April 8, 2022 Poems2022/04/09
April 7th Poems2022/04/08
April 6th, 2022 Poems2022/04/08
April 5 2022, Poems2022/04/08
April 4th 2022, Poems2022/04/08
2022 April Poetry Madness April 1 to 3 poems
This is my 7th year to participate in the April poetry challenge. This year I am just doing two prompts, Writer’s Digest and Writing com Dew Drop Inn. Last year I wrote over 300 poems in one month, this year’s much more modest goal is about 150 poems, of which I will post about 90.
i will post them here, and on all poetry, poetry soul, writing.com, and Writer’s Digest. Medium, Watt pad, Substack, and FB.
Index
Life Is A Dream Of Chocolate Covered Trees
Margo Taylor Greene’s Word Salad
Dreams Do Come True If You Believe In Dreams
Marjorie Taylor Greene, WTF’s Wrong With You?
Cosmic Cat From Berkeley
Healing Touch
The End of Time
Donald Trump the anti-Christ
The sound of Korean
The Tearing of the Social Fabric Homophone Poem
End of Time
The sound of Korean
Tower of Power
How Will It End?
The rule of ten
Finding Pleasure in Small Things
Favorite Korean Food
Madness in the United States
Many virtual connections, few real friends
Movie Choices Writer’s Digest
April’s Fool Day
Anticipation
Life is A Dream of Chocolate Covered Trees
Life is a dream
A dream of chocolate-covered trees
To see what can’t be seen
To hear what can’t be heard
To live in order to die
And to die in order to live.
Note: one of my oldest poems was written circa 1970 when I was 14
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 27
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write an anapodoton poem.
Margo Taylor Greene’s Word Salad
While defending
The Pentagon document leak suspect
Marjorie Taylor Green
Tweeted a typical nonsensical
paranoid
World salad
The USG is gearing up
To censor patriotic white
Christian American anti-war
Targeting
Political prisoners
Who dares to stand up
And tell the truth
Against the communist
Radical left-woke Marxists
Who is taking over the government
Greene claimed that Americans
Are on the verge
Of losing more freedoms
In the wake
of the government’s
Efforts to pass
The restrict act
All part of the evil
Fascist communist Marxist
Plot against patriotic
White citizens
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 26
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a response poem.
Dreams Do come true if You Believe In Dreams
Sam Adams
Met his wife
In a dream
He saw the most beautiful woman
In the world
Talking to him
In a strange Asian Language
He yelled out
“Who are you”
She faded away
As he fell to the ground
During a boring physics class
For eight long years
She haunted his dreams
Coming to him weekly
Then one day
He was teaching in Korea
When he had the last dream
She told him
“don’t worry, we’ll meet soon”
That night she walked off a bus
Out of his dreams
Entering his reality
Entering his life
Six weeks after becoming his wife
Dreams do come true
If you believe in dreams.
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 25
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, we have our fourth and final two-for-Tuesday prompt.
For today’s prompt, we have our fourth (and final) two-for-Tuesday prompt, which means you get two prompts, and they are:
1. Write a dream poem, and/or…
2. Write a reality poem.
Healing Touch
My wife says
I have a superpower
I am very hot
To the touch
Radiating outward
Chi
Infrared heat
Every night
For forty years
I have been warming her up
As she is cold-blooded
Almost like a reptile
Always cold to the touch
And my touch warms her up
Just my duty
Of love
At the end of the day.
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 24
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a touch poem.
We’ve already written poems related to smell, sound, and taste, so let’s keep hammering away on the senses.
For today’s prompt, write a touch poem. For the senses, I’m thinking of touch as a hand reaching out, though it could also be a foot or just bodies pushed close like in a concert or public transportation. But that’s just when thinking about the senses.
Fear of Communism
Watching right-wing politicians
And news pundits
One can’t help
But wonder
If we are living
In a strange alternative universe
For to hear
The line of Marjorie Taylor Greene
It is 1955 all over again
Communism is on the march
Marxists out to destroy America
Radical left-wing demons
trying to cancel
Normal patriotic white Americans
Who dares to stand up
To the communists
All around us
And they fill the airwaves
And the internet
With constant fear
And paranoia
About the alleged
Communist Pedophile Satanic
LGBT conspiracy to turn us all gay
And the black life matters folks
And Antifa
Coming to kill white people
And to take away our guns
And other fear-mongering memes
24/7
Be Afraid be Afraid
The commies are after you.
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 23
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a fear poem.ing out on the last piece of the piece or the fear of dying.
Marjorie Taylor Greene, WTF’s Wrong with You?
What’s the fuck’s wrong with you?
I mean, seriously, Marjorie?
Where have you been
These last 50 years?
Hiding under a rock,
Living in a cave.
Did you just wake up
From a 50-year-old coma?
Are communists out to get us?
Marxists everywhere?
Acting like the Cold war
Never ended?
It ain’t the 50s anymore
The Communists lost the war
There are no more communists.
Except perhaps
In my old hometown
Of Berkeley
Where it is always 1969.
Communism is dead
Has been for almost 50 years
Did you not get the memo?
I mean enough of this BS
Did the John Birchers
Take over your body?
Do you even know
WTC you are talking about.
Do you even care?
That the entire world
Think you are bat sh..t crazy
Even too crazy for Fox News?
Communism my ass
Marxists are out to get us
Please dear
Just do us all a favor
STFU already
About the communists.
For today’s prompt, take the phrase “What (blank),” replace the blank with a new word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Possible titles might include: “What Are You Doing Here,” “What a Great Time,” “Whatever You Say,” and/or “What Kind of Poem Are You Going to Write?”
So make a decision: Is your “what” poem leading to a question or a statement (or maybe both?).
The Cosmic Cat from Berkeley
evil cat
I next encountered the divine
Many years later in Berkeley, California
I had gone home to be with my Mother
While taking leave from my job
in the Foreign Service
I had two weeks there by myself
My wife came later
near the end of the trip
every morning I woke up
had coffee
Did yoga
Spoke to my mother
Who was sliding into dementia?
Day by day losing her reason
Then I would go out
And explore the city
Go to a museum
Go to one neighborhood
And just be there
Rediscovering the Bay area
After years of being away
Having dinner with old friends
Seeing movies etc
Every morning a black cat came to visit
The cat was friendly and waited for me
And then would join me in my morning rambles
Following me to the bus stop
I started talking to the black cat
He looked at me
with a spark of divinity
In his dark eyes
I called him the cosmic cat
He seemed to like that
He would look at me
And I opened up to me
Told the cat all my dark secrets
As I walked the streets
Of the old neighborhood
Every morning and every evening the cat
Would be there to greet me
And to carry out our endless conversation
Then I had to leave
And in our final conversation
I asked the cosmic cat
Say, Cat are you just a cat
Or are you a demonic cat
Are you possessed by God?
Or by Satan
The cat looked at me
And I realized that God
Was indeed residing in the cat
But that god was residing everywhere
All I had to do was open my mind
And the rest would follow
So I said Goodbye to the cosmic cat
And he purred and came up to me
And I felt the comforting presence of the divine
As I said goodbye to the cosmic cat
And said goodbye to my mother
As this was the last time
That we would be able to talk
I told my mother about the cosmic cat
She smiled and said that the cat
was there for me and her
to comfort us both in our hour of need
and that the cat was indeed
a cosmic cat
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 20
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write an animal poem.
The End of time writer’s Digest
My dear
When I met you
I knew
That I was fated
To love you
Until the end of time
And beyond
That was just my fate
That we would meet
On that date
I embraced my fate
And that is the end
Of the beginning
Of our cosmic journey
Together
Until the end of time
And beyond.
Day 16 Blank of a Blank
For today’s prompt, take the phrase “The (blank) of a (blank),” replace the blanks with a new word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write your poem. Possible titles might include: “The Beginning of a Story,” “The Wrong Side of a Situation,” “The Apple of an Eye,” and/or “The Latest Excuses of a Continuing Problem.”
What is Love?
What is love?
Is it nothing
But biochemistry?
Is it madness?
Is it just
A search for connections?
In a cold cruel world?
That does not care
For us at all?
It is all of that
And none of that
Those who know
What Love is
Do not tell
That is the Zen
Of Love
Day 18
For today’s prompt, we have our third two-for-Tuesday prompt, which means you get two prompts, and they are:
Write an everything poem, and/or…
Write an anti-love poem.
As longtime participants know, this is my favorite prompt, which is why it returns every challenge. Write a love poem, or write a not-love poem.
The desire to get back
At those who trespass
Against us
Especially so
For the MAGA nation
Followers
of the King
Of revenge politics
The Donald
The Anti-Christ
Than to follow
The wisdom
Of Allah, Buddha, Christ,
Jesus, and Mother Mary
And let it be
2023 April PAD Challenge: Day 13
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a forgive poem.
For today’s prompt, write a forgive poem. The poem could be about forgiveness in general, or it could focus on a specific instance of forgiveness or grace. There are times when we are called upon to forgive others, and times when we ask others to forgive us. And sometimes that includes forgiving ourselves. Be forgiving as you poem today.
The Sound of Korean Writer’s Digest
I have been studying Korean
For almost 45 years
First heard back in 1979
In the Peace Corps
I still struggle daily
But Korea is no longer
A stranger
Korean is my second language
And I hear it all around me
In my retirement home
I study Korean daily
On Duotrope
And while watching K Drama
The language at first
Sounded harsh
As if everyone was yelling
And screaming
Later, I learned
Some Korean songs
And the language
Became less discordant
To this day though
I find a Korean woman
Speaking Korean
To be incredibly sexy
Packing so much emotion
And sexual tension
In every word
I suppose I will study Korean
And speak it
Until the day I die.
