FACE OFF This is not a true story... He paused when he entered the room and made eye contact with no one. Was he embarrassed? Him...embarrassed? No. Impossible. It had to be something else. Something important. Dire, perhaps? Whatever it was it was in his eyes. Unmoving. Staring at something but nothing. Vacant. Those who... Continue Reading →
THE CHILD It was a whirl-wind romance fraught with complications. No one knows for sure because no one talked even though asked...but The Child could surmise the complication was a drunken night on the town with him shipping out the next day to fight the end of a war, and her rebounding from a heartbroken,... Continue Reading →
THE LETTER It was there on the table waiting for him. The letter. Words written down. Finally. This after years and years of mental word choices, sentence construction. What to say? The Son was having health issues. Was it a genetic disorder. Inherited condition. When to write? Answers needed now. Important and imperative information... Continue Reading →
CHAIR WITH MAN A reunion of as many siblings who could make the journey. It wasn't as long-planned as it was necessary. For some, those left who could still journey, came in great anticipation of sibling camaraderie, retelling and reliving memories, softening sibling youthful blows and jabs, but mostly an attempt to tamp down... Continue Reading →
PICNIC: 3PEARS2FIGS If we started counting... The bus drivers who take your children to school, or you to work. The paper-people who deliver your morning read to your front porch, the bush next to your front porch, or miss entirely and hit the roof. The cab driver who doesn't ask questions and doesn't sing,... Continue Reading →
GIRL WITH CHAIR He is sitting on the rim of a wood planter box that houses a smallish palm tree providing no shade on this warm day, and looking away from where I am standing. My camera is a second away from capturing this perfect shot. An image photograph for a potential sketch. One... Continue Reading →
PENN'S TABLE Watercolour by RRiederMy Reader says I've been reading too much. Reading and listening to the daily news, overhearing conversations, listening to opinions from all sides, some aloud some silent but seen face-on just the same. There's something to be said about that, but you won't hear it directly from me nor My Reader.... Continue Reading →
He salutes me every morning. Him…that old guy…the early morning walker. Like me. Although, I know that I’m not the only one. I imagine he salutes every one he passes whether on the same side of the street, or not. Ex-military, for sure. Crisp camouflage pants, green jacket with emblems on the sleeve, name... Continue Reading →
Jasper Johns burgled my mind. He took all the thoughts I’ve had about my ART that tumble around in my head, and said them aloud to important curators of important museums and important writers working on important feature essays about ART and artists. Importantly enough, wordsmith gems gleaned and made with humour sometimes not, are... Continue Reading →
LAPIN BLEAU via Thoughts on Integrity Sometimes words spoken or written by others hit a nerve, make a point, provoke, and not just a mere thought but myriads of thoughts....that are too important to ignore. Angst, about when the sky will finally fall, real or imagined, is palpable. This is not about Chicken Little. This... Continue Reading →
BRAE TOFTS One dollar. Every three years. For the past 25 years. I’ve been paid one dollar, every three years for the past 25 years to move house. I’ve packed my pets and belongings and moved house. To a new house. Different part of the city, same state. Different neighbourhood. It didn’t take me long... Continue Reading →
MEYERED MARBLE It is curious, is it not, how others find us via our posts in the round-about-traffic, that interchange between and beyond you and me, and me and you, and you? What makes Ellie's POEM of consequence to me? I've begun to wonder what "kids"* think about as they look toward tomorrow. Their future.... Continue Reading →
PESCE The Reader looks more than dubious that somehow I can connect fishing for words to the watercoloured fish on a platter surrounded with leafy, green things, yellow-ish squiggles and red rounds that may or may not look like small, yet delicious potatoes. I can't so I won't. No surprise there, The Reader smirks. Very... Continue Reading →
IT'S A TOSS UP NO IT'S A COW Both of my kids have a picture of a framed cow that graces a wall in each of their respective homes. They were born on a family dairy farm and know the value of hard work. They also know the value of working together and of... Continue Reading →
CONVERSATION CUL-DE-SAC She wasn’t an easy person...understand not in the infamous being easy sense, she just wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea. Safely said, her glass was always less than half-empty. Who is kidding whom? It was empty. My Reader might think this a rather harsh and hard-to-tell recollection of The Mother. She was exactly what... Continue Reading →
Curious still about the etymological origin of twice…as defined in Origins A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, authored by Eric Partridge is this: “2. In double degree or quantity (twice as good).” Twice. As. Good. Originally, my thinking was this would be easier to explain than I’m [actually] finding it to be. I’m attempting... Continue Reading →
My Reader says I've really truly stepped out of my comfort zone of darkened-corner-wall-flower-status by signing up to be a guest speaker on DOODLEWASH. Charlie O'Shields, an artist himself and a WordPress Freshly Pressed Prominent, show cases his own art, but also provides a WordPress venue for artist's around the world by inviting them to... Continue Reading →
A WORK IN PROGRESS... Note: My grand-daughter just celebrated her 13th birthday. I know, I know. I didn't think I was old enough to have a thirteen year old grand child...and I'm not. Not really. But while My Reader debates the above "not old enough" statement, please read the letter I sent to My... Continue Reading →
BIRD IN A BOWL Funny thing about that weather. Yesterday on the half-past five morning first dog walk of the day the weather was clear-skied, star-studded crisp and thirty-three degrees. Then again, at the morning nine o'clock second dog walk... Continue Reading →
SHACK and PUMP HOUSE The telephone would have exploded had he not answered it. The Stepfather knew who it was. His mother. She never minced words. She demanded and commanded. The Old Man was getting old. No, he was already old. He was getting older. There was debt. The Stepfather had to come help... Continue Reading →
No, she never wanted to be a burlesque dancer. What she wanted and only because he asked was a china teacup and saucer preferably English and old, blue or orange or both. Her immediate vision was that it was to be similar to the small collection they once had. The collection he took with him... Continue Reading →
Grandmother’s house was always dark. That’s what I recall anyway. The heavy drapes were always pulled shut which swathed the living room in darkness. The living room became an unmistakable cave when you entered through the front door. Grandmother’s house was always dark, but it also always smelled of blackberry jam. The scent was pungent.... Continue Reading →
"...The sound of silence. Background noises no longer there... painful spaces of time... Other sounds eventually fill the empty space..." __ Other sounds do eventually fill the empty spaces that once filled a home that played the daily tune of "BEWARE OF THE DOG"... whether a big bark threat or not. He spoke openly about... Continue Reading →
Normally, I’ve been reluctant to besiege My Reader with facts, that particular part of my art researching profession that requires accuracy closely bordering the edge of boredom. However, just this once and feeling safe in the “historical fact” arena because I’ve taken liberal liberties with wording and comments…the curious art researcher and enquiring mind bubbled... Continue Reading →
This is how it goes, usually… 1 January – take down Christmas tree. Pack. Store. This is how it went… 26 December – Christmas tree down. Packed. Stored. Five-day head start on usual Christmas tree take-down. Forget January. Early. Easy. Done. Forgotten. Bliss. Thirty-one plus five extra days of forgetful bliss. Thirty-one plus... Continue Reading →
Jots from a Small Apt. 