threatened by his candidacy. They hired a private detective to frame him but that backfired.

the past curls into its grooves of darkness

pic of putin behind bars what should happen but never will

the earth's not the problem it's one foot opposing the other 

coat pockets, water, and a notebook I'm ready to wander

youth is on the greener side of the fence

flickering lights the electric bill looking up at me from the table

cedar beam the past curls into its grooves of darkness

night walk in the fog clears my head

where he used to live the bicyclist pedaling through Chernobyl

out standing in the rain with my frizzy gray hair and my eyelashes stuck together

The Vodka Notebooks

mixed drinks and slurred words from the vodka notebooks

"putin's ear" I don't want anything he's got

russian nationalism every country has its own brand of it

spring blooms of the callery pear crowding out the serviceberry

windy day a repeat of yesterday

headache: the body's manifestation of reading too much bullshit

trump and putin's alternative facts it's hard to say who copied whom

the devils' playbook as if the devils needed one

"oh, say can you see," no, but I can hear the yellow warbler

"four dead in ohio" fast forward to more dead in ukraine*

*Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young song title

putin's mind more of a cancer than his thyroid

this one's been recorded

(Had to remove links to this article. Apparently, links to articles get your blog flagged. Especially, if the links are outdated.)

First, I'd like to state that I don't have anything against police officers. I wouldn't want their job. Every call they never know what they are walking into. Second, I'm not for defunding the police. Give them better training. Make sure they have access to counseling. They should all have body cams turned on while they are on duty. The body cams are for their protection as well as a visual record of what really happened. Third, police officers make mistakes as they did when responding to Raymond Rachal's call for help.

A customer who was drunk came charging through a barrier that separates the front desk clerk from the hotel guests. Rachal defended himself and subdued the guest. He then called the police.

I've worked the front desk at a hotel. I don't know what I would have done had some guest charged after me in this manner. Guests aren't allowed to cross the barrier where clerks are working. It's a safety issue. 

Unless you're a bank robber, you wouldn't go beyond the teller barriers at a bank where the tellers are working. And you don't do that at a hotel.

However, if I would have called the police, I would have gotten a different reception from the responding officer because I'm white not black. They would have listened to me. They failed Rachal. It's clear from the video Rachal never pushed back at the officer who was pushing him. 

Not only that, Rachal was arrested and not the white customer who caused the incident to begin with. Eventually, the charges against Rachal were dropped. He never should have been charged.

I don't know what was going through that officer's mind but the mindset that's out there needs to change. 

front desk clerks we take the peaceful evenings for granted

january guest log we have the right to defend ourselves against violence

because you're drunk isn't an excuse you made that choice

hotel security camera thankful this time it was on and working

extra pillows and more towels no one ever has enough of anything

sometimes meth if they only stay a few hours and bring trash bags into the room

another day in america the victim calls you for help and you arrest the victim

injustices often follow those who pursue justice

this moment

ceramic greenware part of mom's unfinished diary

shoulder pain the same trauma from the same accident 

sunset I waited all day for this moment

what does a leaf feel like before it falls

detachment becomes something you're attached to

switching rooms in the dust of abandonment

the paintbrush never questions my choices

freeze warning my blanket thinner than I remembered

it's what lessens all of us

broccoli casserole I think of you while chopping onions

two-hat day one for the wind and the other so I don't have to hear it

floodwaters not givin' a damn about any of our haiku

welcomed at first the formalities to technicalities to hostilities

the same ol' dirt road y'all make me weary

in the distance I can see the bitterroot mountains

double down zelenskyy "nothing less than victory" 

every war it's what lessens all of us

propaganda machine it's a well-oiled tool used by every government

debit card defiance the russians booking visa tours to uzbekistan

flashback 2016 israeli jews dual citizenship in russia revoked so they couldn't vote

muslim refugees their basic freedoms confiscated by putin's regime*

*Some had their passports taken away, some were deprived of a basic education. In rural areas, some had their land confiscated so they had no means to make a living. Some of these refugees are now living in the US. 

