A New Poet to Enjoy

A writer on WritersCafe.org reviewed one of my poems and mentioned Austin Clarke in his review.  I had no idea who this might be so I googled him up.  The poor fella's dead now, but has wonderful writing to read.  He seems to have a way of putting the words to gether so they have a rhythm that's very pleasing to the ear.  I invite anyone to take a read of him.  I read some of his work on the following site:

http://www.irishcultureandcustoms.com/Poetry/AustinClarke.html

Really enjoyed this poem of his a great deal:


The Awakening of Dermuid
By Austin Clarke (From “The Vengeance of Finn.”)

In the sleepy forest where the bluebells
Smouldered dimly through the night,
Dermuid saw the leaves like glad green waters
At daybreak flowing into light,
And exultant from his love upspringing
Strode with the sun upon the height.

Glittering on the hilltops
He saw the sunlit rain
Drift as around the spindle
A silver-threaded skein,
And the brown mist whitely breaking
Where arrowy torrents reached the plain.

A maddened moon
Leapt in his heart and whirled the crimson tide
Of his blood until it sang aloud of battle
Where the querns of dark death grind,
Till it sang and scorned in pride
Love—the froth-pale blossom of the boglands
That flutters on the waves of the wandering wind.

Flower-quiet in the rush-strewn sheiling
At the dawntime Grainne lay,
While beneath the birch-topped roof the sunlight
Groped upon its way
And stooped above her sleeping white body
With a wasp-yellow ray.

The hot breath of the day awoke her,
And wearied of its heat
She wandered out by the noisy elms
On the cool mossy peat,
Where the shadowed leaves like pecking linnets
Nodded around her feet.

She leaned and saw in the pale-grey waters,
By twisted hazel boughs,
Her lips like heavy drooping poppies
In a rich redness drowse,
Then swallow—lightly touched the ripples
Until her wet lips were
Burning as ripened rowan berries
Through the white winter air.

Lazily she lingered
 Gazing so,
As the slender osiers
Where the waters flow,
As green twings of sally
Swaying to and fro.

Sleepy moths fluttered
In her dark eyes,
And her lips grew quieter
Than lullabies.
Swaying with the reedgrass
Over the stream
Lazily she lingered
Cradling a dream.

When you have the Munchies...

Judy Ponceby ·
 Jun 10, 2011

 

Hungry Ogre

 

 

An ogre set out to have a
     feast one day.
Dreaming of all the creatures
     he would slay.

He'd have bowls
     full of trolls.
And fairies buttered
     on rolls.

He'd eat hairy mountain
     goat coats
And fattened up ducklings
     full of their oats.

He'd chomp on legs
     of forest elves
And pickled gnomes feet
     from his shelves.

This fearsome young ogre
     planned quite well,
Except for a troublesome
     oyster shell.

It landed quite wrong
     deep in his gullet.
And never more was heard
     from Ogre Trullet.

GiddyUp :)

 

 

This was an embroidery pattern I decided to tangle with Sharpie black ink and Colored Pencil.

The Ones I Admire - My grandma Wallace

My grandma was married to a terrible man.  But, she raised her children.  After her husband died, I'm not sure where her life led her for a few years.  But once I started paying attention, I found that she was supporting herself by being a live-in caretaker.  I came to know her as a strong, independent woman.  She had strong faith in the Bible.  She also had strong views on many subjects. When I lived with her for a short while she would make me Gingerbread from scratch.  She loved to sew crazy quilts and her bathroom was done entirely in pink.  I love my grandma and still miss her.  I remember the times we would walk up to the store together and talk and eat ice cream cones while it snowed.  She was a great woman.  And she never minded that I would roll her dice when it was her turn when we played Chutes and Ladders or Candyland. :)

A Little Romance

Lighting the Heavens

 

 

luminous hued
sparkles
blink brightly
in the velvet night
gazing upon enamored
lovers
unaware of their
brilliance.

enthralled
they see
only
the eternal
glow
of
desire
just as brilliant
and burning
as the brightest
suns
in the heavens

Owlish

I designed this zentangle inspired piece based on the photo I found on Pinterest below.

