The Laugh -- a Poem for Friday Writings

            [click on the pictures for larger view]

  A Laughing Matter?

Little girl growing big 

Taller than her grandma  

Maturing, ladylike 

At our house yesterday 

Called, we at doctor place 

"Mimi, like to spend day 

Pick me up from my place?" 

So pick her up we did 

Small talk while driving home 

At her request, one stop 

McDonald's, she went in 

Back out with sack and glass 

We took care of some needs 

Sack on coffee table 

She's on the floor beside 

Playing game on her phone 

We'd eaten on the way 

Ice cream now for dessert 

Our guest, milk chocolate 

Be her favorite, ever 

Game time, old hide and seek? 

Kid stuff, not for freshman 

High school now, play new game 

"My creation," she beamed  

Three people.  Six stuffed toys 

One is "it". Two go out 

"It" hides the six stuffed toys 

"It" then calls in the two 

Leaves while two find the toys 

Find before "It" comes back 

If not, must sneak around 

First one caught is new "It" 

Toys brought in next game begins 

Once Mimi couldn't find 

Red Tomato she'd hid 

Worse we couldn't either 

Game was over, all laughed 

Laughed and laughed O so hard 

Mimi, how'd you forget? 

We needed a hard laugh 

        

Toy selection was made by our Teen: (top to bottom) 

    Two snowmen, on the left when she was four, 

       the right for the Christmas tree, occasion not remembered

    Two tomatoes belonged to my mother before marriage also 

    Two baby lions, on the left a gift to Mrs. from me 

       the right "just came mainly unnoticed"

    _ _ _ 

 -Photo and Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov6 2023, All Rights Reserved 

 - I am linked with Magaly at Friday Writings #89 ,   https://poetsandstorytellersunited.blogspot.com/2023/08/friday-writings-89-you-laughed-you.html?m=1

 - Magaly has asked us to write about the last time you had a good laugh or cry.

..

These things make the Mrs. Happy -- A Poem for dVerse Poetics Day

Mrs. Jim at the school--for Grandparents Day 2015 
[grammar school, KP now starts High School in August]

     Things that make the Mrs. Happy

I asked my wife to tell me SOME things 

Gave her little pad and a pen 

and asked her to give me a list 

"a list of things that make me happy" 

Was I surprised?  Was I? 

Well, not exactly, they were all things,  

things that I DO now, Me.  

I am so very privileged, 

That list alone makes me happy and

I am glad that I faired fairly well 

I'm going to show you the list now 

p.s. if she thought of some more just tell 

(an Aside:  When I first started writing 

my other blog, one of the things I told 

my readers was that I gave my wife 

an ANUAL EVALUTATION. Woo Hoo) 

Here is her list:

 - Time together 

 - Walks 

 - Cuddling at night and good night kisses 

 - Remembering over fun things, or times

    we enjoyed together 

 - Courtesy of a gentleman 

 - Helping to make up bed in the morning 

 - Watching TV of show we both like 

Wasn't that nice, she had decided to involve 

me with everyone--I hope she didn't  

misunderstand that just list SOME THINGS 

You can tell that number one on her list 

is the very first thing that she listed, "together"

All the other fit it well, her saying since 

COVID came along, "We are joined at the Hip"

Which are my THREE FAVORITES of these?  Any one 

could be, I enjoy our walks the most, we have 

a pleasant parklike place to walk complete with 

paved walking trails, streams, water throughout 

with ducks, cranes, and birds of all sorts.  And 

then there's the turtles and walking bridges, lots 

of trees, small playgrounds with swings and slides 

along the way.  And of course, WE TALK. 

Next I'll tell of the making of the bed 

Generally one of us gets up first, that person 

starts the coffee if she or I think the other might 

arise fairly soon.  IF SO, that person last up MAKES. 