2023 April PaD Challenge: Day 12
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a sound poem.
With every word
The former president
Causes a tear
In the basic fundamental
Political order
Leading to many people
To tear up
In fear
Which is no doubt the object
His followers do not object
To inflict pain and suffering
In their endless quest
To own their hated enemies
The radical left Marxist radical
Demonic Deep state libtards
Who are conspiring to turn
America into another communist
Dystopian nightmare
Only the great leader Trump
Can save America’s Democracy]
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a homograph poem.
Homographs are words that are spelled the same but have different meanings. Sometimes they are pronounced the same, but that’s not always the case. Click here to find a list of homographs, though there are many more homographs than these to use.
Ode to the Tower of Power
The greatest funk band
There ever was
You are the epitome
Of funk and soul music
The very definition of funk
The best horn section
In the universe
Just sublime
Formed in the East Bay
In the turbulent 60s
Playing that funky music
For almost 50 years
Their love song
You’re still a young man
Is perhaps the greatest
make out song
Of all times
The first song
I slowed danced to
Back in high school
A song I played
To seduce my wife
I wonder how many babies
Were conceived because
Of this classic soul song.
Another classic song
What is hip
Which poised
An unanswered question
And inspired this triolet
What is love, tell me if you know
Love is what it is
Do you know what love is, Joe?
What is love, tell me if you know
And how can you make it grow?
Madness is what it does
What is love, tell me if you know
Love is what it is
The Tower of Power
No doubt
Will still be playing
That funky music
White boy
A hundred years
From now
For funk
Will never die
For once you get funk
In your soul baby
You can never go back
To boring vanilla
white boy music
because you got soul, now.
Because you got
That soul vaccination baby
And need to go
Down to the nightclub
And play that funky music
White boy
Until the day you die.
Based loosely on the classic Tower of Power Song, “What is hip?”
What Is Hip Lyrics
[Verse 1]
So ya wanna dump out yo’ trick bag
Ease on in a hip thang
But you ain’t exactly sure what is hip
So you started to let your hair grow
Spent big bucks on your wardrobe
Somehow, ya know there’s much more to the trip
[Chorus]
What is hip?
Tell me, tell me, if you think you know
What is hip?
If you’re hip
The question, “Will it show?”
You’re into a hip trip
Maybe hipper than hip
What is hip?
[Verse 2]
You became a part of a new breed
Been smoking’ only the best weed
Hangin’ out with the so-called “Hippie set.”
Seen in all the right places
Seen with just the right faces
You should be satisfied, but it ain’t quite right
[Chorus]
What is hip?
Tell me, tell me, if you think you know
What is hip?
If you’re hip
The question, “Will it show?”
You’re into a hip trip
Maybe hipper than hip
What is hip?
[Break]
Come on
[Refrain]
Hipness is. What it is
Hipness is. What it is
Hipness is. What it is
Sometimes hipness is, what it ain’t
You’re Still a Young Man, Baby
You’re still a young man
Baby, Oo oo, don’t waste your time
You’re still a young man
Baby, Oo oo, don’t waste your time
Down on my knees
Oh, heart in hand
I was accused of being too young
But I’m not so young
I could make you happy
I’m not a bad man
You’re too young to love (If you and I could be together)
You’re too young to love (I’ll never leave you alone baby)
You’re too young Ooo Ooo (No I won’t sweet lady)
Don’t waste your time
The damage is done
You see that you were wrong
You wake up wondering just
How well I’ve done
Well I’ve done alright
Yes there are some girls but you know
I dropped them on sight
Just for you
Because I love you
You’re still a young man
Baby, Oo oo, don’t waste your time
(Someday you’ll understand just what it means when a man
Comes to you with his little heart in his hands
Just to love you)
Don’t waste your time
You better listen to me
Sayin that I’m loving you yeah hey now baby tryin to tell
You that it’s you you you you you you you you talkin to you
Baby, I’ll never never never never I’ll never do you
No wrong no no lady if you would check my stuff out one time haha
Just to hold you, to squeeze you and all I wanna do is to
Get next to you and please please please you baby
See where I’m coming from!
Written by legendary sax players Emilio Castillo and Stephen Kupka, the song portrays a young man at the wrong end of a breakup. The situation is bleak because his lover pins the break-up on an age difference. In an interview with Songfacts Castillo said:
It’s based on a true story. I had a girlfriend that was six years older than me. I was 18, she was 24 and that’s actually what happened. She had kind of cut me loose because of the age difference thing and the whole plea in the story is the young guy’s saying, ‘I’m not too young, I’m not wasting my time and I do love you as a man can truly love a woman.’”
The song would go on to be the band’s first major hit defining their sound with a prominent horn section inspired by Curtis Mayfield:
“On that album, there’s a song called “A Woman’s Love” that starts with beautiful trumpets high. When we heard that we wanted to write a song with a great trumpet intro like that. – TowerofPower.com
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, we have our second two-for-Tuesday prompt.
For today’s prompt, we have our second two-for-Tuesday prompt, which means you get two prompts, and they are:
Write a form poem, and/or…
Write an anti-form poem.
I wrote the above “Ode to the Tower of Power” my favorite funk band.
How Will It End?
How will the madness end?
How will America wake up
From the madness all around us?
The former guy continues daily
Gaslighting the country
Beguiling us all
With his lies, his hatred
His evocation of fear
His calling for a civil war
Destruction and death
How will it end my friend?
That is anyone’s guess
But I doubt it will end
When the former guy
Meets his maker
For then, he will become
The martyr for his followers
Who believes he is the Messiah
perhaps he is just a con man
or maybe the antichrist
revelations warn us about
time will tell the tale
of how it will end
at the end of the Trump
will we find redemption?
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a Noun in a Location poem.
Small Things In Life Brings Great Pleasure
They say
That one should take
Pleasure in the small things in life
Things that matter
Like taking a walk
Enjoying the springtime
sunshine and flowers
With the love of your life
By your side
For today’s prompt, write a small poem. Yesterday, you were tasked with writing a smell poem, but today, we’re going small. The poem itself could be concise, but it could also be focused on something or someone small.
Many virtual connections, few real friends
In this hyper-connected era
Many people have thousands
Of virtual friends
But few have any real friends
Write a poem every day of April with the 2023 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt, write a connection poem.
Rule of Ten
The rule of ten
Applies to so many aspects
Of life
Writing
It goes like this
For every 100 people
Who wants to write a novel
Ten will finish it
Of those ten
Ten percent will publish it
Of those ten
Ten percent will
make some money
Of those ten
Ten percent
will make a living
Of those ten
Ten percent will
become a best-seller
In other words
In a land of 350 million people
There are probably only 3,500
bestselling authors
Drama
the rule of ten applies
to the drama world
only 2 percent
make a living
of the thousands of actors
only a few movie stars
music
of the thousands of musicians
only a few superstars
modeling
– only a few supermodels
to sports
only a few hundred NFL players
out of millions who played the game
to politics
only one president
out of thousands
who want to be
to Business
of the thousands
of busineses
only a few CEO’s
most small businesses
fail within one year
the rule of ten applies
to life in general
most people fail
in achieving their life goals
but one should not give up
because who knows
you could be the one
who wins in the end
despite the rule of ten.
Write a number poem
For today’s prompt, write a number poem. You can include a number in the title of the poem, or drop a number somewhere in the middle or end of the poem. Count sheep, a poem by numbers, or 10 ways to write a poem. There are several ways to come at this one.
Favorite Korean Food April 2023 Poems
Korean Food
I love Korean food
Fell in love with it
And all things Korean
Back in 1979
When I first went there
In the U.S. Peace Corps
Korean food is somewhat like
Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, and Thai
With some American influences as well
But it is all done
in a unique
Korean K Food style
Everything is cooked with special spices
A mixture of chili paste, garlic, fish sauce,
Onions, scallions, soy sauce,
salt, Tofu, Panjang sauce, and soju (liquor).
Often cooked with beef, chicken, clams, eggs, fish,
kimchi, intestines meat, mushrooms, mussels,
oysters and/or pork,
Every meal consists of rice, kimchi
(pickled vegetables usually cabbage)
The main entry is either beef, chicken, fish, or pork,
Rice
And multiple vegetable side dishes
Often Including western style salad
The entire meal
a feast for the eyes
Nose and mouth
with a delicious unique
aroma, fragrance,
Taste and texture
Uniquely Korean.
