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By the time most of you ... even the earliest of risers among you ... have read this, I will already have gone racing downstairs to see what Santa has left under the Christmas tree for me.
And not just for me. I’m not THAT selfish. I also like to look at the other packages ... see whose names are on them ... and try to guess what’s inside.
This is a tradition that goes back to my earliest days ... and back then we didn’t have an upstairs or downstairs ... everything, such as it was, was on the ground floor.
We weren’t among the richest people in town, but we always had a Christmas tree ... a small cedar, cut and dragged in from a nearby field ... bedecked with tinsel, carefully saved from the tree each year before its ritual burning ... and it even had some hand-me-down blinking lights on it once.
About this time each year (Christmas Eve) I began fretting a bit about whether I had been good enough ... and long enough ... to find something under the tree for me.
Santa seemed to be forgiving ... or forgetful ... for I always found something there ... though it was never the bicycle I always dreamed of having ... but it was never a lump of coal, nor a bundle of switches, thank goodness.
Ah, those were the days! Come to think of it, so are these. For these few hours, at least, we can forget about all that other stuff our there ... and simply focus on “MERRY CHRISTMAS!”
-S&G-
OTHER VOICES:
HELEN (Florida) ... I think I saw Professor Squigglee amongst the other “Snow Birds” outside one of the big stores - it includes “mart” in its name. The only problem was that he was freezing here in Miami-Dade County along with the rest of the locals. It seems to have thawed out for the time being, and I hope he stayed long enough to enjoy it.
(Aha! So that’s where that rascal ... er, explorer-educator ... has been.)
LOREE (Kansas) ... You can keep the snow, sleet, and especially ice, in your territory. We need moisture here desperately, but I prefer the spring rains later on ... I want to plant some rose bushes, but at the rate we’re going it will require a stick of dynamite to make a hole for each one. But I suspect we have an ordinance against that! Can’t you just see the headline in the local paper? “Retired Sheriff’s Deputy arrested and currently in the county jail for illegal use of explosives, WITHOUT A PERMIT!”
(Be careful, Loree. I have this thing about LOUD NOISES ... but even more regarding BIG HEADLINES in the local paper. Meanwhile, folks, Loree had an adventure with a bargain Christmas tree that she found ... but wasn’t allowed to buy. I hope to share the details on that next week ... so please stay tuned)
-S&G-
TODAY’S POEM: Regular visitors to these postings probably have noticed that the poem presented here is always mine. It’s not that I think any of my poems stand head and shoulders above those of any other writers. Far from it. My poems are often spindly, struggling little things ... a far cry from what others write.
Still, I’ve sorta built a “tradition” of sharing my stuff with you, rather than subject myself to the horrendous effort of trying to select which poem, of all the great ones others have written, I would use here.
Today I’m departing from that “tradition.”
But first a bit of background: I first met WALT and GEN when I dropped in on a writing group at an area senior center. They were such a devoted couple, lovers of poetry, too. I am so glad our paths crossed ... and I joined that group.
Sadly, in time, Gen became Walt’s late wife ... but she lives on in my memory ... and in the memories of many others, I’m sure.
I recently received an e-mail from Walt which contained one of his great poems ... but let’s let him share the details with us:
Just a few years back, when Gen was with me, she asked me to write a Christmas mesage that she could duplicate and send as our Christmas card.
This is what happened:
CHRISTMAS MUSINGS
Remember when on Christmas Eve
we always wished for snow
As we watched the dying embers
in the fading fire light's glow
The Christmas tree was lighted
each ornament in place
With wild anticipation
glowing on every face
Excited, happy little ones
tumbled into bed
With dreams of many treasures
racing round their tiny heads
And jolly old St. Nicholas
working merrily
Knew exactly the proper
gifts and toys
To leave beneath our tree
Remembering the cards and letters
from friends and loved ones
far and near
Filling our hearts with gladness
love and good cheer
During this Christmas season
and all year through
We wish you health and happiness
and pleasant memories too.
Walt and Gen
-S&G-
COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, to
rbrimm@peoplepc.com
... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-
Oh, and if you’d like to see what’s up with my other ... DAILY blog ... here’s a link to it:
http://rbrimm.blogspot.com/
Thanks for paying a visit.
-S&G-
UNTIL NEXT TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2010
Some of you may remember last week ... and the sudden disappearance of Professor Squigglee. At least he did leave a note, “Gone Shopping” ... but now I’m beginning to wonder if that was really his handwriting.
Usually what he has written is such a scrawl that even he has trouble figuring out what it says.
This was so clear ... so easy to read ... I can’t help wondering.
