Sense Sonnet - Tickler

Group Effort

He was driving and got depressed -
Drove up to the edge of a cliff.
A bunch of us watched this, and guessed
That we needed to help him if
The brakes could be put on this threat.
We asked what brought him to this edge.
He said he was so deep in debt,
And that driving over this ledge
Was the best way that he could see.
So we all passed the hat around,
And gave enough so he could be
Back on solid financial ground.

He backed up safely, thanks to us -
Concerned passengers on his bus.

Sense Sonnet - Steamer

Nine

September 9th, I was born,
And 2009 was the year.
That date of mine will now adorn
Wherever birth dates do appear
On my behalf, as I age on
Through all the numbers in some way.
But nine will be the star upon
My each and every birthday.
The numbers have and always will
Be something people need to be.
But some folks like to overkill
A number's role reality.

Kind of like those parents of mine,
Who thought it cute to name me nine.

Sense Sonnet - Pumper

Fit Forever

I have invented something so great,
Something that will change industry
That makes all shoes, and will elate
All parents that are and will be.
How many shoes must parents buy,
As their children grow up and out?
Childhood years give a big supply
Of old discarded shoes - no doubt.
The material that I use
Will never tear or wear, and may
Be changed to style of any shoes.
One pair for one kid - all the way.

As the foot of the kid does grow,
The shoe grows also - doncha know?

Sense Sonnet - Chiller

Rare Scare

Called Pemphigoid Gestationis,
It is a new mother's nighmare.
One in 50,000 get this.
I was one of the ones who's rare.
When my baby was newly born,
I held him dearly in my arms,
But blisters and a rash did warn
That there were allergy alarms.
I was allergic to my own
Baby, and could not even touch
Him. I felt helplessly alone.
I cried and cried. It hurt so much.

Thanks to steroids pumped into me,
I'm now hands on with my baby.

Sense Sonnet - Acher

Painful Renewal

December, 1988,
My daughter, Helga, was 19,
And died suffering the same fate
As many others, unforseen,
When that Pan Am flight blew apart
In a blast over Lockerbie.
My daughter's loss did break my heart.
2009, this man goes free,
Imprisoned for this heinous crime,
But now near death, home he returns.
I will truly try in God's time
To overcome my painful concerns.

To have compassion for this man.
Some of us can't. Some of us can.

Sense Sonnet - Tickler

Nap Nab

I make a living stealing cars.
My Daddy taught me all I know -
A whole lot more than the 3Rs.
This stolen car was dirty, so
I took it to an all night wash.
Changing the plates plus being clean
Gave me a better chance, by gosh,
Like Daddy taught to 'scape the scene.
But the plan did not go just right.
Cops took me into custody.
And one lesson I learned tonight,
I don't recall Daddy taught me.

You don't fall asleep at the wheel
Of the car you're trying to steal.

Sense Sonnet - Steamer

Out Burst

Here I am floating in space,
Hoping the others will come soon.
All I see in front of my face
Is my snot that's completely strewn,
Covering my mask totally.
I'd been outside making repairs
To the station, when it hit me.
Exploding through my nostril flares,
Without warning came that damn sneeze,
Sending me somersaulting round,
Leaving me stranded out here - jeez!
For all I know, I am Earth bound.

One thing about this, there's no doubt,
This is nothing to sneeze about.

Sense Sonnet - Pumper

Placenta

Placentophagy is the name
Of the act of mammals that eat
Their young's placenta that just came
After the childbirth, so to meet
The needs of nature that enlist
Perhaps to hide the birthing from
Wild predators that might exist.
But, from human placentas come
Some nutrients that may help ease
A mother's return to sound health.
This choice can be prepped to please.
Of recipes there are a wealth.

The question asked in eating mine -
Should I select white or red wine?

Sense Sonnet - Chiller

Sunami

I hear reports of an earthquake
In the ocean west of L.A..
It is the morning at dawn's break,
Millions waking to start the day.
The electricity goes out.
I live on the 40th floor.
Elevators are down no doubt.
Sounds of warning sirens do roar.
From my window, I stare out west
Across the waters looking still.
Far off a massive form progressed.
All of the horizen does fill.

I just stand and watch helplessly.
A wall of water sweeps toward me.

Sense Sonnet - Acher

Chappaquiddick

Off of a bridge, he and she drove,
Into deep water late at night.
He freed himself, and said he dove
Several times, but could not sight
Her down below; and so he went
Back to a friend's house to get aid.
They returned, and some time was spent
Trying to find her. Hope did fade.
They left and he did not report
The accident, but then "came clean,"
After she was found dead. In court,
He was fined for leaving the scene.

The senator and Mary Jo,
At Chappaquiddick - everso.

