October 27, 2018

Haiku for you...Heaven Only Knows

so many ripples
from 
so many tear stained eyes
heaven only knows





the brutality
the hate filled world of humans
evil is not kind

August 28, 2018

A Haiku for you~The Future

all that's going down
all that's floating to the ground
all that is to hit the fan

Lunch With Girlfriends, By Kathy O’Malley

Elaine’s vertigo has never been worse
Kay can’t recall where she left her purse
Rhonda’s about to replace her knees
Linda’s breathing is tinged with a wheeze

Donna's left boob has a troublesome lump
Diane’s on her third trip to take a dump
Lorraine’s husband can’t remember a thing
Nine years a widow, Marge still wears her ring

Marlene is dealing with another UTI
Sally’s giving a hearing aid another try
Marie has decided she can’t drive at night
Sharon still wears clothes two sizes too tight

They’ve been through divorces and babies and wakes
They do for each other whatever it takes
They’ve already buried Marcia and Kate
And truthfully, Lizzie’s not looking so great

So whenever they can, they get out to eat
Open bottles of wine and forget their sore feet
There’s laughing and crying and letting down guards
And when the bill comes, there’s ten credit cards

So here’s to the waiters who keep orders straight
And to the places that let lunches run three hours late
And here’s to the girlfriends, those near and those far
Here's to the girlfriends, you know who you are!!!

June 25, 2018

An Old Friend

Sitting down and playing the piano and singing today, after so many years...felt like I lost a dear friend.
My hands aren't what they used to be, I know, and neither is my voice...the old saying comes to mind, if you don't use it you lose it.
I bought my current  piano from one of my neighbors after she passed away...she was one of our piano accompanist when I was in a singing group….this piano just never has fit me. I know that may sound strange to anyone who has never played, but it's like a car, it has to fit the driver.
I had bought my baby grand while living in California, from a piano company in Oceanside... it was in the back room as a trade in.  
When I walked into the showroom, I ran my hands over the keys of all the new pianos...why I don't know, because I’m never happy to play new pianos….the keys are so stiff and unresponsive...the sales gentleman saw me, asked if I’d like to see the one they had just gotten in...in the back room… As soon as I saw it I fell in love...I sat down  and touched the keys. I knew it was mine….and they were so happy to see me buy it, they had no use for old used pianos. At no extra charge they shipped it to me and paid for the tuning!
I moved that piano five more times, and the fifth time was to my nephews home in Utah.   When I moved to Utah I had no room for it in my duplex, but it fit right in with the decor of my nephews home, which was just two doors down the street.  They tuned it up and took good care of it.
After a few years I moved back to California but left my baby grand with its new owners, it couldn't be moved again, and I knew they'd take good care of it and love it as much as I did.
I do miss it though, the music sat at just the right, eye level height, the keys were ivory, the soft touch and tone was magical…
I guess playing on this piano I have now sounds and feels so out of key, reminding me of my beautiful old friend I loved and lost.

June 17, 2018

Random Words...


Words layer, mounting refuge within lines
Cold then hot, seeking temperatures blind
There is no right, there is no wrong
Sing to me refrain, your beautiful song

May 22, 2018

Review: James Comey, "A Higher Loyalty"


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I finished reading James Comey's book today. I needed a break from reading, so finishing this book wasn't as fast as starting it, because once I put it in my hands, I couldn't put it down; and as each day brings us into these ever present situations of daily reality and problems, I got tired. I've learned to know when to back off. I put it aside for a while, as it delved deeper and deeper into the crux of what this political field is all about. No, it wasn't a story about politics, it was a story about the sacredness of truths within these government walls, and the lies that people want to hold dear as to gain the spotlight; and most of all the falsehoods and hollowness of "loyalty" which is explained to a powerful degree...


Comey managed to lay it all out in plain sight. As he wrote, nothing he has said is classified, you can be sure of that, and what he did say had to be told, I was sure of that. As was said in this book, the press has made it perfectly clear what the truth was and is. No fake news when the majority of reporters are reporting the same thing!

And as far as Comey's relationship with Trump, Comey's based it on his relationships that go way back in his history, far beyond one president; his background in state and federal law is beyond extensive; his background is beyond reproach in knowing right from wrong, truth from lies; as he's prosecuted and represented people of notoriety and all walks of life, which I hadn't known before reading his accounts of some of these trials...some accounts are limited and brief in the telling, some are expanded and interrelated, all following a common thread...

As I neared the end of the last chapter, it's emotional content came unexpectedly, and you can be sure it makes it all worth the pleasure to read this book.

April 23, 2018

Review: "What Nora Knew" by Linda Yellin

Image result for what nora knew
Linda’s story is a laugh a minute, a quip a minute...the humor is like sequence falling out of a jar, scattering and sticking throughout the pages.  Linda’s humor reflects truths, contemplates truths, then turning the next page to an emotional guessing game when the character, Molly, approaches 40, her truth.


Twice this week I've been told I'm analytical...is it the writer in me who questions? Is it the science and medical background in me seeking the truth? is it the teacher, the golfer or the candlestick maker in me...(yes, I've made candle sticks)...it must mean my mind isn't made up at first glance...look for the obvious, and throw it out, except in the case of Molly, Linda Yellin's main character, she doesn't let anyone stand in her way to seeking the truth to her article quests.


Linda's novel is a tease, love is her tease...who’s next in line to be Molly’s next boyfriend?


To the finish line...3a.m.  I do remember the movies, Sleepless In Seattle, When Harry Met Sally, and You’ve Got Mail, all of which are scattered throughout Linda Yellin’s Novel, referring to Nora Ephron as a tribute.  To be honest, I’ve never read a Nora Ephron novel, but I sure loved these movies!


What is love and when and how do you know when you’ve found it?  The funny thing about this is, I’ve written about all of those questions, and finding the answers wasn’t easy...it took a ton of soul searching and analytical excavation...and years...it's probably plastered all over this blog.  But Molly is a romantic, more or less, and seeking that special someone is her up and down quest, except she constantly second guesses herself.


I thoroughly enjoyed this story and especially the humor in Linda’s writing, better than the alternative of crying over spilt boyfriends...I won’t even hint about how it proceeds and ends...that’s your quest to read and guess!

February 6, 2018

Lovers

Photograph by Kathleen Sara Shattuck


Lovers stroll along the sand
...clouds dim a fading sun
Church bells toll
...a bird flies upon the shore
Catch the light!
...silhouettes echoing hymns
Listen deeply, listen long
...and hold each other’s hand