-5 C

a little inventory before sleep
anticipating digging
putting them all to bed tomorrow

geraniums
portulaca
straw flowers
pansies
petunias
dusty millers
lava terra
auto correct makes me meant all oh never mind
passionflower
fuschia
begonias
and two still blooming despite the cold the frost...
snap dragons and anemones
tomorrow's trowel will pass them by
dig another day

Johnny jump ups

Earlier today I was on my way to an action on the steps of the legislature
Off the bus and cutting through the mall enroute to our meeting point
I passed through a department store with some Halloween displays
But also Christmas because hey, afterall it's already October
And I saw a boxed tree trimmed with lights for only $699.99
I continued on my way
And we did our doing
Held our action
People spoke about green energy jobs and the prospect of a new economy
Eight people held pinwheels
I held a miniature oil rig
Walking on the way home there was a tiny violet pushing up through cracks in the pavement
Purple
Defiant
Free

Threading ahead

there is a thin green ribbon
hanging from one of the branches of the poplar tree
along the route of the squirrel
and in the flitting path of the chickadees
maybe it will blow away into the alley of trash cans
maybe it will be stole away and find itself woven into magpie nests
or maybe it will rest there over the coming days weeks months
a little band of green waving
through the coming white white white of winter

Today is the day

sometimes it's just as simple as that:
you put one foot in front of the other
repeat
repeat
repeat
and it may take awhile but sooner than later you realize you've arrived
you've reached your destination

and I guess we'll find out later where we're going from here
where we all collectively arrived at
charting the course laid out before us
one little X at a time

Tic tic tic

this morning the sound of persistence
across the patio in the backyard
and up a few feet above the wilting geraniums
tic tic tic
tic tic tic
rhythmic insistent
a small woodpecker
hammering away at the side of the house
reminding me of that old disco song
shake shake shake
shake shake shake
shake your booty
shake your booty
all over
this old house

News of the world

'wild bear roams shopping mall
before being shot dead'

my cursor is blinking but my typing fingers fail me
a heavy heart makes connecting the dots slow sad
hard

peace to bruins everywhere

ether

some days you can read and hear and think all kinds of things
like how permafrost is melting
and that methane is even more dangerous than carbon dioxide
and how the coral reefs are bleaching
and this will be bad for algae fish
bad for all of us
and then you watch some national election coverage and think
what a dog and pony show (no disrespect to dogs or ponies)
and you're about to drift off to the land of nod
after a day of not the best news of the world
and a kitten nestles on top of the duvet on your toes
and you remember why things however messed up
are lovely
and worth swimming for