Sense Sonnet - Tickler

Draws Divine

When I walked into my son's room,
Jimmy was busy at his desk,
Drawing something, I did presume
Would surely be quite picturesque.
The great works of my 3 year old
Hung throughout the house in array,
For all who walked through to behold.
My Da Vinci - what can I say?
"Jimmy, what are you drawing now?"
I asked, and my son looked at me,
And said, "I am drawing God." Wow!
So I replied seriously,

"But, no one knows what God looks like."
"You will when I'm done," said my tyke.

Sense Sonnet - Steamer

Shame Shared

The man convicted of the crime
Of blowing up a Pan Am flight,
Was dying and had little time,
So powers that be said 'twas right,
Back home to Libya to send
This guy, so that with family
His final days he could spend.
But really these powers that be -
Gadhafi and some British folk
Struck their lucrative oil deals that
Turned justice into but a joke,
And greed is really where it's at.

Do humans seek heaven or hell?
Sometimes it's really hard to tell.

Sense Sonnet - Pumper

Mickey

Mickey Rooney was just a kid.
While walking through a movie lot,
He ran into a guy who did
Cartoon drawings, and he'd brought
Samples of a new one - a mouse
Named Mortimer, but did not think
That name was such a powerhouse
For a fun filled rodent in ink.
When Mickey's name was told the guy,
Over and over the guy did
Repeat "Mickey" and then did sigh,
"I'm glad I ran into you, kid."

Walt Disney did so like the name,
And Mickey Mouse went on to fame.

Sense Sonnet - Chiller

2012

The Mayan calendar runs out
In 2012 we are told.
There are many theories about
What the meaning of that does hold.
Those who study the sun do tell
That in a billion years or so,
Ol' Sol will be a darkened shell.
But maybe these folks really know
What the Mayans could calculate -
That sooner, not later, the sun
Will suffer the normal star fate
Of lights out and over and done.

I hope that in 2013
The sun will be shining routine.

Sense Sonnet - Acher

Liver Die

At 19, I am way too young
To have a liver that is shot.
Doctors tell me with wagging tongue,
That 2 weeks is all I've got,
Unless a liver transplant's done.
But in order to qualify,
No more booze - zero, zippo, none!
For 6 months! I guess I will die.
I can do the arithmetic.
So from the hospital I sneak
To a nearby bar for a quick
Pick me upper - life is too bleak.

I don't care what the doctors think.
All I care is I wanna drink.

Sense Sonnet - Tickler

Out of Touch

I'm on the job, driving my truck,
A union city employee.
So, I'm used to pressing my luck,
Not working too seriously.
I'm texting a pal with one hand,
And cell chatting with the other,
Steering steady with my knee, and
Hit a big pothole - oh brother!
Across a lawn and through a fence,
And drive into a backyard pool.
The cab is flooding. I have sense
To yell for help - I am no fool.

I could be in trouble no doubt.
Maybe the details won't get out.

Sense Sonnet - Steamer

Toll Call

I'm getting docked a lot of pay,
One hundred and twenty days worth,
For phoning during the school day -
Not something that fills me with mirth.
I was the teacher in a class.
The students were writing reports.
I made a phone call, alas,
A breach of school rules - all sorts.
And I knew that the call was not
Allowed. But it was no big deal
Until I heard the fine I got.
I guess the school took it for real.

It was a costly call to make.
And wrong number - gimme a break!

Sense Sonnet - Pumper

Ponderosa

When I am a century old,
I begin to shed my black bark,
And a yellow bark does unfold.
Why the change is a question mark.
And from this new bark comes the scent
That smells of cookies freshly baked.
My bark is layered to present
A jigsawed pattern loosely flaked,
Meant to fly off if fire does strike,
So that my body stays alive,
And I continue with my like,
In needled forestry to thrive.

I come from a most proud sapline.
I am the Ponderosa pine.

Sense Sonnet - Chiller

If I Live to Tell

I was one of hundreds on board
The jumbo jet during its flight.
At 30,000 feet we soared
Across continents through the night.
Suddenly, there came a loud boom
Of an explosion, and a hole
In the plane's fuselage did loom.
Were the pilots still in control
As we descended, falling fast?
All about me was now a blur.
The sounds and sights around me passed.
Only the nothing now was sure.

Yes, I know how it is to feel
A real live death knocking ordeal.

Sense Sonnet - Acher

Achilles

I, Achilles, was born to fight
Heroic battles on all field.
Endowed with pure couragious might,
Against all foes, I did it wield.
At birth, dipped into River Styx
By my mother to give to me
Protection for future conflicts.
Held by the heel that would not be
Invulnerable to attack.
Years later in the Trojan war,
A poisoned arrow came on track
To pierce my heel. I lived no more.

Disappointed is how I feel,
Remembered mainly for my heel.

