In a pickle again

I am in a pickle again for I just don't have the resolve to take that pretty girl down the street to the New Years Eve party in town.

She knows I look at her and sometimes smiles shyly at me but I am just not brave enough to take that first step and to walk right up to her door and ask her out.

Please don't say "Why don't you ring?", because I don't have her cell phone number otherwise I would; mind you I am just saying that, what if she said "No!?" I be so humiliated.

I'll just have to have a boring evening in with Mum and Dad watching TV and pretending New Year's Eve is fun...well it isn't!

Ma's calling from the kitchen probably has invited Uncle Ted over for drinks and wants me to pick him up later.

"What! did you say that Mrs B from down the road has rung and asked if I could take her Jill to the New Years Eve party as she can't get a lift...you bet I will!"

Image found at www.dreamstime.com

Breakfast in bed

New is the morning
Sun's eye winks through the window
A glorious day

Summer is here again
Those sweet lips of my love
A feast for my eyes

She stirs by my side
Yawns then stretches her brown arms
Resolute eyes smile

What did I promise
In last night's close encounter?
Yes, breakfast in bed!

Image found at www.123rf.com

Spring's song where are you?

Spring's song where are you?
Please come back to us again
Chase the snow away

My eyes roam the skies
Search for signs in the bare trees
Crocus where's your bloom?

Let woodlands burst forth
Birdsong on every bough
Hung now with green leaves

Blow now southern wind
Stir all the cherry blossoms
Scatter the green lawns

And like you dear Sun
I'll be wearing a smile too
With you by my side

Spread your happiness
Warm me up to seventy
How I need you now

(Note 70ºF is about 21ºC)

Images 1 & 2 found at www.pinterest.com

We were as but one

I'll tell you about
Shall I call her Joanna?
I loved her sweet face

Many years ago
I held her safe in my arms
In the evening chill

She was so stunning
Tall brown and so athletic
She was such a catch

We were as but one
Joined at the hip you could say
A sweet connection

Until that one night
She so tried to butter it up
But it was over

Was I heartbroken!
I'd been dealt a life sentence
Love of my life...gone

Image found at www.fraser.typepad.com

Those fields of corn

We lay together
In those waving fields of corn
Laughing holding hands

Azure blue the sky
Delicious scent of summer
In the morning air

Oh to be in love
And to be that young again
In your warm embrace

Those days long past
Corn's been reaped with my rewards
While the clock ticks on

I now longer touch
And kiss those brown arms of yours
Or laugh on summer days

But you're safe inside
This loving heart of mine
In those fields of corn

Image found at www.the weddingcommunityblog.com

Was I but dreaming?

I was astonished
The wanderer had returned
He seemed much younger

And he looked like me
As I was many years ago
Lots of tales to tell

Was I but dreaming
Is that me in the mirror
What nightmare is this?

Those Christmases past
Come flooding back in my mind
First single and free

Then cosy in love
Now complete with little ones
Then the flew the nest

Slowing down at last
The ache of ills and lost love
Then alone again

Life's triumphs and joys
Is that man in the mirror
Saying his goodbye?


(Note Cosy is English spelling of US Cozy)

Image found at www.motywacja.pl               

Snow in August

Many years ago my wife and I drove to Canberra to visit friends in August which is wintertime in Australia.

We drove the main highways there but on returning decided to take the scenic route to enjoy the scenery and do some bird watching in uncharted territories (please note the pun there!)

Summers here can be hot but the winters are mild and back in South Australia where we lived snow rarely showed its white face so we happily walked in forests and around deserted lakes to say hello the local wildlife.

When it was time to move on we were running late to get to the next town to find a motel so decided to get on the Snowy mountains highway which would take us quickly on to the twin towns of Albury-Wodonga on the New South Wales and Victorian border.

Were we surprised after a few miles of driving that a sign confronted us warning "Snow chains only beyond this point" which we didn't have and to emphasize the point it began to snow.

