I woke at 8:45
Stretched and yawned
Smiled. All gaiety.
Potty first. Face splashed
Skipped teeth, shower, hair
Pajamas wrinkled
week-long underwear
Rushed down the steps
Threw open the fridge—
Friday’s meatloaf, cold brick.
Just Me & Capt’n Crunch—
sugar gravel
still in a Scooby-dish bowl
9am flipped on the boob-tube
Saturday morn cartoons
Mystery van
Spinach
Spiders
Anvils dropping
White cowl
Bull’s-eye dog
Sugar Sugar
Ah…Honey Honey
Daniel—
Cliff edge
The long fall.
I laughed until I wept, until I cried.
All gaiety—
gone.
The sweet milk gone warm.
Chirp.
Screen lit—
three little dots
then—
“You up yet Papa? XOXO”
I draw a cartoon cat
a cartoon dog
a cartoon rat
a cartoon log
my pen makes whorls
and stars and confetti too
cartoon drawing is what I do
Gotham City’s local hero Batman
for every villain devises a master plan
He never fails to outwit his foes
whose maniacal ploys fall like crumbling dominoes
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
Saturday morning cartoons for kids
Pow! Batman and Robin save the day
Heroes and villains at play
Wordku: 5-7-5 words
AP: Honorable Mention 2025
WILE E. COYOTE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
With ACME’s ludicrous gadgets galore, in the desert Wile E. Coyote plots
Builds rockets and traps that his nemesis, the Roadrunner, inevitably spots.
*“Beep! Beep!” Road Runner zips past with a dare, and with a tumble and crash
Wile onto the desert does splat; undaunted, he sends ACME more cash.
Poem written for and submitted to Cartoon Characters Clerihew Poetry Contest, Tania Kitchen, sponsor, August 11, 2025
*Note:“Beep! Beep!” This onomatopoeia is commonly associated with the Road Runner in Looney Tunes cartoons featuring the speedy-yet-flightless bird and his constant pursuer, Wile E. Coyote.
(Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beep,_beep_(sound))
I can't bring myself
to read the front page news
with which they string us along
as portrayed by the views
of those with a vested interest
or the rest with an axe to grind
who must think we're all
just deaf dumb and blind
to the truth of which there's more
in the speech balloons
of the funny characters
in the Sunday cartoons
they're merely a means of selling
ink-stained pulp derived from wood
it's all a waste of paper
other than those comic strips
and really only good
for wrapping fish and chips
Cartoons makes me laugh
Creation of ingenious
Great human outlet.
playful dolphins popped out of lake
frolicking like sixties Chip and Dale cartoons
Bringing a smile to my face
adding a new kind of joy to sundown at the ocean
playful dolphins popped out of lake
frolicking like sixties Chip and Dale cartoons
Bringing a smile to my face
adding a new kind of joy to sundown at the lake
Tom the Cat has some new amazing ideas up his sleeve.
He is constantly outsmarted by Jerry, a mouse who is his peeve.
He has built a mousetrap guaranteed to get this varmint once and for all.
It is camouflaged like leaves, and about sixteen feet tall.
Tom is confident that he will be eating roasted mouse tonight.
He loves the idea of grilling Jerry up; a tasty rodent delicacy delight.
Jerry has outsmarted him for the last time, he is sure of this.
He chases Jerry into the yard, but alas, something goes amiss.
Tom the Cat ends up in the mousetrap and all the mice are laughing.
He is caught in his own slick idea, while the mice lie down for napping.
What the heck! Why do the animators tease and torment him this way?
He is forlorn and angry again for the remainder of another bad day.
Ty Tot Ty Taw Tay Tater Tat
Ty Tid! Ty Tid!
Ty Taw Tay Tater Tat!
I thought I saw a nasty cat!
I did. Oh fancy that!
Sylvester I must tell you,
You're a very naughty cat!
I also have to say
That you are terrible at maths!
You miscalculate your aims
That's why you fall face down - Ker-splat!
You misjudge your target.
You only realise mid your jumps.
You're very sorry for it now
'Cause your head is full of bumps!
Granny sure insists
That you must have your rest.
But if you fail to catch me soon,
You'll have a cardiac arrest!
Can't you see with both of us,
Granny feels so blessed?
So why do you keep putting
Her affection to the test?
Sylvester I want you to know
That I'd like our feud to end.
I would like us both to be
The very best of friends.
And though she loves us very much,
Granny will adore us more
If she sees us playing nice
When she walks through the door!
Yes we could be a family
For a long and happy time...
Just remember, once recovered
You'll be on life number nine!
Cartoons
Saturday morning, early,
we sat around the toob…(tv)
We laughed.
Road runner was too fast,
the coyote was always too slow.
Thundar was a Barbarian,
and Strawberry was a shortcake.
Shaggy chased bad guys,
Scooby was a hero.
Foghorn was a wise rooster,
and hunting season changed quickly.
Marvin was a Martian,
and earth was in the way.
However,
No one got too hurt,
No one thought it was too real,
to steal the truth from our imaginations.
No, no one.
We learned please and thank you…
Con-juction-junction and what happens to a “bill”. (that wants to be a law)
The scariest thing to watch was PBS, where babies come from. (parental permission)
Our evenings were the American Hero, McFixIt the Everything Man,
and where no “man” has gone before.
(no one was mad, as “man” meant humanity…
even clearer, no one had to consider, as it was obvious…why is it no longer that way)
Still, we laughed.
Yes, I paint cartoons.
I always start with the eyes.
Most of them have boobs.
Usually women
Men have to have bushy beards.
My chins are girly.
First canvas scary,
It cost a whole eight dollars.
A lot of money.
Bought it for my grands.
Granddaughter made me try it.
"You can paint," she said.
Instantly loved paint.
Relaxed me and fed my soul.
Best "me" obsession.
It met all my needs.
I gave up everything else.
Painting was my life.
Four hundred paintings
Two tent shows, eighty sales
Yet I had to stop.
They are mine, all mine.
My house is bursting with them.
I love my cartoons.
The assembly of babies
I see in conference of life
each with a toy most loved
and cartoons of great lust
one baby leads the way
another hesitates the path
but in the end every baby comes
and the path is dusty with steps
Toys and cartoons suffer
some babies bite into pieces
baby villains cut necks and legs
and only bits pile by evening
Biting without piecing together
dismembering without building
babies with rich emotions
take no time to save and build
Morning, afternoon, evening
babies in conference of life
live only for themselves
in the hall it’s only them alive
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