Extinction 2.0

A century is but a tick
to one that doesn't decompose
ingenious alloys do the trick
reducing rot related woes
and any chance of being sick
although it wasn't good for those
within the healthcare field, undone
once immortality had begun

but many found it hard to deal
with their increased longevity
and coped by learning not to feel
unhappiness or levity
becoming just as cold as steel
while exercising brevity
whenever interaction loomed
and thus the human race was doomed.

Anachronism

His life was writ in lines of code that scrolled
across a monitor like ghostly text
composed by some developer controlled
by ego, certain he had hatched the next
big thing, though it was already passe;
an altered fragment of an older app
conceived when flesh and bone were still the way
before those sick of death began to tap
into a way to virtually live
forever. Imperfections scattered through
the code kept flashing in his memory banks
with urges to feel passion and forgive,
archaic thoughts this world no longer knew
and every time he did he'd thrum with thanks.

Solidification

How long might an illusion last?
As long as the mind holds fast
for even when the truth is shown
some can never quite move past

the little world that's all their own
where they will wander on alone
while watching for that distant mast
which turns a dream to stone.

Close

I'm one with the darkness that drapes all we see
I burrow in blackened recesses
accepting the shadow's seduction of me
and cooing from ice cold caresses
until a remembrance posesses
my spirit, compelling me to rapidly flee
the grip of ravenous tresses
for I was raised immersed in light, and thus I long to be.

Sidestep

When mired in The Bog of Mediocre
beware the stagnant pools that suck you down
and any storm predicted as a soaker
the lowest ones are usually first to drown

watch out for nettles and those noxious gasses
produced when things once living start to rot
it happens when you're stifled by the masses
endeavoring to dominate the plot

and stay away from glens that look inviting
that's where complacent cattle congregate
try looking for a pathway expediting
your escape to where new lands await.

Grit

There's always more facets that lurk
(for those who are willing to work)
beneath the facade of a stone
that's hiding much more than is shown
like mysteries cloaked by a hem
enticing your lust for the gem
this promise is often concealed
from those that are anxious to yield
but easy for those that don't mind
a bit of a tedious grind.

Stocking Stuffer

I don't need Holly
to make me feel jolly
but do get giddy
when her sister Molly
(who's no old biddy)
makes me say "Golly!"
Oh, what folly.


Merry Christmas Y'all o<];^)

Impact

Inanity sells
The dumber you are
The more your worth swells

Mediocrity rules
We lower the bar
To cater to fools

Calamity calls
The bigger the star
The faster it falls.

Inclined

Wherever I go there are leaks
through fissures that negligence wreaks
and there is no shingle or tar
that could possibly cover each scar
resulting from ongoing streaks
of rotten luck that tends to mar
a life that seeks pleasanter peaks.

Tread Lightly

"You have troll feet!" she said
as we snuggled in bed
and I felt my cheeks grow increasingly red
then I tried to secrete
my big hairy feet
as far as I could beneath the top sheet
and wondered if I'd lose
her love if I choose
to wear my boots every time we snooze.

Evasion

The power to stand
a penchant to fall
there's nothing more bland
than one with no gall

desire to spare
ambition unseen
a failure to care
and dreams lose their sheen

an ounce of regret
can feel like a ton
unless you forget
the burden and run.

Dropped

The visits are surely descending
as interest is rapidly ending
in one with a voice all its own
but stony to kindnesses shown
an eremite eager for peace
which is only achieved through release
of the structures that ring rather hollow
without anyone that will follow
though loyalty only gets earned
when occasionally it gets returned.

Malled

I've been bullied and bumped and belittled enough
that I have decided to bag
this holiday headache of purchasing stuff
which people would just as soon slag

so when we convene for festivities billed
as the annual family bash
everyone gets a small envelope filled
with a modest assortment of cash.

Redeployment

Dedicated to the memory of NY State Trooper Cunniff and anyone else fallen in the line of duty.


Who shields those protecting us all
when they must relinquish their sword?
A voice from above will give them the call
to serve in the ranks of The Lord.

Forecast

It was cold when they came to observe
but we knew we had to perform
and show we were willing to serve
with vigorous motions and grunts
exceeding their usual norm
while stony faces watched our stunts
of manufactured verve
without a hint of ever being warm.

Happy Returns

The wan winter sun we're freezing beneath
is paler than snowflakes that garnish each wreath
while many are wishing this season was done
we're freezing beneath a wan winter sun

But spring will ensue, the best thing of all
restocking the leaves that are destined to fall
which leads once again to the coldness we rue
but best thing of all - the spring will ensue.

