Saturday, December 29, 2012




winter wonderland
the car without chains
starts to slide


Thursday, December 20, 2012


...even my car has an opinion




Thursday, November 01, 2012



NaNoWriMo....let the words begin...





I won't be making my bed for the next 30 days...

Tuesday, October 30, 2012



how did I know
you'd come around again
full moon


Friday, September 28, 2012



This is one of my favourite pictures of my father. The tough, six-foot retired cop, his big, strong, rough hands carefully trying to comfort a screaming, unhappy grandchild. Caught with the dreaded curl dangling out of place on his forehead, hands full, unable to quickly comb it back before the camera clicked. The rare gentle side I don’t even think he knew he had. It was there. It just took him awhile to find it.


after death
the things in life
that really matter


Happy Birthday, Dad!

I miss you still



Monday, July 16, 2012




hot summer night
our clothes lie
lifeless
on the bedroom
floor

Sunday, June 17, 2012



father's day
my life with you
flashes before me

...wherever you are

Saturday, June 09, 2012




the space in between my thoughts        weightless



Friday, June 08, 2012


first caterpillar
even when no one is looking
life still goes on



Sunday, May 20, 2012



solar eclipse
the moon having its way
with the sun


Tuesday, April 24, 2012

NaHaiWriMo prompt - local seasonal reference

june gloom
already the nursery
out of milkweed

June gloom is a southern California term for a weather pattern that results in cloudy, overcast skies with cool temperatures during late spring and early summer.  Usually the cloudiest time of year for the coast, perfect for gardening, and meditatively savored before the hot summer days to follow.


Saturday, April 14, 2012

NaHaiWriMo prompt - cats



blooming tulips
the cat tells the dog
who's boss

Wednesday, April 11, 2012




hidden
in a sea of clouds
the mountain road

Monday, April 09, 2012

NaHaiWriMo prompt - springs, fountains, waterfalls, floods, seas


Yosemite Falls
my fears accidently slip
into the water

Sunday, April 08, 2012



The house is quiet again, half empty coffee cups are turning cold in the evening air as the dog hunts for fallen jelly beans in the patio. The faint sound of a lone violin playing Chopin's Nocturne has just begun to play along with the echo of two dogs barking at each other in the distance. Finally settled, I have my way with the rising full moon.


end of day
all that's left
is the fragrance
of a flower


Saturday, April 07, 2012





Together we celebrate
Happy Easter
Happy Passover
Happy Spring!

Thursday, April 05, 2012

...one of my favourites NaHaiWriMo prompt - Bubbles


lazy afternoon
a bubble floats by
with my house in it


Friday, March 30, 2012


wildflowers
how fast they grow
in my garden



Monday, March 26, 2012




The sky was thick with billowing storm clouds, the wind fierce. Heavy rain pounded the freeway as hurried tires spewed sheets of watery mist from the back ends of their speeding vehicles, causing red lights to glisten in its trail and caution to be heeded. Briefly, and quickly, the sun peaked out from a tiny sliver of space between the clouds and the horizon, just as it dipped into the ocean. Red lights glistened again, this time slowing down to view the spectacle that was showing off in the east.

first spring storm
taking the time for another
cup of coffee



Saturday, March 24, 2012





Just as I was leaving, I saw this beautiful cloud formation in the rear view mirror. I pulled over to the turnout at Red Rock and would have gone back to the north end of the mountain to spend the rest of the sunlight hour to gaze at, study, write about, this beautiful formation. If only time would have allowed. Next time my lenticular cloud.

winter to spring
each moment
a blessing

Wednesday, March 21, 2012



first spring snow storm
the property line
between our houses
disappears



Sunday, March 18, 2012




snowed in
two finches fighting
under the pine tree




Tuesday, January 31, 2012

a river of stones #31 January



Thanks once again, Fiona and Kaspa, for bringing the world together
for another month of stones!

united we stand
in the river
of stones




Monday, January 30, 2012

a river of stones #30 January





once again half of the moon


Sunday, January 29, 2012

a river of stones #29 January




Yesterday was Emmy's third birthday. For three years she has been my constant companion. She always curiously tilts her head back and forth as she listens to my complaints and ideas when no one else is around. She agreeably weathers the sand at the beach or twisting mountain roads when she accompanies me on photo shoots. She waits patiently, except for one yarn incident when she was a puppy, for me to return home from a day out of town, only to greet me with the most ambitious welcome. Today, as I gave her an extra treat for being so cute, I thought, she did all this without speaking on single word.


Saturday, January 28, 2012

a river of stones #28 January




on the horizon
a ball of fire sizzles
January's end



Friday, January 27, 2012

a river of stones #27 January


Why is it so spooky under the pier at night, even as people are laughing and drinking at the restaurant above? Their footsteps echo below as I step into the dark and disappear, shivering; so, I quickly rush back into the light, safe and sound, and I become a timbered shadow.

moonless night
in between shadows
I find a dime




Thursday, January 26, 2012

a river of stones #26 January




These past two nights the crescent moon has been gleaming in a cloudless evening sky, reminding me of a haiku that I wrote last year. Can't help but giggle a bit.

crescent moon
the way you smile
late at night


Wednesday, January 25, 2012

a river of stones #25 January



red sunset
my heart beats
faster




Tuesday, January 24, 2012

a river of stones #24 January



The store went silent as we watched her yank his ear and call him stupid. She quickly looked up at the four of us, then hurriedly rushed her son towards the front door. As they passed me, I spontaneously raised my right hand and signed, "I love you". The little boy smiled back at me as he walked out the door.


winter rain

jumping through mud puddles

all the way home


Monday, January 23, 2012

a river of stones #23 January



If this used to be a one-lane dirt road when my grandmother was born, and it's an eight lane plus freeway now, I wonder how many lanes of traffic there will be when her great-great grandchildren learn how to drive?

weekend trip
to los angeles
how fierce the dust spews
from the horses' nostrils



Sunday, January 22, 2012

a river of stones #22 January



I have so many folders on my computer that I spent most of the day organizing and deleting files that were not needed. I ended up throwing out several hundred photos, over 350 files, 143 documents, and not one piece of paper was shredded or lost to the trash can.

