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- the joy of wearing stuff out
Each possession, bright
and sturdy, used and used and
used till broken down. - the very quiet foreign girls poetry group
Their broken English
made for elegant stanzas
of their existence. - having tea with the muse
Places are set for
two, she comes and goes (mostly
goes) as she pleases. - the wonder of autumn
Celebrate crunching
of the leaves, cooling of the
days, cups of cider. - something in the air
Health care’s finest are
sitting down to lunch while they’re
poisoning the room. - the wait for a vaccine
Racing for a cure,
taking all the shortcuts, most
of us won’t partake. - youtube and the alt-right
The endless stream wreaks
radicalization, from
recommendations. - the oldies
Those songs from that long
ago era when ancients
roamed the discotheques. - virtue wriggling
Don’t pretend Black Lives
Matter while treating your peers
and colleagues like dirt. - where to sit in a pandemic
The signs on every
other table say to stay
away. The rest? Fine! - to play ball
A pause from shooting
hoops, catching pop-ups, to fight
police violence. - dreaming of the harvest
Little seeds, big plans,
rows of hope and dirt-covered
jeans, come sun, come rain. - when crisis management needs crisis management
Forging safety for
a nation divided puts
us in more danger. - up-to-the-minute bad news
It’s never been more
fashionable to shoot the
messenger point blank. - a foreign policy built on human rights
Not to invade and
conquer, but to assist and
leave somewhat better. - one russian, one vote
Interference means
our picks don’t matter, our hopes
and voices poisoned. - play balls
Every sport all at
once, a smorgasbord and a
true fan’s worst nightmare. - it started today in 2005
I’ve written haiku
daily for 15 years and
don’t plan on stopping. - safety fatigue
Playing by the rules
sucks when everyone else does
whatever they want. - a library is more than just books
It’s readers, crafty
librarians, free-range kids
and random townsfolk. - the reading-is-contagious book club
The ladies, without
masks, piled into the living
room to gossip, gloat. - everything is coronavirus
Scratchy throat, a cough
(but only once in a while),
bleeding from the eyes. - ode to the post office
Sometimes surly, but
able to take my letter
for only four bits. - how people are voting
In person on time
or early, by mail or drop
box, hopeful, anxious. - halloween improvised
Bobbing for vaccines.
Trick or grab-and-go bagged treat.
Masks and nothing else. - web two-point-whoa
Doomscrolling on a
Wednesday night, watching all the
misery out there. - dujuan, far from home
Aboriginal
healer, just 10, struggled with
school and the system. - gasping for revenue
Every town scraping
by till we reopen it
all someday, some year. - ready to dream about bones
A pittie in his
PJs scampers to and fro,
comfy and happy. - ones, zeroes and solutions
We collect all this
data and ask it how we
should manage our lives. - witches and black cats, too
Carve a jack-o’-lan-
tern, put it in a mask. Hang
a skeleton. Same. - benched
A football team with
too many positives must
sit out the season. - a pandemic pickle
The restaurants are
too crowded and not crowded
enough to survive. - ruth bader ginsburg
She fought and fought and
fought for women to be all
treated equally. - death of a hard drive
Stop playing dead and
give me my files! Or else I’ll …
curl up on the floor. - why vote?
For democracy.
To choose our leaders. To stick
it to the Russians. - breonna taylor
In her apartment,
an innocent bystander
shot by cops six times. - reading as an immersion
I want to read with
my eyes, my ears, my fingers.
I want words to last. - our place in history
A corrupt regime
that we helped bring about while
resisting feebly. - he wouldn’t wear a mask
He wouldn’t wear a
mask, not to shop or browse, not
for him or for you. - little pupils, big caution
All day, they stayed in
the one classroom, but they were
together again. - life on venus
Microscopic cells
who enjoy a plush sauna
and full privacy. - trick or treatment
*doorbell* *temperature
check* *hand sanitizer* *tongs*
*drop candy* Repeat. - on-the-job inspiration
A posted sign: The
beatings will continue un-
til morale improves. - remote hazing
OMG what’s that
behind you?! Ha! Made you look.
(Please unmute yourself.) - vote early and often
The good people have
spoken early this year: They’ve
already voted. - every four years
The anxiety,
the held breath, the wait to see
victory or loss. - where were we?