Well, I went shopping, too. That’s not like me at all. Oh, I do ... on occasion, like a really rainy day, or during a horrible snowstorm ... just as a last resort, seek shelter in a nearby mall.
And I may even do some “window shopping” there, but I usually manage to stay above the fray, for I’m not really a serious shopper, you see. I hate being bumped by shopping carts ... I don’t like being shoved aside when I’m trying to get down an aisle ... I don’t even like having someone slip past me as I’m trying to enter, and then add insult to injury by letting the door slam in my face.
But this sudden disappearance of Professor Squigglee was something else.
I was sure I would encounter him in one of the checkout lines ... or see him in the distance ... perhaps stuffing newly-purchased merchandise into the trunk of his car.
Nothing.
-S&G-
MEANWHILE ... this just in ... thanks to WALT (Ohio), via e-mail:
Two elderly ladies had been friends for many decades. Over the years they had shared all kinds of activities and adventures. Lately, their activities had been limited to meeting a few times a week to play cards.
One day they were playing cards when one looked at the other and said, “Now don't get mad at me ... I know we've been friends for a long time ... but I just can't think of your name! I've thought and thought, but I can't remember it. Please tell me what your name is.”
Her friend glared at her. For at least three minutes she just stared and glared at her. Finally she said, “How soon do you need to know?”
-S&G-
TODAY’S POEM - I don’t even have a picture of it (the hat that’s mentioned in today’s poem, that is). The original had never, to the best of my knowledge, sat for a portrait ... nor even had its photo snapped by someone mistaking its wearer for a celebrity.
So I had to resort to a stunt double to illustrate the poem about its plight ... and (sniffle-sniffle) mine.
The double, of course, is a younger version of the vanished one, but it's gradually becoming ... well, quite comfortable, like an old pair of shoes.
But now, the poem:
GOODBYE, OLD HAT
"My old brown hat is gone!"
I cried.
"When did you have it on?"
she sighed.
"This year, or last.
Time goes so fast."
"The one rumpled, crumpled,
and torn?"
"Yes, yes! Tattered, spattered,
forlorn.
Twenty years my best buddy ...
all that.
My oldest, dearest friend,
my hat.
Now it's gone, left no trace.
I'm wild ..."
"I'm sure it's, uh ... someplace,"
she smiled.
And, looking me straight in
the eye:
"But it was time to say
goodbye."
(originally published in Capper's)
-S&G-
See you next week? M-m-m-m-m ... that all depends.
-S&G-
MEANWHILE ... COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, to
rbrimm@peoplepc.com
... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-
If you’d like to see what’s up with my other, DAILY blog (no, this is not my “Home Page”), here’s a link to it:
http://rbrimm.blogspot.com/
Thanks for paying a visit.
-S&G-
UNTIL NEXT TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2010
IT WAS KINDA quiet here on Friday afternoon ... you know, that time of the week when I at least begin thinking about pulling together another installment of “Squiggles.”
It seemed particularly quiet where Professor Squigglee usually hangs out, so I decided to take a look.
I walked very softly ... pausing ... when the floor emitted a tiny squeak underfoot. As I approached, I was struck by what seemed like an absolute silence ... no scratching of pen on paper ... no turning of pages ... and (thank goodness) no snoring.
I peeked around the corner, and what did I see?
No Professor. But there appeared to be a note on top of the clutter which looks like it’s smothering his desk. I approached cautiously, carefully lifted the note ... so as not to set off an avalanche ... and read:
“GONE SHOPPING”
Well! That makes it just about unanimous on this day after Turkey Day, and ... you know me ... I’m never one to go against the flow ... so-o-o-o ... I guess I’ll join the crowd(s) and go shopping, too.
-S&G-
See you next week? M-m-m-m-m ... that all depends.
-S&G-
MEANWHILE ... COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, to
rbrimm@peoplepc.com
... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-
If you’d like to see what’s up with my other, DAILY blog (no, this is not my “Home Page”), here’s a link to it:
http://rbrimm.blogspot.com/
Thanks for paying a visit.
-S&G-
UNTIL NEXT TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2010
PROFESSOR SQUIGGLEE commented that a strange thing had happened this week ... he hadn’t heard anybody snapping their fingers while waving a hand in the air ... trying to get his attention ... ready with an answer to his next question.
I had noticed that, too. Usually there is at least one audible response to the most recent installment of “Squiggles.”
But this week? Nothing.
-S&G-
I WAS PUZZLED at first. Then Phyllis and I took a stroll through one of the shopping malls in this area.
Aha!