All washed down
with Korean beer, liquor (soju) or
rice wine or Western wine
My favorites include
Bulgogi chongsik (with all the side dishes) 불고기 총식
Kalbi chongsik (with all the side dishes) 칼비 총식
Calamari 오징어
Fried Chicken 닭 튀김
Chuncheon Chicken ribs 춘천 닭갈비
Dumplings 만두
Fried rice 볶음밥
High-rice카레라이스
Korean curry rice 카레라이스
Kimpop rice wrapped in seaweed 김팝
Korean soups 한국 수프
My favorite army stew 군대 스튜
Kalbitang (Beef rib soup) 칼비탕
Beef Turnip soup 쇠고기 순무 스프
Ginseng Chicken soup 인삼 치킨 수프
Kimchi stew 김치찌개
Tanjung stew 짱짱찌개
Bibimbap Mixed vegetables and rice with an egg on top비빔밥
Kalkooksu noodles 칼국수
Ramyeon 라면
Mushroom stew 버섯 스튜
Soondaeboo tofu stew 순대부두부찌개
Sashimi 생선회
Sushi
Dognas pork. Chicken of fish cutlet 돈까스
Fried mackerel 고등어 튀김
Octopus 낫지 often served live
Omrice korean omelet 오므라이스
Porridge 문어
Shrimp 새우
Write a smell poem
Movie Choices Writer’s Digest
Write a B movie poem
There are so many choices
To be made
When selecting a movie to watch
So many movies are B-1 minus
Barely worth finishing
Some are C
A few are D
And F movies
Just one example suffices
Ben and Willard
were the worst movies ever
It was an ode to rats
Who goes on a killing spree
As their master Willard
A deranged young man
Sends the rats out to kill
As one of Michael Jackson’s
The worst song
ever
plays in the background
April’s Fool Day Writer’s Digest
Write a foolish poem
On April Fool’s Day
It is appropriate
To think about
All the fake things around us
Especially deep fake videos
That are beginning
to circulate
All over the world
Unleashing a torrent
Of misinformation
Anticipation
Sam Adams
Got up early on a Sunday
Filled with anticipation
Today was the day
He would propose
To his dream girl
Whom he had met
Just days before
When she walked
Off a bus
Into his reality
He first met his wife
In a dream
He saw
the most beautiful woman
In the world
Talking to him
In a strange
Asian Language
He yelled out
“Who are you”
She faded away
As he fell to the ground
During a boring physics class
For eight long years
She haunted his dreams
Coming to him weekly
Then one day
He was teaching in Korea
When he had the last dream
She told him
“don’t worry, we’ll meet soon”
That night,
she walked off a bus
Out of his dreams
The following Sunday
After doing a long hike
He proposed to her
She said yes
Became his wife
Six weeks after
Entering his life.
best restaurants in Yeongjongdo restaurants near unseo station
Yongongdo, the island where the Incheon Airport is located has lots of things going on besides the airport. Here are some of my favorite spots. We have been living here off and on since 2016 and over time it has gotten a lot nicer a place to live. The traffic is not too bad, the air is the cleanest in the region and there are so many Restaurants from around the world walking distance from my house.
And Seoul is about an hour away by subway or driving.
Intro to the city (internet article)
Yeongjong International City Accelerating the Speed for Sustainable Growth
Yeongjong International City, (formerly called Airport New City) which is growing into a global tourism and leisure city with its amazing natural environment, is recently drawing attention with various pieces of good news. The development of international tourist attractions in relation to the Incheon International Airport has gone into full swing, starting with the existing large-scale resort complex projects. At the same time, the infrastructure for the convenience of the citizens and visitors is also being rapidly built.
Han sang Dream Island
– Location: Jungian-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon Metropolitan City
– Site : 3.32 million ㎡
– Investment Amount: KRW 2.0321 trillion from the private sector
– Completion: 2022 (Scheduled)
– Details: waterpark, aquarium, luxury hotel, shopping mall, education and research facilities, and theme park
Groundbreaking Ceremony for Han sang Dream Island Held
On June 24, the groundbreaking ceremony for Han sang Dream Island was held at Lotte Hotel Seoul. More than 200 participants attended the ceremony, including the IFEZ General Director Yoo Byeong-Yoon, Chairman Kim Hee-choul and Vice Chairman Jo Guang-hui of Industry and Economy Committee of Incheon Metropolitan Council, and businessmen and investors from home and abroad. The ceremony was followed by the groundbreaking celebrating luncheon at Gyeongwonjae Ambassador Incheon in Songdo International City, attended by Deputy Mayor for Economic Policy of Incheon Metropolitan City Heo Jong-sik, the World Federation of Korean Association of Commerce, and the project implementers.
The Hansang Dream Island project involves a large-scale capital investment into the site and building construction. Therefore, the critical success factor is to secure the capital from the private sector for investment. Against this backdrop, the investment seminar for invited investors was also held on the groundbreaking ceremony day.
The Hansang Dream Island is a project to develop international marine tourism spots in the large area formed by the reclamation of soil dredged from the sea to maintain the sea level of Incheon Port. In the 3.32 million ㎡ site, an area 1.1 times Yeouido, the capital from the private sector, KRW 2.0321 trillion will be invested by 2022 and a waterpark, aquarium, luxury hotel, shopping mall, education and research facilities, and a theme park will be established.
The IFEZ expects that the establishment of the Hansang Dream Island will trigger production worth approximately KRW 15 trillion and creation of 18,000 jobs, contributing to the vitalization of local economy. At the same time, it is expected that the construction will contribute to the job creation of Incheon area, increase in tax revenue, attraction of foreign investment, and expansion of attracting tourists.
Development Project
for Yongyu·Muui,
Yeongjong International City
Yongyu Ocean View
Location: San 70-1 Eurwang-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon, Korea
Project Expenses: KRW 264.8 billion
Details: hotel, condominium, park, etc.
Completion: 2020 (scheduled)
Muui Solaire Resort Complex
Location: Muuido and Silmido, Jung-gu, Incheon, Korea
Project Expenses: KRW 1.5 trillion
Details: hotel, waterpark, ocean theme park
Completion: 2022 (scheduled)
Muui LK
Location: San 349, Muui-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon, Korea
Project Expenses: KRW 190 billion
Details: private villas, convention hall, condominium, etc.
Completion: 2020 (scheduled)
Eurwangsan Mountain IFUS Hill
Location: 77-4, Eurwang-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon, Korea
Project Expenses: KRW 230 billion
Details: Korean-style Hollywood theme park
Completion: 2024 (scheduled)
Paradise City
Building Tourism Hub in Northeast Asia by Clustering Complex Resorts
comment: Prior to COVID this casino next to the airport seemed to be filled with Chinese tourists gambling away their down time in between flights. I triedto enter but was turned down because their rules required showing a passport and they refused to honor the ARC in lieu of a passport which I did not have on me. Left a bad image in my mind. I had a similar experience earlier in Seoul where the casino at the COEX refused to accept military ID or ARC due to their stupid adherence to only acepting a passport. Stupid policy in my mind. End Comment
Construction has started for large-scale clustered resorts with a casino, shopping mall, and convention facilities in Yeongjong International City, according to schedule. The city is now ambitiously working to realize its vision to become an international tourist destination, as popular as Singapore, Macao, and Las Vegas.
Paradise City, an integrated resort opened in 2017, will expand its accommodation facilities, exhibition halls and theaters by 2022, investing an additional KRW 500 billion. The resort currently has 711 guest rooms in luxurious condition, convention facilities, and a casino. Approximately 2.5 million visitors have come to Paradise City as of July 2019.
Inspire Integrated Resort Project,
comment:
way behind schedule due to COVID and the collapse of the international travel market. I wonder if they will be successful being a foreigner only casino. Construction is coming along, will probably open on time now scheduled for early 2022. I think the next government will have to relax the rules and allow limited access to Korean gamblers – maybe once or twice a month to start? End comment.
the largest project in Korea, is also attracting intensive attention. Inspire, the project owner, will invest approximately KRW 1.8 trillion for the 1st phase to establish three hotel buildings (1,256 rooms), Inspire Dome, an arena, and shopping malls to open. Then, KRW 6 trillion in total will be invested to develop a 6-star hotel, a theater, and a casino for foreigners in the site of 4.37 million ㎡.
In Midan City, the 2nd phase development for Caesars Korea (high-rise residential and office-tel building) has passed the first stage of licensing, the landscape deliberation, with conditions, driving momentum for project implementation. With the implementation, a housing facility for 1,098 households and an arcade in the scale of 4 basement floors and 33 ground floors will be built in Midan City.
When these integrated resorts of Caesars Korea and Inspire are respectively opened three integrated casino resorts, including Paradise City, will be established in Yeongjong International City, creating more than 20,000 new jobs. The city is expected to become the largest integrated resort city in Northeast Asia.
Inspire Integrated Resort
Caesars Korea Integrated Resort
MOU Signed for On-demand Public Transportation in
Yeongjong International City
comment: yet to try it but they seem to becoming popular.
Incheon Metropolitan City and Hyundai Motors consortium signed an MOU for on-demand public transportation in Yeongjong International City on June 21. Based on this, the Hyundai Motors will introduce the MoD service that operates vehicles according to the demand of passengers, based on the cutting-edge AI, in collaboration with Hyundai AutoEver to dramatically increase the efficiency in system operation.
The MoD service is an innovative mobility service with an algorithm that calculates the optimal path and vehicle arrangement by the entering the points of departure and destination via a smartphone application, enabling a vehicle to be arranged to the nearest bus stop. This will dramatically decrease the waiting time of users.
In addition, a hospital-level medical institute opened in Yeongjong International City to meet the increasing demand for medical services. On July 15, in Jungsan-dong of Yeongjong International City, Yeongjong International Hospital of Sungse Medical Foundation was opened. Yeongjong International Hospital has a 37-bed ward, internal medicine, orthopedics, neurosurgery, pediatrics, radiology, outpatients clinic, surgery room, rehabilitation center, and endoscopy center.
At present, Yeongjong International City has clinics, dentist clinics, oriental medicine clinics (48 in total), and one nursing hospital. Yeongjong International Hospital is the first hospital-level medical institute with 30 to 100 beds, in Yeongjong International City. The IFEZ expects that the opening of Yeongjong International Hospital will be the beginning of quality medical service for the citizens of Yeongjong International City who had undergone inconveniences in medical service. In addition, the IFEZ plans to make diversified efforts to attract a general hospital in Yeongjong International City.
