Loose Leaf Notes

1. Illumination 2. Social Graces 3. Bold Faces

“What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly.” ~ Richard Bach I have no problem starting poems or stories (like I have no problem filling up closets). It’s ending them that’s hard. Endings should look like they’ve always been there, as though there were no possible other conclusion. But [...]

1. A friend of a friend, named Pet Pet Ping Pong. 2. Breakfast at Alwyn’s, where I recently spent the night. 3. Someone saved a seat with their flat footing dance shoes for the Friday Night Jamboree. 4. Chalk on the sidewalk in front of the Blackwater Loft. 5. Is that a six word memoir [...]

This story was published in The Floyd Press on May 1, 2008. It was also featured on the newspaper’s website HERE. “This is getting to be a real good smelling poetry reading,” said visiting poet Jim Webb in reference to the scent of popcorn coming from the front of the Floyd Country Store. Webb and [...]

The moon is a mutiny a one bubble revolution escape from the sky-sea of sudsy clouds It floats across the heavens like a flower child pagan in peaceful demonstration against the status quo Post notes: The photo was taken a few nights ago. The poem is one of many in a moon series written over [...]

1. Black tea is like whiskey to herb tea’s wine. 2. I don’t like chocolate for the sake of it. For me, chocolate is like a condiment to go with mint, peanut butter, ice cream, or cherries. 3. I never had a baby shower or wedding shower. But I do love baths. 4. I have [...]

AKA: Can we have a Word? 1. A Blog Quote Contest: Blogtations, a site that posts daily quotes taken from blogs, is hosting a Mother’s Day Quote Contest, of which I am one of the judges. The deadline to submit your best saying about Motherhood, taken from your blog, is May 2. The winner will [...]

I had planned to interview my friend, Mara, sometime during the two day poetry symposium we attended recently. I knew I’d be blogging about it, and if she won for her either of the two presentations she was scheduled to give, I’d be writing a story for The Floyd Press. I thought maybe I’d ask [...]

The 7-9 time-slot stretched on to 10:30, with several new readers, a full house of attendees, and a line-up that resembled a Spoken Word variety show. After Greg opened the evening with a reflective essay about photographs and memories, Mara (pictured left) and I shared our very different Scrabble poems, created using words we played [...]

1. A puddle of petals 2. A litter of yellow 3. Not crying over spilled flowers

I enjoy the distillation of words. I believe less is best, and when writing I try to leave out the parts that most people skip (as recommended by novelist Elmore Leonard). I love the one line poem, the picture that’s worth a thousand words, and cutting back the rose so more blooms will grow. But [...]

1. Tongue twister created after I played AI (a three legged sloth) twice in one Scrabble play, which caused Mara to squeal, “Two three legged sloths … Two three legged sloths … Two three legged sloths.” 2. When I tried to say “two three legged sloths” three times fast, it kept coming out as something [...]

The following is the third and final installment of a story I wrote about our local art scene for a Floyd Press special insert. Part I is HERE. Part II is HERE. The literary arts also have a presence in Floyd, with a monthly open mic night and at least two writing workshop groups. Poets [...]

A Flourishing of Arts in Floyd, Part I is HERE. This story originally appeared in The Floyd Press on March 27, 2008. Another sign that the arts have grown in the community is Floyd’s active nightlife. Music lovers and fiddle players spilling over into the streets for the Friday Night Jamboree is part of Floyd’s [...]

This is the first installment of a three part reprint from a story that originally appeared in a Floyd Press special insert on March 27, 2008. A post about the process I went through writing this retrospective on Floyd arts can be found HERE. Whether it’s food and shelter, or creative arts and entertainment, Floyd [...]

1. Winning Hand 2. A Pupil of Poetry 3. Self portrait in the eye of the beholder 4. Pose of Ponder 5. Gold Finger Post note: Body Language Part I is HERE.

1. My Father’s Nose 2. Teardrops 3. Last Leg

Joe took the day off to study for his upcoming counselor’s licensure test. I had just returned from a morning Scrabble game, the one where Mara complimented my lime green shirt and I explained how I had pulled all the little rhinestones off after I bought it at thrift shop. She and Rosemary, whose dining [...]