1 squid = lonely
1+ 1 squid = a couple
2 + 1 squid = trouble
2 + 2 squid = double trouble
4 + 2 squid = sick squid
1 squid = lonely
1+ 1 squid = a couple
2 + 1 squid = trouble
2 + 2 squid = double trouble
4 + 2 squid = sick squid

It was early morning
Low clouds blocked the sunrise
A slight chill in the air
Biscayne bay was calm
Too early for late sleeping Miami boaters
A mourning dove flew onto my balcony
He hopped onto the dining table
Cooing a proud message
A symbol of peace, hope resilience and love
I felt a strange connection to him
I needed to let him know I understood his message
To thank him for bringing calm to all the chaos around us right now
I stepped closer to the window and smiled at him
He saw me and stood still for a brief moment
We bonded over a few milliseconds of eye contact
Then he took off in a flash
Swooping over the balcony couch
Pooping all over the cushions
With the military precision of a fighter jet releasing laser guided missiles
Peace was short lived
Back to chaos

As soon as the dictionary closed
A huge word fight broke out
The adjectives were being hunted down for being politically incorrect
Adverbs refused to be connected exclusively with verbs and were demanding total independence
Pronouns were running around creating mayhem and beating up random words who dared to connect them to the wrong gender
Subjects were making violent attacks on objects while the nouns made futile attempts to keep the peace
Prepositions went on strike so nobody knew where anybody was at or where they were going to

The clouds have been aloof lately
Staying high in the sky
Not giving any shade
Refusing to rain on the dry ground
Last night that all changed
After a long meeting between the ground and the clouds
The clouds agreed to come down early this morning
So we could all wake up to a cloudy sky
Making sunrise a bit more entertaining
Some light party rain sprinkled on the dry ground
Damp patches of evidence
Cooler air swept in
Ideal weather for a run or a bike ride
Nice to wake up to a cloud party

Berthing maneuvers
Luggage movers
Embarking cruisers
Vacationing users
Nutrition abusers
Exercise refusers
Overweight bruisers
Mixologist infusers
Alcohol misusers
Tipsy boozers
Sleeping snoozers
Gambling confusers
Casino losers
Losing accusers
Shopping perusers
Selling schmoozers
Massaging soothers
Happiness oozes
Berthing maneuvers
Disembarking cruisers
Luggage movers
Homebound cruisers

words spewed out like regurgitated food
offensive, unpleasant, insulting, hateful, rude
angry politicians swear and shout to be heard
erupting volcanoes of red hot angry hissing words
words from a platform perched much higher
raining down on you like artillery fire
words fly on missiles, laser guided
aimed to keep the world one sided
exploding word bombs of hate and venom abound
no escape from this ear shattering sound
words beamed through space by satellite
enticing distant angry people to take up arms and fight
words are the weapons that start today’s wars
its ironic that history has seen it all before
but gone are the days of mob rallies and war inciting speeches
today’s words of hate are cowardly facebooked and tweeted
don’t be afraid to respond to all this hate
just give them what they don’t expect, graciously delivered on a plate
re-bait the hater’s hook with a tasty worm of kindness dipped in love
throw out your love worm bait with a cast from high above
the haters will bite at anything thrown their way
but once they taste kindness it will be their change day
go into battle armed with your love and kindness war cry
haters will be thrown off guard by your unexpected reply
they will eventually surrender their weapons of hate
no winners or losers in the ceasefire love-hate stalemate
embrace your former haters as newly found friends
As you all jump into the love and kindness river of words that flows but never ends

Its game day
Liverpool playing Nottingham Forest
Top of the table clash
Stakes are high
The winner will have bragging rights
Also the momentum in the title challenge
The clock is ticking
Two hours before kickoff
Time to put on my Liverpool shirt
Drive down to Miami Beach
Head to Mickey Burke’s bar
With all the Liverpool supporters
Most are from Miami
A few visiting tourists will drop in
Some scouser will be there for sure
Adding a Liverpool flavor to the tropical Kop
We will sing songs before the game
Chanting loudly when Liverpool attack
The place erupts every time we score a goal
We will cheer Liverpool on from afar
Whatever the result we will all sing loudly at the end
You’ll Never Walk Alone!

I have been reflecting on my life so far
Those memorable moments that stick out
Yuri Gagarin orbiting the earth for first time
The Beatles rise in fame
The swinging sixties
Moon landings
Concorde high speed travel
Heart transplants
Calculators
Carbon fibre
Craft beers
The birth of my children
The internet
Hubble space telescope
Advances in cancer treatment
Personal computers
The space shuttle
Cell phones
Micro chips
Social media
GPS mapping
Electric cars
Uber drivers
Apps for everything
Music and TV streaming
Medical science advancements
The list is endless
It answers many questions from years gone by
But some questions are unanswered
Why do we exist?
Why was the universe created?
What’s it all about?
I have been wrestling with these questions for a long time
New inventions and technical advances did not give the answers
I suspect they will never be answered in my lifetime
In the meantime, I have made some conclusions
13.8 Billion years passed before you were born
The chance of you being born was 1 in 400 Trillion
If you are lucky, you will live for 80-90 years
One day the sun will burn out and earth will freeze over
You should treat every living moment as a gift to enjoy

total blackness
dark despair
lost hope
reluctant surrender
awaiting fate
suicidal thoughts
take pills
fall asleep
strange dreams
life relived
happy memories
regret pills
fighting consciousness
physical struggle
suddenly awake
hospital bed
still alive
nurses attending
kind people
get treatment
mental health
go home
positive thoughts
rediscover hope
enjoying life
bright future
start writing
life story
best seller
become famous
enjoy wealth
charitable giving
start foundation
mental health
attend event
meet nurse
who saved
start dating
love blossoms
get married
happy union
long life

new year
new start
set goals
join gym
start diet
book vacation
dry January
dream slimmer
very determined
arrive gym
completely packed
long waits
for weights
sweaty people
looking tired
abandon gym
friend calls
lunch date
boring salad
order fries
drink wine
Diet tomorrow
afternoon nap
waking hungry
endless snacking
watch TV
more wine
diet commercials
more wine
gym specials
more wine
cruise ads
endless meals
limitless drinks
looks appealing
more wine
book cruise
snack snack
wine wine
fall asleep
until summer