Appreciation

I have many boxes of books
that I never get to read
while battling that worst of crooks
with ticking hands of greed

a minute here, a minute there
until there’s none for me
this fiend has crept throughout my lair
the dust of what could be

thank goodness for the jackets on
these precious tomes I’ve stored
perhaps someday when I’m long gone
someone else will prize this hoard.

Throwing it All Away

I saw a styrofoam cup
spin round, flip over, stand up,
the wind was making it dance
and seem to playfully prance
like a little white-haired pup

performing for a taste
of scraps amassed through haste
by those without a clue
the damage that they do
there's nothing cute about waste.

Gift

Isn’t it odd
when blessed with an unforeseen wad
how rapidly we trod
the shore of Me-Me-Me?
we can’t wait to go on a spree
so selfishly
ignoring those we know
that need some help to grow
and thus I go
with a determined air
to gladly share
as much as I can spare
and thank a gracious God
for giving me
a chance to humbly show
how much I care.

Capitol Punishment

Such tireless effort is spent
to straighten the beaks that are bent
that no one accomplishes squat
but rapidly draining the pot

they squabble about pointless things
while living like queens and kings
indifferent to those they’ve abused
or how many sockets are bruised.

Opening

I thought about truly playing the part
with wardrobe and makeup and all
then gauged my interest with a chart
and found it was laughably small
(aware it could demean my art
to mask my impoverished pall)
I took the stage (despite my fright)
with every wart in plainest sight

the audience seemed to be buying my shtick
delivered with confident ease
despite the fact that I felt sick
attempting to stifle my knees
which kept on knocking (click-click-click)
Oh let it be over, please!
Then after a dramatic pause
the sweetest sound of all - applause.

Self Evident

Mr. Nelson Mandela
now there was quite a fella,
he didn't start a holy war
to leave a legacy of gore
or found some new dictatorship
deluded by a power trip
he simply waited for the weight
of truthful words to validate
what he knew was meant to be
we're all created free.

Hooked

It's getting harder to reconcile
the disparate people I am
I'm overdosing on denial
but wish I had one more gram

to pacify the angry me
or thrill the me that's bored
or give the me most problem free
an undeserved reward

I guess I just don't have the will
to finally grow up and quit
all I can do is hope to kill
my pain with another hit.

*snarl*

When things start to blur
we get lax
but can't bunch our fur
without facts
well, we can but
no one will care
they'll rudely say "What,
bad day for hair?"

Going Both Ways

If I could travel through time
I'd surely go back to the crime
and stridently chime

but I remember me back when
I never listened to anyone then
and wouldn't again

perhaps I should journey ahead
to tell the older me "Live now instead!"
before I'm dead.

Debilitation

Seething
Tirades
Really
Exacerbate
System
Sickness

Easy As

One can't be squared
Two should be whole
Three may be shared
For Love is the goal.

Peckish

There are frozen drops of dew
where butterflies once flew
as all the flora sparkles ghostly white
a flash of red, then blue
a bluejay and a cardinal too
are foraging for berries free of spite

can't we flock together
without a ruffled feather?

Heroics

They stole from the stygian steppe
like shadows and blent with the night
an arrogant army adept
at snuffing the legions of light

their weapons were honed to an edge
that could slice through the hardiest mail
which made grizzled veterans hedge
and even the bravest souls quail;

it poured cross the land like a flood
a horrid, unstoppable force
that clamored to taste mortal blood
destroying all hope at the source,

but there was one person alive
whose valor withstood any blow
who struggled that we may survive
his blade downing many a foe.

They called this man Ravager Rex
though he had earned many more names
his sword was endowed with a hex
engulfing his victims in flames,

he'd once worked behind an old plow
until the marauders had killed
his family, provoking a vow
that every last one would be stilled,

his hatred of evil was fierce
his sword-arm unmercifully strong
and every foul heart he could pierce
meant one less among the dark throng.

The Lords of the balances plot
their intrigue as time disappears
while champions honor their lot
to guard the profusion of spheres.


***Well this is officially my 2000th post. I had hoped to make this a bit more epic but life has been a disruptive dilemma lately which seriously hinders my ability to muster the focus necessary for a long piece. Please enjoy!***

Scuffed

I saw the old sole
its tongue hanging out
as though it were trying to scream
about every hole
that's starting to sprout
the thread barely holding each seam
we all have a role
while running about—
for glory we forfeit our gleam.

Sinking

The river is gushing to tell me
about its long trip to the sea
but I couldn't absorb it completely
my pores are too clogged with debris

these sediments swirl in the eddy
a vortex that no one can see
which is pulling me down slow and steady
while watching that water flow free.