April 30, 2012

clouds swirling

trees bending

hot tub soak

two quilts finished

now begins

the quilting marathon

eight quilts in

thirty-eight days

April 29, 2012

preening

in the birdbath

black-capped chickadees

writing

and quilting

two quilts 

nearly complete

more in the wings

Wordle 54: Ensorcelled Swans

Ensorcelled Swans

A flock of swans

beating their wings

over the sea towards land

not wanting to squander

a single moment

of their time as swans

before  the intractable

sorcerer renews the spell

follows a mountain lane 

which can accommodate them

in either of their forms,

an alleyway between cliffs,

spotting with their green eyes

the pewter waters of a placid lake

where they will spend the day

until they have to transform back

into their human forms.

Ok, I am watching Swan Lake.  Can you tell? I turned it upside down with swans having to take human form for part of each day instead of humans transformed into swans, but I figure Tchaikovsky will forgive me, I hope.  This is written for The Sunday Whirl's Wordle 54 and the twelve words to use are: green, squander, sea, accomodate, intractable, pewter, follow, lane, beating, alley, flocks, and eyes.

April 28, 2012

pink cyclamen

a robin hunts

across the lawn

little strips

becoming bigger strips

before turning into squares

soon to morph into

quilt tops

Six Word Saturday

Doing laundry while piecing two quilts

April 27, 2012

two snails

on the riser

apple tree blossoms

chores done

small strips

sewn into

wider strips

cloudy day

April 26, 2012

spring winds

apple blossoms fill the air

a bumblebee flies by

tutoring 

and errands

and more tutoring

rain turns to sun

and back to rain

April 25, 2012

fig trees

beginning to leaf

slugs on the walkway

slugs enjoying

the walkway

frogs crocking

the birds sing

rain falls gently

April 24, 2012

apple blossoms

filling the air

a frog chorus

tutoring

at Student Link

errands completed

a quiet afternoon

napping and reading

April 23, 2012

a bumblebee

feeding on a pansy

the birds sing

a hummingbird, a bumblebee,

and a slug start

the wonderful day

a doctor’s appointment

mass transit wonders

Wordle 53: A Dragon Ride

In honor of the first year’s anniversary of the Sunday Whirl, today’s words were submitted by the blogs readers (including me! Can you guess which word was mine?).  The words are tricky for sure to combine, and I had a very hard time of it.  The words are: aches, exquisite, abstract, shelved, ferment, dragon, coda, shimmy, origami, spangling, ethereal, and cacophony.   Here is my effort:

An origami dragon

shelved and forgotten

an abstract representation

only a coda of a bygone era

until a young girl 

carrying aches beyond

her years and escaping

a cacophonous party

filled with fermented beverages

came over to admire the dragon.

At once the dragon began to shimmy,

scales replacing

the artificial spangling

as the dragon, with ethereal 

purple wings taking shape

in all her exquisite splendor

offered to whisk the girl

out of the sordid atmosphere

for a ride up into

the skies above.

April 21, 2012

April sun

the cats enjoy

an open window

laundry done

wardrobe assembled

a dog and I walk

to the mailbox

glorious sunny day

Six Word Saturday

Bright sunny day new wardrobe assembled


This just sums up my day splendidly.  It has been a gorgeous day, especially appreciated after lots of clouds and rain.  And the wardrobe I ordered for my bedroom arrived yesterday instead of next Monday which was the estimated arrival date, and that pleased me greatly as I was able to assemble it today. I am now sore and tired, but it looks lovely and is just what I needed. Furthermore, the sun is still shining and it is supposed to continue doing so for one or two more days! Just can't ask better than that!  And thanks to a gentle nudge from a reader I have now added a photo of yesterday's efforts! Thanks, Ticklebear! I'm not really very adept at getting photos onto blog posts, but I would like to learn!

April 20, 2012

April rains

a slug glides

up the fence post

appointments 

and service calls

zipper sewing lesson 

rain ends as

the weekend arrives

April 19, 2012

April rains

the birdbath

overflows

tutoring

in a different location

stocking up on

dog and cat food

never-ending rain

April 18, 2012

a slug resting 

on a stair riser

cyclamen bloom

rain turns

to sun as the

day progresses

many activities

quiet evening

April 17, 2012

walking under

a low tree branch

water drips inside my collar

tutoring resumes

seniors in crunch time

doctor's appointment

a set of drawers assembled

pouring rain

April 16, 2012

sharing

my morning shower

eleven slugs

clearing out

a closet

a haircut and then

lunch with a friend

last day of spring break

April 15, 2012

April 15th

my third anniversary

as a quilter

submitting haiku

writing more poetry

reading others poems

taking a nap

walking Oliver

Wordle 52: The Dragon and Her Rider

This is Wordle 52 from The Sunday Whirl and this week’s words are: sweet, richer, dramatic, forceful, tricks, flames, energy, push, glance, exchange, breath, flexible, and blend.