So we had to take the long way round, deep down into the valley on a steep twisting turning minor road in the pouring rain however the journey was made even more memorable by a Lyrebird walking across the road to welcome us.

Yes this a true story

Image 1 Snowy Mountains highway found at www.panoramio.com
Image 2 Lyrebird found at www.projectnoah.org

My loving grandma

My loving grandma
The crease lines on her sweet face
Showed her history

Came from the country
Born on a big farm estate
Woods and streams were home

Lived in poverty
She'd came though two vicious wars
Hunger, storm and flood

Her life of extremes
She lived for her grandchildren
Her love spread like jam

I loved staying there
That sweet lure of adventure
Far from my own home

As strong as an ox
She was fearful of no one
I loved her so much

Her vision splendid
Always scheming to do well
That lure of success

Hope the little ones
One day think the same of me
Many years from now

Image found at www.dreamstime.com

She was not for me

Yes I did love her
Born thousands of miles away
Her soft flesh burnt brown

When she saw me look
She laughed and shook her finger
Forgiving my sins

Loved it when she spoke
Expressing her consonants
Whispering her vowels

Her eyes were dark pools
Her hands had soft warm palms
Nails painted pale pink

And how were we friends?
We had studied together
Gave her a lift home

Invited me in
Offered food from the pantry
Kids stared at white man

She was not for me
Wish I'd kissed her unmarked skin
And lots more of her

Image found at www.mediadiversified.org

All those years ago

On Sunday mornings
My Dad would walk down the street
To drink down the Inn

It opened at noon
Mum was cooking weekend roast
When I was so young

He took us two boys
Our dog Rastus came too
He liked us the best

Dad went on inside
While we three sat on the step
We'd get lemonade

Rules were funny then
Your dog was allowed inside
But children were not

Rastus was happy
He'd sniff and bark at people
Looking for more dogs

After Dad had his pint
We would walk back home again
To smell the roast beef

Dad would carve the meat
Meanwhile we would wash our hands
To then start our meal

Rastus was there too
Quiet under the table
Waiting for our scraps

Can't help thinking now
There was no room at the Inn
All those years ago


Image found at www.aksermonillustrations.blogspot.com

Matt and Tilda

Matt Matthews had died and all the family were gathered for the reading of the will including his housekeeper Tilda who was as deaf as a post.

She brought them some refreshments and sat quietly in a corner of the room while the lawyer opened his document case and read the will with sundry bequests to all the family but no a word about the house he had been living in which each of them hoped would be left to them.

Eventually the solicitor reached the final paragraph and announced that the house that the all coveted so much had been gifted to the housekeeper some months previously and she was now its rightful owner.

The family all looked in amazement first at the lawyer and then at Tilda who smiled sweetly at them.

"You must understand' the solicitor said "that of necessity Matt had learned sign language to be able to communicate with Tilda and she with him but as they lived with each other for so long he could also read everybody's lips especially yours, even when you spoke in whispers and were out of normal hearing range."

"So it was his decision that once you had all been adequately provided for in his estate he also ensured that he would provide for Tilda too...but before he died."

Image found at www.pinterest.com

In trouble again

She'd spit the dummy
Just what had made her so tense
In trouble again

It was Christmas drinks
I had kissed one office girl
The snap had been sent

Wife checked my cell phone
Never seen her so savage
In trouble again

It's a waiting game
For she can be so vengeful
Just what can I do?

Flowers and perfume
It just has to be Chanel
I do hope that works

(It's just our secret
I kissed all the girls there
But don't tell a soul)

By luck or design

Whether by luck or design
I fell in love with you
You eyes shone bright as stars
You move with such sweet grace
Gliding into my life
I wonder if you see me?

There's a boy who looks at me
I pretend I don't care
He's gentle and sincere
Will he make the first move?
The other girls are jealous 
So must smile at him soon

Did she nod at me just then?
I will smile back at her
Good I am going over
Good he is coming over
I love the way he talks
Can we keep it a secret?