 

By Velaskess

Cake

Lovely chocolate icing,
in sensuous swirls.

Covering velvety,
tantalizing heaven.

Smelling of that warm,
soulful chocolate.

Slightly warm
and still gooey.

Served up with
a cold crisp glass of milk.

Mmmmmmm. :)


                   by J. Ponceby

tick.....tick......tick.....

Marching on...

 

 

The face of time shows no age.
Merely continues its forward motion.
Marking movement of life and loss
The hands tick ever round and round
Never looking back, always forward
What is, only is, in the moment
And then is not.

                           J. Ponceby

Under the Sea in Black and White

Black ink Zentangle Inspired Work

Mincing Words...

A poet friend of mine, Frank James Davis, (should you care to have a read of his writing too)  who I met through reading his writing on Hello Poetry had an interesting reaction to the following poem which I had written in response to a challenge to incorporate given words.  The poem is as follows:

Final Rest

 

Here lies my body
my life-long shell.
Worked through the grind
and finally fell.

Lying postmortem
on this cold table.
The reaper calls,
"Come, you are able."

An undertaker prepares
to hammer the stones
Of my final resting place
sepulcher for my bones.

Resting in pieces
all through the years.
Time washes away
lost memories' tears.

4/24 New Words: grind, hammer, undertaker, postmortem, sepulcher

 

 He had the following reaction to this poem:

 

Frank: This poem really bummed me out, Judy. What's the sense of doing anything?--in eternity's scheme, we're already just a bunch of forgotten bones.
Let me give you a few new words to work with: don't, ever, write, anything, so, damned, depressing, again.   (Technically, a great poem.)

 

Well I couldn't just let it go at that.  So I wrote another poem using his given words.  And it goes as follows:

In the Name of Cheerfulness

 

So, let's see, cheeriness personified.
Damned if I can think of anything depressing.
Again and again, my mind goes on ever and ever,
In search of that infernal lightening rod
To which the dark and dreary are attracted.
And yet, butterflies and billowing clouds,
erupt magnificently in full bloom.
Hiding in the nooks of my cranium,
fluffy bunnies and poofy flowers.
Anything really, to while away the hours.
And so I write about grand battles,
frogs on crack, and ladies in your lap.
Seems this perky cheeriness is infectious....

A wink and a nod to my friend Frank. ;)

© 2011 Judy Ponceby

 

 Apparently this response to his reaction was very unexpected, and I really enjoyed his comments on this poem a great deal. :)

 

Frank: Wow! I'm not only genuinely flattered, I'm truly amazed! You somehow turned my nonsense into something wonderful.  If I could choose how people thought of me, I would be sincerely honored if it were exactly what you put in this poem. Thank you, Judy. I couldn't be more pleased.

 

And then later on in another comment to the same poem:

 

Frank: Just thought I'd re-review this poem because I'm a narcissistic son-of-bitch and I really love it. Who needs Shakespeare?--that circumlocutious old windbag; this is poetry! 

 

To say the least I truly enjoyed his reactions. 

 

 

Sun, Set, 'N' Sea

 

 

 

Sun, Set, 'N' Sea

Colored Pencil and Ink.  A slight variation I did on a work I admired.

A Memory that Inspired

step in faith

A Poem by Judy Ponceby

over

hand hand

step       by step

crossing this wretched foot bridge

large          g ap  s                   loom

don't look down

down

down 

towards the scrabbling masses 

reaching  up 

up 

  up

to 

tear you from your perch

head up

hands on the rope

your feet walking in faith.

only then,

 will you reach 

your 

heart's 

desire.

© 2011 Judy Ponceby

Author's Note

When I was four or five, I watched my father walk across a rickety old foot bridge with missing slats across a huge ravine. This memory has been replaying itself in my head quite a lot of late and this is what came of it in my writing.

Sad memories...

