Monthly Archives: June 2016

Stubborn

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Stubborn

Some minds are so locked, they will not open to the touch.
Even “Open Sesame!” will not budge them much.
It seems their former mindsets hold them fast within their clutch,
squeezing off the access of new ideas and such.
Perhaps old ways of thinking have just become a crutch,
until they have that stubbornness oft noted in the Dutch!

I like to think my mind remains open to new thought.
For most of my life, I have been willing to be taught;
but when it comes to bigots, their efforts come to naught.
By the likes of Donald Trump, my attention can’t be bought,
and so I try to keep my ears entirely where he’s not,
for if I have to listen, I soon feel them growing hot.

I know what comes from such a man is likely to be rot,
so when I hear his puffed-up voice, my patience is soon shot.
With me his crass pontificating always comes to naught––
his words with fear and loathing usually fraught.
His hysterics reminiscent of Hitler and Pol Pot
dangle bait before a fish not willing to be caught.

A mind as closed as my mind will not open to his touch.
He never will win ingress with fear tactics and such.
Thank God my former mindsets hold me fast within their clutch,
squeezing off the access of bigotry and such.
Perhaps old ways of thinking have just become my crutch,
or maybe all my stubbornness is just because I’m Dutch!

 

The prompt today was “Open.”

One Word Photo Challenge: Candid

I love this shot. How could she look any happier with her day? There is obviously something up there that everybody’s a bit interested in, but strange that every person or group is looking in a different direction–but all up!  This is on a boat–a concert excursion that was a fundraiser to send a little girl to music camp in the States.  She got home today.  Can’t wait to hear how it went.

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This candid shot was taken at an open mike.  I love the effect of the sun shining through the plastic wall behind him, creating a scrim effect  and revealing the lush growth outside.

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This little girl looks like she’s being held in a vise grip! Those letters spelling out “Chapala” near the pier make for a great photo opportunity.

https://jennifernicholewells.com/2016/06/14/one-word-photo-challenge-candid/

Orange Bougainvillea: Flower of the Day, June 16, 2016

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https://ceenphotography.com/2016/06/15/flower-of-the-day-june-16-2016-rhodie/

Required — Whimsygizmo’s Blog

.. Some of us gather ourselves in stars, stones, scars, and the quiet places traced between the usual lines. Pieced together softly, we find our centers. Add skin. Begin to wonder what we were building in the first place. Call in a committee or two to be sure we’re on track. Smack our heads in […]

via Required — Whimsygizmo’s Blog

God’s Assembly Place

God’s Assembly Place

Leaving the Masons’ Lodge behind,
there was Mrs. Shimer’s cool dark little house
and the grade school slides to pass,
then spirea bushes to pull the petals from
before I reached the mysterious brick church
nestled in trees across from the lumber yard.

The sign said “Assembly of God.”
Everyone else said, “holy rollers and speakers in tongues,”
but they threw the best Bible school of the summer.
My mom let me attend them all: Lutheran,
Community Bible, Seven Day Adventist, Assembly of God
and our own Church––Methodist.

The Community Bible Church called us Jet Cadets
who made progress through the skies
by attendance and memorizing Bible verses.
The Methodists had the best art supplies,
but the Assembly of God
had that aura of mystery–
as though God had assembled us all there for a special purpose.

Because I had heard what went on there
when I wasn’t present,
I was the Nancy Drew of vacation Bible school,
looking fruitlessly for clues
as I made do with Kool Aid,
peanut butter cookies and
mimeographed pictures of Bible stories to color.

Then every day, the short walk home again
through that bridal path of spilled spirea blossoms,
with faith that tomorrow
religion just might turn into that great adventure
that I knew I was born to.

Thanks Whimsygizmo for leading me to this prompt with your wonderful poem. Readers, if you want to participate in the Writer’s Digest prompts, find them here:
Poetic Asides

Stepping up the Action (Pool Progress)

I thought I’d posted these photos of yesterday’s pool party, but I guess I didn’t.  So here are Chino and Diego supervising while the guys do all the hard work. I have the easiest job of all, taking photos:

When today dawned with driving rain, I was sure the building of steps for the pool would be delayed for a day, but bright and early the guys showed up, strung a tarp over the pool, and continued.  When the rain let up, Chino came to inspect the work and execute the first stroll up and down the steps.  I took the second trip.  Here is proof of progress. Now on to perfecting the smoothness and curved edges of the concrete, some repair of the wall between the pool and hot tub and the tiling.

