Category Archives: Neighborhood

Density

Posted on October 11, 2020 by sputterpub

I live so close to neighbors, you’d expectmy house to be a fishbowl where you seemy every act, but here we all respectand cherish our domestic privacy.We aim our vision forward in the yard,ignoring social noise unless it booms.We give … Continue reading →

Posted in Home, Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Threatless

Posted on July 11, 2020 by sputterpub

(A Pre-Covid Piece) Commuting yesterday, at nearly noon, I noticed I felt free and oddly fine. I focused on surroundings then, and soon observed that every vista seemed benign. Though weather’s weird, the air was warm and clear. Though politics … Continue reading →

Posted in Neighborhood, Transit | Tagged | Leave a comment

Magnolia St (HA 108 Spenserian Stanza)

Posted on July 3, 2020 by sputterpub

I walked for errands till this house arrest removed most business from my every day. I chose my route deliberately, for best in garden sights and local tree array. But when I crossed a busy street, my way was quite … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronaverse, Flora, Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Chainsaws & Chippers (HA 94 Almost-Pushkin Sonnet)

Posted on June 19, 2020 by sputterpub

For 90 days I dwelled in quiet here. I mostly stayed at home like all of you. We watched surrounding air and water clear. We buzzed with nerves and heard the birds anew. But now our house arrest is wearing … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronaverse, Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Nextdoor and the Loud Boom (HA 72 Curtal Sonnet)

Posted on May 28, 2020 by sputterpub

When I lived here in 1968, we drove old Volkswagens and ate low-cost. We roomed with dogs and fleas and smoked a lot. Some nights we heard explosive noises, late and loud. We learned the sound of bad exhaust would … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronaverse, Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Graduation Party (HA 64 Magic 9)

Posted on May 20, 2020 by sputterpub

I live near college students. Come each fall they take up residence and party some. One year they launched a beer across the wall between us, but they aren’t pests to me. Of course I miss their liveliness – the … Continue reading →

Posted in Coronaverse, Health, Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged , | Leave a comment

The Neighbor’s Cat

Posted on March 30, 2020 by sputterpub

The neighbors have a cat that lives outside as if it were an apex beast of prey, evolved to wanton feats of avicide, and tearing plants his collar pulls away from trellises or tangles with the hose, refining talons scoring … Continue reading →

Posted in Critters, Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Benvenue

Posted on September 23, 2019 by sputterpub

An early riser now, I’m up by 6 all summer, and my day off exercise is Sunday, when I get my weekly fix of puzzles in the back of Datebook. Eyes on friendly letters, coffee freshly made, I want my … Continue reading →

Posted in Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Laddies of the Lake

Posted on July 30, 2019 by sputterpub

At least two years ago, the city paved our street again, at nobody’s request. The company that won the bid behaved as if they knew their work, and no one guessed until they left how poorly they performed – they … Continue reading →

Posted in Neighborhood, Poetry | Tagged | Leave a comment

Divergence

Posted on June 27, 2019 by sputterpub

I’m used to mendicants on streets and trains, exposed to dirty butts and putrid scents, implored in every way to spare some change – in public transit I’ve experience. But I was just accosted by a guy, light black, soft-spoken, … Continue reading →

Posted in Neighborhood, Poetry, Transit | Tagged | Leave a comment