Stuck

Stuck on this raft
of my own making.
Floating life's river,
ostensibly like you
but it's not great
over here. It's not
'copacetic' or 'hopeful'.
I'm hitting shoals while
you sail freely. This stretch
doesn't measure up.

41/100

Smoke ’em

This one’s a definite work in progress and likely an opening act for something much larger, perhaps joined to another couple I’ve written lately.

Looking SW at Vantage, WA. Look closely and maybe you can see the Columbia River. Perhaps you can see the bridge for I-90 across the bridge? Surely you can see it! It’s a half-mile long, right there in the middle of the photo. How about the ridges on the opposite side of the river? Photo unretouched. August 2026.

"Smoke 'em if you've got
them," and baby, do we.
Fires ravage more than
brush, trees, meadows.
Fires ravage lives, plans,
communities. Where smoke
lies, fires burn: why don't
I see smoke in my mirror
each morning? Where's
smoke as I gaze  on my
love? Doesn't smoke 
envelop me when when 
I read or hear headlines?
How can I see out of my
car, encountering those
who lack driving skills?
How can we see our dawn
when fires surround us?
Our world's on fire,
yet we bemoan smoke.

40/100

So angry

Angry 
Drunk 
Driving my pickup,
Six-pack beside me.
Timing my throws to
Hit empties into the
Truck bed. Blind, thinking
Endless thought loops. 

Years later. 
Angry drunk. 
Driving miles while still
Sitting in my chair. 
Still timing my throws
Of empty thoughts to
Capture blind thinking:
Endless thought loops. 

More years 
Still angry. 
Still drunk. 
Tired of driving
Mental miles worn
Deeply in my mind. 
Emptied soul tiring 
Of postured thinking: 
Break my thought loops.

13/100