tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23915190798752574242024-03-13T17:01:40.971-04:00Winedrunk Sidewalk: Shipwrecked in TrumplandFighting the Power since January 20, 2017John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.comBlogger3347125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-80320126627442062702021-01-20T10:00:00.000-05:002021-01-20T10:00:05.798-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and SIXTY FIVE<p></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">As I write this, there were 142, 588 new cases
of Covid-19 recorded and 1,440 new deaths. And those are considered a brief
respite from what has been happening lately. In the last month we’ve seen death
rates as high as 4,000 people a day. Pretty sobering. Even more so, considering
we are quickly heading toward 400,000 Covid-19 related deaths in the United
States, and are on pace to lose 500,000 Americans by the end of February. It is
a shame that we’ve been failed both by our leadership and our own false sense
of American exceptionalism, entitlement, and rugged individualism. Imagine how
many people would be alive right now if we simply followed the basic guidelines
of wearing a mask, keeping socially distant, and washing our hands. America is
going to America, I guess. But I digress.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I’d been thinking for weeks how to
end this blog, this small protest of art. I didn’t want a grand statement, as
the ensuing weeks of violence and terror, and Lord knows what is happening this
very day in our country, didn’t lend credence to any grand statement. I’m
shocked by what I’ve seen although I found none of it shocking. This end is
exactly what Donald J. Trump foretold when he slithered down the escalator of
his gaudy building back in June of 2015 and declared that he was running for president
of the United States. We got exactly what was promised in a Trump presidency.
Division. Racism. Misogyny. Hate. Violence. Suffering. Greed. A dark break with
the norms of this flawed democracy. Kowtowing to oligarchs. America becoming a
bigger failed state than it already had been before Trump. I could go on, but I
think I’ve made my point.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I want to say thank you to the
writers and readers of WineDrunk SideWalk. Thank you to the artists who took
time out of their lives to contribute to what we were trying to do here. I wish
that I could’ve promoted you more, and that more people could’ve seen the work
that you’d done. You should be proud of yourself for speaking out. For letting
people know that what we’d been experiencing these past four years was not
normal Republican vs. Democratic politics, but instead leadership under a vile,
international criminal using mafia-style tactics to damage the nation while
enriching himself and his crime family. All the while answering to the Kremlin.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Personally, I don’t know where we go
from here. How we recover as a nation. Maybe we don’t. Some signs seem pointed
that way. We have one party that no longer believes in representative
government through free and fair elections (unless they win), and another that
seems unwilling to accept that about their colleagues across the aisle. </span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">The damage the Trump administration has done to
this nation is quantifiable in some respects, but is going to take years upon
years for us really to understand in total.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">But
there are positive signs. Look at protest over these past four years. Look at
activism. Look at people who have taken leadership rolls in the democratic
party. Look at Stacey Abrams. Look what happened this November in Georgia! <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">We have our first woman Vice-President.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">So I’m going to leave you with a
little bit of hope. I’m going to go back to where this all started on January
20, 2017, to a note my father-in-law wrote to his daughters in the days after
Donald J. Trump became president of the United States.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">Take it Big Ron<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><i>Hi girls </i></p><i><br />Though a few days have passed since the election and the anger has subsided somewhat, I still have this hole in my soul that will be there for at least four years. <br /><br />I'd like to tell you something - I grew up in the 50s and 60s and l saw firsthand what America was then. I used to say when the next generation comes along things will get better. <br /><br />And it did. We elected the first black president and i thought we were finally going in the right direction. <br /><br />Here we had a chance to elect a woman for president and break that glass ceiling. That didn't happen. <br /><br />I came to this great nation as an immigrant and I may not have accomplished personally everything I wanted but what I'm most proud of are the strong daughters that I have and that I know you'll fight to break that glass ceiling. <br /><br />I may still see a Madam President. <br /><br />I love you all more <br /><br />Love, <br /><br />Dad</i>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: normal; margin-bottom: 10pt;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 12pt;">I’ll see you all