Let’s get back to the
business of running and/or
ruining this land. - sean connery
A sub captain, a
spy and an Irish copper
walk into a bar … - tailgate in the driveway
Playing it safe by
grilling at home and saving
on the parking fees. - be kind to yourself
Treat yourself gently
as you would your best friend and
show yourself some love. - spare hurricane names
Unbreakable codes,
hieroglyphs, nail polish shades,
semaphores, Klingon. - it’s all uphill from here
A steady job, a
purpose in life … man, this dude
Sisyphus rocked it. - a national debt
When will we give them
the highest honor, keeping
them safe post-service? - a meme-based economy
Not by your wealth nor
the sweat of your brow but your
drolly captioned pics. - a tiktok economy
Dancing for likes, lip-
synching for views, being your
performative self. - the third wave
Restless for human
interaction, so tired
of hunkering down. - the heart of 2020
One crisis after
another and another
and another and … - a strange neighborhood
Walking past tidy
lawns and construction sites in
night’s semi-darkness. - the confrontation that wasn’t a confrontation
They demanded to
meet with her only to tell
her good job, sort of. - and a few misspelled words
Sending a text with
random punctuation % enh,
they’ll figure it out^ - cheers under a faltering light
They snuck glasses of
wine when parents weren’t watching
and drank to good times. - at least we still have power
Why does everything
break down after the checking
account is tapped out? - stylish strokes
Typographically
speaking, the best fonts convey
meaning in an “a.” - but would they let them drive?
Rule for astro-chimps:
They would not make the monkey
launch the dang rocket. - ultimate sins
Doctors: malpractice
suits, death. Priests: molesting kids.
Reporters: lying. - thankful for
The strength to survive
such an outrageous year while
faking sanity. - sweet sassy molassy
I hate when tweets end
with declarative bull. That’s
it. That’s the haiku. - pilgrims, indians and social distancing
Do not gather, but
give thanks for the good health that
makes it possible. - blackest friday
Jam the stores! This cruel
pandemic economy
needs sacrifices. - finding meaning in art if not the artist
The artist can be
an utter wanker, yet still
create works of art. - confessions of a trivia winner
Trust your gut. Keep an
eye on the competition.
Sometimes, take a guess. - waltzing autumnal
Twirl in the moonlight
surrounded by shadows deep
in the pumpkin patch. - gifts by the 23rd at the latest
The naughty list grew
so big this year that Santa
just needs a hatchback. - mr. privilege
Do what I want when
I want and let the rest of
the planet be damned. - old growth, new stump
A tree falls with help.
Men with their chainsaws carve it
into huge matchsticks. - cold snap
The house? Perfectly
comfortable 68.
Me? Shivering so. - madam vice president
Kamala, like a
breath of fresh air. Kamala,
let’s be inspired. - the roosting of our sins
Meeting up without
a mask. Flaunting our freedom.
Getting sick in droves. - about living in historical times
Has 2020
taught us anything? Are we
doomed to repeat it? - inclement no more
Snow comes and blankets
the roads, and antsy children
are stuck in Zoom school. - other casualties of the pandemic
Shopping local has
never been quicker since so
many stores have closed. - dark ages the sequel
Emerging from 4
years of smearing science and
setting up scapegoats. - autumn at ruffner
Up the mountain we
hiked. Down the mountain we sped.
All along we breathed. - stabilization
Her burden feels a
little lighter, her panic
starting to subside. - 2020 gonna 2020
On the first day of
Christmas, my true love gave to
me, COVID-19. - the slutty locksmith
Dirty locks, shiny
keys. Opening the doors to
pleasure and tool sheds. - symptoms and strategy
Can economy
recover without beating
virus? So far, no. - the other sickness
Unbelievable
stress, new anxiety, lone-
liness. Minds unwell. - where once were office parties
Log in and wear your
finest Christmas jammies while
sipping spiked eggnog. - the proud pittie in the back yard
Atop the stump, he
surveyed the land around him,
and it pleased him so. - the 99-year-old passive-aggressive samaritan
Her burdensome texts
let us know exactly how
she felt about strays. - pandemic baby boom
Welcome to all the
new Coronas and Faucis
into this masked world. - a new season, i guess
That bleak sky. Growing
madness in quarantine. The
grimness of winter. - for the loved ones we keep safe
One more Facetime. Some
cookies and sweaters in the
mail. Saving up hugs. - a wish list
Vaccines in every
stocking, relief checks for the
jobless, hope for all. - the constant of children’s joy
Let them sing with glee.
Let them dream of sugar plums.
Let them wake with gifts. - all for the birthday boy
An evening party
with a barnyard theme and odd
assortment of gifts. - the monocultural experience
Back to a world in
which we share hardships and small
wins, pathos and grit. - a girl and her horse
Once ornery, he
softened under her guidance,
riding proud as one. - forever … ’21
Let us renew our
commitment to a better
future for us all.
• • •
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