Natural Girl

(Photos above? Before I was a natural girl! Poem below? Fifty years later.)


Natural Girl

Underneath this hairpiece, I am a natural girl.
It’s just that blogs are waiting, and I haven’t time to curl.
I haven’t put on makeup for a month or so, but still
there’s no one here to see me as my daily prompts I fill.

I don’t need any lipstick, for my lips have grown too thin
to find a place to put it, plus I don’t know any men
around to help me kiss it off and so why put it on?
That’s why when my friends see me, they think I’m looking wan.

I no longer wear foundation, for it clogs up in the cracks.
And that’s not the only makeup that my face so lately lacks.
I cannot wear mascara, for my dry eye medication,
every time I use it, sends eye makeup on vacation.

I’m growing out my bangs and so no need to shape and pluck.
My eyebrows don’t show anyway, so I say what the fuck!
Without the rest, why take the time to make eyelashes curl?
Lately, by default, I am a totally natural girl!!!

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/natural/

Mexican Mix: Flower of the Day, June 15, 2016

 

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Plumeria, tabachine and calla lilies are the main stars of the front of the lower garden. The path leads to my art studio.

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Next to the studio, bougainvillea and tabachine compete for attention.

 

https://ceenphotography.com/2016/06/14/flower-of-the-day-june-15-2016-rhodie/

Scrub Daddy Goes on Fiesta!

I must admit, when the doorbell rang today and I heard the word “Mail!” I flinched. Damn! Not another speeding ticket!  It seems the state of Jalisco has found a new revenue-raising scheme by mounting cameras on many of the overpasses and drastically reducing the speed limit right before you get to them.  Unbeknownst to most drivers, they snap a photo of your license tags and send you the bill in the mail.  I’ve already paid four of these darn tickets–including two that I didn’t even earn myself, that belonged to a house sitter I loaned my car to. But that is another story, and imagine my delight when instead of a ticket, the mailman handed me a package with this inside:

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Okay, so if you’re new to this blog or given to skipping postings, you may want to click on the link below to get the backstory of why the Scrub Daddy corporation would be sending me a free Scrub Daddy all the way to Mexico.  He’s a cute guy and this is a “meet cute” story so trust me and give it a read if you haven’t done so before or if, like me, you have a short memory.  I must admit even I didn’t really remember the complete story of what led up to this, and even if you read it before, you don’t have the full story unless you’ve read the back-and-forth comments that come after the story.  So go ahead and read the photo essay/poem and comments the below URL will link you to.  You can come back for the rest of the story after you do.

https://judydykstrabrown.com/2016/03/26/the-demise-of-scrub-daddy/

The rest of the story:  I gave them my sister’s address in Wyoming, but evidently the package got there before she did as they were on their way back from Arizona and so we thought the package was probably returned to Scrub Daddy.  I have no idea how they got my Mexican address.  Perhaps I gave both in my email, but nonetheless, months later, El Senor Scrub Papa has caught up to me and here he is in his new home, where you can see he fits exactly!

Torte Temptation

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Torte Temptation

How I struggle. What pains I take,
trying to forget the cake
I’ve hidden in the microwave.
I’m being good.  I’m being brave.
I take another sip of water,
then worry that it’s getting hotter.

Will the frosting melt inside
the microwave? I then decide
to put the cake inside the fridge
but when I move it, I get a midge
of frosting on my pinkie finger
I suck it off, but flavors linger

on the tongue I’ve licked it with.
That chocolate? It’s the stuff of myth.
Dark and smooth and rich and yummy,
it’s calling to me from my tummy.
It wants to be with kith and kin.
It begs for me to let more in!

When I next check the fridge, the cheese
seems to beckon, seems to tease.
But I have resistance to it.
If I ate cheese, I know I’d rue it.
But right next to it is the cake
I took such pains to mix and bake.

I frosted it with care and love,
then added marzipan above.
Then Ghiradelli chocolate chips.
My eyes bug out, I smack my lips.
My tastebuds stand up at attention,
My gums can barely stand the tension.

Every molecule within
my mouth now nudges me to sin!
I am just mortal. I grab a spoon
and it’s all over fairly soon.
It happens every time I bake–
the birth’s soon followed by the wake!

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/struggle/