April Fool's Lasts All Month Around Here

Here's a preview of the Catazon's April 2010:

• Good Friday - My 9/80 and The Kitten is looking forward to Iowa Tests being over...girls' day of fun!


• Easter - My 12th wedding anniversary...good way to get out of celebrating it.


• April 5th - A short trip to California...Trader Joe's is calling my name; that and a presentation on Lessons Learned (ick!)


• April 10th - My first bout this season with Crude City Roller Derby...yes, I'm on the roster of a league that is four hours away; come be a fool and watch me!


• April 16th - The day I should be going to the Tiki Bar opening in Maryland again but am instead being a good wife and mother for a change...boo sauce!


• April 21st - The day I was born, 40 years ago...and no, there will not be a party because somebody expects me to send the invitations, clean the house, buy the food and drinks, act as a hostess, etc. (Bite me!)

Now remind me why I'm not going to the Tiki Bar again. Happy April anyway! Usually the best month of the year, but this one has only a couple of bright spots.

BTW...I will be skating in Houston (against Houston Roller Derby) in May. This is not a joke...more info to come. This Cat just won't die, and maybe there's still breath in Catazonia yet.

Oh, and I'm doing NaPoWriMo again!

No, that's the real April Fool's joke.

I'm Not Only Old...I'm Also a Loser!

Two days ago, I gave up on my quest to write a poem a day in April, and yesterday, I turned 39.

It's only right after the weekend I had that I should admit defeat. I mean, the weather in southern Maryland was downright perfect, the drinks were steadily flowing, and the number one derby team in the country kicked some serious butt with me watching. How can I top any of that with a poem on Monday and a birthday on Tuesday? Nope, I can't.

Might as well lay down and die now. ;)

Promises, Promises

I know I promised myself I would write three poems while I was traveling this weekend, but I really didn't do it...nothing for Friday, half a poem for Saturday, but I do have a poem for Sunday because the challenge from dash30dash was easy. Here is my senryu:

Woman behind me
Bumps three times in five minutes
I feel slightly used.

Geez, I still have to come up with something today. It looks like this experiment is going down the tubes.

I Took the Challenge

I actually used a poetry challenge today from a Twitter follower. Yes, in a roundabout way, but floating makes me think of my most favorite place in the whole world, the Guadalupe.

My Favorite Place to Be

The river has a power like none other,
Some might say a healing or an invigorating power.
It restores.
The river forgives the sins of youth,
Those who use the river in fun and games.
It washes away.
When the river destroys,
No one can blame it for its character or personality.
It lives.
There are times on the river,
Your world stops spinning and your reality...
It suspends.

Heads up to me and whoever is keeping score...I will probably post the poems from the next three days on Monday. I do promise to write even though I won't be able to post.

Once a Librarian...

A week to celebrate something special to me
And I forget,
Much like I put the label away.

The obligation to make it up burdens me
So I visit,
Much like going home.

A ridiculous notion expects me to recognize
Then I question,
Much like second guessing myself.

The degree forces me to be an advocate
But I rebel,
Much like I have from the start.

No Regrets

Good Lord, inspiration comes from the strangest places...a Facebook message, in this case.

I laugh
When I talk to old flames
About all the things they've missed since we parted ways.
There isn't another like me.

I can tell
When they ask how I am
They really want to know if I'm happy where I am.
Like I'm going to admit that.

I think
Sometimes of my life
And how it could have been different if I wouldn't have tried.
I have no regrets.

Teeming With Life

I read once about a pond teeming with life
But I wondered about that pond surrounded by concrete.

So I walked around the pond throughout the year
And I steered clear of the ducks sitting on nests of eggs,
I dropped bread for the tadpoles waiting for morsels from the sky,
I stepped toward the turtles darting from the bank at every threat,
I tuned into the grasses swaying in the faintest breath of wind.

Then I made my way back to the skyscraper
And I checked my messages,
I accepted a meeting request,
I replenished my water bottle,
I wrote a poem.

Oh Crap!

So I forgot to write a poem on Easter...does that really make me a failure? To make up for it, I did a quick revise on the RePoWriMo thing...

She is not broken by the distance
When pain can be a smile in your heart.
Sing a refrain of grace.

How kind am I to go on honor
If my passion never has enough fire?
Want true love forever.

So sure we always do & from it
Our virtue.

I think one of the words fell off the fridge, and I couldn't find it this morning. Words I did not use: As I have you, he are me...adieu. A poem in itself, no? No, I still owe another one for today. I don't know if I am going to complete this challenge or not, especially with a weekend party trip coming up.

Gotta Have Faith...

I used to be a lot more religious than I am now. That's something my friends and family didn't even know, now or then. I went to a Christian school, and even there, it wasn't totally cool to profess your love for God. So I kept it to myself mostly. I'm usually good at masking my emotions.

But something about my religion hits me way down deep in my heart...something I hinted at in "yesterday's" poem...it's not often I can sit through a service without tearing up, just like I did last night. Yes, I still have faith, but sometimes it's hard for me to live a true Christian life, especially when I think of some of the horrible, and I do mean horrible, sins I committed when I did turn my back on my religion. So to reassure myself, I'm digging into the proof of my walk with God from yesteryear, my senior year of high school, to be exact. Another NaPoWriMo cheat...

Sheltered by Love

On coldest nights
When the stars give no light
And I still have so far to go,
I look to the sky
To find a reason why
An answer I have yet to know.

So shortly I have lived
With the love Jesus gives
That I really can't understand.
Still I know I believe
That my soul my Lord keeps
And my heart's in the palm of His hand.