Yeongjong International Hospital, the First Hospital-level Medical Institute in Yeongjong International City
comment: yet to visit, might in the future as it is easier to get to than going to Seoul National hospital or the 121 hospital down at Camp Humphreys.
A hospital-level medical institute opened in Yeongjong International City. This will upgrade the quality of medical service in the region.
Restaurants
There are six restaurant districts on the island. Most are located either in Yeongjongdo International City (formerly called Airport New City) where I live, along a new Café Street in Yeongjongdo International city, in Sky City, near the beaches or near the airport.
There are a number of resturants across the street from the Unseo railroad station, on both sides of the station, many are in the Howard Johnson building or near by.
on street outside Howard Johnson. Several other coffee shops provide good breakfasts and coffee. there is also a waffle place and and baskin robbins ice cream on the same street, and an burger joint. there is also a 24/7 vending self service cafe across the street. Joe ‘s sandwich is down the street but I was underwherelmed.
60, Gonghang-ro 424beon-gil, Jung-gu IBC Dawoo Sky World #110
one of the two expat bars in town. the other, the Cinder bar, is also located near the airport as well as in Songdo which has a number of expat western hangouts.
The megamax theater has a decent buffet restaurant. There are a few other decent buffet resturants near by.
Café street – located on the left side of the road across the station have number of new trendy resturants and cafes.
Park Terrace
Located in the newly developing café street is a decent western style restaurant.
Mushroom stew restaurant
There is a decent restaurant in Café street that specializes in Mushroom dishes.
Sushi/sashimi joints
The island is famous for seafood and there are sashimi and sushi restaurants near Unseo station, and near the beaches.
Vietnamese restaurants
There are number of Vietnamese restaurants near Unseo Station and in Sky city.
Burger resturants
There are number of burger joints near Unseo station, café street and Sky city. There is a Burger King in Sky City, and a Mc Donald’s.
Costco is located in Songdo International city, about ten miles from Howard Johnson.
Lotte Supermarket and Power Mart are the biggest groceries both located near Unseo station and in Sky city.
Paris Bagatelle has a number of restaurants on the island.
Kalbi and Bulgogi restaurants are all over the island. Gokiro in Howard Johnson is our favorite.
Gimpop restaurants are everywhere as well. Sooyori is the best one, not too far from the Howard Johnson.
24/7 restaurants
Pre-covid there were a lot of 24/7 restaurants. There are a few still open and one presume they will gradually re-open as the pandemic eases. right now everything has to close by 10 pm.
Airport restaurants – there are a number pre-security as well as post security. The usual mixture of western and Korean style places.
Coffee shops are of course everywhere. Starbucks has a number of outlets including one across from Unseo Station.
Chicken restaurants are also everywhere. Our favorite is Pradak chicken located near Starbucks. They all deliver.
The End
Beaches
Explore the Hidden Spots in Yeongjongdo Island
by Trazy.com
Yeongjongdo Island is an island at the west coast of Incheon, and it is concentrated with airport logistics, travel, and tourism. Although it’s not a widely known tourist destination, there are many hidden spots where you can have a wonderful time with your family and friends!
Now, let’s dive into the hidden must-visit spots of Yeongjongdo Island!
Masian Beach
Masian Beach is located near Incheon International Airport, and it is where you can fall in love with the beautiful West Sea! This beach is unique in that you can experience both wetland and sandy beach at the same time. From Masian Beach, you can see Silmido Island, which was the filming location of the famous fact-based Korean movie ‘Silmido (2003)’. Walking along Masian beach will make you feel relaxed and peaceful.
Masian Bakery
Address: 155 Masiran-ro, Jung-gu, Incheon
Opening Hours: Everyday 10:30am~21:00pm (Break Time 14:00pm~17:00pm)
Opening hours are subject to change.
One of the must-dos at Masian Beach is to stop by Masian Bakery and enjoy the incredible ocean view at the cafe. Masian Bakery is popular for its delicious delicacies, and it has the wonderful spot where you can appreciate the best sunset view. There is also a photo zone where you can take a picture of the sign ‘I ♡ Masian’ just like ‘I ♡ New York’!
Incheon Bridge is the longest bridge in Korea at 21.38km that connects Songdo International Business District and the Incheon International Airport. It’s a perfect place to fall in love with spectacular ocean scenery and you can see the beautiful dazzling lights at night. The light color changes every season and turns into a special color on special days, such as Valentine’s Day (Pink), Thanksgiving Day (Orange), and Christmas (Red, Pink, Green).
If you want to get to know more about Incheon Bridge, stop by Incheon Bridge Exhibition Center that displays the consturction process of this beautiful bridge. On the 4th floor, there is Incheon Bridge Observatory, where you can appreciate the stunning view of the bridge.
Simply book hassle-free 1 day tour from Seoul to fully enjoy Yeongjongdo Island in a day. Round-trip transportation, English-speaking staff, entrance to Incheon Bridge Exhibition Center, and 1 drink at Maisan Bakery are all included!
[Photo Credits]
– Incheon Tourism Organization Official Website
– Masian Bakery Official Instagram
There are three beaches on Yongchongdo. Eurwangi, Maisan and Wangsan beaches. You can get to the beaches from the airport via the Maglev train getting off at Youngju station – the ARA train runs there on the weekends and holidays. These are the closest beaches to both Seoul and Incheon and are quite crowded during the summer season and weekends all year long. There are lots of good seafood restaurants near the beaches and plenty of places to stay.
Eurwangni Beach (을왕리해수욕장)
15, Eurwang-ro 13beon-gil, Jung-gu, Incheon
인천광역시 중구 을왕로13번길 15 (을왕동)
From the airport, take bus 302 or 306 Gate 2A (1F) and get off at Eurwangi Beach, the bus goes to the rest of the beaches as well. There are also buses from Unseo station as well.
Muido, So Muido and Silmido are islands near to Yongchongdo. You can get to the islands by taking a bus from the airport, or from the Yongju maglev stop. The Airport railroad goes to Youngju on weekends and holidays.
There are hotels and Korean style resorts near bridge and at the beach, there are huts for rent. There are restaurants near the ferry terminal and at the beach, but the selection is limited to Korean seafood.
When you enter the island there is a trailhead that takes you to the top of island – and you can walk the entire island in about four hours. The trail is very pretty and not too steep.
Near the bridge to the island is a Korean tourism information stand. The people there are very helpful, speak good English and have lots of maps and guides in English and can also tell you about the ferries to the other islands. Well worth a stop. You should stock up on tourism information here if you are going to the outer islands as once you get there is very little English language signage or English speakers on the islands. They are open until 6 pm most days.
Address
310-11, Daemuui-ro, Jung-gu, Incheon
인천광역시 중구 대무의로 310-11 (무의동)
Type
Seasides/ Beaches/ Islands
Inquiries
1330 Travel Hotline: +82-2-1330
(Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese)
For more info: +82-32-760-7114
Information
Introduction
Muuido Island is located in Jung-gu, Incheon which is not far from the mainland but is only accessible by ferry. Nearby are two smaller islands, Silmido Island and Somuuido Island. In olden times, small boats were used to go from Muuido Island to Somuuido Island but the two islands are currently connected by a bridge so visitors can reach Somuuido after a 10-15 minute walk. Muuido Village Bus (maeul bus; 마을버스) takes people from Keunmuri Dock (큰무리선착장) to Gwangmyeonghang Port (광명항). To enjoy the beauty of Somuuido Island fully, Muuibadanuri-gil 8 Course is a must-visit path, taking around 1 hour and giving stunning views of the East Sea vista. Two beaches, Hanagae Beach and Silmi Beach are famous beaches in Muuido Island. One interesting thing in Silmi Beach is that people can walk to Silmido Island at low tide. Hiking up Horyonggoksan Mountain (호룡곡산) and Guksabong Peak is also available on Hanagae Island.
The trail head to Horyonggoksan Mountain (호룡곡산) and Guksabong Peak can be found at bridge entrance to the island and also near So Muido and at Hangagae beach as well. The round trip takes about three hours, and the trail is well marked but only in Korean. Go up the stairs and at the top turn right to access the main trail head.
So Muido is a nice spot for a walk as well. Take the bus to the end of the island and walk across. There are places to stop and eat in So Muido. The walk to the top of the mountain is a nice walk takes about an half an hour to reach the top. There is a private beach on the way back to town.
Silmido
Silmido island is the site of a secret military base where they trained commandos going undercover into North Korea. They closed the base in the 80’s and a Korean K drama was filmed at the island. The island has a resort where one can stay but there are not much there not even restaurants. Still the beach is nice but a bit deserted. You can walk across to Silmido at low tide, at high tide it becomes a separate island.
Shindo, Modo and Jangbo islands
신도, 모토, 장보도
sindo, moto, jang bodo
Shindo, Modo and Jangbo Islands located near Incheon International Airport are great places to get away from Seoul or Incheon for that matter. These three islands are near Yongchongdo. You need to take a ferry to reach them. The ferry ride to Jangbo the biggest of the islands takes about an hour. The ferry runs every hour on the hour the last ferry back leaves about 6 pm. You can catch the ferry at Sammok quay.
삼목 부두
sammog budu
There are buses from the airport and from Unseo station to the ferry terminal.
Modo island is connected to Shindo island. You can easily walk around both Modo and Shindo in an hour or two. There are places to eat and spend the night, but Jangbo island is the biggest of the three and has the best facilities, beaches, restaurants, and walking biking trails.
