Monday, February 29, 2016

2 poems


by chuck leary

illustrations by palomine studios





harold and rufus



harold stood on the corner
the light would not turn green
his dog rufus was beside him
his collar was shiny and clean

how many long hours
had harold stood on this spot?
he tried so hard to remember
but he could not

was red alive and green dead?
or the other way around?
the cars went by forever
but he did not hear a sound

rufus remained as faithful
as he had ever been
through rain and snow and lightning
his collar was shiny and clean

harold looked across the street
to fate he would not yield
red would not last forever
green would be revealed







walter



the sky was blue
the earth was brown
a breeze passed through
the little town

one cloud was white
one cloud was pink
walter thought
i need a drink

i need a drink
and then another
the sky is my sister
and the earth my brother

in fifteen minutes
i must leave this bar
and try to sell
a human a car

o what did i do
to deserve this fate
my dreams were early
and my crimes were late

today is just
another day
just one more drink
and i will be on my way




Thursday, February 25, 2016

the little girl and the flower


by cindy jane walker

illustrations by eddie el greco





a little girl was walking down the street.

she saw a flower.

she thought, i am a little girl, i am supposed to like flowers.

actually i hate flowers.

and balloons.

and butterfiles.

and kittens.

and i really really hate puppies.

someday, a long long time from now, i will grow up and i will not have to pretend to like these things.

i will be a total bitch and rule the world and make everybody in it my slave.

while the little girl was thinking these thoughts a nice lady came along.

o look at the flower, little girl, said the nice lady. isn’t it nice.

yes it is, the little girl agreed.

the nice lady had a bag on her shoulder and she reached into it and took out a tiny puppy.

look at the puppy, said the nice lady, isn’t he cute? would you like to kiss him?

bleagh, thought the little girl, but she answered, i would very much like to kiss the puppy but unfortunately i have an allergy that prevents me from doing so.

o that is so sad, said the nice lady. well, have a nice day.

the little girl and the nice lady went their separate ways.

the little girl lived to be ninety years old. she had three husbands, five children, and seven grandchildren. she never conquered the world or made everybody in it her slave, but many people, including her first two husbands, thought she was something of a bitch.

the nice lady lived for another twenty-five years. a fifth grade teacher, she never married or had children but was remembered fondly by many of her pupils because she really was a nice lady.

the puppy lived to be sixteen years old. he spent most of his life indoors. and ate a lot and weighed eighty pounds when he passed away. he always enjoyed his hour or so a day outdoors.

twenty minutes after the little girl and the nice lady parted ways, the flower was run over by a nasty little boy on a tricycle.



Tuesday, February 23, 2016

friends


by nick nelson




i had a friend named joe
that was a while ago
i had a friend named john
but he is long gone

i had a friend named mac
but he is not coming back
i had a friend named bill
he disappeared over the hill

had a friend named stan
he was a strange man
i had a friend named clyde
he took me for a ride

i had a friend named jones
cheated me of all i owned
and i had a friend named smith
who was no one to mess with

o mother your misbegotten son
can’t get along with anyone
and will go his solitary way
to the end of his days

all those friends i had
treated me pretty bad
but i will wish them all well
when we meet again in hell