Summer is too hot
And yet Winter is too cold
Ungrateful extremes

Too short flowers bloom
Too brief their scent fills the air
Too late we notice

Who wants to come and join me
on a poetry retreat
We'll get to hang out somewhere cool
while putting up our feet

Perhaps in an old hunting lodge
or cabins by the sea
or maybe a French Chateau
underneath the Fleur de Lys

There'll be no one there but poets
folks like you and me
Who come to share ideas
and practice poetry

Perhaps there'll be a workshop
a recital maybe two
Where we take turns reading our poems
one from me then one from you

And when the weekends over
we'll part from our new friends
full of inspiration
may our passion never end.

I'm giving up the rat race
gonna quit my job
Gonna go live off the land
an organic enviro-snob

Gonna grow my own potatoes
carrots, peas and beans
Live off fruits and vegetable
eat lots of salad greens

My food will taste like proper food
not of wax or pesticides
And every day I will receive
a big thanks from my insides

I'll generate my power
form a windmill or two
then hydro bill and services
I'll say good bye to you

For work I'll tend my garden,
chop down trees for fire-wood
I'll be getting so much exercise
I'll never have felt so good

To relax I'll keep on writing
poems such as this
telling of the good life
sharing all my bliss

The value's not dictated,
by how hard it is for me?

I think finally i get it.
I think finally i see.

Just because I find it easy,
doesn't make it less.

Just means that its a skill,
with which I have been blessed.

For the longest time I struggled,
to know the worth of things I do.

But now I see the value lies,
In how hard it is for you.

No arguments were made
or evidence exposed
convincing bad assumptions
turned the open sign to closed

If that is all it takes
baseless suspicion, fear and doubt
perhaps thats the sign you're looking for
the one that lets you out

There's been no misinformation
no vagueness and no lies
but every now and then
I see doubt creep in your eyes

I can't help you solve this issue
only you choose who to trust
but there's no relationship without it
you can't get by on lust.

As for me well I trust everyone
until they show me I should not
better that than throw it all away
over something soon forgot

Communication
Leaves little room for mistakes
Unlike assumption

Sometimes we accidentally
inadvertently offend
and yet my innocent mistake
with your hurt feelings must contend

I could understand your outrage
if the slight was with intent
but can't you see the wording
was entirely innocent

And yet you choose another course
for which I cannot make amends
choosing not to forgive my ignorance
or go back to being friends

I never for one moment
imagined I could hurt
the one I love with careless words
that made her feel like dirt

Believe me when I tell you
the last thing on my mind
was to say anything to hurt you
or make you feel so maligned

To me it makes no sense at all
to hold on to this so tight
unless something else is going on
that has you spoiling for a fight

And if thats the case then talk to me
don't make out that I don't care
You shut people out long enough
one day they wont be there

Your head upon my chest,
your leg stretched over mine...
To start each day with you this way,
would make life truly divine.

I wrote the perfect poem,
then stripped it to its core,
to get under a hundred and forty,
now its not perfect anymore.

Finally I'm all caught up.
No more poems left to write.
A chance to fill my coffee cup,
and maybe grab a bite.

I sit front of an empty page,
dripping quill held in my hand.
Waiting for inspiration,
to decide where the ink will land.

The old rocking chair
The dog asleep at my feet
The clock ticks softly
Pages turn in near silence
The serenity of books

Another grey day.
Is summer over so soon.
To think we complained.
Its too hot, its too humid.
Be careful what you wish for.

No covers tonight
The cold side of the pillow
Always keeps me cool

The last leaves succumb.
Floating like feathers of gold.
Inevitable.

Everything is grey.
Grey rain falls from a grey sky.
Colours washed away.

Her name it was Naomi
and she was my first love
I was in grade two
she was in the grade above

she wore ankle socks and a gingham dress
her eyes as big as the number eleven
Oh come on what was I supposed to say
you think I was a poet when I was seven?

She was taller than me by an inch or three
to kiss her I'd stand on a box
but alas we got posted before I got chance
whatever happened to Naomi ***?

Did you ever read a poem
that you thought was about you
But you couldn't be really certain
yet so much of it rang true

Was there a line that caught your eye
something others wouldn't see
did you ***** your nose up,
twist your lips and think "nah, couldn't be!"

Or maybe there was a moment
hidden there in that verse
that grabbed your attention right away
and made you let out a curse

Of course we could all be mistaken
though our subconscious it may persist
But wouldn't such poems be clearer
if they came with a casting list?