Jangbo Island
The island is located one hour and 40 minutes from Seoul. To get there take airport express train from Seoul Station and get off at Unseo station and then transfer to a bus going to Sammok wharf in Yeongjong Island, Incheon. The ferry from there takes 40 minutes. The last ferry back leaves at 6 pm. There are plenty of places to stay near the beaches which are a short walk from the ferry terminal. This is also a popular place to camp as there are camping grounds near the ferry terminal. There is a mountain hiking trail that follows the ridge line all over the island and is a great hike. If you go to Jangbong island, it is worth stopping off at Shindo and Modo islands first and take a walk. A number of K dramas have been filmed on these islands.
More info from Visit Incheon web page follows:
Coastal Trail connecting Sindo Island, Sido Island and Modo Islands
Come to the triplet islands and have a bike tour around them for a fantastic ride along the shoreline. The triplet islands are very well known as one of the best spots in Korea for a bike tour. Come down to the Sinsimodo Islands for a safe and pleasant bicycle touring. Take a boat at Sammok Quay in Yeongjongdo Island. You will get to Sindo Island Quay in about 10 minutes. The three islands of Sindo Island, Sido Island and Modo Island are all connected by bridges, so you can tour all of them in a day. You can rent a bike on the island. There are only a few cars on the road, thus the island is recognized as one of the best places for bike riders.
Sindo Island Pureun Beonmal, a designated traditional agricultural village
The name Sindo Island (literally “the island of trust”) has come from the fact that its residents are conscientious and innocent. It is in this context that the salt produced in the island is called jinyeom (literally “genuine salt”). As the island have mud flats, salt evaporation ponds, and rice paddies, visitors can enjoy everything they can expect from the country’s rural area in Sindo Island Pureun Beotmal designated by the government as a traditional agricultural village.
Sinsido Island Yeondogyo Bridge
Sindo Island is connected to Sido Island by a bridge. The name of Sido Island has come from the legend that troops of the Joseon Dynasty practiced archery in Manisan Mountain with targets set in Sido Island (“an arrow island”). The island is also called “Salseom (‘sal’ also means an arrow in Korean).” Given the actual distance between the two locations, the story is hardly credible, but the idea is intriguing enough. Sido Island has been filming locations for popular TV dramas such as “Full House” and “Sad Love Story” because of the harmony between its slow slope hills and the sea.
Sugi Beach, the filming location of ‘Full House’
Sugi Beach in Sido Island was the filming location for the popular TV series called ‘Full House.’ You can see a few islands in the distance. The beach is covered with quality and beautiful white sands. Main characters in the TV drama series often spent time together here. Who would not have fallen in love with each other in such a beautiful environment?
Simodo Island Yeondogyo Bridge
Sido Island and Modo Island are connected by a bridge. Believe it or not, you can get to a totally different island in just a few minutes. The name Modo Island comes from the word ttiyeom (‘tti’ refers to King cogongrass). The legend says that fishermen in the region once complained that his fish net only had grass instead of fish. ‘Mo’ in Modo Island means ‘grass’ in Chinese.
Baemikkumi Sculpture Park
Baemikkumi Sculpture Park is located on Baemikkumi Beach in Modo Island. The ‘Baemikkumi’ (the local dialect meaning a hole in the bottom of a ship) has come from the fact the beach is as flat as the bottom of a ship. The beach is also famous for a sculpture park featuring a number of surreal erotic sculptures. Blue water, white sand, and dreamlike sculptures blend well with one another. The sculpture park has become a reason to many for a visit to Modo Island.
The Sinsimodo Islands, a paradise for bike enthusiasts
Together, the Sinsimodo Islands are small but pretty places to visit. Most notably, as they are connected, the Sinsimodo Islands will sustain the fame of a paradise for bikers in the West Sea for a long time to come.
Wolmido Island (월미도), located roughly 1km off the coast of Incheon, has since become part of the mainland with the creation of a new highway. The name Wolmido Island comes from the shape of the island as it resembles the tail of a half moon. Thanks to its location near Seoul and the convenient transportation, many people visit here during weekends.
The Culture Street starts with Doodle Pillar, and continues onward to Meeting Square, Arts Square, Performance Square, Good Harvest Square, and several other notable highlights. Throughout these areas, spontaneous performances are performed, and street artists can draw for you on the spot. Moreover, many cafes and seafood restaurants are lined along the coast so you can enjoy coffee or fresh seafood while viewing the sea.
A must-see attraction on Wolmido Island is “Play Hill.” It’s not as large as other theme parks in Korea, but the Apollo Disco and the Viking rides are truly thrilling. If you’re not into rides, the Apollo Disco ride is still fun just watching. You can also get on a cruise to look around the island.
Comment: this is of course the location of the most famous battle during the Korean war.
The island has a large park that had been a Korean military base and was only opened to the public since the turn of the century. The Park is worth a long walk. The views are spectacular from the top.
The amusement park is a bit hooky in my opinion, but still worth a stop and a photo. The waterfront is nice to stroll along but the restaurants there are way overpriced.
Jayu freedom park is near Wolmido and features a giant statue of General Mc Arthur and is also worth a visit.
There is a club that has Halloween decoration all year long and that is worth a picture. There are also statues and public art everywhere. And of course, coffee shops, beer pubs etc.
About 100 US dollars per person for a sashimi dinner with drinks. The best sea food restaurants are a few blocks away from the waterfront area, and dinner for two will set you back about 40 dollars including soju.
The Korean government opened a maglev train around Wolmido for the Asian games. But after the games ended the maglev train was disconnected. In my opinion they missed an opportunity and should have extended it to Songdo and the airport as getting to Songdo from the airport is a big of a long subway ride.
Finally, Wolmido has a Korean tourism information stand. The people there are very helpful, speak good English and have lots of maps and guides in English and can also tell you about the ferries to the other islands. Well worth a stop. They are open until 6 pm most days.
To reach Wolmido, get off at the Incheon station on the Seoul-Incheon subway line. Take a bus to Wolmido or a taxi. It is not far from the station. Another fun way to get there is to take the ferry from Yongchongdo (airport island). The ferry runs every 30 minutes and is a five minute ferry ride. The last ferry is at 6:00 pm.
Gerang Mountain in Incheon (계양상)
This mountain is the biggest mountain in Incheon but hiking up to the top is not too difficult. Takes about one to two hours to reach the top and back down. There are lots of side trails as well. The spring and fall colors are magnificent. Lots of nice wildflowers as well. The mountain links to several other mountains in central Incheon. There is a nice old fortress at the top of the mountain. There are plenty of Korean restaurants at the bottom of the mountain.
The closest subway to Gyeansan (giei_iaŋ_saŋ) is Gyeyang subway on the Incheon subway line 1. You can transfer from the Airport express railroad coming from the airport or from downtown Seoul.
*
Introduction of Mt. Gyeyang
With its altitude of 395m, Mt. Gyeyang is the guardian and holy mountain that represents Incheon. From the beginning of B.C. to the end of the 19th century, the city of Gyeyang was moved from the south of Gohyeon-eup in the Three Kingdoms Period having Mt. Gyeyang at the center and then to the northern and eastern direction. Until its transfer to the southern direction in Bupyeong-dohobueup during the Joseon Period, the city was developed through the capital transfer that was conducted for 6 times. At the peak of the eastern ridge in Mt. Gyeyang, there is Gyeyang Mountain Fortress that was built during the Three Kingdoms Period. Also in the south, Jungsimseong Castle, which was constructed in the 20th year of King Gojong (1883) with the participation of the residents in Bupyeong Village in preparation for defending the coast, is stretched along the ridge of Jingmaei Hill. According to the change of the place name, Mt. Gyeyang was called as Sujuak in Suju of the Goryeo Period and Mt. Annam during Annam-Dohobu. Since the period when this mountain was called as Mt. Gyeyang in the period of Gyeyang-dohobu, it has been called by its present name. This mountain was once called as Mt. Anam and Mt. Gyeongmyeong.
The name of Mt. Gyeyang was originated from the naturally grown Japanese Judas-tree and Korean box trees. Mt. Gyeyang was selected as the first urban natural park of Incheon city on Jan. 8, 1944 (Gyeyang Park) and since then, it became the No. 1 Municipal Park.
88, Gyesansae-ro, Gyeyang-gu, Incheon, 21067, Rep. of KOREA 82-32-551-5701
Copyright ⓒ 2015 Gyeyang Incheon. All Right Reserved.
Office of Gyeyang-Gu Page – Includes information on hiking trails as well as travel advice in English
Sorae Pogu
111-200, Nonhyeon-dong, Namdong-gu, Incheon, South Korea
This is the second largest seafood market in Incheon and specializes in crab, lobster, octopus, and shellfish freshly harvested from the nearby harbor. The boats come back laden with fresh seafood early in the morning. The place is happening all day long. You can buy your food at the market and then take it to nearby restaurants where they will prepare it for you and sell you soju and beer to wash it down. A very Korean experience!
More info on the port from Visit Incheon web site
Incheon Port was opened to the international community in 1883 through which western civilization came. Sorae Port has served as an important fish market for the Incheon region for more than 60 years after a small-scale fish market was formed in the wake of the Korean War (1950-1953) as war refugees caught shrimps and sold salted shrimps in an open market. Now the fish market at the port is across a railway bridge which has been remodeled as a pedestrian-exclusive bridge.
The market is particularly famous for shrimp, salted fish and blue crabs. In addition to such fresh seafood, you can enjoy fish stand owners’ generosity and seagulls flying overfishing boats and the fish market against a blue sky. The port plays host to festivals of fleshy prawn and blue crabs, whose freshness and taste are recognized nationally, attracting crowds of people from various areas of the country. Come to Sorae Port to smell the sea and feel the sky while touring a dynamic fish market and enjoying fresh seafood of your choice.
