Losing Ears

I've struggled to walk this week, dealing both with an ear infection and rain. Those, and an general unwillingness to get out of bed until absolutely necessary.

Tuesday: walked for over half an hour near downtown Royse City while son was in scouts; air cool and damp; sort of wish I'd brought Cleo with me since she hasn't been out that much lately; composed a poem, wrote it down, lost it. The following is a reconstruction from the bits I remember

these old houses sport
the decorations of fake horror
sheets of orange ghosts hung
beside crosses in stained glass
glowing skeletons near plastic tombstones
from a dark porch
a man's after dinner smoke
wafts into the street
the real demons can hardly be seen

Friday: 30 minute walk through the neighborhood (small square route) with Cleo around five this morning; finally was able to get my tail out of bed and do this; praying-no poem.

Reading:



Listening:

More reading than walking

Saturday: while daughter was at lay reader training, I walked from St. Peter's to the McKinney library; planned to take a different route back, to see some of the houses in the historical district I had not seen before, but I'd lingered too long there and the child was ready to be picked up.

while same daughter was at a fundraiser, I sat in the Collin College library reading Yusef Komunyakaa's Warhorses for a couple of hours; then I ate a light lunch outside while reading from the book I'd brought with me (Norris's Dakota); after this I walked around the outside of the campus building (slowly--my hip and leg hurting); I paused now and then to look at the foliage (mostly neat, bright patches fo flowers) and pieces of contemporary sculpture (some of which actually resembles something); I wish a poem had come, but I have nothing else to say today.

Tuesday: took the boy to scouts and then walked to downtown Royse City and some of the historical district; I probably should have brought Cleo, but I did get about 40 minutes in.

Walking through downtown
the only sign of life was
a moss covered wall.

Thursday: brought Cleo with me to daughter's soccer practice, ostensibly to walk with her; but no one showed up and after fifteen minutes of kicking the ball around and having the dog pull against me, we went home

Reading:





Listening:

Too busy; too sick

Saturday: Dropped daughter off at fundraiser in Plano, then had a lunch and Jack in the box, then an hour of reading with a nice Chai Tea at Starbucks; having left my sweatshirt at home and not wanting to brave the icky weather, I went to The Shops at Willow Bend thinking to try some mall walking; remembered immediately why I don't do this: too much dang noise; while the stores and the people were very interesting to look at -- a people watching writer's dream--give me bad weather and the sounds of traffic or wind and insects anytime.

Thursday: Took son to the doctor and stepped on the scale-- 257; thing didn't work afterward, so maybe it was broken.

Friday: Very short walk in the cold, early morning "around the block," more to calm the dog than for exercise.

After eating an icky salad for lunch, I walked across campus, then around most of the EFC jogging trail, to wake up more than for exercise, but I did break a little sweat in the cool October air.

Reading:

Listening:

Old routes new

Saturday: Morning walk with Cleo along the L route, but few sunflowers to see; noticed a house with several acres stretching behind my house is for sale--daydreamed a little about building a soccer field.

A bag of toys burst
open in the grass. The field
prevents their escape.

Monday: After dropping daughter off at choir rehearsal, walked from FUMC (Dallas) to the public library only to discover the library is now closed on Mondays; walked from there to El Centro (with the help of a security guard since the route was unfamiliar); noticed that while I had not been in downtown Dallas in months, many of the same buildings were in their states of disrepair and going-to-be-repaired; after grading papers in a computer lab at ECC, walked back to FUMC to pick up the child, my back hurting, my pants stuck to me by sweat, but still early enough to enjoy the paintings in the gallery

Thursday: Late morning/early afternoon--2 miles on the EFC jogging trail; prayed about things recently making me angry--remembered Screwtape's advice to Wormwood about little resentments; thought about a review of a Richard Souther cd I keep putting off; thought about apples in my office I planned to eat for lunch.

I pulled a muscle
trying to fix a shoelace.
So how lame am I?

While daughter was a soccer practice, walked half an hour around middle school with Cleo, noticing how many football fields there are in this town.

Reading:

Listening:

Overwhelmed

Tuesday: Trying to stay awake and overwhelmed with papers to grade and worries about the car, I walked two miles on the EFC jogging/walking track.

Wednesday: Early morning walk, small square route with addendum, with Cleo.

Reading:

Listening to:

and some archived jazz concerts at NPR.