in the beginning

bare patches of ground the ants succeed where the grass has failed

farmhouse chimney the slant of its shadow as if you were the one leaning

world news making me more tired than I've ever been

still strangers even though we share the same suitcase

after the prairie burns there's enough smoke for more tears

ghost elm the old wounds never healed

stranded on the beach the driftwood not drifting anymore

in the beginning no one was there to record it

so thin the light shines through it

wooden bridge the fresh lumber smell of the newest plank

windy day talking louder is not the answer

rock outcropping the cedar turned like a balcony spindle

silk threads the journey of writing from bamboo strips to paper 

where the trail splits an acorn's fall cushioned by moss

restrained in a grocery cart the child's screams travel throughout the store

passport photo the blankness of the wall and the look in your eyes

shadows of trees sitting on the bench

cold enough to snow but it doesn't

march madness a pie crust so thin the light shines through it

unsealed envelope in case there's a change of heart

every day is an anniversary of something

new lake in the flooded basement all I need is some sand

birdwatching the cardinal eyes a hawk near the feeder

camouflaged tanks the pine branches never asked for this job

negative energies dechanneled I cancel my appointment with resentment

honeysuckle battlefield after we're dead this shit will find a way to keep spreading

closed door negotiations the negative energies return

dollar store with every battery but the one I'm looking for

at the age where even stubbing my toe puts me at risk

covid not gone just lurking

every day is an anniversary of something

the murk of murkiness

defensive scultpures in the twisted crosses of Czech hedgehogs

tornado threat the wind knocks early

broken sidewalk outside the flower shop dandelions

minnows disappearing into the murk of murkiness

chris rock's joke deserving of silence but not violence

a night at the oscars starting to mirror real life

chernobyl photograph the black streaks on her wedding dress

still radioactive the letters and postcards they left behind

all the trees that can't leave

game of thrones saga I'm not opening those emails

passive-aggressive driver how long will you tailgate me

the                 wall                 places like             shapen 

     serpentine        curving in                  my mis            spine

drama surfers actively seeking troubled waters

stepping away from a guided hike maybe they won't notice I'm missing

abandoned mine a hint of salt in the desert air

trapped in the red forest all the trees that can't leave

stopped in my tracks by a rabbit's stillness

lucid dreaming

upturn downturn thank you for the roses

old shoes I've got a few rough spots too

missouri natives now the canada geese

shotgun blasts the neighbors enjoying spring break

kremlin's gremlins putin wonders where the leak is

squirrel leaps of faith coming to a tree near you

roaming calls the hoot owl answers

lucid dreaming where were we before the alarm sounded

magnolias turning sunshine up a notch

vacation plans I recycle the brochures

pollen count inflation the numbers keep climbing

Spring Is Moving In

daylight savings time give me back that lost hour 

declaring bankruptcy the loan sharks want to lend a hand*

too many battles a tattered flag in the moonlight 

tornado damage what words can heal these wounds

another storm in the capital yes, virginia, we've read your texts**

anniversary wishes I wish you were here

fairly certain daffodils spring is moving in

forsythia the flowers become stars

*Junk mail about taking out car loans

**Reference to Ginni/Virginia Thomas texts to Mark Meadows

the world yard by yard

cold war chill the thirst for power makes enemies of us all

invasive honeysuckle with plans to conquer the world yard by yard

crimes and crimea all those years we looked the other way

global warming about to go nuclear

darkening skies not our military so says the russian ambassador of lies

Gabbard, Carlson, and Trump names that have the ring of a bad law firm

seesaw temps winter isn't done with us yet

war is not about victors: it's about losses, it's about murder

sunflowers in winter no reframing what russian tourists have already seen

*russian tourists in the Dominican Republic, Turkey, Egypt, and elsewhere

unmarked trail a mosquito waiting for me

Groundhog Day

end of January bumping into old walls with the new vacuum

stood

I

am 

under

dryer museum we keep adding to the lint collection

back pain a winter storm on the way

trump think tank the capitol rioters were heroes

outdated world map the USSR in orange

groundhog day neither one of us going out

squirrel chatter too many nuts to bury 

rosacea patches of red in the cedar trees

unsigned painting the woodpile collecting snow

new year's resolutions a gust of wind sweeps the snow off the deck