Poem of the Day: December, 1919

BY CLAUDE MCKAY

Last night I heard your voice, mother, 

The words you sang to me 

When I, a little barefoot boy, 

Knelt down against your knee. 

And tears gushed from my heart, mother, 

And passed beyond its wall, 

But though the fountain reached my throat 

The drops refused to fall. 

'Tis ten years since you died, mother, 

Just ten dark years of pain, 

And oh, I only wish that I 

Could weep just once again. 

CLAUDE MCKAY

Where Can We Get Accurate News?

For years the accuracy of our news has been questioned by many. With the onset of 24 hour news on the TV news agencies have used "if it bleeds it leads" to determine what they present or print. Everyone seems to want their opinion to be the story, not the news. Some are blatant and some just allude to their slant. It all makes it hard to get the true story, especially about our politicians and leaders.

Luckily we still have some local news outlets that know the difference between fact and opinion. I personally have cut back on where I look for news. I have started to look to Reuters, AP, BBC, and Al Jazeera English for my national and international news. Also, my local newspaper and TV stations for local news. I still read and listen to editorials and oped pieces, but check the facts before I form any opinions, and before I comment on those opinions. At least if my opinions are foolish, they are mine.

Who's Chair?

When I retired in 2011 I had some extra cash and the chair I had been using was starting to break down so I decided to get a new one. The one I found was very comfortable and I enjoy it very much. Since buying it though, we have added a few new dogs, one of my own and a couple of others. The new members of the family have noticed the comfort of what I had thought was my chair and have decided that they deserve to use it whenever they wish and become annoyed when I try to make space for me to sit. Well, that's the way life is when you abdicate control to your pets.

Save the Postal Service

This picture of Mt. St. Helens has nothing to do with this post, but I like the shot.

I have decided that I want to save the postal service by mailing something to someone everyday for the next year. Whether it is a card or post card to a grandchild, or a letter to a legislator, I will buy and use stamps to do my part to at least make the Post Office great again! 

Veteran's Day 2016

The Veteran's Day Assembly at Boston Harbor Elementary School in Olympia, WA

I was fortunate to be invited to the Boston Harbor Elementary School assembly by Connor Steward on Nov 9th. It was a very moving program and came at a time i needed something uplifting.

Love

Last night I was flipping through the channels on the TV when I came to the end of a Charlie Daniel's Band concert. I only got the last two songs, the first I don't remember, but the last was "the Devil Went Down To Georgia" on of my favorites. When I was in Germany the last time I worked for a few months as a DJ at the NCO Clubs in Nue Ulm a couple times a week. I was "Kountry Karl" and started all my gigs with "The Devil Went Down To Georgia".

Anyway, I got curious and Googled Charlie Daniels and found he had a blog, so I checked it out. One of  his latest post was about love and quoted 1 Corinthians 13 4-7.

"4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking , it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always portents, always trust, always hopes, always perseveres."

Those versus got me thinking about how I live, and more importantly how I react to things going on around me. Needless to say I fall very short of living my life with love. But God always gives us slack and points us in the right direction. So I will keep these word in my heart and in front of me as a constant reminder of how He wants me to live.

6 / 26 / 2016 Poem of the Day: Love BY TINA CHANG I am haunted by how much our mothers do not know. How a republic falls because of its backhanded deals, stairwell secrets. My mother does not know I am lying with a man who is darker than me, that we do not have names for how we truly treat our bodies. What we do with them. The other possesses me. Without him the perception of me fails to exist. My mother now is taking her sheers and cutting through live shrimp. When I was a child she peeled each flushed grape until only the pale fleshy bead remained. She placed them onto a plate in one shining mound, deseeded, in front of me. How I sucked and bled the fruit of all their juice, hypnotized in front of the buzz of television in each version of my childhood. I am her daughter. This is certain. I am lying down with a man who is darker than me and maybe this poem is my real republic, my face is my face, or is it stolen from my mother and hung over mine? If I were a dream you could say my countenance was a string of flickering lights made of teeth or an expression unraveling like a carpet into a narrow river of another life. Does truth matter when it's floating face up or face down? The answer to this makes all the difference. Tina Chang, "Love" from Of Gods & Strangers. Copyright © 2011 by Tina Chang.  Reprinted by permission of Four Way Books. Source: Of Gods & Strangers(Four Way Books, 2011) TINA CHANG Biography More poems by this author We strive to preserve the text formatting of poems over e-mail, but certain e-mail programs may distort how characters, fonts, indents, and line wraps appear.  View the poem on our site. Forward to a friend Find us on Facebook Follow us on Twitter Discover more poetry Find poems by subject, occasion, or holiday. Sign up Receive the latest poems and news from the Poetry Foundation and Poetry magazine. Copyright © 2016 Poetry Foundation   |   61 West Superior Street, Chicago, IL 60654

Save

It has been a while since I've updated this blog, maybe too long, or maybe not long enough, but here goes.

This years has sen us deal with some health changes, family changes, and animal changes, along with a trip to the desert of Southern California for Teddy Jones' high school graduation. I enjoyed the trip, Jean not so much. Because no one in the Jones or Clark families smoke she was forced to go outside when she wanted a cigarette. Also the car we rented was nonsmoking so going for drives did not give her any relief.

The day we arrived she had to use a wheelchair when we deplaned which started the visit off on a bad note. But overall she was happy to see the kids and grandkids, and happy to leave the heat and get back home the the Chins.

On the plane coming home.

The flight home was good. The skies were clear most of the way so we could make out landmarks and keep track of where we were. 

Crater Lake

The arrival home was great. The dogs greeted us with joy, and it is always nice to get back to your own bed and routine.

The strawberries on the deck are ripening though there are not many and they are small.

Sound (Hound) to Narrows

John, Willy, and I participated in the first annual Hound to Narrows 5k walk. It is part of the annual Sound to Narrows held in Tacoma. We had fun and Willy got a lot of looks and smiles because of his tongue.

Angie bought me a Seahawks shirt for Father's Day.

I got attacked by a wild English Toy Spaniel at the Puyallup Dog Show. It was surprising and painful, though partially my fault for trying to keep him from jumping out of my lap into the show ring before his turn. I ended up with four stitches in my ear which weren't half as bad as having to explain to the doctors what happened (3xs) and that the dog wasn't rabid or ill. Next time I think I'll let go.

Decided today that I will stop having my paper delivered and start walking up to the corner store each day to buy it. That way I can get the paper to read with my breakfast since the carrier can't get it here until late, and get my exercise in at the same time.

As Donald Trump dominates, establishment is bewildered as to what went wrong

As Donald Trump dominates, establishment is bewildered as to what went wrong: This political season, almost as remarkable a storyline as Donald Trump’s ascension in GOP politics, is the Republican establishment and anti-Trump forces’ inability to coalesce around a viable alternative.