Shades of the Heart

 

 

To believe, to leave
In need of reprieve.
This worn, torn heart
beats slow, so slow.
Long past the point
that it could care.
Cared to share
with one once loved.
And now I don't
deceive. I must feel,
and I must grieve
The loss of cherished
memories past.
And feel the aching
as it's breaking
Once more forlorn
the weight's been borne
And slips the harness
to stop the transgress
For peace, for comfort
To heal, to feel....

A Bit of Zentangly Watercolor Penciling

Verdigogh Zentangle with Embellishment

This was done with Black Sharpie Ink and Derwent Watercolor Pencil with the "Help" of my cat Dodie.  She is a Calico and appears to find herself quite artistic, what with chewing on the paintbrush tip, walking on the drawing and attempting to drink the water for the paint pencils. 

Grieving

Grief

Raw feelings of heartache spill from my eyes.

Keening cries fall from parted lips.

Body-wracking tremors of sorrow grip me.

Unable to move.
Unable to embrace.
Frozen in time.
Frozen in place.

Sifting my memories for sights, sounds and scents.
Of one cherished, one held so dear.

And, finding these shreds, these threads of memory,
able to fashion a ragged bandage for a shattered heart.

Fluid poetry

Awash

 

 

Be thee privy
to the cascading
whispers of the
tides continuous?

To the tranquil
bubbling and splashing
of light, translucent
fluid?

Saturated in the
unpredictable motion
of the flowing
river of a mind
wandering.

A Past Poetic Challenge

Visions in the Desert

 

 

Cruisin' across the Sahara in my 1952 Cadillac,
I was singing along to a song, thinking about Jack Kerouac.

Coming over the next rise, I never expected to see,
Such a conflagration of Walruses looking back at me.

Passing a lone daisy under the sun set on broil,
They were making their way across the big sandy soil.

Thoughts evolving and revolving inside of my brain,
Led me to believe I might be under a bit of a strain.

Searching for my bottle of purified mineral water,
I quenched my thirst and prayed for no less than an hour.

That these visions of sea mammals would quickly pass.
And leave me to sing songs in my old Cadillac.

*************************************************************************


This was a challenge for the group Charminly Fun on Hello Poetry
Jan 23, 2011 to use the provided words in a poem.  These were the provided words:

Cadillac.  Daisy.  Evolve.  Walrus.  Mineral.  Conflagration.  Sahara.

Should anyone out there wish to give it a try I would love to see what you come up with and have it posted here in the comments :)

Blazing Green Sun

Done in Black Ink and Colored Penciled blended with a Paper Tortillion.

A little Seussish-Like Fun :)

Wishes

by Judy Ponceby

If wishes were fishes
I'd have a whole bunch
Swimming in fishbowls
Awaiting their lunch.

If wishes were french fries
I'd have a caboodle
Frying in the skillet
To feed to my poodle.

If wishes were colors
I'd have a rainbow
Coloring the world
In hues, magenta and mango.

If wishes were flowers
I'd have a garden full
Showing their pretty faces
And smelling of taffy pull.

If wishes were mine
I'd hand out a dozen
To every girl and boy,
To each uncle and cousin.

Jan 4, 2011

Newport Aquarium, Newport, KY

Newport Aquarium is officially one of the most awesome places I have been.  It was just amazing the huge Aquarium that you walked through tunnels underneath.  Watching sharks, rays, groupers.  A huge variety of species in beautiful tanks.  Petting the sharks in the pool was really cool as well.  Pyjama sharks really do feel like wet flannel pajamas.  Penquins pop right out of the water to get up on to land.  And a baby horseshoe crab has to lift his shell to be able to follow your finger.  Just a lovely place to spend the day along the Ohio River.  My son truly loved every minute of it.  And if you have a 13 yr old, you know that's not an easy thing to accomplish. :)



This is a pic from their website.  An educator there told us this guys name was Dan.  :)  He looked very eerie coming at you from way back in the pool and all you could see was his teeth.  We sat in the small theater like area for quite some time watching the fish.  It was really mesmerizing. :) 

It was a Sunny day.......

My version of a sunny day done in Black Sharpie and colored pencil.  Love these colors.

