15 for 15.
N° Fifteen. Laptop



World Computer Inc. announces their latest package of computer software, Earth Blue 2160, with easy pictograms allowing even monkeys easy use!

Of course, since the Fourth World War, lightweight metals no longer exist, so the cumbersome encasing of the new Earth Blue CarryAll Computer is a savvy mix of cream colored concrete and aluminum dust, aesthetic and pleasing to the touch. Happily the software package Earth Blue 2160 is guaranteed for six months, with a option package of extensions to twelve or eighteen months at a minimal cost.

English language versions only.



So Easy to use
[2009.2.10...a]

 

ah, the grace
of her barefooted free fall
a split second
of stationary liberty
before caught once again
in another's strong arms
she is a fountain of movement
tossed between two lovers
she is a goddess
teaching two mortals of worship
she is the vehicle of minimalist
music, and dancing, she is flight
a lesson for eagles and humming birds
she is the perfection of pliable harmony
abducting her soul
the tonal key to making three
into a unique pas-de-deux of elegance
that invigorates those lucky enough
to gaze discreetly
upon her grace



her grace
[2009.1.10...b]


 

beyond, they cry no more
after harsh hours of twisting
wet sheets, hand wringing
torture, in this day where machines
are never repaired

beyond these walls they suffer
no more, certain shipped off
to other lugubrious places
certain, the old, forgotten
dropped casually back into society
with a pack of clean clothes
and a few dollars for a room
somewhere in town

beyond these walls, they
let loose their secrets
finally, these abandoned
girl-mothers, apprenticed
not to motherhood, but to
painful tribulations, washing
scrubbing, hands to blood
with little repentance, no love
no forgiveness for sins begot upon them
by fathers, brothers and parish priests

beyond, these fake sisters
of Magdalene do not pray
any more, the laundries
are burned now
never to be forgotten

beyond, they do not know
what to do with the freedom
their children will never know



cry no more
[2009.30.9…a]
The Second Magdalene Laundries poem


 

they smile, they murmur secrets
each in their own way
sharing a world of affection
only a boy in a red jacket
can know with his golden retriever

it matters not why they are inseparable
like the caged love birds at gramps' house
where they are expected soon
the boy limping bravely, linked by the blue leash
to his best friend, who leads them confidently
around corners and through shady streets
with houses the boy has never seen —
there are apples and newspapers as gifts
in the yellow cloth saddle bags
the dog wears across his back

the trust they share does not go away
on rainy days, they walk everywhere
together, though both prefer
the warmth of summertime where
their contentment brings loud
barking yelps of happiness
and a twelve-year-old boy's innocent laughter

they smile, touch noses, one wet, one dry
a gesture of friendship
they whisper, each in their own ways...


a boy and his dog
[2009.29.9...a]

 

Possible captions for this photo:

"Sorry, but I've just got to take a swipe at your nose, there's too much honey stuck to it."

Teddy bears shouldn't fight. Make peace, not war.
Looks like the one on the left has a boxing glove on his left paw. Genetically modified for extra agressivity? Or too many chemicals in the drinking water?

OK, I admit it. I've enhanced the human attitudes here. Photoshop CS4 does wonders.

Even my fully articulated teddy, faithful companion for 54 years, can't stand up complete straight like this guy does!

is that a baobab in the background?

Author's note:
Yep, no inspiration. These teddies simply look too artificial. They're supposed to be cuddly, not furry imitations of R2D2!



[No Date.]
I'm only cataloging this for posterity, although I really don't know why. No one's been here to look, it would seem.
 

striped kitty (he's long outgrown
such tender affection) laps
up (cant splash it down) as much
water in one take as I use
in a five-minute shower...
now, if an elephant were present
he could bugle gaily and spray me with that same
water, (wait, let me get my biodegradable
apricot scented shower gel) and I'd
be clean, and kitty tiger
couldn't smell me down river
there I could peacefully cast a rod
and maybe catch the fish
he (with over-sized paws and unkempt nails)
missed with his last swipe


various means of catching dinner
[2009.28.9...a]




 

She is motionless, like the lifeless, dying waters of the lagoon. The coral reef is too far now to swim, so her mask and fins are useless. No one else has come here, to this paradise vista of blues, emerald and turquoise. Even her perfect suntan and swimsuit match the local colors perfectly, although she is not a native girl. They have fled these shores.

The water is too shallow, too perfect, reflects too much of her solitude. There is no one to photograph the smile that only occasionally graces her face, always turned towards the future. She tries so hard to escape the depths of her cavernous past.

Of that future, nothing transpires on the horizon. There are no boats. There are no islands. There is no wind to bring the waves lapping at her thighs. Not like the last time.

Of the past, she never escapes its grips. No one can escape it.

It is almost five years later. She has returned to this same beach on the far less populated island of Phuket, where her life was lost in the turbulence of disaster. Today she is a human ghost trying to seek reasons for the senseless solitude she tries so hard to eliminate from her heart. Her greatest wish is to rediscover peace.

National Rifle Association's Holiday Brochure, summer 2010.

Enjoy the tranquility of dressing up in authentic Far West costumes, but with the advantage of being able to carry your own modern rifles. Resolve your daily strife with gunshot duels (your choice of ammunition), hunting parties for local wildlife trophies (trying, if you may to avoid xenophobic outbursts with the local population), and, of course, enough beer every night in the local tavern, to make you forget the day's grueling events.

Total packages available in Montana, South Dakota, and Iowa.

{2009.26.9...a]
 

my hand, flat upon the magnetic screen
that mocks the eyes of my memory —
the numbers there tick by silently,
imperceptibly, inevitably, as untouchable
as the stars that illuminate the heavens
as uncountable as the drops of rain
falling among the ocean's waves crashing
on the sands of every continent
I cannot seize any one particular second
for it is intimately entwined with the next,
revolving and disappearing
at once so slowly and so quickly
I cannot enumerate the passing minutes,
for I know not the words for their vast numbers,
time has made my hands age, the leathered skin
shows of wear, of years tilling the earth
and yet for each grain of wheat I have planted
I reach out and touch the numbers invoking
my life, my future, my dreams
contented by their ticking promise
that tomorrow will contain just as many
uncountable moments



uncountable moments
[2009.24.9…a]


 

never alone, I am one of thousands
sharing the mossy rocks here
though the single iceberg floating
on the grey-white horizon
is isolated...
years before
the sea tasted only of salt,
today fresh water
lessens the crusty tang, tons of melting ice
make the blue-green waters colder
although most arctic creatures
aren't sensitive to this change —
I have returned to my annual nest
on this craggy shore
by belly is sated with fresh fish
for the next generation who is safely
and warmly tucked under his father's feet

his children will share the water
with more and more
of these floating white boulders
they too will never be alone


in the coldest oceans
[2009.23.9...a]