further on up the road....and don't get too comfy while back under that "safe" blanket of neoliberalism.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">J.G.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;">01,19.21</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: 8.0pt; mso-margin-top-alt: 0in;"><o:p> </o:p></p><br /><p></p>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-81879228176798129192021-01-19T09:27:00.017-05:002021-01-19T09:27:00.126-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and SIXTY FOUR<b>Joe Biden’s Smile </b><br /><br />We’ve all seen it <br />on the face of every mediocre man <br />who knows America keeps a special place <br />in its heart, in its conference rooms <br />for those with a stately smile <br />for whom just showing up <br />and shaking hands <br />has always been sufficient <br /><br />he’s the used car salesman <br />who sees your bank account <br />on his balance sheet <br />the instant <br />he sees you <br />getting off the bus <br />on the coldest Tuesday <br />in February <br /><br />the college town landlord <br />who will never fix the hot water heater <br />so he can keep your whole security deposit <br />after you are forced to break your lease <br /><br />the bureaucrat <br />who understands your concerns but <br />whose only skill <br />is making sure complaints like yours <br />get lost in the system <br />a form misplaced <br />a file mislabeled <br /><br />it’s the special smile <br />of someone who knows <br />you have no choice <br />but to take <br />the shitty deal they’re offering. <br /><br />—Matthew Ussia <br /><br /> John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-68603202662598632012021-01-18T07:39:00.012-05:002021-01-18T07:39:00.263-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and SIXTY THREE<b>plastic fascist man </b><br /><br />an action figure for idiots <br />capitalist SHitler <br /><br />sinclair lewis cartoon <br /><br />couldn’t golf your way <br />out of your own mendacity <br /><br />american moron <br />american stooge <br /><br />don’t the door hit you in your sopping ass <br />on the way out <br /><br />mushroom baby-dick-tator <br />who has to pay for it <br /><br />enjoy your exile in florida <br />with your trophy wife and bitterness <br /><br />and your fake patriotism too <br /><br />even putin won’t <br />pick up for you now <br /><br />rabid autocratic dog on a leash <br />never-ending pestilence <br /><br />plastic fascist man <br /><br /><div>your whole life <br />has been a sad, sad <br />joke. </div><div><br /></div><div>--John Grochalski<br /><br /> <br /><br /> 01.05.21 <br /><br /> </div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-73445110735475628112021-01-17T07:38:00.009-05:002021-01-17T07:38:01.142-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and SIXTY TWO<b>Whiner-in-Chief </b><br /><br /><i>“We know he lost the election. It is fair to know whether he’s lost his mind.” — John Berman, CNN </i><br /><br />Needy electoral loser, IMPOTUS II, <br />bloviates, threatens, begs <br />corrupt sycophants to intervene, <br />manufacture fantasy ballots, <br />overthrow the election. <br /><br />He’s unwilling to relinquish his throne <br />where he serves as king of the grifters. <br />On a recorded, then leaked phone call, <br />he bullies Georgia’s Secretary of State, <br />strongly suggests “finding” thousands <br />more nonexistent votes in his favor. <br /><br />Mango Mussolini flings medals <br />at previous probe saboteurs <br />to reward their part in this coup d’état, <br />keep his name in the headlines, <br />create more uproar, <br />insure their continued, complicit silence. <br /><br />As his final days of mad mayhem elapse, <br />We the People cheer his inevitable downfall.<div><br /></div><div>--Jennifer Lagier</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-61862703912242224392021-01-16T07:38:00.006-05:002021-01-16T07:38:00.141-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and SIXTY ONE<p><b>Plague House </b></p>My neighbor runs <br />a plague house <br />has guests over <br /><br /><div>all the time <br />none of them <br />wear masks <br /><br />defying life <br />safety and <br />science <br /><br />--Thomas R. Thomas <br /><br />
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p></div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-24622679807314154722021-01-15T07:37:00.012-05:002021-01-15T07:37:00.261-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and SIXTY<b>Coronavirus<br /> 2020 Is Over</b><br /><br />2020 ends today<br /> December 31, 2020<br /> but <br /> The Year of the Plague<br /> goes on<br /> until January 20, 2021<br /> <br /> There will be chaos<br /> up through January 6th<br /> when we finally count<br /> Donald J Trump out <br /><br />And he may continue<br /> the chaos beyond that<br /> maybe even to war<br /> but on January 20th<br /> we are finally rid<br /> of a man:<br /> never qualified to be President<br /> who never understood the Office of President<br /> who never worked at being President<br /> who saw the Presidency as a money-making opportunity<br /> who embarrassed