Image found at www.boldsky.com

Love is blind thank goodness

Love is blind thank goodness
The drumbeats of our hearts
Gladly beat in unison
Our fingers were entwined
Insisting that love's grip
Held fast until the thread
Of a mass of voices
Sang in both our minds

We had both been conquered
Trapped in a web of love
All power to Cupid's bow
People gone from our sight
We spin so happily
In our special orbit
Thinking of each other
And of nobody else

Image found at www.papercraft.com

Those days long gone

Impotent old fool
Having nightmares once again
Searching long gone past

Recalling those days
Writing aubades to girls
Dark eyes and lips

They would always fall
For gentle poetic words
Love the magician

Sweet calm innocence
Warm skin, panting on the cusp
Eager as I was

Sun at its zenith
Brown skin dripping from the sea
Like sweet honey jars

Then they hoped for more
Not that I would molest them
Eager as a dog

The curl of her lips
Two panting hearts beat as one
Such breathless passion

That lightened our hearts
Experiencing the glow
Of a sweet first love 

Treacherous moonlight
With its sly and cheesy grin
Would frighten them off

O those days long gone
I relive them many times
Youth where have you gone?


Aubades - morning love songs

Image found at www.flickrhivemind.net

When I was a child

When I was a child
I rolled in the new mown hay
Stacking the straw bales

Childhood's glory days
Now spoilt by other meanings
Growing to manhood

Straws suck so does life
Then you must grasp the last straw
When all else has failed

Can you now bear it?
Straw that breaks the camels back
Defeat not success

Here's the man of straw
The front man of no substance
Part of the big plan

Straw dogs are on show
They're intended to look good
But never succeed

Pollies love straw polls
To judge just a small sample
To claim that they're right

Don't be in a rush
You can't make bricks without straw
You must plan ahead

Unlucky it is
To grasp that final short straw
It's not just pure chance

When I became man
I now think deviously 
To fit in this world

Image found at www.flickr.com

Raising the flag

                                                   
I migrated to Australia way back in 1966 from England and my family settled well in our chosen country.

When my father retired they thought they would join us to keep close ties with their grandchildren and in those days of high employment they found a job being guides in an historic house of the pioneer Captain Charles Sturt who explored the one great river system in Australia the Murray-Darling basin.

They lived on site and this allowed them to explore possible places to buy a place of their own without any pressure as they now had their accommodation provided.

They both enjoyed the work and meeting people however there was one job my father had to perform there which caused him much heartache.

Each morning when the pioneer's house and museum was opened for public viewing his job was to raise the Australian flag on the flagpole in the car park.

He never did quite get used to raising this standard of the country in which he had not been born so soon after arriving as it seemed he was denying his birthright.

Images found at www.charlessturtmuseum.com.au

Yes, this is a true story.

I should have been there

They've buried him now
Read the obituary 
In the local rag

Worked in the outback
We got drunk every night
Those were great times then

Big jovial man
Who out-drank everyone there
I would drive him home

Going to miss him
But I am lying of course
Those times have long past

Back in the city
Different man entirely
Nothing in common

Nobody knows us
There he was a raging bull
Here a placid mouse

Jim Hancock is dead
But I missed his funeral
I should have been there

Image found at www.semissourian.com

You've coloured my life

You've coloured my life
When all was grey about me
You are my bright star

For that is the way
Sadness and feeling blue
Need a cheery face

Then your eyes did shine
Hope sparkled in your smile
Rainbows after rain

You were a fresh breeze
Giving me "joie de vivre"
A dance in my steps

Whispering wind song
Where love reigns forevermore
You blew me away

You've coloured my life
I see it in your green eyes
Your smile tells me too

Image found at www.evolutionmale.wordpress.com

The best day ever

The alarm bells rang
A spider shook in her web
Wasps buzzed angrily

School was so boring 
But this was so exciting
Drill or the real thing?