There was Santa having his picture taken with a youngster on each knee ... Christmas lights were flashing up and down the corridors ... crowds were surging around us like we were standing still ... cash registers were singing a merry tune.
Everybody ... and that includes the “Squiggles” regulars, I’m sure ... must be out doing their Christmas shopping.
-S&G-
DID I MISS Thanksgiving?
Must’ve ... but I don’t have heartburn ... nor that sleepy feeling which comes from stuffing myself with all kinds of Thanksgiving goodies ... and I don’t remember loads of relatives arriving for the BIG MEAL.
WHOOPS! I just glanced at the calendar ... and, unless I looked at it wrong, NEXT Thursday is Thanksgiving ... and it’s the day after that ... right? ... when the Christmas stampede officially begins. Right?
-S&G-
I’VE SAID IT before ... and I may say it again ... in fact, I will: One of the hazards of looking back is that you tend to bump into things.
Oh, well ... here’s something from way back in 2004 ... when “Squiggles” was an e-mailed weekly letter with 60 readers in 18 states:
“I’VE SAID IT BEFORE, and I’ll say it again: One day you’ve sitting on top of the world; the next day it’s sitting on top of you.
“Case in point: The other day I ran out of the house without a second to spare ... aren’t we all like that? ... intending to hop into the car and drive off carefully, not only observing the speed limit, but obeying it ... making complete ... no gliding through ... stops at STOP signs ... signaling my intentions before each turn ... you know, doing my usual job of impeding traffic.
“Whoa, Nellie! I said, when I rounded the corner. There sat The Little Red Car, all scrunched down and whimpering because it had a flat tire. Flatter’n a pancake, Grandpa would have said.
“I can take a hint. I decided not to go.”
-S&G-
NOW, if you’ll excuse me ... I need to get out there and do my own Christmas shopping ... well ... maybe tomorrow ... or next week ... mmm ... maybe.
-S&G-
TODAY’S POEM: It likely began life somewhat larger than this version I'm sharing with you.
That's not unusual. When a poem ... or what may become a poem ... begins to present itself to me, I often let the words just go trickling across the page.
Sometimes that works. Sometimes not.
In between that kind of beginning, and publication, there is a lot of revision. That usually means tightening.
Fewer words. More left to the imagination of the reader.
Does this one work? Well, the editor thought it did ... but I still tend to think the reader has the final say on that.
If you've ever watched the sunshine come crawling (swarming?) through a window, the poem may work for you as it did for me. If not, well, ... it may still be food for thought:
INTERLUDE
See how the sun
comes crawling
through the window,
like hungry bees
on a single sprig
of goldenrod.
(originally published in Midwest Poetry Review)
-S&G-
COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, to
rbrimm@peoplepc.com
... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-
If you’d like to see what’s up with my other, DAILY blog (no, this is not my “Home Page”), here’s a link to it:
http://rbrimm.blogspot.com/
Thanks for paying a visit.
-S&G-
UNTIL NEXT TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2010
I’M FAMOUS!
Well ... not famous famous ... but more famous than I was before.
Before what? you ask.
Let me explain. I’m not saying that I’m the talk of the town ... nothing like that. Nor have I achieved something that others may only dream of achieving ... nothing like that, either.
But I was certainly surprised when I got an e-mail from a friend at the Dayton Metro Library, advising me that my picture was in the library’s 2009 annual report.
WHAT? What might I have done to merit that?
Nothing, of course. Still, there I am, on one of the inside pages of the annual report ... standing at a speaker’s stand in the Huber Heights Branch Library ... wearing my corduroy shirt, freshly-pressed trousers, pedometer on my belt, pen in my shirt pocket ... that’s certainly me ... and I appear to be reading my entry in the annual poetry contest, sponsored by Friends of the Library.
Whoa! It doesn’t get more famous than that.
-S&G-
MEANWHILE, I’m still trying not to sneeze while writing this (I’ve been battling a rotten cold ... for ages it seems) ... I’m afraid that cold germs may have found a way to travel electronically ... and I certainly don’t want any “Squiggles” followers to be coughing and sneezing ... like I’ve been. Phyllis, too.
Even Professor Squigglee has been giving me wide berth while I engage in hand-to-hand combat with this blankety-blank malady.
Just as a precaution, I’d advise that you not sit too close to the screen ... and don’t forget to wash your hands thoroughly after scrolling up ... or is it down?
-S&G-
REMEMBER Little Red? Everybody seems to have some particular recollection of an adventure we’ve had with The Little Red Car.
There have been a lot of them over the thirteen years we’ve shared with Little Red.
That’s right ... Little Red has entered the teen years ... and, naturally, I think, has developed a few quirks ... a certain mind set ... but we needn’t go into all that.