The Dragon and Her Rider

The dragon gave 

her rider a forceful push

as if to say let’s fly.

The sky was clear

the breeze sweet

the young dragon

full of energy and tricks

curved her flexible neck

and exchanged a glance

with her rider.

Airborne they became

a dramatic blend of magic

as the dragon’s richer breath

filled with flames.

April 14, 2012

wind chimes play

the old dog dreams of 

summer warmth

dog hops

on three legs

wanting so to run

frogs croak

at the back pond

Six Word Saturday

Helping dog recover from knee surgery

April 13, 2012

a sunny spot

the cat sleeps

in a new bed

off to the vet

for Oliver's knee surgery

the house too quiet

with just two dogs

and three cats

April 12, 2012

dreaming

of haiku prompts

a fox on a swing

binding the edges

of my new purse

sewing many strips

into wider strips

time to nap

April 11, 2012

peeking through

the tree tops

a hint of mountains

sewing lessons

making a purse

nearly done

frogs croaking

rain falling

April 10, 2012

three frogs

in a mixed chorus

hot tub serenade

slicing fabric

with a rotary cutter

into different widths

sewing strips together

before cutting squares

April 9, 2012

the splashing

of the pond fountain

a frog croaks

cutting out

a new sewing project

quilting the pieces

a frog under

the bushes

April 8, 2012

chickadee

building a nest

cat watches through the window

squaring and binding

four quilts

writing blog posts

and poetry

sun shines

Wordle 51: A Mother's Warning

The is Wordle 51 from The Sunday Whirl and the twelve words I must use are: destiny, dusk, staggering, buried, mate, marrow, addiction, songs, blood, story, sorrows, and broken.

A Mother’s Warning

The mother began

her story filled with sorrows

just after dusk.

Her children listened

avidly as she told

of her now buried 

loving mate

who returned home

staggering, broken

covered in blood

only to die at her feet.

Songs will be written

of your father’s addiction

as a warning to others,

his destiny unfulfilled

because of his hunger

for marrows which brought

him up against

the farmer’s trap.

Be warned, young rabbits!

I tried to put a lighter spin on these dark words.  Major nods to Beatrix Potter for my story line!

Six Word Saturday

Lots of quilting lovely sunny day

April 7, 2012

waltzing across

four quilts

daughter texts

writing flash fiction

quilting four quilts

doing laundry

a friend stops by

spring break begins

April 6, 2012

the full moon

behind fir trees

a frog croaks

therapy and errands

planning next sewing project

reading and napping

chickadees darting

through the yard

April 5, 2012

chickadees

in the birdbath

a rainbow pinwheel spins

after tutoring

quilting

sewing four backs

and pinning 

four quilts

April 4, 2012

same time same place

the crow overhead

again with twigs in her beak

watching the birds

nest building

helping students

comforting pets

sunny day

April 3, 2012

tulip buds

ready to blossom

a frog croaks

a crow overhead

with twigs in her beak

hot tub soak

a trying day

finding solace

in quilting

two more tops pieced

sun comes out

April 2, 2012

spring rains

skipped today

a butterfly in the garden

sunny spring day

one quilt top finished

another half done

lunch and games

with a friend

April 1, 2012

sun teases

before vanishing

April Fool’s Day

sun comes out

for dawn and dusk

rain in between

quilting, reading,

writing, and napping

Wordle 50: Sir Thackeray

Here is my contribution to The Sunday Whirl’s Wordle 50 challenge.  Today’s words are: pet, string, wish, point, trick, shine, paw, smell, pack, shape, taste, and whisper

Sir Thackeray

Sir Thackeray knows he rules the pack

and pointing his paw at random shapes

he conjures up trick after trick,

before he plays with the string

left discarded on the floor

or tastes his food when no one looks,

wishing for another flavor to smell and savor.

He grooms himself until his fur shines,

and then whispers in the dog’s ear

making the dog leap and run.

Thackeray is no pet, but a free spirit

whom I am lucky to have for a friend.