Yeonan Pier Yeonan Pier is home to various important facilities such passenger terminals, Marine Square, the Fish Market Complex, the Raw Fish Restaurant Street, the Seawater Bath Street, Cruise Port, and Namhang Wharf. It is a popular weekend getaway place not only for residents of Incheon but also for tourists from other areas of Korea. For instance, the Fish Market Complex which more than 500 stores call home attracts a crowd of people wanting to buy a variety of fresh and salted fishery goods. The Raw Fish Restaurant Street is home to large-scale raw fish restaurant towns like the Raw Fish Department Store run by Incheon Fisheries Cooperative Association and the Yeonan Raw Fish Plaza. Visitors can enjoy diverse seafood dishes at affordable prices.
Yeonan Pier is also known for blue crabs. Female crabs are popular in spring while male crabs are delicious in autumn. Most notably, blue crabs caught around Yeonpyeongdo Island are highly regarded for the eggs and meat filling the shells completely.
This mountain is the biggest mountain in Incheon but hiking up to the top is not too difficult. Takes about one to two hours to reach the top and back down. There are lots of side trails as well. The spring and fall colors are magnificent. Lots of nice wildflowers as well. The mountain links to several other mountains in central Incheon. There is a nice old fortress at the top of the mountain. There are plenty of Korean restaurants at the bottom of the mountain.
The closest subway to Gyeansan (giei_iaŋ_saŋ) is Gyeyang subway on the Incheon subway line 1. You can transfer from the Airport express railroad coming from the airport or from downtown Seoul.
*
Introduction of Mt. Gyeyang
With its altitude of 395m, Mt. Gyeyang is the guardian and holy mountain that represents Incheon. From the beginning of B.C. to the end of the 19th century, the city of Gyeyang was moved from the south of Gohyeon-eup in the Three Kingdoms Period having Mt. Gyeyang at the center and then to the northern and eastern direction. Until its transfer to the southern direction in Bupyeong-dohobueup during the Joseon Period, the city was developed through the capital transfer that was conducted for 6 times. At the peak of the eastern ridge in Mt. Gyeyang, there is Gyeyang Mountain Fortress that was built during the Three Kingdoms Period. Also in the south, Jungsimseong Castle, which was constructed in the 20th year of King Gojong (1883) with the participation of the residents in Bupyeong Village in preparation for defending the coast, is stretched along the ridge of Jingmaei Hill. According to the change of the place name, Mt. Gyeyang was called as Sujuak in Suju of the Goryeo Period and Mt. Annam during Annam-Dohobu. Since the period when this mountain was called as Mt. Gyeyang in the period of Gyeyang-dohobu, it has been called by its present name. This mountain was once called as Mt. Anam and Mt. Gyeongmyeong.
The name of Mt. Gyeyang was originated from the naturally grown Japanese Judas-tree and Korean box trees. Mt. Gyeyang was selected as the first urban natural park of Incheon city on Jan. 8, 1944 (Gyeyang Park) and since then, it became the No. 1 Municipal Park.
88, Gyesansae-ro, Gyeyang-gu, Incheon, 21067, Rep. of KOREA 82-32-551-5701
Copyright ⓒ 2015 Gyeyang Incheon. All Right Reserved.
Office of Gyeyang-Gu Page – Includes information on hiking trails as well as travel advice in English
Sorae Pogu
200, Nonhyeon-dong, Namdong-gu, Incheon, South Korea
This is the second largest seafood market in Incheon and specializes in crab, lobster, octopus, and shellfish freshly harvested from the nearby harbor. The boats come back laden with fresh seafood early in the morning. The place is happening all day long. You can buy your food at the market and then take it to nearby restaurants where they will prepare it for you and sell you soju and beer to wash it down. A very Korean experience!
More info on the port from Visit Incheon web site
Incheon Port was opened to the international community in 1883 through which western civilization came. Sorae Port has served as an important fish market for the Incheon region for more than 60 years after a small-scale fish market was formed in the wake of the Korean War (1950-1953) as war refugees caught shrimps and sold salted shrimps in an open market. Now the fish market at the port is across a railway bridge which has been remodeled as a pedestrian-exclusive bridge.
The market is particularly famous for shrimps, salted fish and blue crabs. In addition to such fresh seafood, you can enjoy fish stand owners’ generosity and seagulls flying overfishing boats and the fish market against a blue sky. The port plays host to festivals of fleshy prawn and blue crabs, whose freshness and taste are recognized nationally, attracting crowds of people from various areas of the country. Come to Sorae Port to smell the sea and feel the sky while touring a dynamic fish market and enjoying fresh seafood of your choice.
Yeonan Pier Yeonan Pier is home to various important facilities such passenger terminals, Marine Square, the Fish Market Complex, the Raw Fish Restaurant Street, the Seawater Bath Street, Cruise Port, and Namhang Wharf. It is a popular weekend getaway place not only for residents of Incheon but also for tourists from other areas of Korea. For instance, the Fish Market Complex which more than 500 stores call home attracts a crowd of people wanting to buy a variety of fresh and salted fishery goods. The Raw Fish Restaurant Street is home to large-scale raw fish restaurant towns like the Raw Fish Department Store run by Incheon Fisheries Cooperative Association and the Yeonan Raw Fish Plaza. Visitors can enjoy diverse seafood dishes at affordable prices.
Yeonan Pier is also known for blue crabs. Female crabs are popular in spring while male crabs are delicious in autumn. Most notably, blue crabs caught around Yeonpyeongdo Island are highly regarded for the eggs and meat filling the shells completely.
May 16, 2021 · 22 reviews #6 of 2,726 Restaurants in Incheon $$ – $$$ Bar Pizza Pub 166, Yeongjong-daero, Jung-gu #214, Incheon 22376 South Korea +82 70-4201-9970 Website Menu Closed now : See all hours
Aug 10, 2019 · 11 reviews #2,337 of 2,725 Restaurants in Incheon. 380, Yongyuseo-Ro, Incheon South Korea + Add phone number + Add website + Add hours. All photos (9) All photos (9) There aren’t enough food, service, value or atmosphere ratings for Cafe Ora, South Korea yet. Be one of the first to write a review!
Here are some of my political poems from the last couple of months. I don’t expect everyone to agree, but I welcome feedback and comments as long as it is civil. I have given up on Quora, Facebook, and Twitter where the extremists have hijacked the site drowning out civil discourse in the process.
The mid-terms were a victory for common sense as most of the MAGA extremists were defeated, and the Senate remains in Democratic hands, meaning that they can continue to act as a check on the right-wing dominated house. The red wave never materialized. Most of the extremists were defeated.
My prediction is that the Senate would remain democrat and that the house would under by the Republicans albeit with a narrow minority, largely due to gerrymandering and voter suppression efforts,,
Slime Oozing Out of a TV
Patriot Games
Watching the news
Morning Blues
Naani Morning Blues
In the Year 2022, Madness Took Over
America
Con Artists
Truth and Lies Diamante
water
America divided into tribal divisions
Arrested for feeding the homeless
Elections Bringing Back the People
Election Cinquin
Dark Money Tiger
Democracy on Trial Acrostic
Democracy Kyrielle
Democracy Minute
First and Last Dark Money
The Rot Starts at the Top
Cancel Culture Run Am
Senator Johnson Banned on YouTube for Spreading Lies Found Poem
Enough of Your Useless Prayers
Driving our Politics is Fear
No Mas Excuses, America
Ode to our Firefighter Heroes
Global Emergency
Please America Get Vaccinated
Political ghosts haunt my dreams –
Letter to Republican leaders, to be sent will update if I get any responses
Dear Republican leaders
WTF is wrong with you?
The mid-terms were all about
Rejecting extremism
And demanding that politicians
Just do their job
And get stuff done
For the American people
So, what are your plans?
Addressing climate change?
Addressing crime?
Banning assault weapons?
Protecting gay rights?
Protecting abortion rights?
Addressing extreme inequality?
Making college more affordable?
All of which are very popular
With the American public
Nope
Your number one goal
Investigate Hunter Biden’s crimes
While ignoring the nepotism
And the crimes of the Trump clan?
Yes, the Hunter Biden laptop
That somehow magically was delivered
To a Delaware repair shop
Run by a blind man
Rather than fixing the laptop
Called Ruddy G and delivered it to him
He kept it and then gave it to the FBI
Three years later
Have found zip nada nothing
The most one can say
Is there some possibility
Incriminating e-mails
But given the breakdown
In the chain of custody
And the deep fake technology
Nothing on that Laptop
Proves anything
Oh, and impeaching President Biden
For the crime of being a democrat
And threatening to shut down the government,
and threatening to default on the United States government’s sovereign debt
Unless social security, Medicare and Obama care
Is cut to the bone, throwing millions of people
especially senior citizens into poverty.
Go ahead
And make my day
For if you do all of this
And do nothing at all
To address the country’s problems
There will be a blue wave
In 2024
The voters are sick and tired
Of the Republican Chaos brand.
The rest follows:
Slime Oozing Out of a TV
I drink coffee
Every morning
Watching the news
Until my eyeballs hurt
And I can’t stand it
Anymore
Wanting to shoot the TV
To put it out of its misery
As I think about that
The old Zappa
the song comes to mind
“I am the slime
Oozing out of the TV set
Can’t look away
Don’t change the dial
Folks look at me go
I am the slime
Oozing out of the TV Set.”