We’ve racked up a lot of fun times ... a few trouble spots, too, I must admit ... but mostly fun as Phyllis and I ... and Little Red ... have gone exploring together ... in the main avoiding the Interstates ... but enjoying the scenery along the quieter routes.
I think I may have mentioned recently that we were considering letting Little Red go put-putting off to wherever teen-aged cars go ... and, by the time you read this, that likely will have happened.
Little Red is being replaced ... with a mixture of emotions on my part ... by a younger, less red model, a teeny bit smaller (for a better fit in our ancient garage).
Actually, Little Red’s replacement is a white model with a lot of gadgets that Little Red ... and I ... never dreamed of. I may share some of that ... when I figure out what they’re for.
We did take the replacement for a test run ... and to be sure ... absolutely sure ... that it would fit in our garage. It did!
Don’t tell Little Red that I said this, but this other vehicle is a lot peppier than Little Red ... a lot quieter ... so easy to steer that I found myself tending to over-steer a couple of times ... and so smooth riding that I noticed the speedometer tending to creep up past that LIMIT I’ve preached so much about.
Oh, and the good news is that I expect to have it paid off by the time I’m 100 ... 102 at the most.
And now I’ve got to find a name for it.
-S&G-
LET’S HEAR IT ... for LOREE (Kansas), who recently celebrated her ... um, well, her birthday (never mind which one).
She says she made out like a bandit without a weapon ... and I can believe that. Some of the highlights:
Ladder and leaf blower ... a new can opener that doesn't open the 'inside' top of a can, but rather cuts all around, beneath the rim ... long sleeve western shirt that has a lot of glitter in the floral designs sprinkled on it (makes her look like she should be Dolly Parton) ... down-filled vest to wear over the shirt ... check for $100 from a very special friend ... supper out Friday evening ... breakfast brought in Sunday morning (actual date of big event) ... and supper then, (same day) at a place called 'The Little Hooker'.
Loree explains: "Before anyone makes a rash judgment as to why it is called that, I think I KNOW first hand ... for a much too high price, you can get a small steak, either a baked potato or mashed potatoes (a pile the size of a small ice cream dipper) with a 'bit' of gravy, and one slice of Texas toast. NO salad, NO soup, NO hot rolls ... NO reason to even ASK for a doggie box ... I was still hungry when I got home, so hit a box of Russell Stover chocolates on the sly ... "
-S&G-
ALL OF WHICH leaves Loree wondering ... “how many days of waiting, before I can casually say I have a birthday coming up ALL OVER AGAIN? After all, most of the guests are like me ... their memories are not nearly what they were 20 or 30 years ago!”
-S&G-
TODAY’S POEM ... Let me hasten to point out that Loree is NOT 80 years old ... not even near it! But this poem came to mind as I enjoyed the details of Loree’s celebration.
I was reminded of the lady ... who also wrote great poetry ... and invited us to her birthday party on a cold winter day a few years ago.
As I say in the poem, we were all keenly interested in the secret she said she was going to share with us.
The poem:
HOW TO REACH 80
We ate Cajun food,
savored the singing,
all the memories
of this tiny lady
celebrating and
being celebrated
for her active life
as mother, fellow
worker, confidante,
for bringing us
sunshine on cloudy
days. And we all
leaned forward
to catch every
word as she stood,
she said, to share
her secret: "Just
keep breathing."
(Originally published in Capper’s)
-S&G-
COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, to
rbrimm@peoplepc.com
... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-
If you’d like to see what’s up with my other, DAILY blog (no, this is not my “Home Page”), here’s a link to it:
http://rbrimm.blogspot.com/
Thanks for paying a visit.
-S&G-
UNTIL NEXT TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2010
PROFESSOR SQUIGGLEE HERE ... The other day I was BEHIND a vehicle which pulled up to a STOP sign ... and STOPPED.
Naturally, I stopped, too. My first reaction was that the driver ... obviously ... was having car trouble. I checked my rear-view mirror (I do that frequently these days) ... nobody behind me. Should I get out and offer help? Should I pull carefully around and go on? Should I just wait to see what happens next?
Actually, the third choice soon pushed itself to the fore ... and I didn’t have to wait long at all. The brake lights of the vehicle in front of me went off ... and the vehicle went on through the intersection ... and down the street.
Can you believe? Somebody stopped ... actually STOPPED ... voluntarily ... and with no police observer nearby, as far as I could see ... came to a complete stop ... at a STOP sign.
Whoa! Can it be? I found myself wondering if what I thought I had just witnessed had really happened.