Whitby, Yorkshire, UK

Moody Monastery (by simonGman)

Forgotten Monastery

 

Stark against steel gray sky
Steeples rise sharp
Grazing lowered clouds
of hazed vapor.

Hallowed halls echo
ancient steps treading
remembered paths.

Whispered breaths
of voices once raised
in praise and worship
play soft on gentle breezes
in the folds of time long gone.

© 2012 Judy Ponceby

 

 

 

This poem was inspired by the photo above.  At Hello Poetry, it was noted by a reader and poet Rob that, "You probably know but Whitby featured in Bram Stoker's 1897 novel "Dracula" - reckon the atmospheric abbey gave him literary inspiration - and its still doing it !! :)".  I found that to be a very interesting bit.  He also mentioned that he had been there.  How cool is that? :) 

Interactive Mothering #5

Well, another fine day with the boy and his cousin too.  Took them kayaking on Maumee River in the shiny new kayaks.  Imagine if you will applying two kayaks without a rack (yes, i know, we are getting one as soon as possible) to the top of a small pontiac grand am :) It was a bit difficult to manage the first time but with ropes on both ends and two ratchet straps round the middle, all was well.   By the way, for future reference do NOT pass the ratchet straps through the windows of the closed car doors, just in case you might want to get in the car.  :D Just sayin'.  We make it there, unload the kayaks, the boys paddle around for a bit near shore and become more confident, so they paddle out to the usual fishing spot.  Of course the wind picks up and the current is stronger than normal.  Needless to say, it was a bit of a harrowing experience for our young fellas and mom.  Safely back on shore, we eventually get around to loading the kayaks back on the car.  We get the first one up there with little problem other than a bit of thumping and bumping.  We go to the other side of the car and lift our 2nd kayak up and it thumps down in place and sends the first kayak right off the side of my car taking the passenger side mirror with it.  Oh yay for me!  Fortunately my car is 14 years old and not a show piece.  Eventually we get that puppy back up there and strap them on, only to find for a 2nd time that yes mom has strapped the door shut once again :D I was all for the boys climbing in the window but noooooooooooooo.  LOL  So we redid the straps.  I stopped by my favorite mechanics garage and he has recommended that I have someone screw the mirror back in place, but really it looks so stylish dangling from the door........right?!? :) LOL  

Valueable lessons for boys:


- Don't listen to mom when she says it's ok to go out to fishing spot in kayaks.
- Don't leave a man/boy behind even if you are scared.
- Don't let mom put straps on car with doors shut.

These are only a few of my interactive mothering experiences :) More to come I have no doubt.  I have heard people whispering about girls and cars............AArrrghhhhhhhhaahhh!

Moms know Best

What's Good for You...

Sugar sweet,
Medicine vile.
Mom's so mean
Full of bile.

She always says
now be good.
Gives me meds.
I misunderstood.

This is good?
In what way?
"I'm fine!" I shout.
Throughout the day.

The cough has gone.
The fever fled.
Now leave me mother
I dread that med!

Horrid flavor,
Wretched taste
Makes me shudder
Worse than paste!

Mom's just smilin'
Spoon at the ready.
Knowing better,
"C'mere, Freddy."

She's so mean,
I don't know why.
She used to love me
In days gone by.

Judy Ponceby

Feb 4

Make a Difference!

This story illustrates beautifully to me what each one of us could do to make the world a better place.  I for one want to make life a little better when and where I can.  :) 

Beware of Dragons, my Friends!!

After the Vengeance

 

byJudy Ponceby

Dragon slain,
Vile creature,
Pillaging our home.

Family lying dead
Torn to bloody shreds
In the rubble of destruction.

Senseless slaughter,
Unreasoning winged monster,
Murdering and razing.

Vengeance has been mine.
Hunted down, to its bower,
Slain without mercy.

As it has shown none,
So have I.
Vengeance sought and found.

Exhaustion, grief, pain,
Now mine,
Tell me I have lived this horror.

But going on?
Inconceivable,
Grief unreliquished.

