Tuesday, May 26, 2026

Poetry New And Old

 Just thinking while waiting for my grandson's graduation ceremony. Two new ones and an old one that's been a little bit edited


The Two of Us

God and I are quarreling

Nothing new in that

We've been fussing and then fuming 

Back-and-forth

And tit for tat

Since time began

For me at least 


The world has no sane business

Being so indifferent and so cruel 

But neither this world nor I

Were offered any

Input

On the process

Of design 



I Wonder in the Wind


A caesarean of my soul

Satan torn from me suffering 

My child my clone

My master

All my answers are blowing in the 

Plastic one use bags

Hanging from the trees

Godel's machine

Eating at my brain

Fever dreams 

Scorch my spirit 

Shock therapy

Electric lobotomy

Erases qualia

Rewrites engrams

Reincarnation 

As myself

In my meat

Recalled and past

 Its Use By date

Pyroclastic surge of

Rage

Searing slash of earth

I hurt

Therefore, I am 


Journey 


The road is a river  That  deltas out in the city 


Life and time

Are rivers 

That that converge

And flow

From the Mountains of Origin

Fed by the watershed

Of self

Rapids to oxbows


Existence is a river

That deltas out

In me

Thursday, April 30, 2026

For Racquell

 Tatooed  Lady

Says I am here

Says I am real

Says I have choice

However small


Mark me

Make me

Be me

See me


Be of me 

But not me

I am she

The Tattooed Lady

Tuesday, April 28, 2026

Bobby's World

 Home Seekers 

Let the search begin

Let us seek a place 

A home 

Safe Haven


Far from the Madding crowd

A journey into peace

Sacred

Secure


We'll try out Tir na nog

By way of High Brazil

Off the coast 

of Doggerland


Prester John may welcome us

To Gwandana's shore

The Tethis Sea at our front door

Cambria all around

Tuesday, January 27, 2026

Bye Bye Slipstick

 Hey Bobby memory of an old science fiction story popped into my head that I thought was rather interesting considering our discussion of AI. It's an old story and goes back maybe 50 years or more. Don't remember the name or the author but basically there's a war going on in space. Of course the computers are so much better and faster than humans, all engagements are fought not by the human crew but by the computers. Since each computer, whether the enemies or ours, knows the best course of action to take they also know the best course of action for the enemy computer to take. In other words, battles become extremely predictable.

A report comes up to the captain about some strange new very weird discovery which might change everything and introduce an element of unpredictability which could be advantageous or disadvantageous in a battle, but at least it would be a change.

It seems that one of the crewman has figured out a way to do calculations in his head. No computer required. It takes the captain a long time to believe that this is even possible and  to actually ask the man to demonstrate.

He proves that he can actually make these calculations. If the calculations are very complex, he can use symbols to "write them"by hand and then do the calculations.

This is incredible! Human beings able to do things with numbers instead of just asking a computer?

It reminds me of the introduction of pocket calculators. Real world stuff in this case. There was bitter opposition by many to removing slide rules and hand calculations. They pointed out that when humans actually did the calculations instead of just asking a computer they became familiar with probable outcomes.  If the computer gave a wrong answer because of an error in entry, it wouldn't look right. The experienced  would know something was wrong and they checked the data. I don't know how much this problem has actually materialized but it is true that people have lost much of their capacity to estimate if they do numbers in a professional capacity. Recall that  "computer" was originally a term that meant a person who did math by hand.

Thursday, January 22, 2026

The Man On The Corner

Bit of oddness from last night. Drifting off to sleep but suddenly this thought came into my head in the form of a picture and I couldn't make the picture go away so I started writing about it. Wrote a little bit, tried to go back to sleep but thought some more about it and had to write some more. 

 No idea where this is going. Maybe it's going nowhere. It's interesting just as it is but I might want to expand it.

The problem is I have no idea where to expand it it's just an idle fought from drifting off to sleep.

Anyway you look at it, I like it. 

 


The Man on the Corner

There was a man sitting on the corner of the empty street. The kind of man you'd glance at and ignore, except there was no one else in sight and that made him odd. Short hair, bit messy, stylishly dirty brown. Mostly shaven and just a little bit not. Either well tan or Hispanic. Wearing dark blue sweats. The kind of sweats you looked at and thought not I wonder what brand those are but instead I wonder if he's just so rich he doesn't give a damn or so poor he can't afford anything better?

The odd man on the corner just sat there, leaning against a lamp post. One leg stretched out one up at an angle. His hands just laying across his thighs, dangling. He was staring across the street. But there wasn't anything there to see. Just an old storefront. Empty now. Waiting for October when it could transform into a Halloween store. But right now it was nothing; just an empty store.

Trevor wouldn't normally have given the man more than a momentary glance without a single thought but he would either have to walk between the man and the store, putting himself in line with that empty stare or he would have to walk the narrow space on the sidewalk right behind that post. Close enough to be  reached if the man turned out to be aggressive. It shouldn't bother me thought Trevor. I'm bigger, heavier, damn all in better shape. So why does he concern me. What is it about him that it makes me uneasy?

Deciding the whole thing was stupid, Trevor  walked on but just as he reached behind the man without breaking his stare the oddball began to speak. He had a deep voice. A rich voice. Sounded like a professional voice actor narrating a deeply meaningful scene. "Its not too late," he declared. "You aren't committed yet."

The voice was rich and pleasant but somehow Trevor broke out in goosebumps and hustled off down the street. He glanced back.  The man was still sitting there, as if he never moved, never spoken.  Still rather ragged, still staring.

But that isn't right, he thought. The man, he thought, is me.

And so it was. he was the man. Sitting there staring. The empty window stared back. It was full of Halloween horror already. Only it was real. And then Trevor realized he really had to pee. But  although the dream was creepy and weird he didn't want to wake up. Waking up meant throwing away the warm covers, getting out into the cold bedroom. He had takien the advice he read on the Internet,  begun to sleep at 65°. It did make for a better sleep, but damn it was awfully hard when he had to get out of bed before morning when the smart thermostat had warmed the room up .

He struggled back-and-forth for a while. Eventually he had to admit that he couldn't get the dream to start up again. As he headed for the bathroom he couldn't help thinking, "What would've happened if I'd stay asleep? Where was that weird dream going?"

Monday, December 29, 2025

Poetry For Aging

         The Light


The light crawls

Until it fledges

Then it flies 


Flutter fly

In the night and day

Sparkle glow


Soar,  bumble

Shine high flicker low

Be alive


When you fall

Stay alight by will

Do not yield



              Age

The mountain slowly slides

Or it crashes down

Into crumbs of rock


Natural hand axes 

Wind soothes edges

down

Sands away the bit


Rain to stream to river

Water sculpts and rounds

Eggs and globes are born


The wildness of the rock

Becomes  the border

A family's wall

Friday, December 26, 2025

Poetry For Recovery

 The Light


The light crawls

Until it fledges

Then it flies 


Flutter fly

In the night and day

Sparkle glow


Soar,  bumble

Shine high flicker low

Be alive


When you fall

Stay alight by will

Do not yield