Slice of Life – Spanish for Breakfast

Denise Krebs6 Comments
October 31, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

Last week we found this quaint little coffee shop/restaurant in Palm Desert, D’Coffee Bouteaque. It has a healthy and interesting menu, an amazing selection of coffee and tea drinks, and homey, eclectic decor. Everything is served on a variety of china dishes. We had a sweet server who we really made a connection with, and we knew he would be there today when we were going to be back in town for an appointment. So during the week, I made a plan to speak to our waiter, M, in Spanish this time. I had to look up a few words that I didn’t know because, as I told M, “Por favor, ¿Podemos hablar in español hoy porque quiero mostrar a mi esposo que puedo hacerlo? He was such a good sport, and it was a success. I ordered a chai latte with leche de avena and agave en el lado. He helped me with one of the many mistakes I made, but I forget it already. I think it was at the end of  the sentence above about how to say, “I could do it.”

Anyway, I felt like I am on my way to the next stage of learning Spanish. I will definitely feel more confident next time.

Now, because we have no trick-or-treaters in our rural area, I’m sitting writing this and eating the M&Ms I bought (just in case).

Burrito de desayuno
Una rebanada de tostada con hummus y la aguacate
M brought this over to us with four stamps from this visit and last week’s
The decor is an eyeful everywhere you look!

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Poetry Friday – Beast

Denise Krebs12 Comments

Oh, my goodness. Is there any goodness?

With the killing and dying in Israel and Gaza, the House of Representatives in disarray, mass shootings daily and now this horrific one in Maine, and an election-denying radical as the new Speaker of the House.  On the other hand, there was a bit of goodness for today–I submitted three poems to Carol L.’s Nature Poetry Anthology, I took a walk around a mountain, and I cleaned my house.

I couldn’t think of anything else to write about for my Inktober “beast” word today than about who was elected in the House. This is a Golden Shovel poem with a striking line from something he said yesterday. “At the end of the day it’s the problem of the human heart, not the weapons…we have to protect the second amendment.”

October 27 – beast

At the End of the Day,
Mike Johnson, that is B.S. It’s
definitely the
guns that are the problem.
As if people of
other nations don’t have the
same worries of human
mental illness and evil heart
condition. But in the U.S. we cannot
resist using the
war-machine-killing-weapons
we’ve stockpiled. We
must stop. We have
to keep and save humanity, to
lift life and protect.
It is well past time to abolish the
gun-worshiped second
amendment.

More Inktober poems

Today is Poetry Friday, and I’m late, but I came anyway. Thank you, Carol, for hosting and bringing out the bats! 

Slice of Life and October Open Write 2023

Denise Krebs2 Comments
October 24, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

I spent so many years of my life overworked and overwhelmed, and now here I am in retirement and I needed more to do. I told my husband today that I wish we could spread retirement out over our careers and enjoy a little boredom, respite, and rejuvenation throughout the years. On that note, I volunteered for the Friends of the Library in our town. They needed someone to figure out how to do email blasts, so I said I could do that. I went to MailChimp (or as the FOL board president has started to call it–ChimpMonkey. I’ve started calling it that too.) It was not difficult to learn, and today I successfully added contacts and sent out different newsletters to each of the four segments of our audience. It was rewarding, and such a treat to have time to sit and work without distractions.

A few pictures of late:

I love an early moonrise.
These berries on this tree were so interesting. Using Lens, I think it is a cypress tree. Do you know?

 

This week is the Open Write at Ethical ELA is going on this week. Here are the poems I’ve written so far:

October 21, 2023
Found in Artwork with Erica Johnson

Dancing

La Grande Vitesse–
great swiftness–
is on its toes
This suspect stabile
is a dancer
Even those
who don’t dance
Can walk around it
Walk up to it
Dance with it
Never the same

——————————————————–
Found poem from this article
Images of La Grande Vitesse

October 22, 2023
If Your Shoes Could Talk with Tammi Belko

My Boots Are Talking

Hey, we’ve just gotten started–
These desert trails are great.
Hope you don’t grow again
Or we’ll end up in a thrift crate
before we’re properly worn,
just like your last sole mates

The inch I’ve lost in height
has been added to my feet–
An unfortunate birthright

October 23, 2023
The Luc Bat with Wendy Everard

Celestial
Marshmallows burnt just right
Settled round the fire light—cold backs
Warm fronts, time to relax.
Then looked up, viewed star tracks—chatter
turned to higher matters
Universal star spatter, bright moon
Soul space, Divine commune

October 24, 2023
It’s My Birthday!! All Month with Donnetta Norris

Inspired by “August Moon,” a poem by Emma Lazarus. I used this striking line: “Look! The round-cheeked moon floats high in the glowing August sky.” Her poem reminded me of this moon last August:

Take a Look!
Time for a surprise, for the
calendar has yet to turn round
and this orb, full-cheeked,
is shining again–blue moon
they call it. Super moon floats
above the mountain, lighting high
and low across the sand, just in
time for popcorn on the
porch and the glowing
cozy comfort of this August
evening, falling up into the sky

October 25, 2023
Take a Word for a Walk with Anna Roseboro

Children buried in rubble of war.
Are children only flesh and blood
literally–just children born to bleed
die survive as children no more?
Adopting hatred of elders, children waste
Justice and peace! They’re our children!