I think I just saved a tree?

next year's firewood
bleeds into the sky
tree of life



Saturday, January 21, 2012

a river of stones #21 January



Saturday, so much to do, places to go, pictures to take, poems to write. By mid-morning I decide to do absolutely nothing.

sometimes
it's called a break
procrastination


Thursday, January 19, 2012

a river of stones #19 January


my muse
still on vacation
home alone

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

a river of stones #18 January



I guess I'm getting used to this new decade I'm in.
When asked how old I was today, I responded,
"Old enough to buy a string bikini
and wise enough to not wear it."


underneath all this
a wiser eighteen year old
senior citizen



Tuesday, January 17, 2012

a river of stones #17 January



Spending the afternoon with a two-year-old is demanding. Spending the afternoon
with two of them....nothing but trouble.

time out
on the sofa
tornado season






Monday, January 16, 2012

a river of stones #16 January


editor editing duster dusting

dusty mustard dastard fretting

edit deadline fretting bedtime

betting online light on

all of the time

bedding no sleeping weeping

no eating no meeting no knitting

commiting ommitting

delete delete delete instead

then edit some more

and get to bed



Sunday, January 15, 2012

a river of stones #15 January


It’s true, a writer’s life can be lonely, yet, we can fly to any city in the world, put ourselves in a precarious situation, go back in time and change things around, take on a lover in France, write a three word poem or a monstrous novel, and, if things get too dangerous or the lover in France becomes too obnoxious, there’s always the delete button.

How’s your afternoon going?


solitude

how still the silhouette

of a bird




Saturday, January 14, 2012

a river of stones #14 January

Where's the snow????

mid january
the oak tree
starting to bud


Friday, January 13, 2012

a river of stones #13 January



I was on a walk at the beach when the sun started to set. I stopped to take a few pictures and thought about how lucky I was to catch such a beautiful sunset. Then, a helicopter flew into the frame of my camera and I thought, what a hell of a view this guy must have had! Hope he had a camera.


sometimes
the grass is greener
lucky duck

a river of stones #12 January

Because I was busy, all day long I concentrated so hard on what stone I was going to write that I forgot to write it.

lonely night
across the canyon a dog barks
continuously


Wednesday, January 11, 2012

a river of stones #11 January


As I watched the dark night turn to ashen gray it expressed a glowing aura of timid light that divided the earth and sky. Through the dense atmosphere a crown of blue morphed into brilliant streaks of yellow and pink across the skyline and mingled with orange and royal blue brush strokes; darker, deeper blue, a deeper pink that bled into a silver swirl of blue and gray and slowly settled on a thin layer of pale cirrus clouds. After several minutes of this ritualistic dance a white ball of fire emerged gloriously, pompously, above the horizon; all colours faded into black and white, and then it was day.

sunrise
steam slowly drifts to my lips
from your tea cup

Tuesday, January 10, 2012

a river of stones #10 January



happy birthday, son
you are officially older
than me now
love, mom

Monday, January 09, 2012

a river of stones #9 January


Wondering what it would be like to crawl around the earth on sixteen legs and then one day shed an outer skin, antennae, eyes, legs included, and turn into something completely different? With wings yet? Guess we'll all find out one day.

in my sleep
I can fly to other worlds
full moon

Sunday, January 08, 2012

a river of stones #8 January


come on sky
what colour are you today
california heat wave
in the middle
of winter



Saturday, January 07, 2012

a river of stones #7 January



Sitting at a traffic light, I observed a pigeon standing in his own crap, watching the traffic go by. After I completed my errand and returned to the same intersection, I saw that the pigeon was still there. Does he not even care that the moon is almost full?

domesticated pets
my cat plays the piano
after midnight


Friday, January 06, 2012

a river of stones #6 January


Not feeling well today, I decided to take it easy, read a bit and rest on the sofa. That quickly turned into a nap. I dreamt of flying with a flock of birds, the sun setting on black wings in a cloudless sky, the sound of cawing; loud, louder. Then I was in an Alfred Hitchcock movie, black birds everywhere; in the street, on the roof, still cawing even louder. When I heard their huge wings flapping far and near I realized that I wasn't dreaming anymore.

reality
sometimes it haunts you
in dreams



Thursday, January 05, 2012

a river of stones #5 January



Finally took the tree down today. Now there's a big empty space where Christmas used to be.

winter blues
I really miss
my dad

Wednesday, January 04, 2012

a river of stones #4 January





No, Stella, Grandma's not mad at you for breaking the trunk off of her Ming Dynasty jade elephant.

spilt milk
is just that
spilt milk



Tuesday, January 03, 2012

a river of stones #3 January


The moon followed me home again tonight, peeked through my window as I got ready for bed, then silently sank into the horizon as I drifted off to sleep.

gibbous moon
the night light in the hallway
burned out again



Monday, January 02, 2012

a river of stones #2 January

A female white ringed dove flew down from the pine tree and sat in the frigid stream right next to where I was sitting. She didn’t look very well and my human side wondered if she would let me pick her up and take her to the Veterinarian’s. She sat in the cold stream, taking small sips of water now and then, choking a bit on something I couldn’t see and then closed her eyes. I felt helpless, yet remembered all of the National Geographic films that showed the natural life process of Nature’s animals. She seemed to know what to do with her fate and did not complain once.


mid-winter

still no snow

on the mountain