Over the years, I’ve written my wife poems for anniversaries, Valentine’s Day, and just because. Today’s poem (which will be in my upcoming book, The Anonymity of Waiting) was written around the time of our 25th anniversary. It didn’t end up being an anniversary gift because I felt it lacked the gravitas equal to suchContinueContinue reading “The Practical Poet’s Guide to Love”
Category Archives: Traditional poetry
Dear Cat
Our orange tabby cat, Nilli, loves me. About the only time she’s calm is when she’s on my lap, purring, kneading, and (Lord knows why) licking my right arm. The *right* one, mind you, not the left. The anxiety meds we mix with her cat food take the edge off, but she’s still wound prettyContinueContinue reading “Dear Cat”
Rules for the Dance—Mary Oliver
Previously, I posted about Mary Oliver’s book, A Poetry Handbook. I read it twice, and also purchased her book Rules for the Dance: A Handbook for Writing and Reading Metrical Verse. This book, focused on more traditional forms of poetry, is just as excellent; since it’s short, I’m on my second read through. Just asContinueContinue reading “Rules for the Dance—Mary Oliver”
Break Time…
It’s time to take some time off from blogging. Friday, I got my COVID vaccine. Friday night, my arm got sore, but this was nothing new. As Saturday morning wore on, my temp hit 102.4 and stayed there until late afternoon (at which time it dropped to 101.0). I am in a feverish brain fogContinueContinue reading “Break Time…”
A Lazy, Windy Day
Today’s poem is a bit of whimsical apathy or apathetic whimsy, take your pick; it’s on the lighter side for sure. It’s also a sonnet, which is a celebrity among poetic forms (albeit one from an earlier generation who has aged well…Sean Connery? Audrey Hepburn? Again, your choice). When writing formal poetry, I gravitate toContinueContinue reading “A Lazy, Windy Day”
Useless
This week, I started working on a new luc bat poem. Luc bat is a Vietnamese form of poetry I learned about a few years ago. Since I’ve got luc bat on the brain, I decided to post a luc bat poem from my second book, Event Horizon, entitled “Useless.” UselessI’m glad some people careforContinueContinue reading “Useless”
February ‘23
As Valentine’s Day came to a close last week, I came down with a cold. This got me thinking about Valentine’s Day last year: My wife had vertigo, and I had a high fever with a side of congestion (COVID or influenza, I’m guessing). Let me tell ya, the romance was high 😆 Such aContinueContinue reading “February ‘23”
The Crow
Edgar Allan Poe’s The Raven is one of the more notorious poems of all time. For the uninitiated, the basic story is this: a raven visits the narrator, who is mourning his lost love, and repeats the word “Nevermore” until the narrator loses it. (“Nevermore” seems to be an eternal drain of despair opening below the narrator’sContinueContinue reading “The Crow”
The Pale Lady
Over the years, I’ve come to enjoy sonnets. Being a long-standing form of poetry, some might find sonnets dull and played out. I would’ve included myself in that crowd at one time. But as I’ve tried my hand at sonnets, I’ve found I like wrestling an idea into the restrictive rhyme and meter. The brevityContinueContinue reading “The Pale Lady”
Sun God
“Sun God” is the final poem in my new book, Shadow and Memory. It is a tanka, a Japanese poetic form of five lines. Similar to its three line cousin, haiku, each line has a set number of syllables. Before presenting this poem, I thought I’d say a few words about my approach to writingContinueContinue reading “Sun God”
A Wandering Minstrel 