Is it possible that STOP might cease to be just another four-letter word that we routinely ignore as we go about the deadly business of driving/texting/eating/drinking/ignoring/rules ... LAWS ... made for our own safety ... and that of others?
I doubt it.
-S&G-
OTHER VOICES ... this from LOREE (Kansas) ... Hi, Bob ... what is this sudden compulsion regarding food? Isn't this the second poem (referring to last week's offering) you have shared with us of late regarding food?!
(Oh, I think you caught me again, Loree)
LOREE continues ... And now I'm hungry all over again! I've developed my own pattern for eating ... Only do that when I happen to think of it! Sure cuts down on the grocery budget:-)
And of course, there are those wonderful times each month when some kind relative takes pity on me, and absolutely INSISTS that they take me out to eat.
Actually, I think I have more 'dates' now, than I did as a teenager! Used to be, back in those days, the best I could get out of a date, in a sort of 'food' offering, was a Coke, served up with TWO straws, and if I didn't drink really fast, I was crushed by thinking I might not have gotten my fair share:-)
These days are different ... I think it has something to do with how skinny I am ... as evidenced by my brother-in-law calling and saying, 'You have 4 choices....1) Go out and eat 2) Have something catered in 3) I'll bring some home cooked food (that's when I made my decision!), or 4) None of the above!
Well, visions of Blue's Café, a favorite for the home-cooked tasting food, swam before my eyes, and even my stomach growled in approval!
So, last evening found us sitting in Blue's. The portions there are so generous that a 'box' is always a necessity for taking home the leftovers ... and the price? Very reasonable, especially when you consider that I get two or three 'suppers' from the trip there, which REALLY cheapens it up.
(And now you’ve got me all hungry again, Loree. Tell you what, let’s all meet at Blue’s ... just for a snack, mind you. Maybe Professor Squigglee would like to join us, too)
-S&G-
OH, AND LOREE also got some work out of the brother-in-law before they left to go eat ... “He installed the new three-way socket on the lamp in the living room that had been 'winking and blinking' and trying to burn my hand, if I dared touch it. From that to the yard, where he covered the compressor for the AC for the winter. AND in the green house he placed the new and bigger (also more costly) electric heater I had bought, because I was afraid the old one might quit, and do that on the coldest night of the upcoming winter.”
But she didn't ask him to go dig holes for the 50 tulip and daffodil bulbs waiting to be planted ... figured that just might be pushing her luck a bit:-)
-S&G-
THIS FROM WALT (Ohio) ... In winter why do we try to keep the house as warm as it was in summer when we complained about the heat?
-S&G-
THIS FROM a grandfather, by way of HELEN (Florida) ... When my grandson, Billy, and I entered our vacation cabin, we kept the lights off until we were inside, to keep from attracting pesky insects.
Still, a few fireflies followed us in.
Noticing them before I did, Billy whispered, “It’s no use, Grandpa. Now the mosquitoes are coming after us with flashlights.”
-S&G-
TODAY’S POEM: I grew up in the country ... not on a farm, but in the country ... away from city lights.
As a result of that ... and hearing my grandfather talk so many times about the phases of the moon ... its importance in the planting of crops ... knowing about its pull on those distant oceans ... its effect on young lovers ... I was always intrigued by the moon.
The front porch swing provided a great vantage point for watching the giant harvest moon rising slowly over the hills.
I remember being so intrigued by the quarter moon ... the new moon ... the moon showing in the late daytime sky.
When one lives in the city, though, the moon can become a forgotten item ... unless it really asserts itself as we're coming up the driveway on a late-winter evening.
Then there's no denying it. I still remember that evening ... can almost hear a choir, singing a cappella, celebrating the rising of that moon.
The poem:
THE MOON TONIGHT
What a gorgeous sight,
lodged in the darkness
of the walnut tree,
the nearer maples joining
to hold it, glowing
in the late-winter sky,
broken, and yet whole,
like a stained-glass
window catching evening
light, holding it high
under the ceiling while
voices rise in song.
(originally published in Capper's)
-S&G-
COMMENT? Feel free ... below, if you like.
Or if you prefer e-mail, that's fine, too ... especially for more detailed observations, to
rbrimm@peoplepc.com
... and it helps if you put "Squiggles" or "S&G" ... something like that ... in the subject line (just remember, no religion or politics ... please!)
-S&G-
If you’d like to see what’s up with my other, DAILY blog (no, this is not my “Home Page”), here’s a link to it:
http://rbrimm.blogspot.com/
Thanks for paying a visit.
-S&G-
UNTIL NEXT TIME ... take care ... see ya!
-S&G-
© 2010