Sinking to my knees,
Praying to that God,
Begging final peace.

No answer given.
Only the quiet sound,
Of one spared.

Calling for help,
Beneath debris,
Safely sheltered.

Tis my own,
My child,
My reason.

Oct 11, 2010

Day at the Beach...

Along the Shore

by Judy Ponceby

 

Crusty crabs
           scuttle through
                        the tide pools.

Fish dart among
                 undulating
                         sea-weed forests.

Salted breezes
             push waves
                       on to shore.

Seagulls
         surf the ocean
                           rhythm.

Tides rise and fall.
                 Waves roll in.
                               Peace abides.

Nov 30, 2011

Another Arachnid Update! :)

The monster spider has been identified as Dolomedes.  AKA the river spider, wharf spider.  It can walk on water, go underwater and mainly lives on insects and occasionally small fish.  :D Yay!!!

Arachnid Update!!!

Yes!! I went back out to the Maumee fishing with my son again!  And the spider was STILL there!! and I obtained an even better picture of it.  Not perfect mind you, but soooo much better.  Be prepared to meet The River Monster! :D

Arachnids, yep I love 'em :)

Out on another fishing/geocaching trip.  We were sitting on some rocks in the middle, yes, the middle of the Maumee River, where thankfully someone had the good sense to paddle me to in a kayak.  Thanks to my brother Charles, a prince among men :) Granted a little rough around the edges for a prince but I digress. :) As we were sitting there, the boys were fishing and Brendan said there was a huge spider where he had been sitting.  I figured it was an ordinary wolf spider or some such critter.  But of course, curiosity pulled me in and I went to look.  Behold!! The mother of all spiders was sitting there.  No wonder the kid was concerned, it could have eaten him in two bites!!  Of course being the mom with absolutely no sense that I am, I reach out and POKE it with my finger.  It didn't budge.  It sat there like, "C'mon! Is that all you got!"  It was huge!  Fortunately I like spiders.  It did run under the large rock on the tiny sandbar we were on.  And I really tried hard to take its picture, but alas I only have these blurry legs reaching up over a smaller rock to show you. 

And in honor of my friend the spider I give you a poetic tribute:

Wolf Hunter

byJudy Ponceby

 

Twas a Wolf Spider,
wandering around.
Searching for dinner,
On the dark ground.

It didn't make webs,
didn't have a tunnel,
No traps or sticky threads,
No venom or funnel.

But deadly nonetheless,
Striking so quick.
Relentlessly tracking,
And, named for this trick.

Traveling quickly,
Hiding from the light,
Stalking its prey,
Having a bite.

Now some say they're icky,
Some get creeped out.
But taking the time,
to just look about.

Shows how essential,
are these little creatures.
Intricate killing spiders,
with deadly brown features.

Oct 11, 2010

Sweet Sensations

A Rose

by Judy Ponceby

 

Close your eyes.

Immerse yourself
in
the sensuous treasure
of
a rose.

Sweet scented
seduction.

Soft, fragile petal
grazing your cheek.

Find yourself
enamored
of cool
dew
that slipped
the trenches
of a nimbus cloud and
settled on this
speck of
earth-bound beauty
inspiring
procreative
urges.

For Creative Poetry at Writer's Cafe.

Words 10/3:  Trenches.  Immerse.  Nimbus.  Speck.  Procreative.  Enamored.  
Treasure.  Rose.  Petal. 

 

Oct 8, 2011

Interactive Mothering #4

Hi.  Another day with my son on Friday. :) I love it.  I do NOT love the heat, 100 degrees plus.  We picked up his friend and went to my brother's house because we were going fishing with him and my nephew.  Well, a 2 hour fishing trip turned into a whole day of activity.  We found a geocache down the block from my brother's house.  Ian and his friend were very excited, but my 10 yr old nephew didnt get what the point of having coordinates that he thinks takes you right to the site.  I tried to explain that they are not completely accurate and the fun is in the find.  He didn't buy it.  He's very adamant about what he knows :)  Then we went to a little bridge and the boys fished for chubs and crayfish for bait.  Following this fun trip, we went down to Van Tassel and let the boys fish and kayak.  They had a blast.  My brother and I watched for awhile from the shore, and then because it was like a frying pan we got in the car, turned on the air conditioning and watched from there :)   Attempted another geocache but couldn't find it.  Everyone had fun :) Another fun day hanging out with the boys :) 