Good Friday

So I told myself I was going to post a poem about the events of the evening,
Most importantly, describe the raw emotion I felt in the special service for Good Friday
But then I heed the call to head to a bar at an opportune moment.

I have the words in my head
But can't bear to voice the hypocrisy during this Holy Week.

Please accept my apologies for a pitiful lack of poetic talent or
My inability to distance myself from the situation enough to write constructively.
I'll try to behave over the weekend and focus on what's right.

The Moments For Which We Live

No explanation necessary.

We all reach a point in our lives when each day becomes monotonous.
Wake up
Work
Watch tv
Rerun.

At that point we find the moments for which we live.
Afternoon meeting close to home
Using the driving excuse
Logging on to play instead of work
Seeing a smile when surprising a child.

Those moments make life more tolerable.
Anticipation
Stealthiness
Excitement
Happiness!

Safety Moment

Since the department I sit with moved back down to the first floor this week, I've been nagged by one of my pet peeves. See...the route to the restroom from our offices has a couple of blind corners that some people tend to ignore and run the person with the right of way straight into the decorative foilage. And we're not talking about tight hallways either. Not cool! Coincidentally, the safety moment in the meeting I sat in this afternoon was about being careful when walking around corners and shared by someone (who also described it as a pet peeve) not even in the same state. It's an epidemic! As well as instant inspiration!

Safety Moment

When your path reaches a corner
And life must take a turn,
Remember to walk as you drive
To avoid a crash and burn.

Let's reinforce this simple tip
And practice good behavior;
Keep oncoming traffic in mind
To keep yourself in favor.

I'm Really Not Depressed

My poetry tends to be a bit dark, but I'm really not depressed. I've been reading "The Beauty of the Husband" lately.

It's About Us

Through the years she has battled in the war of words,
Fighting the stigma of
Selfishness
"It's all about you"
Spoiled rotten.

Is selfishness fitting her schedule around others,
planning her day so that he doesn't (or since he won't),
keeping her dreams in her heart?
Is it all about her when she cooks his dinner,
washes his clothes,
carries his child?
Is she spoiled rotten by the gifts he never buys,
the compliments he never gives,
the conversation he never shares?

Maybe she will exercise her selfish rights by sleeping late.
Maybe she will exercise on his time.
Maybe she will find the things she needs elsewhere.

In her mind she wins the battles.
In her heart she loses the war.

I'll Try to Make This Quick

Good thing I jotted notes down this morning, because work is C-razy! Our "Learning Management System" just crashed, so I'm going to take a few minutes for me.

Would It Hurt?

She wakes early most mornings.
Sometimes he stirs and wonders if she would like to exercise with him,
Then he rolls over again.
He knows she doesn't do it for him.
She hopes he knows.

Her bones and joints creak.
He listens and thinks how he helped her when she was broken and battered,
Still she's so beautiful.
He decides to tell her so today.
She never hears him.

Blame It on the Weekend

So I'm cheating again. This one should be an entry in RePoWriMo. It's been up on my fridge for years, but I tweaked it a bit for today's post. Maybe I can rework it every weekend this month? ;)

Your heart can not be broken if you refrain from love
My kind is sure fire pain when in passion we sing a true want.

So he has me forever or I am never enough.
Are grace & virtue to go the distance?

Always do it by our honor.
How I smile on...

Words not used: a adieu as have of she

What do you make of it? (I can make a hat, a broach, or a pterodactyl...)

Happy Anniversary!

In honor of my eleventh anniversary, I'm cheating. No, not on my husband, even though he is out of town on this special day, but on NaPoWriMo. I'm posting a poem I wrote almost nineteen years ago, way back when I didn't even believe in marriage. HA! At least that's what I led everyone to believe. I had serious issues back then (mostly because of a guy who I finally got rid of for good earlier that year). You'll see...

Wedding Day

Circle symbolizing synchronicity
Illustrating eternity explicitly,
Ring rightfully represents
Love lasting lifetime.
Two trusting truthfully
Joyfully justify joining.
Valiantly versing vows,
Monogamous mates marry.
Only one occupies
Perfectly patterned place.

Day 3

NaPoWriMo is easy today. I have a change from the usual schedule and was able to take a long walk this morning. Good material!

Today I step away from the car
To walk with the constant hum of cars on one side
And the hammering noise of destruction on the other.
Through it all I catch the faint chirp of a frog and
the child in me longs to scramble down the side of the ditch.
Soon I'll pass the school where I refuse to send my child,
Forcing the humility of surrounding nature to question my innate pride.

The spot where I once glimpsed a dead body,
Brings me back to my need to protect at all costs.
Now all I disturb are the birds.
Is the world truly devoid of hope?

I return to crows fighting on my car out of the dozens from which to choose.
Is this a sign?
Or is mine the only one with luggage racks?

This Was Not a Joke

I am sticking with the NaPoWriMo thing. Soon you might wish that it was a joke, especially when you realize I write all my poetry in the car.

Grayness blankets the horizon
Then a flash in the glass.
I check the mirror as the tapping on the window starts.
Can I outrun the blackness?
Soon the bursts of light surround and
The tapping becomes a steady beat.

Still I see the grayness ahead
With freedom a stroke of luck away.
One block after another is placed in my path.
Does the blackness control all?
Now a bolt before my eyes and
The storm has won.

I am an April Fool

I'm doing NaPoWriMo. That's all I have to say about that for now.

The Road Oft Travelled

I reach the apex and
The pillar that marks my destination
Appears from behind the obstructions.

I feel my heart rise and
The scarlet sea with its daily test
Fails to silence the rhythm.

I fare the alternate and
The strategy which spurs the journey
Awakens the fire inside.