Patriot Games
Supporters of US President Donald Trump enter the US Capitol as tear gas fills the corridor on January 6, 2021, in Washington, DC. – Demonstrators breeched security and entered the Capitol as Congress debated the a 2020 presidential election Electoral Vote Certification. (Photo by Saul LOEB / AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
The right-wing spin masters are at it again
Turning the greatest assault on American democracy
The storming of the capital on January 6
By an angry mob into a patriotic uprising
Against a communist dictatorship In the making
Fighting to restore traditional Judeo-Christian values
Led by false Christian prophets celebrating
The rise of Christian fascism in America
Calling the angry mob Patriots Is an affront
To the real patriots
Our grandparents fought world war
Against the Nazis and were the original Antifa
Fox News is now hosting Tucker’s ‘broadcast
Siding with neo-fascist autocrats
In Hungary, their newfound best friend
Who is proudly instigating a neo-fascist
Illiberal democratic state
Shades of other right-wing autocrats
That the right love to support
Even celebrating the military coup
Myanmar saying there is no reason
That could not happen here
The twice impeached former president
Siding with the enemies of democracy
Doing Putin’s bidding killing Democracy to save it.
As our democracy lies dying as we speak
The mobs are braying to take our country back.
Make America great and white again
Soon we will have the proud boys,
oath keepers, Bugaloo bois, and others
Marching in the streets under Nazi and confederate banners
Cheering their great leader as he storms back into power.
God save America
If he/she still cares?
Watching the news
while watching the news
gloom and doom gives the blues
not a good morning
soon I will blow my fuse
Just a bad morning
filled with forewarning
soon I must drink wine
ending with warnings
drinking my red wine
makes everything seem fine
looking at my lovely wife
I sit and admire what is mine
Morning Blues
Watching the morning news
Nothing but gloom and doom
Just no more rules
Gives me the blues
Naani Morning Blues
My day starts with coffee
watching the idiot box
soon it is too much to bear
it gives me the blues
In the Year 2022, Madness Took Over
I often thought back
In the Trumpian years
As an aberration
That Americans would wake up
And realize that they had been conned
That Conman Don
Was not their friend
That the republicans
If they could turn
Social security and Medicare
To the private sector
Enriching wall street
While screwing everyone else
Laughing at the fools
Who believed that they care
About them at all.
Then 2022 midterms approached
And the airwaves and internet
Were filled with the vilest conspiracy theories
So many people believed the Q nonsense
That there was a secret cabal
Of cannibals child molesting pedophiles
Drinking children’s blood in Satanic rituals
Led by shape-shifting aliens.
Believing that Donald Trump
Was anointed by God
To battle the satanic democrats
And that someday soon
storm would erupt
And all the evil ones
Will be rounded up
And Donald Trump
Would once again be president
The latest crazed theory
That there are schools
Where children are told
To do their business
In litter boxes
Because the children
Identify as cats.
And so, it goes
More madness everywhere
More madness, more drugs
And more guns everywhere
Not just in the US
But overseas too
Everywhere leaders are unhinged
Conspiracy theories run amok
Pundits pontificating
Guns proliferating
Hard to see how
This ends well.
America
America faces a choice
A choice of embracing democracy
At last a choice of standing up
Against the forces of Neo-fascism
As the election season comes to an end.
Although it is too close to tell
Americans will make the right choice
Con Artists
These days
It seems that there are
So many crafty people
Con artists everywhere
Rampant crime on the rise
Fear abounds everywhere
Upsetting our tidy plans
Leaving us so confused.
Vote Diatelle
vote
Today
what the hey
democracy
itself may be at play
will we be a plutocracy?
or even become just a theocracy?
run by an unelected bureaucracy?
or turn into a meritocracy?
or a corporatocracy?
keep fascism at bay
aristocracy
le5 us pray
we may
note
The world is faced
With a huge water shortage problem
Throughout the world
We are running out of fresh clean water
Climate change leading to massive droughts
And massive storms and massive floods
Nigeria, Pakistan, and Kentucky underwater
Mississippi water supply compromised
Everywhere we are running out of water
Yet there are solutions
Mandatory water harvesting
In the southwest replacing lawns
With desert plants
Energy-efficient watering systems
Shifting to less water-intensive agriculture
Setting up urban vertical gardening
Massive desalination plants
Using solar, wind, and tidal power
It will cost a lot
But solutions are possible
If we have the political will
To implement them.
America divided into tribal divisions
America divided into tribal divisions
Red states, Blue Cities
The mass media playing games
So many people believe
That the world is out of control
Spreading calls for civil war
Election workers fear for their life.
Guns everywhere
And the former guy who lost
Gleefully throwing gas on the fire.
Arrested for feeding the homeless
Sam Jones, a 70-year-old man
Walking down the street
In a Florida City
Thinking that too many people
Ignore the homeless.
He thought,
But what would happen
If we began to act
Towards others as we should.
Sam began a campaign
Treating homeless people
To coffee and sandwiches.
Buying them tents,
Buying them clothing,
Asking their names
Telling their stories.
The city authorities
Were not amused
They arrested him
For violating a local law
Forbidding handing out food
Water and drinks
To people on the street
Without a proper city-issued permit.
As a food vendor.
The case went to trial
They found him guilty
Sentenced to five years in prison.
For helping the homeless,
Without the proper food vendor permits,
And for contempt of court when he asked the judge,
To act according to his professed Christian principles.
Elections Bringing Back the People
The election showed the world
That the power of the people
Will eventually prevail
That sanity might slowly
Becoming back to the land
As MAGA extremists lost
Despite the former guy’s attempts
At an unlikely comeback.
Election Cinquin
Election
Powerful, Profound
Meaningful, moving, provoking
Power to the people
Decisions
Dark Money Tigerjade
Dark money
so funny
So much corruption in the USA
American political world filled with dark black dollars
Democracy is a state, according to scholars
We know how
End it now
Democracy on Trial Acrostic
Democracy on trial
Everywhere it seems
More in Europe perhaps
Only in America though
Crazy Q anon theories
Right-Wing MAGA nut cases
Although they lost in the mid-terms
Crazy conspiracies have not died out
Yet more craziness to come soon.
Democracy Kyrielle
Democracy itself at the state
People voted in the election
The mass media is filled with hate
determining what direction
It is up to America
To the people who voted
That is what it is, Erika
Determining what direction
To those who chose not to vote
Do not complain about the results
The winners of the vote should not gloat
Determining what direction
Democracy Minute
American democracy
Is it just plutocracy?
Does your vote count?
Endless recount.
Do elections even matter?
Endless chatter,
No one cares now.
Do we know how?
Do we even know what to do?
This much is true.
All must save it.
Must do your bit.
First and Last Dark Money
There is just too much dark money.
It is no longer so funny.
Our politics are so Lunny.
Democracy is at stake.
Politicians are on the take.
Does your vote even matter?
Amid pundits’ non-stop chatter.
Everyone is mad as a hatter.
No one seems to be awake.
Politicians are all on the make.
the media is filled with liars.
Our politics are endless quagmires.
Out west endless wildfires.
No one cares but smart money.
There is just too much dark money.
h3 style=”text-align: center;”>Donald Trump Runs a Full White Supremacist campaign White Supremacist
Folks,
Our opponents denounce us as racists. I say we should be proud to be white people. White people built this country. They say we stole the land from the Indians. I say the Indians were simply in the way and should have been removed because the white people needed the land. There was nothing wrong with that. White people built this country. They say slavery was wrong. I say Black people were better off as slaves because they were unable to handle freedom. I say the civil war should never have been fought. The US would have been much better off if we had split up into two nations. I say that the US was better off when white men ruled the country. Women should not be in a position of leadership. Immigration should be restricted to white people as it was during much of our history. Immigration should be restricted to white people who are Christian and speak English and should be limited. Too many immigrants. Too many non-white people. The replacement campaign is continuing and the democrats are the party of niggers, spics, chinks, gooks, Muslims, pagans, atheists, and coastal elites who hate you and hate white people and hate our movement because we are pro-white, pro-male, and pro-America! They say that we are heading to a civil war. I say bring it on. If the South were to secede and Texas leads the way, I will gladly serve as president of a new confederacy.
Regarding foreign policy, it is time to bring the troops back and station them along the southern border. We need to seal the borders to keep the minorities from flooding the country and keep out the drugs and chaos. We need to make marijuana illegal again. We should set up special drug courts where drug dealers will be tried and executed the next day.
We need to pull out of NATO. Bring our troops from Asia. Let them defend themselves. We should stop sending aid to Ukraine. Let Russia and Ukraine work it out. Russia has serious and viable security claims in Eastern Europe. Putin is the friend of the white Christian race.
Around the world white people are rising and taking back power. We need to do the same.
Gay rights should be left to states to decide. If Texas wants to ban same-gender attraction, Heyy should be allowed to do so.
Civil rights laws should be abolished. If a landlord does not want to rent to minorities, they should be allowed to do so.
Let’s stand up and proclaim
We are white and we are proud.
30 percent of the public supported his campaign. The more critics denounced it as a racist campaign, the stronger his campaign became.
Five endings – his wins and ushers in Fascism
He is indicted and sent to prison. Desantis takes over his campaign and continues the anti-minority campaign.
DeSantis wins and ushers in fascism
A national convention is called and the U.S. splits apart into ten new countries
A civil war ensues.
The democrats win big in 2024 and restore sanity.