(p.s.  Some times the first up gets up at a terribly 

early time.  I generally make a cup of hot chocolate 

and a piece of raisin bread with creme cheese and 

strawberry jam to tide me over until coffee time 

She makes hot chocolate with a graham cracker 

and perhaps some peanut butter 

and the Third HAS TO BE cuddling and stuff 

I wasn't told the birds and bees from my parents 

I learned it all in high school and perhaps a little of 

what comes naturally and morally around a girl with 

mutual likes 

That started in the first grade, we didn't have

kindergarten, when the other girl in first grade 

invited me to sit down in the storm cellar steps 

Well, the Mrs. and I have very mutual likes!!!

I love my wife dearly, I pray to for my life to 

be as long calendar wise as hers, I'm sad and almost tear 

to think it won't 

We are old 

All this and more walking trails are 

within three-mile radius our home:

Pictures if we walk to the east of our house 
Cinco Ranch, Katy, Texas.  They are for flood
water retention, we can walk to the west, north, 
or south also [click picture for larger size]

 _ _ _ 

 - Photos and Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov 2015 and 2023, All Rights Reserved 

 - I am linked with in Sara [sarahsouthwest in ]Poetics

 Poetics at dVerse Poetics, for her prompt, she did also allow for us to write our own wishes or of someone else's -- I chose Mrs. Jim's 

    https://dversepoets.com/2023/06/20/what-colour-is-hope/ 

 - Click here to read what others have written 

.. 

Recipe for Planning a Travel Holiday - a Tasty Write for Friday Writings

 

        A Travel Holiday, i.e. Vacation 

The rich combination of chocolate and almond plus 

having it in a wrapped bar makes any travel finer.  

I have traveled to all 50 of the United States and 

have visited 82 or more countries I'm showing here. 

The hope here for you is that you enjoy the travel 

as much or more than I have. 

                                _ _ _ _ 

Back to our recipe, before we even start making 

our delightful trip full of relaxation, learning, and 

enjoyment there are a few items to get straight. 

Decisions:

    A Destination -- do your homework here use 

        google to help you, and for other items

    Mode(s) of travel -- this in part will depend on

        where you are going, your physical condition, 

        and the amount of money in your purse/wallet

    A Budget for expected costs -- google helps you 

    Who all is going -- a travel alone for a single is 

        more costly, although not exactly "two can go 

        for the price of one"

    Time -- How much time can you take? (I had 

        six weeks each summer and I taught six weeks 

        for spare money to use) 

    Miscellaneous -- you may come up with other 

        decisions you need to make, these above all work 

        together 

                                _ _ _ _ 

    

Ingredients for the plan:

    3 pounds of dollar bills (more if you have or need) 

    2 tablespoons of cooperation with spouses, etc 

    1 can of dark, sweet and pitted time 

    1/2 tablespoon of salt and perspiration 

    2 cups of sleep every night 

    1 blank notebook 

    3 days of inspecting, lubricating, and repairs if driving 

    An ample amount of spare time 

To Start

    In a chilled bowl  in room temperature mix dollar                         bills, the cooperation, and 1/3 cup of time and beat 

    until tempers are very stiff.  Refrigerate as needed 

    to cool off 

Begin using the notebook so as not make the same 

    mistakes twice.  Take note of tricks you use to keep 

    the other's cool as and if this applies to your help 

To assemble your trip plans, add the other ingredients 

    and hope for the best.  Pour them out onto a greased 

    and slightly rusted pan and bake regularly until it is

    departure time.

                Bon Voyage and Good Luck, Enjoy!! 

                          

"A Bachelor's Best Friend, the Cookbook" 
Copyright Jimmiehov 2023 

   

 - Top Photo and Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov 2012 and 2023 Respectively, All Rights Reserved 

 - I am linked with Rosemary at the Friday Writings #63,  

        https://poetsandstorytellersunited.blogspot.com/

 - Rosemary has invited us to write a recipe in recipe-form (whether literally for an actual meal, or metaphorically for anything else at all). 

 - The Betty Crocker Cookbook is mine, I had it for my rescue for the three years way back, 50 years ago when I was single.  The top Photo was a birthday cake assembled for me by our granddaughter, KP, when she was three years old, read about it here.  

