* * *
—Poetry by Ann Wehrman, Sacramento, CA
—Public Domain Photos Courtesy of Pixabay
—Public Domain Photos Courtesy of Pixabay
CHOCOLATE CAKE
envision devil’s food cake
dense with whole wheat flour
dark cocoa, honey, olive oil
or carrot cake with walnuts or pineapple
tangy-sweet cream cheese frosting
favorites I perfected for years, cooking, eating
even now, writing about them
I immediately taste, smell, feel the texture
but living alone, I’d eat the whole cake
one lonely, guilty piece at a time
I haven’t baked in years
eliminating that temptation at least
someday, I will throw out that
box of long-expired almond, coconut flour
hoarded since my paleo diet period
still tucked in a corner of my fridge
when will I throw out
the battering ram in my mind
culture’s programming, all lies and twisted
be slim or ignored, alone
thin is beauty is power
sin of sexual glamour
envision devil’s food cake
dense with whole wheat flour
dark cocoa, honey, olive oil
or carrot cake with walnuts or pineapple
tangy-sweet cream cheese frosting
favorites I perfected for years, cooking, eating
even now, writing about them
I immediately taste, smell, feel the texture
but living alone, I’d eat the whole cake
one lonely, guilty piece at a time
I haven’t baked in years
eliminating that temptation at least
someday, I will throw out that
box of long-expired almond, coconut flour
hoarded since my paleo diet period
still tucked in a corner of my fridge
when will I throw out
the battering ram in my mind
culture’s programming, all lies and twisted
be slim or ignored, alone
thin is beauty is power
sin of sexual glamour
ON THE TABLE
a burnt offering
a dark offering
a blind offering
a joyful offering
a thankful offering
an unselfish offering
In the end, who’s to say
my boss, my partner
St. Peter, God
an unsteady offering
passionate at times
then indifferent
even resentful
partial, weak offering
a desperate offering
a gentle offering
a humble offering
Hallway Dorm Exit Door by Space Zandria
FRESHMAN YEAR
whispers through walls
girls present, long dead
angry words, envy, malice
no love in this forced encounter
temporary stopping place
cold, concrete walls seep dampness
thermostat locked down low
nights, I wake at 3:00 a.m. —cold, alone
daylight brings warmth
sunlight, brilliant blue sky
but October's wild gypsy beauty
cannot replace a family’s love.
REMEMBERING
In the privacy of my mind
I feel your lips on mine
warm, quiet embrace
touch your hair again
joyful, finding each other
I remember
and let the memory fade
___________________
Today’s LittleNip:
If you mix angel food cake and devil’s food cake, does it become a purgatory cake?
—Random Question
___________________
—Medusa, with thanks to Ann Wehrman for today’s fine poetry! (Hey—we've all been there!)
If you mix angel food cake and devil’s food cake, does it become a purgatory cake?
—Random Question
___________________
—Medusa, with thanks to Ann Wehrman for today’s fine poetry! (Hey—we've all been there!)
For future poetry happenings in
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(Please excuse typos in older posts!
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Would you like to be a SnakePal?
Guidelines are at the top of this page
at the Placating the Gorgon link;
send poetry and/or photos and artwork
to kathykieth@hotmail.com. We post
work from all over the world—including
that which was previously published—
and collaborations are welcome.
Just remember:
the snakes of Medusa are always hungry—
for poetry, of course!
Northern California and otherwheres,
click on
UPCOMING NORCAL EVENTS
(http://medusaskitchen.blogspot.com/p/wtf.html)
in the links at the top of this page—
and keep an eye on this link and on
the daily Kitchen for happenings
that might pop up
—or get changed!—
during the week.
Photos in this column can be enlarged by
clicking on them once, then clicking on the x
in the top right corner to come back to Medusa.
Poets’ bios appear on their first MK visit.
To find previous posts, type the name
of the poet (or poem) into the little
beige box at the top left-hand side
of this column. See also
Medusa’s Rapsheet at the bottom
of the blue column on the right
side of this column to find
any date you want.
Miss a post?
You can find our most recent ones by
scrolling down under this daily one.
Or there's an "Older Posts" button
at the bottom of this column.
(Please excuse typos in older posts!
Blogspot has been through a lot of
incarnations in 20 years!)
Would you like to be a SnakePal?
Guidelines are at the top of this page
at the Placating the Gorgon link;
send poetry and/or photos and artwork
to kathykieth@hotmail.com. We post
work from all over the world—including
that which was previously published—
and collaborations are welcome.
Just remember:
the snakes of Medusa are always hungry—
for poetry, of course!