Sunny afternoon
Walk to the assembly zone
Pulling and shoving

Clumsy Jack fell down
The teachers all looked so cross
Begrudging the time

Wanting to teach us 
About molecules and stuff
Now shouting commands

A crow watched us all
Then cawed his derision
At the gathered crowd

The whirling sirens 
Were now heard at a distance
Coming to save us

Boys looked eagerly
At the two red fire engines
and all the firecrew

Little Sue Bevan
Was crying for her mother
I thought it was fun

Imags found at 1. www.online.tarlton.edu
                        2. www.crookprimary.org.uk

Long and restless night

Long and restless night
Who can unravel my dreams
Dawn's already here

I begged you to stay
It was Thursday you took flight
And now you have gone

Autumn winds have blown
Leaves toss across the terrain
Along with my hopes

Who can I speak to?
Can I exist without you?
Who will I kiss now?

My cheek wet with tears
I'm on the fringe of madness
I'll touch you no more

Filed memories lost
Swept away in the current
I am all alone

Image found at www.thestarlitecafe.com

The skein of geese

He looked to the skies
The last skein of geese flew off
Soon the lake would freeze

The long nights drew in
His first winter here alone
Solvi died in May

Like the peach blossom
She had fallen in the orchard
Now left by himself

The cut logs stacked up
Dutifully against the house
They knew their job well

They would keep him warm
In his lonely double bed
Until the springtime

They had no children
Though it was their dearest wish
Should he wed again?

Then he heard a call
Sigge, Sigge was the shout
A girl approached him

It was young Tilde
From the village, she had grown
With cute turned up nose

Your mother sent this
Her breath steamed out in the air
A smile on her face

He saw she was cold
Come on inside by the fire
Taking the package

You shouldn't have come
While she warmed up by the stove
Her smile entranced him

It's not untidy
She said Oops, I shouldn't have 
Sigge laughed at her

They sent you to check?
She shook her head then nodded
They care about you

He really liked her
Honest and at ease with him
She was beautiful

You can come again
If you really want to help
There's lots to do here

She nodded her head
How long since your Solvi died
Do you want to say? 

Nearly six months now        
He smiled at her eagerly
Geese have gone, you've come

The seasons have changed
You have changed and so have I
So tell your parents

Image found at www.hubpages.com

The office gossip

"It was only a little lie, it wouldn't hurt anybody, would it?"

I looked in her eyes and could see she was panicking at what she had done.

"But the world prefers to believe a lie rather than hear the truth" I responded, "but in this case the truth only hurt you as you bad mouthed the man she was about to marry."

She glared at me, indignant that she had been caught out then burst into tears.

I continued, "The whole point about love is trust and I am sure that they talked about their past long before you enhanced it."

Pouting she turned and walked off for none of her romances lasted more than a week or two after her suitors found out they couldn't believe a word she said; I doubt she will have a job next week.

Image found at www.mrsprofessionalism.wordpress.com

Dreaming of the past

Afternoon nap time
He slept in his chair at last
Dreaming of the past

What a life he'd had
What great sights his eyes had seen
Fit of mind and limb

A sportsman was he
Had run a mile easily
Would join any team

Soccer and cricket
Tennis, darts and chasing girls
Were his favorites

Quick at his day job
Liked by boss and clients too
Found career abroard

Travelled all over
Climbed mountains and swam the seas
With beautiful wife

But time now to rest
And put his aching feet up
And sip contentment

Afternoon nap time
He slept in his chair at last
Dreaming of the past

Image found at www.elderlygents.tumblr.com

England in August

War was over, just
It was summer 'forty-five
Holiday called us

We went to Hastings
By train on the Sussex coast
England in August

Barbed wire was all gone
Air raid shelters still in place
Digs a mile from beach

I had no swimsuit
Kids couldn't bathe in the nude
Not that I could swim

Costume was makeshift
Under vest sewn up down there
(If you understand)

Wet it reached my knees
Lackadaisical parents
Were poor as church mice

Wartime was now past
I even had an ice cream
How good was that then!

Image found on www.pinterest.com