Yard Beast

In hare-raising circumstances, the best leverage may come quite naturally.

My domain is under a dare.

This gardener is reaching despair.

Each plant that I sow

Does get up and go,

And I blame an oversized hare.

This steroidal creature dines well.

Of that we can patently tell.

With swagger she’ll eat

Then stagger to feet –

Off under my shed, there to dwell.

I’m sure she has family to feed,

And nature preserving’s my creed.

But blooms disappear;

She grins ear to ear.

Must I territory concede?

At last, I can see through the fog.

It’s time to respond, go whole-hog.

Look out, bunny girl.

Get lost. Take a whirl.

Ears up, as I send out my dog.

c2017 by Linda Ann Nickerson

Image:

Adapted by this user from vintage artwork.

This poem was posted in response to these prompts:

April A to Z Blog Challenge

National Poetry Writing Month / NaPoWriMo

Meme Express: “leverage”

#atozchallenge

#napowrimo

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Dog days: Hounded by humidity and losing lucidity

Baby, it’s hot outside. My grandmother used to say, “Horses sweat. Men perspire. Women glow.” It’s an old saying. But lately, I beg to differ.

Dog days

(Hounded by humidity and losing lucidity)

My sprint is spent like long-lost lien.

I’ve showered thrice. I’m still not clean.

We wonder why the summer slogs,

But every day will have its dogs.

I puff and pant like mongrel mean.

The temp has dropped a few degrees.

I venture out to catch a breeze.

If just a mile or three I’d try,

My tales would justify some pie.

But after two, I crawl on knees.

God only knows my top complaint.

For He has heard I ain’t no saint.

A trio of excuses grand

I reconstruct to beat the band

And seek a shadow, there to faint.

Get up and move, you soggy slug.

Go grab that water, gulp and chug.

Then stomp those sneakers ‘round the block.

Your alibi’s a crusty crock.

I stand and shrug, and off I plug.

And still I wonder, as I fry,

Will this entitle me to pie?

c2016 by Linda Ann Nickerson

This poem was posted in response to these prompts:

Camera Critters: pictures of creatures

Mad Kane Humor: “lean” or “lien”
Meme Express: “venture”

Simply Snickers: “tales” (or “tails”), “trio,” and “try”

Shadow Shot Sunday: “shadow”

Sunday Smiles: something worth smiling about
Sunday Stealing: “God only knows”

Image/s:

 Vintage/public domain image.

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U is for Us Too

Who doesn’t love Winnie-the-Pooh?

A.A. Milne (1882-1956) was a British author and playwright, most famous for his series of children’s books about Winnie-the-Pooh, Eeyore, Piglet, Tigger, Christopher Robin and the other Hundred Acre Wood characters.

Us Too

By A.A. Milne

Wherever I am, there's always Pooh,
There's always Pooh and Me.
Whatever I do, he wants to do,
"Where are you going today?" says Pooh:
"Well, that's very odd 'cos I was too.
Let's go together," says Pooh, says he.
"Let's go together," says Pooh.

"What's twice eleven?" I said to Pooh.
("Twice what?" said Pooh to Me.)
"I think it ought to be twenty-two."
"Just what I think myself," said Pooh.
"It wasn't an easy sum to do,
But that's what it is," said Pooh, said he.
"That's what it is," said Pooh.

"Let's look for dragons," I said to Pooh.
"Yes, let's," said Pooh to Me.
We crossed the river and found a few-
"Yes, those are dragons all right," said Pooh.
"As soon as I saw their beaks I knew.
That's what they are," said Pooh, said he.
"That's what they are," said Pooh.

"Let's frighten the dragons," I said to Pooh.
"That's right," said Pooh to Me.
"I'm not afraid," I said to Pooh,
And I held his paw and I shouted "Shoo!
Silly old dragons!"- and off they flew.

"I wasn't afraid," said Pooh, said he,
"I'm never afraid with you."

So wherever I am, there's always Pooh,
There's always Pooh and Me.
"What would I do?" I said to Pooh,
"If it wasn't for you," and Pooh said: "True,
It isn't much fun for One, but Two,
Can stick together, says Pooh, says he. "

That's how it is," says Pooh.

Last year’s A to Z post: Upper Room Unbooked  

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Image/s:

Teddy Bear

Creative Commons Licensing

Favorite Classic Poems

Adapted from ClipArt ETC

A to Z Blogging Challenge logo

Fair Use

Bloomin’ Mad

Bloomin’ Mad

Man’s best friends, our dog and cat,

Can stomp a garden in nothing flat.

How can we chase our pets away

To let our flowers grow and sway?

The cat will scratch; the dog’s a digger.

My lilies won’t grow any bigger.

What can I do about these pests,

Who think my garden is their nest?
c2011 by Linda Ann Nickerson

Public domain image

NOTE: I wrote these lines many years ago in a pique of frustration, having found my most magnificent blooms decapitated in my garden one summer afternoon. What gardener has not sensed the same upon finding beloved blossoms lost in their prime?

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