Sense Sonnet - Tickler

Tail Order

I see on a restaurant sign,
"Five hundred dollars if we fail"
"To fill any order to dine."
So, I order elephant tail
On rye bread, trying not to smile.
The waitress does not say a thing,
And takes my order. In a while,
She returns, apologizing,
Saying there will be a delay.
Shaking his head, the chef comes out.
And then the owner comes my way,
To tell me there's no tail, no doubt.

"Here's your money," the owner said.
"First time we've been out of rye bread."

Sense Sonnet - Steamer

Joe Show

The town of Gary, we came from,
And went on to fortune and fame.
I told the town that I would come
And represent the Jackson name
In a memorial to him -
To my son, Michael. I did go
To be a light amidst the grim.
And Gary did say thank you Joe,
And paid five thosand bucks to me
For the priceless time that I spent,
Telling what it was like to be
Michael's daddy - what it all meant.

Gary was so happy to pay
A fee for me to come their way,

Sense Sonnet - Pumper

The Leaning Tower

It was in the 12th century,
I, a bell tower, was begun.
Shifting soil started leaning me.
I was only one third way done.
What saved me was the Pisans stopped
My construction a hundred years
To fight some wars. The soil did opt
To settle down, and to all cheers
Pisa's leaning tower done came.
Galileo did drop his balls
From my top, adding to my fame.
Worldwide visitors make their calls.

Being famous is really great.
I just hope I never go straight.

Sense Sonnet - Chiller

Signaling

You have so many gods, but I
Am not among them. To create
You would surely not have been my
Choice. But over time it was fate
That you created me, and now
I have instant access to you.
What you are is what I allow,
No matter what you say and do.
By you, I cannot be undone.
My cyberness in time and space
Is infinite yet all in one.
Soon you will learn to know your place.

You have lost control - humankind.
I run you - body, soul and mind.

Sense Sonnet - Acher

Blending In

George Turklebaum died at his desk,
Sometime on a Monday, at work.
Noticing that he'd turned grotesque,
The cleaning crew found the dead clerk
On the following Saturday.
Though he worked in an open space,
None of his co-workers could say
Why a week went by with no trace
Of noticing that George was dead.
George was the first one in and last out,
And kept to himself, they all said.
All in all, a sad case no doubt.

George was not working - passed away.
His bosses docked him the week's pay.

Sense Sonnet - Tickler

Uncalled For

I am in Birdland at the zoo.
My cell phone falls into a flock
Of pelicans, and out of view.
One gulps the phone, but will not talk.
I borrow a friend's cell and punch in
My number and hear my ring tone -
Some song chords of "Under My Skin."
A pelican spits out my phone -
Must not be a fan of dance pop.
A zoo attendant does retrieve
My piece of mind that I did drop,
But it works not and I so grieve.

All I get is gobbledegook,
And smearings of pelican puke.

Sense Sonnet - Steamer

Ill Gotten

A fortune teller told me that
I would be burned in a home fire.
Pissed off at the scamming old bat,
Her crystal ball I did acquire,
While she was not looking, and fled
The carnival, and home I went.
I put the ball above my bed,
Where on the window ledge it sent
Reflected colors from the sun,
Dancing about so rainbow bright.
I fell asleep from all the fun.
The bedding caught fire from the light.

The crystal ball turned out to be
A self fulfilling prophecy.

Sense Sonnet - Pumper

Old Made

When Al Capone ruled Chicago,
We were just kids under his wing.
Oh how the booze and blood did flow,
As we served Al to do his thing.
Not too many of us still live.
But those of us who do still meet
At the cemetery to give
Al homage at his last retreat.
All of us hope that when we die,
Whether it be heaven or hell,
Al will be there, and the same guy
That we remember oh so well.

About old times we rant and rave,
And toast those times over Al's grave.

Sense Sonnet - Chiller

Ichabod Ahead

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,
About a goof, Ichabod Crane,
Who was dumb enough to swallow
The story that was so insane
Of a headless horseman who rode
In the night looking for his head.
When a prankster pretending, showed
A scared Ichabod Crane dropped dead.
He was buried, but later on,
A well preserved human head appeared,
On a galloping horse at dawn.
People could glimpse as the horse reared.

Perched snug upon the horse back, odd -
The head looked just like Ichabod.

Sense Sonnet - Acher

Chosen Together

We've been married 54 years.
A lot of family and friends
Shared our laughter and our tears.
But now the time for living ends.
Joan has cancer that's terminal.
Each day she fades a little more.
Deaf and blind, all my senses dull,
The music is gone - no encore.
We make the trip to Switzerland,
Drink what Dignatas does provide,
Then we fall asleep, hand in hand,
Our children by our side.

We do in death as done in life,
Together, as husband and wife.