the United States around the world<br /> who damaged our traditional alliances<br /> who empowered our traditional adversaries <br /> who weakened our environmental regulations<br /> who fostered racial unrest<br /> who has wrecked the Republican Party <br /> <br />If you get the impression <br />that I was never a fan<br /> then you are obviously <br /> more astute than those<br /> who voted for him in 2016 <br /><br />---John F. McMullen <br /><br /> John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-82311962494392322072021-01-14T07:37:00.009-05:002021-01-14T10:25:58.798-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY NINE<b>Dream in direct deposit and tangerine </b><br /><br />Honey, wine, fig, cut-crystal <br />shelter, hungry tired cream, <br />sticky ravaged fingers peeling <br /><br />an imaginary sun, where <br />are the blessed as <br />the starving meet first death <br /><br />idle in the street? When will creme <br />brûlée ever finally trickle down? <br />A friend pointed out a trickle <br /><br />isn’t much to begin with anyway. <br />The pawn shop ticket for <br />Woody Guthrie’s guitar <br /><br />is buried with him in his coat. <br />The Cyrus Cylinder is some of <br />the earliest documented evidence of <br /><br />human liberty on a societal scale. <br />At least we have our common dream <br />in direct deposit and tangerine <br /><br />the oily pink of one percent <br />as fluttering eyelids shielded <br />by designer lenses anyway. <br /><br />And the phone rings day-job <br />gray again and they are poor. <br />Whatever the plan, if you are here, <br /><br />it went wrong. Tax exempt churches <br />in America shake their plates and do <br />their best to explain why Heaven <br /><br />has a coverage charge. <br /><br />--Paul Koniecki <div><br /></div><div><br /></div><br /><br /><b>Broken Democracy </b><br /><br />“<i>Ring the bells that still can ring<br /> Forget your perfect offering<br /> There is a crack in everything<br /> That's how the light gets in.</i>”—Leonard Cohen <br /><br /> <br />Lame Duck Demagogue whips up the crowd, <br />shouts marching orders to fascistic supporters. <br />Gleefully, they break windows, grind cigarettes into carpets, <br />smear feces across congressional office walls and floors, <br />halt vote counting from the Electoral College. <br /><br />Stunted souls spew hatred, destruction. <br />Capital police facilitate the insurrection, <br />grin and pose in selfies with white supremacists. <br />Seditious enablers embrace violent treason. <br />Sane Americans watch in revulsion. <br /><br />Traumatized, I wonder what larger plan <br />our higher power has in mind <br />to cleanse the diseased body politic, <br />bring us back to a place of light and hope, restore our defiled better selves<div><br /></div><div>--Jennifer Lagier</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-34627295542498739872021-01-13T07:36:00.010-05:002021-01-13T07:36:00.301-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY EIGHT<b>Green Eggs and a Ham </b><br /><br />I'm your president, the Man I Am<br /> the boss of every living hu-man. <br /><br /><i>Will you help us, Man I Am?<br /> We're sick, we're homeless<br /> no jobs, no food<br /> we're suffering and dying<br /> while you work on your tan. </i><br /><br />I would not help you<br /> although I can<br /> I would not sign the relief bill<br /> I'm not that kind of man. <br /><br /><i>Would you spare us more deep pain<br /> would you could you go home again?<br /> Will you leave the White House<br /> and stop casting blame? </i><br /><br />I would not could not<br /> give up now<br /> I would not could not<br /> admit I lost.<br /> I would not could not<br /> stop pardoning my cronies<br /> I would not could not<br /> desert my toadies and phonies.<br /> I won't let the failing media<br /> the will of the weak<br /> the cheating democrats<br /> wreck my legacy<br /> of lies and deceit. <br /><br /><i>Don't you believe in truth,<br /> honor and the rule of law<br /> the U.S. Constitution<br /> and democracy, man? </i><br /><br />I do not like it, that’s who I am.<br /> And you helped make me<br /> your forever boss:<br /> the Man I Am. <br /><br /> --Mickey CorriganJohn Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-74582209141495825292021-01-12T07:36:00.003-05:002021-01-12T08:40:42.416-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY SEVEN<div><b>Five Poems by Jason Ryberg</b></div><b><div><b><br /></b></div>1)2020 Post-Election Blues </b><br /><br /> <br />It’s a weirdly hot day, <br />here in Central Kansas, <br /><br />early November and windy as hell, <br /><br />with countless concentric cyclones <br />of dust and leaves out there <br />slam-dancing in dervish-like <br />synchronicity with and within <br />each other, <br /><br />and then, at times, <br />breaking off from the heard in <br />little groups, to rub up against <br />the house, causing all the loose <br />planks and window panes to rattle <br />and vibrate to the point where it seems <br />that the whole place could just lift off <br />or implode at any moment, <br /><br />but then, right before it does, <br />the tide always seems to subside <br />and recede back to that place <br />where it all re-groups and regains <br />its momentum, <br /><br />leaving us a strange and guttural <br />breathing sound coming from <br />the fire place to let us know <br />it will be back. <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>2) Just Another Other </b><br /><br /> <br />Our leaders say we should be good little citizens <br />and reach out and begin the healing process <br />and try to form some kind of alliance with <br />the legendary <i>white working class</i>, which <br />no one really seems to be able to clearly define, <br />even though so much ink and air-time are <br />devoted to it, more and more, every voting <br />season (before it’s forgotten (again) and until <br />they’re needed next time to hose off and <br />trot out and see, once again, which political party <br />finally wins the multi-million-dollar media <br />tug-of-war to sway this peculiar demographic <br />via their needs (or, if need be, their prejudices) <br />and hopefully bring them into the fold for good). <br />But I really have to wonder about the notion <br />of finding this elusive common ground with a <br />group that seems to proudly, chest-and-bible- <br />thumpingly define themselves, socially and <br />politically, by their ignorance of politics, <br />science and history let alone the world that <br />exists outside their own but might as well <br />be another planet which is exactly what they’re <br />lead to believe by their church and community <br />leaders and elected representatives and all of whom <br />appear to be in the process of collectively and <br />publicly shitting themselves and melting down <br />wicked-witch of the West style at the prospect <br />that they will soon be just another other <br />in a nation of others. <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><b>3) Thanksgiving 2020 </b><br /><br /> <br />The wind tonight is a storm-gray ocean <br />of savage undertows and alternating currents <br /><br />and our bellies are full of birds and pigs <br />and our livers are swollen with the water of life <br />and the blood of the Lord, <br /><br />and to the west of us, an east-bound train <br />flows like a river stirred-up by days of rain <br />and to the east, the stiff skeletons of elm and <br />cedar trees lift and sway their limbs and branches with <br />the dreamy surge and swell of the mega-church faithful, <br /><br />and all the draperies and tapestries of cloud <br />have been drawn back now to show us <br />the shadowy rafters and balustrades of night, <br />all hung and lit with the crystal glitter and glow <br />of cosmic chandelier, beneath which we <br />solemnly puff on cheap cigars and pull <br />from flasks of apricot brandy, <br /><br />tipping one for fallen friends and family, <br />toasting to the hope for a better <br />year to come. <br /><br /> <br /><b>4) Gone </b><br /><br /> <br />Sometimes, it seems that time flies like a cinematically CGI’d <br />slow-motion bullet trail, or a handful of hundred dollar bills, <br />fresh and warm from the ATM, suddenly taken up by a micro- <br />burst of wind, or sparks thrown off a grinder wheel into the face <br />of all our best laid plans, best played hands, our most reasonable <br />and equitable list of demands, even, and then, in the middle of <br />one of our frantic chase scenes, just shuts down and goes cold — <br />THUNK— motionless, indifferent and unresponsive to all our <br />pleas and invectives to hurry the fuck up for Christ Almighty’s <br />sake and get a goddamn move on while we’re all still young, <br />already; LET’S GO, LET’S GO, LET’S GO, and then you turn <br />around and there’s a praying mantis on your sleeve and a <br />violin coming from somewhere and a certain quality to the early <br />evening light you somehow hadn’t noticed before and the time <br />is just gone. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>5) All the Way Down</b> <br /><br />There’s wind in the chimney <br />and a sweat bee drowned <br />in a glass of brandy, <br /><br />a man with a can of beer <br />and a cigarette playing solitaire at an <br />antique dining room table, <br /><br />a ghost trapped inside of an ancient <br />grandfather clock, its ectoplasmic breath <br />steaming up the glass on certain moonlit nights, <br /><br />and a sad, sweet little tune playing <br />on an old 78 record player, <br /><br />the kind of tune that, given the mood, <br />makes you want to jump out of a window, <br />humming it all the way down. <br /><br />And there, in the corner of the room, <br />an open door showing us a toilet <br />from which a Billy goat is currently drinking... <br /><br />Now, how’d that Billy goat <br />get in here? <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-40663614378614352282021-01-11T07:36:00.008-05:002021-01-11T07:36:00.212-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY SIX<b>Our Commander in Chief </b><br /><br />Everything’s going great <br />He gives himself a ten <br />He has made America <br />So very great again <br /><br />Of course the NFL <br />May not agree with this call <br />But just like his hands <br />That issue was small <br /><br />We’ve done so wonderful <br />And no-one disapproves <br />They have all been fired <br />As his golf game improves <br /><br />He will never back down <br />Cause He is no wuss <br />You better believe it <br />He’s got the world by the puss <br /><br />And please no applause <br />He solved immigration <br />Threw them all out <br />To protect our great nation <br /><br />He’s even beaten the Corona virus <br />Proving D.J. Trump never fails <br />Ask the more than 60 thousand <br />Oops, the dead tell no tales <br /><br />Now America again must do the math <br />To vote for dementia or a sociopath <br />In the midst of all this dead wood <br />Crooked Hillary almost looks good. <br /><br />--Joan Fields