Interactive Mothering #3

Well gosh, what could a bored 13 yr old and his mom do on a day that is 100 degrees?  Go swimming, stay cool??   Nooooooo......we went Geocaching with Ian's friend Brendan.  In case you have never done this fun activity I will post the link at the end.  The gist of it is that people all over the world hide containers at certain GPS locations and you track them down, find them, log yourself on the notebook, and put the container back in exactly the same position.  Kind of like hide and seek.  I would have loved it except for the heat.  We chose 4 sites and were able to find 2.  One involved an ungodly trek (because we went THROUGH the brush and briars instead of the nice wide trail where we should have been) and we didn't find the location.  That was our first location.  But being made of sturdy stuff we persevered and found the next two!! :) Yay us!! :) Then sadly we were unable to find the 4th one, but Brendan came up with a baseball as a souvenir.  Ian spotted the two we found.  One container was covered in camoflauge tape!!  Sneaky people.  LOL  Apparently the plan is to go to a nearby town that has 8 caches in it and find them and do a little fishing on the side. :) Can't wait to see what happens there.

www.geocaching.com

Try it, you'll like it. :) lol

I Loved Swinging as a Child

The Swing 

by Judy Ponceby

Take a seat and push with your feet.
Feel the smooth, rocking glide.

Pump your legs hard and fast.
Hold on tight to the chains.

As you rise higher, ever higher
Reach out and touch the clear blue sky.

Rush through the air, defy gravity.
Lean back against the forward motion

And feel the sheer
                             joy
                                   of
                                       being.

Sep 22, 2011

And Now for a Little Mystery...

She Didn't Know

The pillar of the community
leaned against
the door frame.

He flipped a coin in his hand
as he watched the red clad woman
walking away.

She had no idea of his psychosis.

He opened his hand and looked down.
Thoughts of his special tool case
kept in the hutch at the foot of the stairs
reluctantly leave his mind as he sees the
tails on the coin in his palm.

He glances one last time at her
and moves on to other matters.

© 2011 Judy Ponceby

Author's Note

Words given: Feet. Hutch. Frame. Pillar. Psychotic. Thank yous to Sir Frank for the help in editing! Muchly appreciated. :)

Silliness, Gotta Love It

Quack!

by Judy Ponceby

 

Traveling by plane across the main
Sitting in coach waiting for peanuts
I was thinking about layovers.

Drifting to sleep on that square of a pillow
Knees to my chest, arms folded tight
Dreaming of home but stuck on this flight.

Turbulence seesaws our plane up and down.
Waking abruptly, my vision still blurred
I glance out the window, over the wing.

Mother of god, it's a duck of all things.
Staring at me like a new zoo exhibit,
Quacking at me to say what an idiot.

Stuck in a can hurtling 'cross the sky
At the mercy of gravity because I can't fly.
This duck makes a point as he leaps in the air.
Spreading his wings, gone without a care.

Oct 24, 2010

Interactive Mothering #2

Hello :)

I have had a most entertaining week with my son this past week.  On Monday we got together with his cousin, my nephew of course, Caleb, who is ten and made campfire stoves out of aluminum cans.  And we had (yep, I'm gonna say it) a blazing good time! :)   I thought I would post a few pics just for my own entertainment :)  By the way the last pic is sideways because obviously my attempt at manipulating it into the correct dimensions of the real world were not successful.  So, turn your computers 90 degrees to the left or right depending on your grasp of spatial dimensions :) Thank you. 

For all you Pirates out there!! Arrrgghhhh!!!!

 

 

Land Ho!

Man the lanyard! Over the sea!
To lands unknown to you and me!