Riddles and rhymes
are all very fine
but sometimes they're a pain in the ***

They get in the way
of what you're trying to say
Like the fog inside of the glass

So if you've something to say just spill it
to my face don't sneak up from behind
Cos I'm not very smart in affairs of the heart
I'm not just short sighted I'm blind

I have rainbows at my feet
where my tears and sunshine meet
such a cruel trick of the light it is to play

surely colours out of place
in this sad and lonely space
everything not black or white should go away

If only someone knew
what it was that made me blue
then perhaps they'd find the words I cannot say

but for now it really seems
that I'm dancing in sunbeams
when in truth I'm really trying to run away.

A boy who chases two balloons,
catches neither one.
Pursuing more than you deserve,
will see you left with none.

sometimes the words just don't come
the thoughts and feelings are there
untainted emotions
so raw they cannot be touched
so fragile do they seem, that the slightest contact would shatter them and scatter them to the four corners of my very soul
this is what really lies within me
this is what I cannot bring myself to share
all history has been stripped and I am left with only me
this is the part of me that no one knows
this is whats left
this is the price I dare not pay

New!
(maybe)
"Prime Poems"
Syllables in primes
One then two then three then five
Think back to math class at school for the others
Is it starting to come back yet or are you struggling
And the prime numbers are the easy part, wait til you have to find words
Then you'll be wishing you'd paid more attention in English class as well as math
Which of the two will fail you first, will it be knowing the next number or finding the right words

Born in Ottawa
Canadian teen idol
Singer songwriter
"Diana" made him famous
A popular "Lonely Boy"

Smugglers paradise
Casablanca '41
Sam plays it again
A black and white love affair
That is far from black and white

Give us all your cash
For a fee we'll give some back
Or maybe we wont
We'll use it as we see fit
If we get it wrong, you lose.

Offer me both cheeks
And I'll make them rosy red
with squeals of delight
As you beg me not to stop
From across my bended knee

Know war, no peace
No war, know peace

I stand here at the bus stop
still waiting for the bus
which I think may not be coming
still I don't want to make a fuss

Given the choice of getting on
the bus or walking home
I'd take public transport every time
over strolling home alone

I know I should say something
but how does one explain
that they've already bought a ticket
now their left standing in the rain

If I just knew the bus was coming
that one day she would arrive
I could turn my collar to the wind
it's only weather, I'll survive.

Know love, know loss
No love, no loss.

for every choice we make in life
there could be a different way
for every word we utter
there's twice as many we don't say

for every word that makes the page
theres plenty cast aside
and for every door we close
there's others left open wide

its an unbalanced equation
where x is joy and y is strife
its how you do the transposition
that sets your quality of life

As I lay back, on the garden swing
staring up at a cloudless sky
I realise just how good life is
and it makes me want to cry

Not tears of sadness for a change
but a mixture of joy and guilt
For I have so much more than others
around me in this life I've built

True I may not love my home
and would prefer elsewhere instead
but at least I have the shelter
of four walls and roof o'er my head

And I may not have much money
but the cupboards are never bare
and now and then I get the chance
for a treat just here and there

Its the guilt and shame of self pity
that first turns tears on
I have nothing to complain about
and wallowing was wrong

But the striking realisation
of just how rich my life can be
if I let myself be grateful
for all that's inside me.

I have eye's that see and a heart that beats
ear's that hear and legs that walk
Arms to hold my loved ones
lips with which to kiss and talk

But most of all I have the soul
of a poet, true and strong
and the sense to let my pride admit
when sometimes I get it wrong.

So forgive my indiscretion
my depression and my blues
but I guess to appreciate the win
we sometimes have to lose.

One careful owner the ad would read
and to a point it would be true
I wouldn't mention the other six
who weren't as careful with me as you

Low mileage, well that might be so
but the chassis a little worn
and thank fully the brakes are good
but you can always blow the horn

Built for comfort, not for speed
sounds accurate to me
The upholstery's seen better days
for yourself you should come see

But if you feel like a test drive
pick up the phone and grab a pen
and we'll make a date the two of us
to get me on the road again.

From the time he was a little boy
He wanted to be a soldier real bad
To wear big boots and a uniform
to look just like his dad

Although he'd never met the man
Many pictures had he seen
Of daddy as a soldier
being inspected by the queen.

There's a shoebox in the cupboard
With daddys medals and beret
And a letter Johnny never read
about how daddy passed away

The Falklands war was halfway done
but wars are always hell
and The Battle of Goose Green
is where Johnny's hero fell

As soon as he was old enough
despite his mothers pleas
Johnny joined the army
though she begged him from her knees

It seemed he was a natural
a born soldier like his dad
who looking down from up above
would be so proud of his lad

He had an honesty and integrity
that his advancement did effect
A natural heroic *******
you could not help but respect

So when war came around again
this time in old Iraq
Johnny proudly did his duty well
not just the once, for he want back

28 years ago we said goodbye
almost to the day
this time we're here for Johnny
who war also took away

Johnny was my friend
a man I truly loved
No wife or children left behind,
his family's given enough

Break out the candles
grab the wine
go find the matches
while there's time

Turn on the wireless
find the music for the mood
perhaps some popcorn
before there's no time left to brood

It's gotten colder
you feel a chill run down your spine
no need to worry
you're well prepared, you'll be just fine

You hear her coming
no more the gentle breeze
The dust is flying now
gets in your eyes then makes you sneeze

Batten down the hatches
it's really gonna blow
pull your armchair to the window
settle in and watch the show.

