Beware the Ides...

—Photo Enhancement by Richard Hansen, Sacramento

EGRET
—Carol Louise Moon, Sacramento

It was the first time I saw
this snowy bird.
We had left coral leaves behind
as we drove over the mountain to view
The Great Silver Slate frosted with fog,
with her huge rock standing by.

The waters smelled of first-drowning
and nausea as I rode in the back seat
along a eucalyptus-lined, crescent road.

There in a window-view of marshland
(a broken mirror) I saw him:
white-rock-carved and candle-like,
proud and patient.

I named him Candle Bird.

The second time I saw him
there was no near drowning, no nausea,
just fog;  springtime and the Ides of March.
He was white Easter candle,
or white knife, so I named him Caesar Bird.

The third time… I saw Statue Bird…

_____________________

"…the mouse and the swift will sleep
at opposite ends of the house…"
        —from Mark Strand's poem, "My Mother is Late Summer"

THE MOUSE AND THE SWIFT
—Carol Louise Moon

Dad's room was at one end
of the house.
In our home
Dad was the mouse.
Mom, being swift
to remember her future
asked him to leave,
move down the street—
but we'd still have our dinners together.

Swiftly she packed him,
and slowly he moved
in springtime…
I clearly remember.
The Ides of March,
and I unaware
of the misery they shared
broke heart-in-half,
my heart remained always tender.

—Photo by Richard Hansen

THE VERY CORPOREAL CORPORAL JO
—Richard Hansen

two years ago Margerie married Corporal Jo
and they had a baby

Margerie go blow your soldier boy happy
altho you don’t know
this’ll be the last time
his hands will be snapping your head back
while
barking orders: “Lady Astor harder and slow!”
the way he likes it at that certain plateau
where the pleasure is impossible
just before he blows his load

soon he’ll be on ship heaving his breakfast
with other men as strong him
leaving a cooking oil slick
on their way
to southeast Asia
where he won’t even feel the poison prick
piercing his skin
giving him at most 2 hours to live
but then
falling through straw and sticks
on his back with wooden spikes
glistening in mid-day sunshine
and designed
to make the last hour of life
a deterrent to those
who’d invade this soil
“such pain makes no sense”
corporeal Corporal Jo was thinking
between waves of agony that made his face grimace
“Americans would never do this to them
there’s no way to settle in”
and Margerie that when
half a world away
the emptiness crept in
and your neck and chin started twitching
you knew he was gone
but only allowed
“something’s wrong”
but the knock on the door
confirmed the horror

your Corporal Jo decided
with ten minutes of life to go
to become his own master
started
barking orders at Lady Astor
you came to his aid
in his frontal lobes
causing a massive endorphin cascade
giving hours on that certain plateau
where the pleasure is impossible you know
till from the bottom of his balls
he blew his load
landing in the halls
of unconditional love

Margerie when you opened the door
Uniformed arms didn’t allow you
to hit the floor
They knew you already knew
and what to do for you
They went to church and mowed the lawn
met your father and fixed the plumbing
a private first class and an Army captain
after a week and half they reported back but then
remained really grand family friends
and your Corporal Jo
who isn’t corporeal anymore
loves you more
than you could ever know right now
has been watching over you
the best he can from where he’s at
made sure the man you married
measured up to the standards of manhood
and
Jo constantly sends you positive energy
on mystical winds
and is tickled to life you can’t forget him

____________________

UROLOGY DEPT. APPOINTMENT
—Richard Hansen

The panicky formerly cantankerous large Male Patient
tasked to drop his pants and has a flaccid penis
has politely asked for
a Male Medical Professional to conduct
the hands-on instruction on
self-Catheterization
if possible please
But…


Michael's busy confirming the appointment booked by 

Simone 


who was alone
in the office this morning according to the security 

officer so 


as soon as he knows proper procedures were followed


he'll go to the examination room 


right by the cubicle Tyrone uses on Tuesdays


with a extra container for 


urine overflow
because he doesn’t mind helping out 



Dr Bigsby scheduled Nurse Bessy
to see the patient at three
originally


and


Even though the patient is pleasant Bessy senses his 

embarrassment 
and can guess his preferences easily
having had so much experience with


these kinds of things especially just recently


and luckily today


a choice is available that
partly assuages
the patient's sense of
impending offended modesty


by at least keeping his weenie away from female 

eyesight
thereby maintaining the mystery
in case he ever wants to ask nurse Bessy on a date that 

is


and besides
this gives time
to Bessy
who bought a brand new micro-fine point black Pilot pen 

but 


misplaced it 
and insists it's the best pen to work with so
she's looking for it
hoping’tah find it before quittin’ time
to finish a letter she’s writing sometime before dinner 

tonight

___________________

Today's LittleNips:

start every morning
with the doors wide open
or
until the cows come

-----

taking the high road
is overrated

-----

whenever i fail miserably
i don't give up
i find something else
and fail again

-----

must have dozed
because could hear myself
snoring


—Charles Mariano, Sacramento

___________________

—Medusa

—Photo by Richard Hansen