to languish
without a care
like a spot–bellied hound  
under a potted tangerine tree
solitary fruit
still ripening
        dangles
in the mellowed October sun.

I don't miss you
so much anymore
still
things aren’t really right
sometimes I think
they never will be
these new parameters
scam me  
into a feeling of success
I can make this work
not there yet
just slightly cracked
and the fix -it glue
is stuck to my finger
instead of my wound

for  a quick jot
it’s in  there somewhere
fumble under
my last vacation’s
embroidered coin purse
bunched up nose  tissues
pink lip liner
yesterday’s crumpled
grocery receipts
a neon yellow memory
  falls out  of my hand
and screams ****** ******
in the middle
of  a quiet  hallway.

I wake up everyday
my eyes riveted
to the ceiling
as rainbow flecks
radiate from crystals
that reside in the middle
of the uppermost window

this bedroom marked “private”
on the door
has meant twenty-four months
complete control
freedom to design
every detail, every texture, every nuance
Handpicked

A  vivid palette
splashed onto every square foot
hoping to recapture
life’s intense force
while  it  drowns out  
nagging shadows
threatening to swallow
My space

Italian ceramic mask- topped sconces
flanking the empty space
the mosaic mirror
I’m still learning to make
the gilded cream vanity
fit for a princess
still Waits

highlighted memories
fill dusty shelves and cling to walls
called Home now

my queen size bed use to sit quietly
in my guest room
rarely disturbed
now it harbors
my   dreams and fears
afloat on a sea of defiantly feminine
pillows and blankets

an eclectic mix of Me
comes out of every nook and cranny
while my inner sanctum takes shape.

I comfort myself
with the knowledge
that you
always felt
the intensity
of my love
   but
as evening calls
uncertainty
rushes   in
   to
steal the moonlight .

behind  every  rock
around every  corner  
any breath
that  lustrous blue   sky
the last color I see
this crumb of cheese
parked on my tongue
could be the last
the last flavor
I taste
It waits for me  
Knowing
I have no where to hide

about something else
it wandered off
on a tangential excursion
backpack fully loaded
before I knew it
the cows
had come home
and the gate
was closed.

tucked away
in a comfy spot
then thoughts snuck in
and wouldn't lay
they swirled and hurled
ideas and frets
my tired mind tried
to forget
finally the night swallowed
me in
sleep found me
a tad more frayed
than expected

that  bend
is a different  life  
****** in my path
placed  under my shoes
no explanations given  
just
Deal with This  
  move forward  
because the road
behind you
is permanently closed

a  rainy sort of rain
buckets thrown  
from invisible  
sky hands
a newborn stream splashes
down main street
slicks train tracks  
and  thirsty lawns
with a spritzer
cocktail  of  cool air

by those  beats
sweep me
right into a groove
Anywhere from sad to glad
as long I can feel
them pulsing
through the floor
I think I am
going to be
Alright.

I tried to gut a gourd
it flew screaming  
through the kitchen
with the cleaver still inside
oh,well
canned  makes the best pie
anyway.

announced itself
all around a tiny
quaint white
birdhouse
nestled inside
  the lanky lilac shrub
that towered above the roof  
of our ranch style
rental home
with a  profusion of light purple buds
their heady fragrance
no perfume could really capture
these technicolor memories
of the two New England
Springs spent exploring
on  walks along the woods
while chattering squirrels scampered
on branches
arcing over our heads
fingers crossed
we’d missed the bears  
that ransacked
our birdseed feeder
earlier that morning
as our blind hound
delicately  sniffed
our neighbor’s
blooms

Impending fury
clings
to closed eyelids
palpable loss
a sable brush
dunked in dread
blackens every inch
of familiar landscape
what if’s
eat through
the static blue horizon
making a meal
of unborn dreams
slaked only by
hastily grabbed
history
ragged spirits
haul hope
on well- worn tar
safe haven
still pages away

Gently shake
that sauce
if you
have a care
the ceiling
needs no spice
the curtains
look so nice
when they are
devoid of flavor.

Tall hedges rustle
bullied by icy breezes
beat against the window
  relentless neon Buick sign
pushes the insistent light
of capitalism
through cream lace curtains
after sunset  .

You’ve been gone
for so long now
yet every ripple
reels you back in
I feel your dreams
die inside me
all over again

Allegiance

Hot biscuit of cheesy pleasure
come hither
I shall greet you with parted lips,
lust apparent in every cell.
don't shy away-
for you are mine alone
to savor ,
this  achingly empty basket
soon awaits my
lonely countenance.
****************­**
Laine G and I   shared a common love  of   Red Lobster cheese  biscuits   ,  after a visit to the doctor  ,  my   friend was told her cholesterol was too high, and she would have to  cut way back  - I  wrote this for  her  :
****************­********
Sworn Enemy

Cheese- riddled biscuit denial
discs from Hell
demand my unwavering allegiance
no more
for only in my dreams
are you innocent.

for a
a dead man
who
can't buy wine

a timeshare
in Florida

finance
a mortgage

go back
to school

use a senior discount
for an age he never  
reached

oddly enough
it seems
his state
of
non physicality
impedes
his  purchase
capabilites

fatally

every waking thought
fueled by
juicy   strawberries
not from distant lands
stalked by native asparagus
signs on empty spots
indicate to our dismay
the farmer’s market  
Gone away
for this week
dejected  we head home
desires  unmet
with crumpled  canvas totes
in  unhappy hands.

Past, present, future
feeder roads
morph
into the  main drag
over the railroad  tracks
through  hills and dales
until every curve
screeches to that  farewell ride
only one way left to travel  
  dead end straight ahead
intersection imminent -
try to brace for impact

hot lovin lip lick
in the AM
wings it’s way
into my
mouth
hot
sweet
fake buffalo
real chicken
call my  mouth
your stomping grounds

You don’t populate
my dreams
so much anymore
I castigate myself
for this  
abysimal lack
of your presence  
but every night  
my dreams  take me
somewhere
you aren’t  .

Hidden away
From prying eyes
Rooms with a view
Prime real estate
Tropic locale
Lake front property
Mature landscaping
Well lit
24-hour guard
Comfy digs
Classic interiors
Shady when needed
Sunny in its heart
Ideally suited
For family life
Or just hanging
With friends
See agent lizard
For details
To start your life
In Paradise

to pour
anymore
a  sticky
residue
coats
unyielding
jug walls  
it's spent body
tossed  on top
of the  kitchen trash
a sweet token
memory
of your last trip
up north
mapley
  contents spilled
over so many 
waffle
nooks and crannies
like so many
tears
on your last days
here

tossed around
like empty peanut shells
between a greedy hound girl
and the local squirrel  riff raff
staging a hissy fit
territorial disputes run amuck
so much fuss
the elder pup stands firm
barks to never surrender
her claim to the lucky stash
all the while her feathered foes
swoop down
and steal them both  blind.

I like about
July
are multitudes of pink mimosa trees
on countless country
roads
with orange day lilies
running rampantly
along stranger’s driveways
air thick from
smoky spent fireworks
trigger thoughts
of sad
goodbyes
said way too soon

wrappers glisten
in the fluorescent light
electricity hums
a savage tune
of seduction
coins buy nothing
anymore
origami bills
****** down
spat back
no help proffered
from passers by
snack interlude
denied.

plate teaser
is plain food
what you desire
forget about the
ships launched
civilizations founded
tribes enslaved
so we can
just stay home
nourish our bodies
please our tongues
with
history’s  edible mysteries  
that  sail out of the  pantry
every night
  docked  on our  tv tables
for  instant gratification
upon critical
mastication