Author Archives: sputterpub

Rubaiyat on Frozen Meat

Posted on September 18, 2020 by sputterpub

I’m not a fan of meat. I never wishfor steak or dogs, and I don’t crave a dishof stew. My mother cooked and tried to feedme flesh – I never cared for more than fish. My favorite meals are based … Continue reading →

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Assurance

Posted on September 17, 2020 by sputterpub

I told my brother and I told my mom,four years ago, when all were blown away,when voting tallies hit us like a bomb –“There will not be a wall.” That dreadful daywas just an introduction to the messour culture would … Continue reading →

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Cause and Effect

Posted on September 16, 2020 by sputterpub

Remember when the sun appeared each day?When sky at 2 p.m. was nothing strange?I understand the cause with full dismay:the term for it of late is climate change.We saw it coming 60 years ago.My father gave me Silent Spring to … Continue reading →

Posted in Poetry, Science, Weather | Tagged | 2 Comments

Fourth Grade

Posted on September 15, 2020 by sputterpub

We chanted “I am rubber. You are glue,”when someone playground-called pejoratives.“Your words bounce off of me and stick to you.”And that’s a clue, when comprehending Trump.We’ve learned he won’t say anything that’s true,but also understand the names he callsare properly … Continue reading →

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Extended Family Status

Posted on September 14, 2020 by sputterpub

Is this our future now? Will we contendwith summer fires till all fuel has burned?Will conflagration make our weather bend,or weather rend our fortunes overturned?In San Francisco, Berkeley, San Rafael,in Oakland, Portland, Talent, air is hell.The visuals are noxiously obscured … Continue reading →

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Sunday Puzzles

Posted on September 13, 2020 by sputterpub

A dozen years I rarely sat outside;the space was broken rock and rotting wood.But then I spent a fortune, modifiedthe cottage, and installed a redwood deck.I contemplated furniture. I trieda chair, but soon I opted for a benchand table, where … Continue reading →

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Accommodation

Posted on September 12, 2020 by sputterpub

They roomed together 50 years agoin Berkeley, at the height of its unrest.They both liked drugs, but one of them was slowto move and opted for cocaine as best;the other raced a lot in legs and brain,and liked how marijuana … Continue reading →

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High Horse

Posted on September 12, 2020 by sputterpub

I love your love and value your respectbut honestly, your vehemence is dire.I need your ears and heart – I don’t expectdefensive bold assertions, and your irebecomes a force that forces me to pause.It’s like I never own my own … Continue reading →

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Reactivity

Posted on September 11, 2020 by sputterpub

I had career ideas when I was small,but couldn’t zero in on one to tell.I wrote and read a lot, as I recall,but knew those loves would never pay me well.My English major let me read some moreand write enough, … Continue reading →

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Time Lapse

Posted on September 10, 2020 by sputterpub

I wrote this poem a week ago, when Iwas moving slowly, woefully depressed.I woke again to ashen air, white sky,and blue within. Of course I was distressedby politics, infection, how we’ve messedwith planetary goods. We fail. We’re toast.Rebounding with no … Continue reading →

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