What does 300 pieces of writing mean?
Author: Ian Hunter
I retired from the energy business in 2014 and started writing poetry. At first I shared my writing with family and friends. Then I set myself a challenge to write a poem every day for a year. After meeting that goal I just kept going and started this blog in 2021. I hope you enjoy reading my poems. Remember happiness is just a state of mind and poetry is great nourishment.
Road trip
Road trips are so much fun
A change of scenery for a while
See some new places
Visit old friends
Make some new ones
Check out the countryside
See how others live
Take a different road
Make a wrong turning
Get lost
Blame GPS
Blame your spouse
Spouse blames you
Fight over directions
Cannot find a bathroom
Bladder pain excruciating
Dingy gas station
Filthy bathroom
No choice
Instant relief
No washing facilities
Empty bottle of hand sanitizer
Time to eat lunch
Nowhere nice to picnic
Eat in the car
Spill drinks everywhere
Open case for change of clothes
Not PBJ sandwiches again
Drop sandwich between seats
Start of another science experiment
Rolling again
Bored with Sirius radio
Books on tape playing
Depressing book
All doom gloom and suffering
Tune to a local radio station
Music is very cheesy
DJ spouts conspiracy theories
We must be in a bad place
People look so strange here
All driving pickups
Probably all armed militia
Our Lexus looks out of place
We could be murdered
No stopping
Drive faster
No eye contact with other drivers
Who decided on this road trip
Never again
Beach Day
Beach day
At day at the beach planned
Picnic basket prepared
Towels and sunscreen packed
Beach chairs and umbrellas ready
Load up the car and go
Kids bursting with excitement
Parking a short walk from the beach
Dad does the heavy lifting
The kids carrying buckets and spades
Finding the perfect spot
Setting up the umbrella for shade
A stiff breeze off the ocean
Kids playing in the sand
Time for a nap in the beach chair
A few hours later everybody is hungry
Time to break out the picnic
The wind is blowing harder
But we are still having fun
I am handed a plate of food
Fresh sandwiches and cake
It looks very appetizing
I am salivating in anticipation
I bite into the sandwich
Horror of horrors it tastes gritty
Sand blown all over my sandwich
I try to wipe it off to no avail
Sand is blowing everywhere
Its in my eyes now too
Time to abandon the beach day
The kids complain about leaving
Heavy traffic all the way home
The kids start fighting in the car
Arrive home tired and grumpy
Sand is traipsed through the house
I jump in the shower and scrub
A large pool of sand forms on the shower floor
It refuses to wash into the drain
Why did I ever think beach days were fun
Beautiful day
Beautiful day
Clear skies
Birds sing
Fluffy clouds
No rain
Gentle breeze
Pregnant pause
Winds roar
Racing clouds
Darkness looming
Roaring thunder
Blackness descends
Howling winds
Rustling leaves
Trees swaying
Birds silent
Crashing thunder
Lightening flash
Torrential rain
Instant flooding
Angry skies
Booming thunder
Lightening strikes
Torrential downpour
Floods everywhere
Rain stops
Still sounds
Steam rising
Floods subside
Clouds disperse
Blue skies
Birds sing
Beautiful day
Smart Phone Pinkie
A few days ago I noticed a strange lump on my finger
On the inside of the first knuckle
Of my right hand pinkie finger
I chose to ignore it hoping it would go away
But it started to annoy me
Then my imagination went into overdrive
Was it some kind of skin cancer
Or the first sign a very rare disease
Then I decided to consult Mr Google
To my surprise its a well documented condition
Callouses caused by holding an iPhone
And supporting the base with your pinkie finger
The slot at the base of the case causes irritation
Its been given the name “Smart Phone Pinkie”
No way I said to myself as I picked up my iPhone
Holding it in my right hand and sure enough
The callouses were rubbing against the slot in the case
Why just now I asked myself
I have been using my iPhone for years
Without any kind of hand issues
I never considered myself an excessive smartphone user
Preferring the computer for anything requiring lots of keystrokes
Then I realized what had happened
I had just finished 10 days of Covid isolation
During which time I had no access to my computer
I had been using my iPhone exclusively for all my writing
The extra hand holding resulted in the pinkie finger callouses
There is probably a Facebook group for sufferers
Maybe a therapy support group
I found a much simpler solution
I now hold my phone in my left hand and type with my right hand
Next time you meet somebody new, check out their pinkie finger
Island Life
I have always wanted to own an island
A special gathering place for my family