The wind blows south, my merry men.
The ale flows free, to heaven then.

To Sea, to find my heart aflame!
To Sea, to find the dragon's claim!

Salty air, on dark stormy winds
Fair, rock our ship, to pieces then.

Tossing freely, dancing wildly,
Spinning to the rhythmic pounding.

Passing time on deck and mast,
From the crow's nest, we hear at last.

Land Ho! Land Ho! Captain!
The very land that has been sought.

Rivers of silver, mountains of gold.
Paradise for Pirates, so I'm told.

Sep 27, 2010

Judy Ponceby

Good Ol' SummerTime

Summer Fun

 

Hip hop, gonna stop
on the bright blue square.
Run, jump, fall like a lump
on the green ground bare.

Laugh and dash, and water splash
in the sunshine sparkle.
Smile and giggle, toes they wiggle
in the black mud darkle.

Playing silly, warm then chilly
dusk is setting in.
Wandering home all alone
in the tub again.

Splish, splash, clean in a flash
jammies on real quick.
Bedtime story, oh the glory,
on a dreamland kick.

Sep 12, 2010

Judy Ponceby

Ian and Reese

My favorite photo of my favorite son and my favorite dog!

Reese

This is my dog.  His name is Reese.  He has been the greatest dog ever.  I know you think your dog is, but I have to insist that Reese is. :)  He's very old now.  Has some problems like we all do when we get old.  He was just a big ball of fur when I brought him home from the vet's that I worked at.  He was 10 months old.  His owner wanted him put to sleep because her children wouldn't take care of him.  I showed up at home with him and my husband opened the door and said "No".  Well, that didn't take. We kept him outside for a week or so, then he worked his way into our hearts and home and has been there ever since.  He is a Chow/Sheltie Cross.  Has a spotted tongue.  He used to be all bright orange and his tail would just fly in the breeze like a flag.  He used to bounce like a gazelle too :)   One time he bounced right over a four foot high fence and didn't even blink.  He used to peel peanuts in the shell with his tiny little front teeth too.  Silly dog.  One of his favorite games was to rush out the back door and try to catch the mourning doves that were at my bird feeders because they were so slow coming off the ground.  I thought it was very funny until one day I found one of his catches.  Bad dog following your natural instincts like that! :) I still love him no matter what.  I wrote a poem about him some time ago, when I thought about him aging that I will share here.  It's getting close to that time for him, and it's a hard thing to think about.  But the memories he has left us with are engraved on our hearts.  We love you Reesedog :) with all our hearts. :)

My Reesedog

Age is slowing my best friend.
His ears no longer catching the faintest hint of rustling in the brush.
His fur not so golden red in the sunshine, fading white.
His legs not so strong, no longer bounding over the land.
His eyes not so sharp now, clouded with age.
His energy not so boundless, tiring easily on short walks.

He has shown me how to love unconditionally, trust effortlessly.

During his life he has shown me love, sorrow, joy, fear, patience.
My best friend, has blessed my life in ways I never knew he could.

Judy Ponceby

Rodents on Speed

In honor of the three squirrels playing tag immediately outside my window yesterday, snarling, chirping and tearing bark from the tree, I found an appropriate poem I had written awhile ago. :) Here's to you, Frick, Frack and Frannie. :)

Feeling Squirrelly

Chitter, chatter!
What's the matter?
Little squirrel couldn't be fatter.

Sitting up in a tree
Zipping round and round so free
Throwing acorns down on me.

Spazzy rascals move real quick
Sitting on a limb's dead stick.
Watch that tail! How it flicks.

Calling warning of dire sort
Chattering back in fine retort.
In a swirl around their fort.

Front lines of fine defense
Throwing acorns on offense
All their secrets in suspense.

© 2011 Judy Ponceby

Interactive Mothering for the 13 yr old Son :) #1

A fun way to entertain one's self is to call your 13 year old son at random times during the day and shout random phrases into the phone.  I didn't want him to feel neglected today so naturally I tried this out several times :D He was amused and annoyed.  Another successful day of being a mom! YAY !!!

