It's late January, and winter's been with us for long enough that, from time-to-time, my mind meanders May-ward. Or even toward June and July and August. Warmer months. Carefree months for sailing and gardening and cycling canopied country roads... Don't misunderstand. I'm no winter hater. On the contrary. I actually love the chill and the snow. The skiing. But there's something about the ...
Wandering Prayer
“I am a brother to a wandering prayer.” — Uche Nduka, “With a Swoop” I am sending out a swooping Saturday salute to Uche Nduka (@UcheNdukaPoet) whose lilting truth-telling breathes urgency and nomadic mystery into these dangerous days, these tempestuous temper tantrums... I recommend that you jumpstart (or restart) your weekend with Nduka's wonder and swooping ...
Maturing
"Age is a high price to pay for maturity." — Tom Stoppard Griffin, our Labrador Retriever, will turn ten this spring. Aging. Maturing. Growing a little heavier and little slower and a little less interested in other dogs. Truth be told, Griffin has always been an old soul. Since at least the day we selected him as a pup from his barnyard litter in Lamoille County, Vermont only a couple of months ...
Tea Time: From Paisley to Procedural Drawing Tool
This morning (if 3-something AM is morning rather than purgatory) sleep abandoned me and I flitted a bit while the most incredible orange orb settled into the Jemez Mountains. Maybe I was moonstruck. Or just lucky to be insomniac, to be witness to the most magnificent moon dance I've spectated in a while. Somewhere, somehow between mugs of tea swirling steam paisleys into the darkness I stumbled ...
Zozobra: Goodbye, Gloomies!
We're back in Santa Fe in time to experience Zozobra (aka "burning Old Man Gloom). It's been years since I've witnessed this fascinating ritual. Decades actually. We spy from our terrace—and from a live stream courtesy of the Meow Wolf—instead of plunging into the sea of festive celebrants. The giant effigy moans and groans and taunts the fire dancer. He has been stuffed with thousands of ...
Benign
Dermatology visit. Yes, a poem about body dots! This up-close-and-personal (too personal?!) account is approximately midway through a poem about my first dermatologist appointment. He touches a mole on my neck then dips darting eyes to my chest, to hairy, pigmented spots and rough, pinkish patches. Seborrheic keratosis. Solar lentigo. Normal. No cause for concern. These middle years ...