 - This write is exactly 369 words long, our limit now.  I could have written more but I ran out of both time and words. 

 - Click these words, Recipe Poem, to see a couple of my other recipe poems.  One is borderline.

.. 

Word List - Living (??) Well

Sleeping Cats

Kitten mine looks half asleep

really he's sound asleep but 

He sleeps with one eye open 

Kat learned this from the feral 

and catches mice in his sleep 

Sort of like his master is 

With one eye open looking 

both looking for food or prey 

He's tough gypsie type alright 

But gentle as a kitten 

when I'm around always was 

We are one of a kind, us 

I kissed them both, feed them now 

Carousing and prowl all night 

After breakfast sleep all day 

Life in the fast lane is good 

_ _ _ 

YouTube found here, lyrics too. 

At the end I found a collage of goodies on screen.

I chose "Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice," her bio 

on video at 1hour 33 minutes, it was well worth it to me.

_ _ _ 

 - Poem and Photo Copyright, Jimmiehov 2022, All Rights Reserved 

 - I'm linked with Shay for her word list, it's posted below from her Word Garden #9 below, at  http://fireblossom-wordgarden.blogspot.com/2022/01/word-garden-word-list-9-joan-colby.html?m=1 

 - Granddaughter KP's new cat does not like being left alone.  We think he might be missing his former owner.  Named Dutch, he is an adopted four-year-old male Russian Blue.   He was a one-owner never taken out in the rain; pretty boy belonging to a little old lady, an LOL. 

 - Shay introduced us to Joan Colby, and specifically from her collection Joyriding to Nightfall. Read about her writings at the link above.  Also, others have left a link there to their writings on this and the word list.  - "Colby writes about nature, animals, aging, and the angels and devils in everything around us. 

 - What Shay wants us to do here is simple: use at least 3 of the 20 words on the list in a poem of any length or style. Then link up and visit others. The prompt stays "live" through Friday."

 - And now her list of words!

    anesthetized         breakfast            casseroles

    climb                    clocks                 coffin

    deaf                      feral                   glissade

    gypsy                    jeans                   kissed

    radio                    ribbon                  scorn

    skull                     shillelagh             starlings  

    stitched                tempted 

.

Change of Plans -- Day 2 of NaPoWriMo 2020

Hemmed In

I am hemmed in here
while my Mustang Ford
is ready to whine
Lovely top-down days
are going to waste
Texas Bluebonnets
drool for company

That's because some dirt
farmer west of town
we're saving him from
dread COVID 19
Him we don't know and
for sure haven't seen

So gladly I stay
Here on my own street
But that's not all bad
My granddaughter came
with sidewalk chalk to
decorate my drive

_ _ _

 - Poem  and Photos Copyright, Jimmiehov 2920, All Rights Reserved
 - I'm linked to the Imaginary Garden at http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2020/04/april-2020-days-1-5 with Susie  Clevenger's prompt suggestion for Day 2, Taking it to the Streets
 - the NaPoWriMo Day 2, http://www.napowrimo.net/day-two-7/ ; and

A Tuesday Senryu Tanka Poem

Oscar a rabbit

Went to the queen's dinner dance

Missed the queen so sad

Queen too was sad when she heard

Said come back--both happy now

_ _ _

- Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov 2019, All Rights Reserved
- I'm linked with Anmol (Ha) in the Imaginary Garden at http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2019/06/the-tuesday-platform-dance.html?m=1
 - Sequell. This is an abrieviated version of a "homework" story I wrote in play school for my teacher, granddaughter KP.  In my story the queen and the rabbit became friends, both lived happily ever after.

