I have this small birdbath
in my backyard
apparently the talk of the
whole Bird-town -- not much
larger than a good-size hubcap,
one would think it was Lake Erie
size takes on different perspective
in the desert; like a prairie dog
is fat pheasant to a snake -- a jackrabbit
seldom fast enough for a hungered, blood-thirsty
coyote once targeted -- even a cartoon Willy would
shed his cartoon ink, in the real desert~ life here, first
is all about drink.
Categories:
hubcap, drink, environment, life, nature,
Form: Free verse
On my morning walk, which is
Adjacent to the river,
A small surprise is sometimes what
The city does deliver.
So yesterday, I heard a thump,
Metallic, so I slowed,
Expecting that a hubcap flew
From somewhere on the road.
Instead, I saw a sewer cover
Quaking as it rose
And crashed back down above a spot
Where the East River flows.
Thought number 1: a creature
Would be rising from the deep
And then his scaly self into
My neighborhood would creep.
Thought number 2: a prisoner
(Like “Shawshank”) would break free
Because from Rikers Island
There’s a chance that it could be.
Thought number 3: the river (high)
Would suddenly erupt
And shoot that cover skyward
In a manner most abrupt.
In any case, I hurried on
Without a backward glance,
Not willing, having had those thoughts,
To take the slightest chance.
Categories:
hubcap, mystery, new york,
Form: Rhyme
I think I can fix that the silent man said
I can follow you home after church if you want
The woman handed him the hubcap
You really think so?
Her eyes were worried,
Yes
Categories:
hubcap, 10th grade, 11th grade,
Form: Free verse
like a run away hubcap spinning down the road...your life spins out of control;
how will this end—on a rocky hillside or a soft grassy knoll?
with forehead wrinkles and squinted vision you watch hopes and dreams burst into flames
flames igniting your inner core to not give up...
from this damnation of life’s bitter cup...
anxietic thoughts mushrooming like an atomic explosion inside your mind
space
in a toxic drunk you struggle to hold on—with clenched teeth— you cry out for savin’ Grace....
all the while destitution lurking in the shadows to capture your soul...
as beguiling sillouettes of enchantment tap dance to the intricate fibers of your being losing hold...
like a broken string sending a yo-yo on a downward descend
flat on your face—hard—you fall
questioning— from this— how can I mend?...
at rock bottom you lay...
you pray...
the dam burst— too heavy— the weight of bitter confection
cheeks quivering you gaze into your puddle of tears;
you see a reflection...
at ground zero...
staring back; it’s you—your hero...
you hear a voice whisper...
“there’s no place to go my child but up—
hand over to Me—thy bitter cup”...
Categories:
hubcap, encouraging, spiritual,
Form: Rhyme
neighborhood watch
a hubcap propped
against a tree
Categories:
hubcap, car, community,
Form: Senryu
I have an important message
for man's best friend
humming like rolling wheels at 90
incandescent like a hubcap overhead
listen to this you highway palm readers
the pressure in this tire
is anatomically incorrect
and at four atmospheres
ALERT! ALERT!
all radar units report your locI and foci
on the plan-it planet,
space never got named
by causes and their waiting effects
the secret of death
is to pay no attention to it
I go with the info dear recipient
info in outfo out
if we never meet
tell them I ain't invisible
it may not be much
but it won't be enough either
wheels for legs radio screaming
entertaining beyond abomination
we Febrilacs from planet Nu-Oc
speak our own language,
if monotony generates subtlety
it must be high resolution
because others have done so
is not enough
in zero plastic space
the big molecule
a million moving parts
sonic on the inside freezing out
do we try to figure it out in
here's the secret
amnesia is the root of all comedy
blame it on the invisible
beans from outer space
and their gift
the list of blisters
Categories:
hubcap, how i feel,
Form: Free verse
Driving along orange and lavender blue peaks
Where Littledeer’s rabbits parade through
Rolling hills of pink and yellow wildflowers
Along the French River and broad rapids
Down in the valley on a golden Fourth of July
Iridescent tiny hummingbirds
Whirl around a garden of ten foot tall sunflowers
As a copper pipe scarecrow with a rusted hubcap shield
Remains on guard to protect them all
Categories:
hubcap, america, beauty, mountains, nature,
Form: Free verse
A Car Too Small
By Elton Camp
These high gas prices nearly all resent
From reasonable to scandalous it went
It’s a situation that I truly abhor
I can’t drive a Town Car anymore
To take a vacation in our SUV
Is a luxury we’ll never more see
For a Prius I was about to pay
But then I saw another way
A car so tiny that it has to run cheap
At such a bargain, I was quick to leap
It could fit the smallest parking space
But premium fuel seemed a big waste
A week’s groceries I could still buy
To fit them inside, don’t even try
The Interstate, on my route did lie
’Twas horrible being hubcap high
Every time a huge semi went by
Into the ditch, I thought I’d fly
I hurried on home with great fear
But on the way, I struck a deer
The deer laughed and ran away
In little pieces, my new car lay
Back to car-hunting with a sigh
A big Hummer I decided to buy
Categories:
hubcap, humor,
Form: Rhyme
You can be my hubcap if you let me be your wheel.
The love I have for somebody like you is real.
I can give you plenty of loving. I aim to please.
I will be your radiator if you will be my antifreeze.
You are so attractive to my eye my dear.
You’ve got my transmission shifting into high gear.
There’s no need to wait four thousand miles for an oil change.
A date with you and me is something I can easily arrange.
I can give you a tune-up with a new set of spark plugs.
You just have to be around to give me plenty of hugs.
Categories:
hubcap, love, work, me, me,
Form: Rhyme
Beyond the paved two-lane with its solid centerline,
and bounded by NO TRESPASS signs;
beyond the turn-off onto gravel and the last barking dog
who keeps pace with my hubcap;
to a landing where I park my car and walk away:
no signs of ownership, no gate.
Just a path that skirts a swale; up to a clearing
fringed with black-oak blazing green.
I push through underbrush thick
with deadfall leaves, beyond where miners dug
and gouged and left it all behind.
Land no one has tamed.
Abruptly, I’m at the edge of canyon.
Far below, the river churns from upcountry,
down granite, grinding its way west.
No vineyard terraces, no homes with a view.
Just the wild lavender of distance
verging into forest viridian. Land owned by none
and everyone, where, if I watch my step,
I can still walk free.
Categories:
hubcap, nature
Form: Free verse
Eventhough these colors abound
black and white is all thats found
Right and wrong,good and evil
careless in our seats we swivel
Sympathetic try to be
for the pathetic twisting me
Can't shake'em since they know know better
can't get loose from tightening fetters
Their pain I feel,I try too deal
but it's like a hubcap,without a wheel
Like a bird without it's flying pinfeathers
freefall facing stormy weather
Black and white abstracted gray
paradise brings another day....
Categories:
hubcap, people
Form: Free verse