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></p>
<p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span> </p>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-9475843552890312892021-01-10T07:35:00.005-05:002021-01-10T07:35:00.125-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY FIVEa pre-posthumous <br />obituary is difficult <br />to write <br />for your brother <br />and all <br />the pre-posthumous <br />questions of cause <br />just don’t know <br />how to answer <br />only reason <br />maybe was <br />he shoved his head <br />right up his ass <br />and suffocated <br />in the foul stench <br />of his <br />ignorance <br /><br />--Patrick Walters
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-21717228661013260302021-01-09T07:35:00.012-05:002021-01-09T07:35:00.264-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY FOUR<b>PRESIDENT MITCH MCCONNELL ANNOUNCED TODAY </b><br /><br /><i> “One of the necessary accompaniments of capitalism <br />in a democracy is political corruption.” </i><br /><br /> Upton Sinclair <br /><br />That “Borrowing from our grandkids <br />To do socialism for rich people <br />Is a terrible way <br />To get help to families who actually need it.” <br /><br />President Mitch McConnell, the Grim Reaper, <br />Vetoed faux President Assclown’s demand <br />For $2000 relief checks to be given <br />To families in need <br /><br />During the COVID-19 pandemic. <br />Like an insider with precognition, <br />Moscow Mitch power played <br />The pork game to perfection. <br /><br />"His state, the state of Kentucky, <br />Andrew Cuomo said, <br />“Takes out $138 billion more than they put in," <br />Average Middle-Class citizens, <br /><br />Functionally literate enough <br />To use the calculator on their cell phone, <br />Know immediately <br />That McConnell’s approval rating does not add up. <br /><br />How Does an 18% Approval Rating Result in a 58% Win? <br />How did McConnell rack up huge vote leads <br />In traditionally Democratic strongholds, <br />Including counties that he had never carried before? <br /><br /><div>Kentucky using vote tabulation machines <br />Made by Election Systems & Software <br />All reported down-ballot race results <br />At significant odds with pre-election polls. <br /><br />To say McConnell is a heartless bastard <br />Is an understatement. <br />To acknowledge he is a master <br />At “graft” and “corruption” <br /><br />Speaks volumes about the unfathomable <br />Depth of his dark heart. <br /><br />--Victor Henry</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-25646807167372839522021-01-08T07:34:00.007-05:002021-01-08T07:34:00.151-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY THREEscanning through <br />this book of the <br />Untied States <br /><br />I see these <br />last four years <br />are missing <br /><br />pages Я ripped <br />ragged burned <br />at the edges <br /><br />I wonder <br />what putrid <br />horror held <br /><br />us at our throat <br />I then close the book <br />and promptly forget <br /><br />--Thomas R. ThomasJohn Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-32300133720314226142021-01-07T09:27:00.012-05:002021-01-07T09:27:00.179-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY TWO<b>the same blur </b><br /><br />it bleeds together <br />the fabric of tomorrow <br />the litmus of today <br /><br />eyes open <br />first breath <br />assess quality of light <br /><br />lasers from the showerhead <br />scratch the cat behind the ear <br />wish her a pleasant day <br />tucked against the radiator <br />her bones ache daily <br />so do mine <br /><br />start the car, change oil <br />light taunts, I'll forget <br />eventually <br /><br />the line at the post moves <br />the same blur as days <br />as co-workers, as friends <br />hungry for conversation <br />we warm up to time <br />passing, tea steeps <br /><br />computer screens <br />for eight hours to collect <br />your worth, the news <br />is stagnant, remind me <br />to change the tape <br />on this narrative <br /><br />start the car, sunsets <br />over retail and church <br />more monster condos <br />framed steel structures <br />hollow in azure light <br /><br />the cat is ready for dinner <br />clean dishes as meal cooks <br />settle into a book <br />another double feature <br />what’s tonight's theme? <br /><br />it's all waiting in the land <br />of death, somewhere between <br />flesh and spirit. somewhere <br />you hope to overhear <br /><i>I think you'll like it <br />there are a lot of aliens </i><br /><br />the other day at the dentist <br />mouth open already drawing <br />flies, willie nelson sang <br /><i>ring around the rosie </i><br />anthems of other plagues <br />perhaps, we are the <br />same fools we've always been <br /><br />--Jason Baldinger