She's right on time
grab a blanket, wrap up warm.
light the candles, pour the wine
enjoy your first date with the storm

You drive me nuts and make me crazy.
Take my wits to their very ends.
But in spite of this I'm certain,
Life's much better with you, my friends.

You helped me turn a corner yesterday
To see there truly was another way
I was floundering and lost
wallowing in the cost
But you somehow knew the words you had to say

I had somehow managed to lose myself
But you could see me there in plain sight on the shelf
You knew where I was coming from
convinced me what I thought was wrong
took my shattered heart and nursed it back to health

I wish that I could find the words to show
the gratitude that you already know
I carry you inside my heart
as did right from the start
you're now with me every single place I go

Needless to say I'd gladly do the same for you
after all I know what you are going through
the fact you put that to one side
to convince me I shouldn't hide
is the noblest thing a friend could ever do

And so today is the first day of my new start
A life in which I want to actually take part
I owe so much of it to you
My friend so beautiful and true
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

How can thank you be enough
for what you've given me
Your words of kindness, have my friend
allowed this blind old fool to see.

I wonder what its like
to be a poet free of strife
could you even be a poet
with nothing gnawing at your life

If life was daffodils and butterflies
and you were happy with no doubts
could you turn that into poetry
would you have stuff to write about

I can see if life turned you around
you could write about your past
but what if life was always perfect
a total and utter blast?

Somehow I think you'd manage it
because no matter how great life looks
its not until you've lived their life
you see into every darkened nook

Because what seems so great to all without
is seldom that great inside
the obits are full of perfect lives
cut short by suicide.

Skinny dipping
seems like the perfect thing to do
so lets head out
to a private beach
together me and you

Cast off our clothes
escape this heat
as we dip beneath the sea
lets pretend that we are young again
teenage you
meets teenage me

Lets build a bonfire on the beach
sit together holding hands
and dry ourselves
by its golden flame
sleep on a blanket
on the sand

When morning comes
and we both awake
not as kids but as we are
will we still feel then
that we were too old
to make love beneath the stars?

They say work is hell
But with air-con on the fritz
Hell is where I work

Thirty plus degrees
Humidex is off the scale
Too hot to look cool

Hope come unto me
find me in the darkness
set me somehow free

bring light into my life
chase the shadows from these walls
illuminate this dungeon
that I may hear sanctuary's call

drag me from the depths of gloom
cast me forth into the sun
that I may feel its temperate glow
like a day thats just begun

Is this real
or is it just a fantasy
is there a future
anywhere for you and me
What do you want
do you even know that much
or will we both live
with just the memory of that touch
That fated weekend
when we two became as one
and my defenses
were all finally undone
was that real
or was that just a fantasy
was it the beginning
or the end of you and me?

Sometimes I wonder what the future holds for me
is there a chance that I may ever be happy
through moments filled with doubt
I can see no clear way out
Let alone a path that leads to ecstasy.

So I look back upon my life up to this day
and there's nothing to suggest another way
disappointment all around
not a joyous happy sound
not a song to sing along or even play

I'm coming to a point where I must choose
before my heart is just too beaten and too bruised
I want someone in my life
perhaps a lover or a wife
someone to love that I just couldn't stand to lose

So I lay my cards out here for you to see
Is there a chance that you could be the one for me
When I close my eyes at night
You come waltzing into sight
And I dream we dance off to infinity

I want to run away from it all
to escape the rat race's incessant call
to be left to be myself
alone but happy on the shelf
I want to run away from it all

I want to start again somewhere new
Doing only all the things I want to do
No more obligated chores
Washing windows, scrubbing floors
I want to start again somewhere new

I want to buy some land and build a yurt
Live off grid so Mother Earth I don't hurt
Water heated by the sun
Organic gardening for fun
I want to buy some land and build a yurt

I want to sit a write by candlelight
Not a CF bulb or fluorescent tube in sight
No noise or light pollution
would be my perfect solution
I want to sit and write by candle light

I want to be awoken by the sun
not just on special days but every one
readjust my body clock
to natures silent tick and tock
I want to be awoken by the sun

I want to run away, you wanna come?
One is great but really two is twice the fun.
Loving life the way it's meant
Two poets in a tent
I want to run away you wanna come?