Poetry Friday – #WhyIWrite

Denise Krebs14 Comments

Today is Poetry Friday and the dancing, nurturing, running Bridget Magee, at Wee Words for Wee Ones, is hosting. (She has a birthday gift for us too.)

Today is also the National Day on Writing, and Day 20 on my Inktober writing small poems in October. Today’s word is frost.

October 20 – frost

#WhyIWrite

As Kafka said, “A book
must be the axe
for the frozen sea
within us.”
A pen then is balm
for the axe wounds
I write to heal
to process
to contemplate
to go deeper
I write to leave
a small mark
I write to thaw
the frost that is left

Tomorrow begins the October Open Write–five days in a row to pick up your healing pen and write poetry witnessed by a nurturing community. Join us at EthicalELA.com

 

Slice of Life – Sourdough and Sad Thoughts

Denise Krebs8 Comments
October 17, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

The news this week is painful. So many questions, so much pain in Israel and Palestine. Pain for the past seven decades, and more pain in the future too. God, please help.

The slices in my life recently seem to include sadness and questions and worry about how to be a better global citizen, but here is a small moment that happened this morning. In 2020, for the first time ever, I made a sourdough starter in Bahrain, along with many other people who were home during the pandemic lockdown.

When I moved back to California, I brought a small bottle of sourdough with me in my carryon. I nurtured it, used it, and gave some to my daughter. Over the year in Minneapolis, she improved my process and products of sourdough bread. Meanwhile in California, inadvertently I let my own sourdough die.

When I came home from my daughter’s last month, I returned with a small jar of sourdough in my carryon. It’s from the same batch I started in 2020. Now it’s healthy again and living in my fridge. This morning I started a loaf of bread.

The sadness is getting into my Inktober poems…

October 15 – dagger
knocked, assaulted, choked, stabbed
dozens of times: mother and son
hate crime, unthinkable escalation
Gaza war exported to Chicago by a
monster of a man who once
built a treehouse

Read more about Wadea Alfayoumi with a gift article from me at Washington Post.

October 16 – angels
when times are oppressive
God’s protective calming cloud
peace in the world

October 17 – demon
Who will
cast out
the demon
of hatred?
How will
anyone be able
to pay for the
atrocities?
What will
bring justice
and peace?

more here

Poetry Friday – #WriteOut

Denise Krebs11 Comments

It’s Poetry Friday and thank you to Catherine Flynn at Reading to the Core for the lunar goodness she shares and for hosting today.

I’m still writing outside each day this week (so far). The weather is perfect and the beauty is deep, but perhaps it’s the painful conflict in Gaza and Israel that keep me running outside, praying, writing and seeking hope. More info about:  Write Out – Place-Based Learning with the National Writing Project, which continues for 12 more days.

Climbing Abel’s Mountain
makes me feel
powerful and plucky
There’s no path
just rock upon rock and
cactus and dried brush —
thorns jump out to bite my legs
and poke through my boots
I feel that weeks-old
sprained ankle
but I keep going with
twinges of pain
I feel powerful and plucky

It’s a short hike to the top of the
mountain and unlike the bear who
went over the mountain
to see what he could see
and all he could see was
the other side of the mountain–
there is a reward on top
A place to sit
for travelers like me
Joshua’s Perch is here
to rest and ponder the
big sky view wider
than my eyes can hold
Panorama upon panorama
the breeze is more than
a breeze up here
it’s windy and I’m glad
I brought my jacket

I sit and write and pray
and I know poetry
is in this place
in every place
and remember that
the view is always wider
than my eyes can hold
God, I still believe
your eyes can hold it

The mountain from the road in front of our house
Our house from the mountain
Joshua’s Perch
One panorama view

Inktober Poemtober poetry continues here.

Slice of Life – #Writeout

Denise Krebs8 Comments
October 10, 2023 TwoWritingTeachers.org

It’s time for the #Writeout, an annual time to go outside and write! Thank you, NWP, for sponsoring so many opportunities for all to write. Yesterday I got lost viewing and reading prompts and ideas for writing out. Here is one I watched by a NE Ohio high school teacher, Amy Hirzel. She is a poet and gifter of beautiful writing inspiration.

I thought of her idea when I went for a walk today. I looked for artifacts–both manmade and natural. Then I chose one of each and tried to find the connections. Of course, the horrific bad news in Israel and Palestine was on my mind today too.

Here’s today’s poem.

Signposts

Unbending
uncompromising message
ramrod straight ahead
No detours
stay the course
do it my way

fringed amaranth
cries out
there are other ways
today she waves to travelers
arms beckon us to follow a new path

signs of sureness are needed at times
but flowing signs of wonder can
forge new directions of hope and home
rather than war

Here are my Poemtober poems from this week and last week.

