Why Read and Write Poetry

WHY READ & WRITE POETRY                           "Poetry isn't a profession, it's a way of life.

It's an empty basket; you put your life into it and make something out of it." 

Mary Oliver, poet

Downtown Rochester, New York

My wife recently had a successful back operation at Highland Hospital in Rochester. She stayed on the sixth floor. Doctors and staff were great. And something else was great: the view from her window. You could see downtown Rochester, including Kodak and other important buildings. We actually saw a fantastic sunset over Rochester #12 School. I always feel a nostalgic when I see  an elementary school--that is, I wish that I was in it performing poetry.


I had no camera until the next day. So, I took this shot in the morning...

Not far from Mar's room there was a visitor's lounge where I took this photo through a smudged-caked window...

Home Sweet Home!

The Best of Bumper Stickers

If you're rich, I’m single!

Adults are just kids with money.

I Think Feminists Are Cute!

Friends help you move; real friends help you move the body.

Eternity: Smoking or Non-Smoking?

Hard work never killed anyone. But why take the chance?

You’re entitled to your opinion. I just don’t want to hear it.

I am spending my child’s inheritance.If you're rich, I’m single!

Adults are just kids with money.

I Think Feminists Are Cute!

Friends help you move; real friends help you move the body.

Eternity: Smoking or Non-Smoking?

Hard work never killed anyone. But why take the chance?

You’re entitled to your opinion. I just don’t want to hear it.

I am spending my child’s inheritance.

Computers Lie!

 “Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

~Albert Einstein

When computers are good, they are good. When computers are bad, they are bad. We tend to take them for granted when they run smoothly, and when they “crash” or become infected with a virus, it’s the end of the world. Trying the same thing over and over hardly ever fixes them. Albert is right. It’s insane to do the same thing again and again hoping to fix your computer.

On the other hand, I have learned that computers and printers lie. I’ve had a computer tell me a number of times that what I just tried to do can’t be done, and then a second later it’s opening up the folder that I requested or doing exactly what I wanted to do in the first place without me doing anything extra. So, why did it tell me that it couldn’t do it? I don’t have a clue.

And when the printer tells you that it’s “low on ink” it may be telling you a big fat fib. The machine doesn’t actually measure the ink level. It counts the number of sheets that you use, and it gives you’re a ballpark figure in terms of how much ink you have left. 

If the printer has the gall to tell you, “Using your printer without ink can harm your computer”, that’s another lie. It just won’t print anything for you without ink. The bottom line is: if it doesn’t work right the first time around, it okay to try at least one more time.  

My Best Quotes--Heart Walking

Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide
forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.  
–Elizabeth Stone, writer

My Best Stuff

I thought that, perhaps, if I had a more predictable and interesting website wherein I shared “my best stuff” with you, my blog would be more valuable to you. So, I aim to share itmes on these topics:

My Best Internet Stuff ...This will be the best Internet material that gets delivered in my mailbox that makes me laugh aloud or makes me ponder the meaning of life.

My Best Poem of the Week …This could be my poem or a poem that I discovered in my readings.

My Best Quote of the Week …This could be a quote about writing or life.

My Best Rambling Thoughts …This would be whatever was on my mind that needed airing.

My Best Friday Poem …This would be a poem related to Poetry Friday on JacketFlap or not.

My Best Catch of the Week …This would be words of praise about a special person who has a positive impact on me—family, friends, poets or celebrities.

Well, I hope you enjoy the line up and tune in. I thought that, perhaps, if I had a more predictable website wherein I shared “my best stuff” with you, my blog would be more valuable to you. 

Remembering 9/11 with a Big Teardrop

When they have anniversaries of sad or tragic events, the years seem to skip by, and I am always asking myself the same question, “Was it really that long ago? It seems like it happened last week.” Maybe that’s true for me because those memories of events seem so vivid.”

I don’t know why I had the television on that morning, but I did. I saw the second plane hit the second tower as it occurred on TV. The host of the Morning Show didn’t know what was going on in New York City, possibly a whole invasion of the city, starting with two planes used for the destruction of landmark buildings and thousands of lives

.

At that time in my life I had been retired a year, and we were in the middle of a painting all the ceilings in our house. So, we had the TV on constantly. We stopped whatever we were doing for new news about the incident. From our covered sofa and other chairs, the tears filled up our hearts and mind, as relatives looked for their missing loved ones. Those scenes are etched in my heart.

Soon after that there was a new spirit in America—cars where driving with little American flags on them, many houses proudly displayed flags, people were opening doors for one another, and smiling at strangers. We were all glad to be alive, and determined to live in a better, safer world.

That “high” of good feeling and good in the country has certainly declined, due to two wars and bad economic times. If only we could put our tears symbolically in one place and move on with a brighter spirit, while never forgetting 9/11.

That is possible—at least to put our tears symbolically in one place. There is real 100-foot Teardrop Memorial that was dedicated September 11, 2006 in a ceremony attended by former President Clinton and other dignitaries. The sculpture was donated by the Russian people and is located in New Jersey.

The Teardrop Memorial is very large, big enough to contain all our sacred tears for those who died...