Somewhere to hang out with friends
Hopefully not too remote
So I bought a small sturdy table
I put a granite counter top on it
Placed it in the kitchen
Now I have my own island
My sister bakes delicious cakes on my island
Its a great place to hang out at parties
Certainly not too remote
Proof that your dreams can come true
Never break the cycle
William was walking down the beach with his father
Palm trees lined the edge of the shore
The boy picked up a fallen coconut
What shall we do with it Dad he asked
I think you should bury it said his father
Then come back when the tree has grown
William dug a hole in the sand and planted the coconut
Remember where you put it said his father
William returned to that beach thirty years later
His own son by his side this time
William told his son the story of the coconut
His son was excited to look for the tree
Eventually they stopped and Willam said its here
There was a fallen coconut under the tree
His son picked it up asking his dad if they should plant it
Oh no John said his dad, we will take it home and eat it
I have been waiting a long time to taste it
Suddenly a barrage of coconuts fell down from the tree
One struck William on the head knocking him out
John ran all the way home clutching the coconut
He raised the alarm but his father was found dead
John watched the coffin being put in the ground
He joined the line of people throwing dirt in the hole
Then he paused and thew the coconut onto the coffin
Vowing to return in thirty years
Time flies when you are having fun but slows down when you are sad
Instagram followers hide your lack of real friends
Texts with thumbs up and Facebook likes
Give the impression you are always happy
Saving you from actually speaking
Lest your voice becomes an unwitting informer
Dark sunglasses hide your sad eyes
You only take them off in the dark
A fake smile masks your depression
Your face aches from forcing it all day
Blacked out windows in your Cadillac
Prevent the world from seeing the real you inside
Your trophy wife paraded in public
She plays the part well when seen
Becoming cold as ice when alone with you
She talks to her friends all day
Never makes eye contact with you
You chose a childless relationship
Too risky having anybody that close to you
Expensive home and flashy toys
A thick wallet full of credit cards
Combine to hide your mounting debts
Long hours and grinding out results
Disguise your real dissatisfaction with your job
You stopped talking to your parents long ago
Tired of them asking what is wrong with you
You hang out with the boys every week
Mostly to be seen doing guy things
Watching sports and talking trash
Downing beers for an alcoholic buzz
Your sad thoughts briefly anesthetized
Laughing outwardly at all the stupid jokes
While crying uncontrollably inside
You wished it was all a bad dream
But its there every time you wake up
You pray for the day when it will all change
You wait for guidance of a new direction
You hope for the strength to adjust
You are constantly looking for the signal
Technical error, well more like human error
Today’s poem went out yesterday in error
I meant to have it go out today but something went wrong
It would be silly to blame the computer because it just follows instructions given by a human ‘meat stick’ tapping on a keyboard
I feel sorry for the wind is the title
You can ignore this if you live in Europe because you actually got today’s poem today
For those of you living in Hawaii, you got both this notice and today’s poem yesterday
Which all goes to show that time is relative
We all live in the today but it is seen by others as their yesterday or tomorrow
Anyway, apologies if my ‘meat stick’ error caused you confusion or distress
I will send my ‘meat stick’ back to the classroom for retraining
Have a great day
Stay cheeky!
I feel sorry for the wind
I feel sorry for the wind
he is truly homeless
always on the move
when he is not with you
he is blowing by elsewhere
invisible but forceful
sometimes light and gentle
damaging when in a rage
rain and snow are the gifts he brings
leaves rustle when he arrives
a still pond ripples in his presence
waves pound the beach at his command
when uncertain he gets gusty
why is the wind so unforgiving
if you do not move at his pace
and in the direction he chooses
he will push you around without mercy
adored by kite fliers
worshipped by yachtsmen
feared by cyclists
he is a sad lonely restless bad tempered old man
always hides his face but you can tell when he is there
constantly searching for the peace he will never find
perhaps he had a disturbed childhood
or a very bad relationship breakup
he refuses to go to therapy
I feel sorry for the wind
Cheeky Monkey Poetry 