Poemtober – Weeks 2, 3, & 4

Denise Krebs2 Comments

October 7 – Drip

Drip

dr
ipdr
ipdripdri
pdripdripdrip
dripdripdripdripdr
ipdripdripdripdripdrip
dripdripdripdripdripdrip
dripdripdripdripdripd
ripdripdripdripdrip
dripdrop

 

October 8 – Toad
Short and brown
Good friend Toad, a little down
Glad green Frog and he reflected
Lobel’s selves, connected

October 9 – Bounce
Bounce along–
Won’t
I someday be
Well
Again? Yes (I think…)
Now health is such a gift to treasure.

October 10 – Fortune
Dear Fortune,

How did I spend almost
my whole white life
not paying attention
to the fact that you play
favorites based on
‘Merica’s crass history?

With questions,
Me

October 11 – Wander
wander
eyes wide open
with appreciation
creative formation
unplanned hope in
ponder

October 12 – Spicy

Spicy delicious
Full of flavor
Fall chili
Rich &
Hot
Hot
& rich
Fall chili
Full of flavor
Spicy delicious

October 13 – Rise

Rise
Above
Life’s cold fray,
Like the morning
Sun that resets our
Soul sadness, daily
giving us hope
for newness
Believe
Up

October 14 – castle
He makes a hundred million dollars
each year, is riddled with anxiety,
and his adult children all live at home.

She rents a room from a mother and son,
helps them with their laundry,
and cooks in a microwave in her room.

The joy on her face shows who has a castle

October 15 – dagger

knocked, assaulted, choked, stabbed
dozens of times: mother and son
hate crime, unthinkable escalation
Gaza war exported to Chicago by a
monster of a man who once
built a treehouse

Read more about Wadea Alfayoumi with a gift article from me at Washington Post.

October 16 – angels
when times are oppressive
God’s protective calming cloud
peace in the world

October 17 – demon
Who will
cast out
the demon
of hatred?
How will
anyone be able
to pay for the
atrocities?
What will
bring justice
and peace?

October 18 – saddle
up
in the
saddle of
domination–
looking out at your
wicked realm. Will you see
that you are not so lofty?
Your power is manufactured
from whipping, stepping down, and kicking
those you have consigned to a lower place.

October 19 – plump
Whose name rhymes with rump and frump?
He’s one we should at last dump.
He’s plump and reaping a thump.
Failed reality show chump!

October 20 – frost
#WhyIWrite
As Kafka said, “A book
must be the axe
for the frozen sea
within us.”
A pen then is balm
for the axe wounds
I write to heal
to process
to contemplate
to go deeper
I write to leave
a small mark
I write to thaw
the frost that is left

October 21 – chains
War and its threat equal chains
When will we be free?
Can we make real gains
if we listen to each other?
Hatred of the ages strains
our capacity for love
Glean from heart and brains
to cause a path to agree
and avoid war stains

October 22 – scratchy
What? Dippity do
Scritchy scratchy too
I squeal

Shibble shabble shoe
Double trouble true
Big deal!

October 23 – celestial
Celestial
Marshmallows burnt just right
Settled round the fire light—cold backs
Warm fronts, time to relax.
Then looked up, viewed star tracks—chatter
turned to higher matters
Universal star spatter, bright moon
Soul space, Divine commune

October 24 – shallow
Deep
calls out
to deep but
at times shallow
wins

October 25 – dangerous

Hoping peace will be found
Lines of warring background
Bloodshedding justice drowned

October 26 – remove

Let’s remove Republicans from power
Election is one year away: blue wave
To the former guy they continue to cower
Let’s remove Republicans from power
We’ll use our votes on the House to scour
To save our Republic, we must be brave
Let’s remove Republicans from power
Election is one year away: blue wave

The following is a Golden Shovel poem with a striking line from something Mike Johnson said yesterday. “At the end of the day it’s the problem of the human heart, not the weapons…we have to protect the second amendment.”

October 27 – beast

At the End of the Day,
Mike Johnson, that is B.S. It’s
definitely the
guns that are the problem.
As if people of
other nations don’t have the
same worries of human
mental illness and evil heart
condition. But in the U.S. we cannot
resist using the
war-machine-killing-weapons
we’ve stockpiled. We
must stop. We have
to keep and save humanity, to
lift life and protect.
It is well past time to abolish the
gun-worshiped second
amendment.

October 28 – sparkle
precious shining lights
glitter on her eyelashes
flutter under night
constellations brightening
her mark on the nighttime world

October 29 – massive

His size is astronomical
Could it be gastronomical?

October 30 – rush

Traffic
is bad today. When will
we get relief? Soon as
abode-advent
rush-hush

October 31 – fire

Fire
intense, angry
blazing, searing, scorching
first hot then cold
chilling, blasting, penetrating
frosty, crisp
Ice