A not so little 'Sticky Poem for Tuesday'

When up was down

When up is down and down is up
Some days that isn't good, some days
it will work.  For sure it isn't all bad because
my doctor says it comes with age  

Trouble is then, that it never
comes when one can enjoy  
Like last night. 'Twas nearing twilight,
about thirty minutes before sunset  

I was walking along the road, near the edge
My feet were down but I wanted them up,
one at a time so I could walk 
That just wasn't working for me 

At first it seemed like gobs of gum or
glue were stuck to the bottoms of my feet
They'd move forward but oh so slowly,
slower than a shuffle was their progression
Practical progress not.

I had to sit down. But where? On the curb
was the only place.  I was quivering
all over my body,  my feet were tingling
Surely somebody would stop, but who?

Never having been robbed,
I wondered what that was like  
Why did I leave my phone with my kin? 
Alone now in their strange land,
that was a dumb thing I had done  

Cars were whooshing by, a few even honked 
None seemed to interpret my waving as
needing help.  Futile.  Oh my.  Finally, nearing 
dark by now, a big black car was stopping 
Could I ride?

They pulled alongside and stopped 
And asked for ID. I had none 
I could never ever expect something
like this would me befall. I tried to explain

They showed a badge but didn't speak
my language. I understood their command,
"Get in the car." Afraid to obey but
more afraid to not I got in their car 
Interrogation and to jail?

I had no idea where they would take me 
A choice I had none. So surprised was I to see
my hosts as the car slowed to a stop 
"Is this him?" those cops asked 

They all helped me walk into the house 
"He'd best go to the Emergency in the 
morning if he still isn't right"  
Right then up was still down and 
there wasn't any glue on my shoes

(Author's note: this is a compilation of happenings I have experienced in my life, except for the glue on my feet. That was my gluing agent for the rest of my story.
 - The police ride happened in Egypt, I was picked up while walking a shipyard road.
 - The walking problem happened in a dream I had Sunday night. It stopped before a logical end.
 - Twice I've had the quivering and  tingling feet, once when a rude bully with road rage got into my face and the other when I tripped and fell in a store.)
_ _ _ _

- Photos and Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov 2019, All Rights Reserved (top picture is of the roadside on our return from the Magellan Strait Park ((sic)) in Chile, the bottom is of KP and Mrs. Jim making slime from their new recipe)
- I am linked with Sanaa Rizvi in the Imaginary Garden at http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2019/01/the-tuesday-platform_29.html?m=1

an unusual Fish Story, true I say

Betsy lives in a tree

My fish lives in a tree

Not the way I would choose

She's a mind of her own

Tell you about my fish

Her name is Betsy Dear

Gave to me by Kellie

my youngest granddaughter

Betsy was hers at first

Misses and she found her

In the pet store down there

at the end of our street

Shiny black Betta fish

Fairly cheap she came here

Betta fish are two or three

or five or ten dollars

Class you buy high or low

At first she had no tree

and slept in her sand box

Kind Misses bought her one

A small tree just her own

She sleeps and swims around

All day long doing that

Come morn I lift her hood

She stays in the tree

Lingers, finish her dream

Is she dead or alive

Soon she comes for her food

Breakfast Ala Água

Why does Betsy live here

It's her home and her tree

Over "there" with Kellie 

There's allergy to fish 

And her little secret
It's between her and me 

 _ _ _ _

 - Photos [click on one to make it larger] and Poem Copyright, Jimmiehov 2018, All Rights Reserved

 - I'm linked with  Vivian Zems  in the Imaginary Garden at http://withrealtoads.blogspot.com/2018/10/the-tuesday-platform_16.html 

 - When I write in First Person hardly any of my poems are entirely true, generally they have some embellishment of facts all the way to being entirely fiction.  This one however, is entirely true except for our granddaughter's name.  On my blogs she is generally KP.

 - Betsy is in a small aquarium which I just cleaned yesterday, that is done once a week or more often.  The little people are antique Fisher Price "little people" that came with a toy.  Across the pond is another fellow from a MacDonald's Happy Meal, an orange haired fellow driving a ride his water vehicle of sorts.  Betsy spends time visiting with them but now she spends more time in her tree than visiting.
 - How to Play with Your Betta, a Betta Blogger post.