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-11865150160755191352021-01-06T09:26:00.005-05:002021-01-06T09:26:00.307-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY ONE<b>poem on house vote certification day</b> <br /><br />mike <br />pence <br />is <br />still <br />a <br />little <br />fascist <br />bitch<div><br /></div><div>--John Grochalski</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-68013501412996532782021-01-05T09:25:00.009-05:002021-01-05T09:25:00.174-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FIFTY<b>Original Sin </b><br /><br />We flushed the natives out like foxes from the brush, <br />fought and killed and threw them into every kind of prison. <br />We tore children from their arms, pushed them to the edges <br />of our culture and then we held them down. <br /><br />Stolen lives from Africa, we locked them in as well, <br />disdained them for their shining skin and muscles <br />that made us rich. We cleaved children from their mothers, <br />kept them at the edges of our culture and held them down. <br /><br />Others who sought shelter at our border, we let them in <br />to work for bits, called them takers, wrested children <br />from their fathers and let them die in cages. We kept them <br />at the edges of our culture and then we held them down. <br /><br />Now we call them rapists, thugs and murderers. <br />Now we call ourselves the injured parties. <br /><br />--Tamara Madison <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-36158000637843305862021-01-04T06:16:00.009-05:002021-01-04T06:16:00.500-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY NINE<b>In Seal Beach, California after George Floyd’s Murder</b> <br /><br />We see the cars through breaks in the trees: <br />police vehicles from surrounding towns <br />scream down the boulevard. <br /><br />A fire truck leads a new chaos of sirens; <br />we walk through the neighborhood <br />where friends dine in backyards. <br /><br />We don’t notice when the sirens stop, <br />keep walking toward the beachfront road, <br />watching the orange sun drop behind the sea. <br /><br /><div>People in front yards lift glasses to lips, sirens <br />forgotten. Heading back we find the way to our car <br />barred by yellow tape. Policemen smile, point the way. <br /><br />Three times we cross their tape, each time we say <br />Good evening, each time they say it back and smile. <br />Lives have just been changed forever, but we, <br /><br />with our white hair, our sun-lined faces, <br />pass through like royalty, enrobed in garments <br />fashioned from the lucky accident of our birth. <br /><br />--Tamara Madison</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-6440775849761862122021-01-03T06:16:00.010-05:002021-01-03T06:16:00.254-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY EIGHT<b>Cognitive Dissonance in ER </b><br /><br />ER nurse treats <br />gravely ill patients <br />who insist they <br />couldn’t have Covid <br /><br />What is making them <br />ill must be something <br />else <br /><br />“Covid doesn’t exist.” <br />they insist, literally <br />screaming it until they <br />are intubated <br /><br /><div>or they die. <br /><br />“It’s like a fucking <br />horror movie that <br />never end.” The nurse <br />says. <br /><br />Trump brags, in one <br />minute TV appearance, <br /><br /></div><div>the stock market hit an <br />all time high, and <br />the vaccines are here. <br /><br />Don’t let the door <br />hit you on the way out. <br /><br />--Alan Catlin</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-72948323800427082152021-01-02T06:15:00.023-05:002021-01-02T06:15:00.243-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY SIX<b>14 Haiku for Fascism </b><br /><br /><i>lives fleshing (the) dream of the beautiful, needful thing. <br /><br /> -- Frederick Douglas, by Robert Hayden </i><br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>1 Powerful and Continuing Nationalism </b><br /><br />The stars are not violent <br /><br />except twinkling twin shoulders <br /><br />over whitest smile. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>2 Disdain for the Recognition of Human Rights <br /></b><br />Rose bouquets will never heal all <br /><br />except when demons hold them <br /><br />between their teeth. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>3 Identification of Enemies/Scapegoats as a Unifying Cause </b><br /><br />Love thy neighbor, and some of God’s <br /><br />children but if their hands <br /><br />are folded, shoot first. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>4 Supremacy of the Military </b><br /><br />Mist is not malevolent <br /><br />except when baked with pepper and mace; <br /><br />add sulfur for fun. <br /><br /> <br /><br />5 Rampant Sexism <br /><br />Happy fingers snap or clap <br /><br />especially when the He <br /><br />fucks the sultry and dumb. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>6 Controlled Mass Media </b><br /><br />Agree with the immaculate doctrine <br /><br />fake news as fakes news does – <br /><br />the He says so! <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>7 Obsession with National Security </b><br /><br />Inter the bad guys while they sleep <br /><br />cage them before they <br /><br />foul our perfect gardens. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>8 Religion and Government are Intertwined </b><br /><br />The flipped bible in the paws of a zealot <br /><br />proves might is right, <br /><br />and despots can be holy. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>9 Corporate Power is Protected</b> <br /><br />Release the yoke of deregulation <br /><br />let the rape begin and the elite <br /><br />shall reap all manna. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>10 Labor Power is Suppressed </b><br /><br />Insects live and work in hives <br /><br />except when we melt the nests <br /><br />where they breed. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>11 Disdain for Intellectuals and the Arts </b><br /><br />That doesn’t rhyme; <br /><br />I hate those colors. <br /><br />Eggheads everywhere need scrambling J <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>12 Obsession with Crime and Punishment </b><br /><br />Choke those non-white bastards. <br /><br />Vigilantes and cowboys <br /><br />will tip the scale our way. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>13 Rampant Cronyism and Corruption </b><br /><br />We know who our friends are <br /><br />the He will trickle down, <br /><br />everybody’s bounty, eventually. <br /><br /> <br /><br /><b>14 Fraudulent Elections </b><br /><br />We don’t need another hero <br /><br />can’t trust ballots, or boundaries, <br /><br />only bail outs. <br /><br /> <br /><br />Amen <br /><br />You can ignore the weather <br /><br />as rain is simple enough in its grandeur. <div><br /></div><div>--Sam Barbee<br /><br /> <br /><br /><i>previously published in Poetry That Sustains Us AT&T University </i><br /><br /> </div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-86275976920728811572021-01-01T06:15:00.021-05:002021-01-01T06:15:00.174-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY FIVE<b>the ballad of joe </b><br /><br />joe owned a bar <br />joe had a wife <br />joe had three kids <br />and a big house down on shore drive <br />joe had grandkids that he loved <br />joe loved the jets <br />even though they broke his heart <br />joe was a beatles man <br />but joe loved the stones <br />just as much <br />joe had buddies <br />who sat with him in his bar <br />listening to the beatles and the stones <br />as Fox News played <br />on big screen tvs on mute <br />joe’s best friend was his bartender bart <br />joe and bart went back forty years <br />back when the neighborhood was safe <br />and you could go to bed with your doors unlocked <br />joe loved america <div>joe was a patriot <br />joe thought trump was tough <br />just like joe <br />just like the guys in the neighborhood were tough <br />you had to be tough <br />to love the jets <br />joe thought covid-19 was a hoax <br />that’s what Fox News told him <br />that’s what trump said <br />and trump was tough <br />joe bought cruise tickets back in february <br />a little something nice for him and his wife <br />joe didn’t care what the newspapers were saying <br />joe wanted to sail to spain <br />his kids begged and pleaded </div><div>for them not to go<br />joe told them to be tough <br />like trump <br />stop believing the left wing media, joe said <br />so joe and his wife went sailing to spain in march <br />it was a good trip <br />the trip of a lifetime <br />made all of those years in the bar worth it <br />but when joe got home <br />he didn’t feel so well <br />his throat burned <br />and the fever was unreal <br />his body ached <br />joe couldn’t sit in the bar at all <br />he told bart to watch the place for him <br />and then joe went home <br />then to the e.r. <br />they gave joe a hospital bed <br />then they gave him a ventilator <br />joe said goodbye to his wife and kids </div><div>and grandkids on a cell phone <br />as Fox News played on mute <br />in the background <br />by the middle of march <br />joe was dead of covid-19 <br />his best buddy bart the bartender <br />in a hospital room <br />two doors down from joe <br />dead of covid just a few days later</div><div>and all of the tough guys in the neighborhood</div><div>put flowers</div><div>and their jets hats</div><div>on the ground by the door</div><div>of joe's bar</div><div>because life was tough</div><div>when you were a tough guy</div><div>all of the time.<br /><br /> ---John Grochalski<br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> <br /><br /> </div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-9812145165473581202020-12-31T06:14:00.005-05:002020-12-31T06:14:02.752-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY FOUR<b>America 2020</b> <br /><br />When a stranger smiles <br />as we pass on the street <br />I feel a smile spread across <br />my face like cream cheese <br />on a bagel. Now, mouths <br />concealed behind cotton masks, <br />we smile with our eyes. <br />It isn’t frivolous or phony to smile <br />this way; we need connection now. <br />Let’s remember this when <br />in a few months we might find <br />ourselves on separate banks, <br />enemies all along, with fear <br />in our hearts and guns <br />like coiled snakes <br />seething beneath our beds <br /><br />--Tamara