Favorite Random Phrases Today:

I like pie!

PumpernickleSandwiches

Snickerdoodles!

Make sure you hang up immediately afterwards so he has to make the effort to call you back :D It worked every time so far.  What a great day! :)

Crates N Skates

Hippos in crates
On rollerskates
Crashing through
the rickety gates.

Crashing and bashing.
Oooooooooooh, how Smashing!
Rolling about
Their teeth a-flashing!

Running amuck!
Watch out for the duck.
Open the doors!
Back up the truck!

Zipping up the ramp
Like any old champ.
There they go!
Don't forget their stamp.

Crates in the mail!
Delivered without fail.
Those Hippos on skates
Lurching down the trail.

For Charming, Fun and Fanciful.

Oct 27, 2010

Tangle Inspired Artsy Stuff

Recently I came upon a bit of artsy fun that I enjoy very much because it doesn't require a great deal of hard earned knowledge and can be done anywhere, anytime, by anyone with only a writing utensil and paper.  So here are a few examples of Zentangles that I have been learning to do and playing with.  Particular designs by particular people are incorporated and some of these I have drawn looking at others' work to get a feel for and practice at making Tangles. 

A Very Favorite Quote :)

Bat Monitoring: Week 1

A story about my experience last night doing Bat Monitoring with my great friend JS.  This is our second year monitoring bats.  And we were assigned a new trail we had never been on before.  When we bat monitor we take a GPS/Ultrasound recorder with us that when analyzed will tell the college student doing the study what type of Bat we found and exactly where.  I call her BatGirl. She has pastel floral tattoos all over her upper chest and down one leg.  She is a unique girl for sure.  Anywho.  JS and I start out and its only 9.30pm a little light, so along the way we find a baby raccoon attempting to hide and climb a tree, which he is unable to do at this point it seemed.  He was adorable. Of course as we go along the woods keep getting darker.  The whippoorwills were really numerous and lovely to hear too.  Now for some reason I'm particularly jumpy, and it doesn't help that my beloved friend JS has a penchant for reading vampire novels and sharing them during nighttime hikes, and according to last night watching giant bug movies (thanks for the preying mantis visual by the way that walks on the ground but won't leap at us from the trees).  And by the way, I determined that my monitoring system has enough heft to it that hurling it in the face of giant preying mantis' might give us a 3 second lead time if we have to run. :D We did hear several bats on our monitor, many deer in the woods VERY close to us.  But, the ultimate moment of our fine trip last night happened as we walked and I noticed JS doing a strange side stepping motion.  I wasn't sure what had gotten into her in the middle of a dark dense forest.  I stopped and looked at her and just as I caught a glimpse of a June Bug the size of Godzilla against the night time sky it came zooming right at me!!! Needless to say I was starting to freak out.  However the bat monitor went off and then the JuneBug was gone.  Now, tell me, How BIG was the bat that ate Junebug a la Godzilla?????  Cripes, I almost lost my mind! LOL  And strangely the bats are not the scariest things out there.  But the good part is that I'm game to go back again every two weeks. :)

Cometry

I discovered a star
shiny and bright.
It burned from within
with glorious light.

I watched as it flared
bright orange then red.
It burst from my hand
and as it fled,

It sparkled and shone,
flying away with a trail
That left me in wonder
as I watched it set sail.

On beyond Saturn
and out past Neptune
seeking its fortune
it continued to flow.

Silently sailing vast
light years away
Inspiring adventure
in every way.

© 2011 Judy Ponceby

My First Blog Post

Today, 6.20.12, marks the first day of my new blog, of which I have never done before.  But as it says in the title, The World According to Judy, I intend to blog about my interests, hobbies, thoughts and stories of my funny to me and perhaps to others, poems, birding pics, and artsy fun things I try (hopefully with a little success and without much personal injury) owing to my less than graceful being. :) So hang on for the ride :D

In Appreciation

I must thank a wonderful fella who has started me on this new blogging experience.  My thanks and admiration to you, my finest of friends <:3 )~~~