MadisonJohn Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-36025929388786973362020-12-30T06:14:00.023-05:002020-12-30T06:14:00.280-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY THREE<b>BENEATH THE SURFACE OF AMERICAN EXCEPTIONALISM</b> <br /><br /><i>“American exceptionalism? Exceptional at what? Waging wars against innocent people for fake reasons? Exceptional at what? Being addicted to pharmaceutical drugs that have people's minds wasted? Exceptional at what? Eating more junk food and becoming the most obese nation on Earth?” <br /><br />---Gerald Celente </i><br /><br />Beneath the surface <br />Of American Exceptionalism <br />Lies the more arrogant and pernicious lies, <br />The lies every president and politician <br />Has told you all your life, <br />The lies you still believe, accept, and trust. <br /><br />In an authoritarian voice, <br />They told you America is Exceptional, <br />Claiming the US <br />Is the leader of the free world, <br />And the world’s sole superpower. <br /><br />When Big Corporations <br />Started looting America, <br />Because it affected you personally, <br />You started asking questions. <br /><br />Why did Congress <br />Give Wall Street <br />And Big Corporations <br />$5 trillion dollars? <br />The largest upward transfer <br />Of wealth in US history, <br />A CARES ACT welfare gift <br />To the oligarchy, <br />While throwing crumbs <br />To small businesses <br />And the middle class <br />During the worst pandemic <br />In the history of the country. <br /><br />While other industrialized countries <br />Continue to pay their workers <br />During quarantine, <br />Putting cash directly in the hands <br />Of impacted workers. <br /><br />Why did 40 million people <br />Lose their jobs? <br /><br />Why did 14 million people <br />Lose their healthcare <br />When Congress could have passed <br />Medicare for All? <br /><br />Why have 60% of small businesses <br />Closed permanently? <br /><br />Why are 19 million people <br />Being evicted from their homes <br />On the last day of December? <br /><br />Why were there thousands of cars <br />Lined up for miles <br />Waiting to receive food <br />From the North Texas Food Bank? <div><br /></div><div>Why is there always money for war <br />But not for our crumbling infrastructure <br />And not for the citizenry, <br />And not for safety nets for the poor? <br /><br />Why isn’t Congress withdrawing troops <br />From over 800 bases <br />In 80 countries worldwide, <br />Which costs over 100 billion dollars <br />A year to support? <br /><br />Why is the US still in Afghanistan, <br />After 19 years, <br />An unwinnable war, <br />The longest war in American history? <br /><br />Why did Congress allocate <br />Another 740 billion dollars <br />Toward the military budget, <br />A budget already larger than <br />The next 10 countries combined? <br /><br /></div><div>With over 300,000 dead from COVID-19 <br />When will you admit <br />American Exceptionalism is a myth? <br /><br />Will it be when <br />You have a ventilator <br />Crammed in your mouth, <br />Brainwashed and arguing <br />COVID-19 is a political hoax? </div><div><br /></div><div>And the last face <br />You will ever see </div><div>Is a respiratory therapist, <br />Dressed in blue PPE, <br />Wearing a plastic shield <br />Over her face. <br /><br />--Victor Henry</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-10898623523093009152020-12-29T06:13:00.006-05:002020-12-29T06:13:00.837-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY TWO<b>What it’s Like to Lose a Parent to Fox News </b><br /><br />Things were supposed to be different <br />after sailing past the age your parents were <br />when you first met them, different at least <br />with the one that is still around <br /><br />but an adulthood of mature <br />hopes, dreams, and triumphs <br />was not to be, childhood forgotten <br />no confessions, no reflections <br /><br />phone calls from mom <br />last about ten minutes <br />small talk about the <br />weather and football before <br /><br />the big immigrant take-over <br />and the Muslim communists <br />Biden put in charge <br />of the government <br /><br />ten minutes before <br />sorry ma I think <br />there’s someone at the door. <br /><br />—Matthew Ussia <br /><br /> John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-36297320537851429992020-12-28T05:39:00.007-05:002020-12-28T05:39:00.181-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY ONElie after lie<div>told again and again </div><div>herd immunity</div><div><br /></div><div>--Don Wentworth</div>John Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2391519079875257424.post-46664262719241309482020-12-27T05:38:00.005-05:002020-12-27T05:38:01.295-05:00day FOURTEEN HUNDRED and FORTY<b>Cracking Apart </b><br /><br />We used to bake marbles, <br />toss them into a bowl of ice; <br />we watched veins appear <br />and waited for the spheres <br />to crack apart, but they never did. <br />Today we’re watching fires <br />erupt from veiny cracks <br />in our republic and I’m thinking <br />of those marbles, <br />how they glistened in the beauty <br />of their new veins <br />but never broke open. <br /><br />--Tamara MadisonJohn Grochalskihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13150630637644393375noreply@blogger.com0