Confronted by Racists in Oregon Nightmare
We go to Oregon and sell our property. While there we run into racists everywhere. It is very unpleasant. In Costco, several white guys confront us in the parking lot yelling racist slurs telling her to go home to China, and calling me a race traitor. I just look at them and say,
“Mighty Christian behavior. Thanks for sharing your opinion. Now leave.”
They asked me “what did you say?’
I said,
“You are a good Christian. Now leave us alone.”
“Are you mocking us?”
“Nope. Not at all. Just leave us alone.”
One guy pulls out a gun and points it at us.
I look at him and say
“really? Do you want to shoot us in broad day light? What would Jesus do?’
Angela tries to intervene, and they slap her. I call for help and security comes outside.
We decide to press charges of assault.
Someone filmed it and the video went viral. We are interviewed. I tell them that I am not a Christian, but just thought that perhaps if I appealed to their faith, they might reconsider what they were doing and unfortunately that did not work.
Something wicked this way comes
Something wicked this way comes
With the Republicans taking over the house
About to launch endless investigations about Hunter Biden,
And the “ January 6th political prisoners “
And the former president running
Back on Twitter that is imploding
And climate change running amuck
Gunmen still rampaging across the land.
Dear God Make, It All Go Away
Dear God
Watching the news unfold
The non-ending problems
Inflation, crime, climate change
The world unhinged
And our new house leaders’ response
Their number one priority
Investigate Hunter Biden
Number two
Have Margo Taylor Green lead
The investigation
of the January 6 committee
For doing their jobs
Their other priorities include
Insisting the solution to climate change
Drill more oil and coal
And stop subsiding on renewable energy
The solution to gun violence
Useless prayers and thoughts
And more guns for everyone
Insisting that the government cut
Social security and Medicaid
Or else they will let the government default
And the former president
Is running for reelection
And is now back on Twitter
Which is going bankrupt.
As the advertisers flee
And hate fills the twitter
And FB social media.
Dear God,
I say to you
If you have the power
To intervene in our lives.
Please Dear God
Make it all go away
Restore sanity and civility,
Have the former President
Get the justice he deserves
And our leaders put aside
Their games
And start solving problems
That is my prayer today.
Bugs Bunny Q
One day Bugs Bunny came to life
Went on national TV
To launch his crusade
Wearing a red MAGA hat
He endorsed the former President
Who he called his good friend
The best president ever.
He wants to quote Q
And talk about the dangerous
Dark conspiracy
Of Satan worshiping
child cannibals
Led by the evil Elmer Fudd.
American Democracy Momento
American democracy
We must choose to save it
Fill with hate
American
plutocracy
We must all do our bit
Make it great
We must all do our given part
Together find our way
Go forward
Let’s come together as a start
Keep the hate at bay
Straightforward
Having their Cake and Eat It Too Writers’ Cramp
Politicians often try
To have their cake
And eat it too
Running around
Throwing gasoline
On the political fires.
ture wars
Then acting “shocked.”
that anyone ould carry out
Acts of political violence
Based on their overheated rhetoric
Shedding copious crocodile tears
The dead don’t care, they are merely ghosts.
Democratic Constanza
Democracy is still at risk
In my American homeland,
Must do our part, and take a stand.
The election showed there is still a high risk.
Voters have to make a decision,
Just turn off the television.
Wired in our news hard disk
What will be our country’s future
Will it be with Trump, the moocher?
Like a political slipped disk
We must do our part, pick a side
And save our country’s future pride.
Just filled with political zisk
Democratic chimerica ?
Or a fascist Amerika?
The World After
The future is not yet written
The world can still be saved
But the end of humanity
Could be at hand
The world is burning up
Fires out of control
Ice caps melting
Temperatures rising
Hatred spreading
Neofascism on the right
Democracy threatened
End of the world fears
Filling the world
Yet to come
the Rot Starts at the Top
Watching the news unfold
About the massive spying operation
Targeted against Democratic opponents
Of the former guy
The old Chinese Confucian adage
Pops to mind
The rot starts at the head
Meaning rotten fish of course
But also applies
To rotten political actors
This scandal is probably
Just the tip
Of a very large rotten iceberg
Where it will lead
Is anyone’s guess
But will the former guy
Be held accountable
For this crime?
Probably not
Just add it to the list
Of all his other crimes
And wait until hell freezes over
For justice to be done
Cancel Culture Run Amuck
I am so sick
And tired
Of the so-called “Cancel Culture”
Nonsense
That has spread out
Along the right-wing media verse
Infecting the public
With their hatred and disdain
I don’t know what it all means
Something about political speech
social conservatives
Being canceled
By left-wing woke mobs
In the mainstream media
“Libtard “Coastal elites
And tech giants
Seems that they don’t like
Being held to account
For minimal standards
Of decent behavior
For example, not spreading lies
About COVID vaccinations
I mean you Senator Johnson
Banned by YouTube for a week
Or inciting a riot
I mean you
Former guy
And his minions
Used to be
That we were all
Held to account
For decent behavior
By a sense of public shame
So, we did not go there
We knew where the lines were
And respected them
But in the era
Of the former guy
All civilized restraints
Have gone out the window
I say to my republican friends
If you don’t want to be canceled
Don’t say or do disgusting things
Don’t spread hate and misinformation
Then we would not have to
Cancel your nonsense
Until then I need to shut
Off the damn media noise box
Senator Johnson Banned on YouTube for Spreading Lies Found Poem
YouTube suspended
Sen. Ron Johnson’s account
to spread medical misinformation.
The company specifically
prohibits content
that contradicts public-health guidance.
The Republican
routinely holds Senate hearings
where he promotes
baseless conspiracy theories.
“Big Tech and mainstream media
believe they are smarter
than medical doctors
who have devoted their lives to science?
and use their skills to save lives,”
“They have decided
there is only one medical viewpoint allowed
and it is the viewpoint dictated
by government agencies.”
Johnson, who promoted the “Big Lie”
that led to the assault
on the US Capitol in January,
Johnson has used his position
as a senator to promote
baseless conspiracy theories
and undermine trust in public institutions
Johnson’s “continuing assault on the truth,
often under the guise
of simply ‘asking questions
about facts,
is helping to diminish confidence
in American institutions
at a perilous moment,
when the health and economic well-being
of the nation relies heavily on
on mass vaccinations,
and when faith in democracy
is shaken by right-wing falsehoods
about voting,”
Comment: It is for that act
Those comments went too far
led YouTube
To “cancel” Senator Johnson
Now if only we can get
He to just shut up
And go away
Perhaps the voters
Will finally be moved
To cancel him for good.
Driving our Politics is Fear
What is driving our politics
More than anything else
Is the fear of the other
Fear of the enemy
Fear of the end
The American experiment
With democracy
The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective
9-11 2021 was the classic black swan event. A low-probability event that changed almost everything. The world can be divided into a pre-9-11 world and a Post 9-11 world. 9-11 led to the Afghanistan war, which recently concluded, the Iraq war, the Syria war, the Libyan civil war, countless wars in Africa, the war on terror, the Muslim travel ban, the war on domestic dissent in so many parts of the world, all justified as a reaction against the events of that September day. Here are some of my reflections on the events of 9-11 including a prose poem about where I was that terrible day. It affected me deeply because at the time I was a US immigration officer in the State Department serving in Mumbai, (Bombay) India.
Following 9/11
Patriots Blunder
Whack
Worry Frequently
About terrorists and Muslims
Whomever, wherever they are
Reflections on 911 Where I was Prose Poem
On 9-11
When the planes struck the World Trade Center
Unleashing evil on the world
I was working
at the deputy consular chief at the US Consulate
in Mumbai
I was at a Polish national day event
chatting with the Polish Ambassador
and his charming wife.
Someone told me
I needed to check out the news,
saw the CNN news feed,
rushed back to the consulate
to prepare our response.
I put together a task force
focused on helping American citizens
in our district.
I worked almost 15-20 hours
for almost three days
before finally getting a night off.
We continued to process visas
during this time
but our priority
was to reach out to the Americans
who lived in our district
and to monitor the reactions of Indians
especially Muslims living in our district.
I tracked down my wife
who had gone into emergency action
in her position in Korea as a MI officer.
We both reflected
that if she had not taken the job in Korea
she might have died that day
as she had been working in the ops center
at the pentagon which was destroyed.
Since it was shift work
if she had been on the early morning shift
it might have been game over for her.
Reflections on 9-11
9-11
The event that launched
The war on terror
That led to Afghanistan
Led to Iraq
Led to Syria
And so many other wars
Secret and not so secret
War on dissent at home
All because of 911
A true black swan event
That almost destroyed our country
And still has ramifications
All over the world
911
A day that truly
Will live
In infamy
9-11 unleashed Evil
world lurks in the deadliest places.
Evil came to town on 911
the day that evil swept over the world
a true Black Swan event
That transformed everything
splitting the world into a pre-9-11 world
and a post 9-11 world
unleashing the War on Terror, the wars in Afghanistan, the wars in Iraq, the war in Libya, the war in Syria, the wars in Africa, the horrors of ISIS, the horrors of the Taliban resurgent, the horrors of Al Qaeda and all the rest of the Muslim terrorists, the war in the streets of any big city, the war on Muslims, the war on Christians, the war on Jews, the apartheid in Palestine, the wars on dissent at home, the Arab Spring
many things can be traced
to the impact of 9/11
one of the most unlikely events
of recent history that transformed
everything
yes there was a pre-9-11 world
hard to imagine now
and a post 9-11 worldwide police state
on steroids
lost democracy at home
and abroad
We are still coping
with the damages unleashed
by the evil plane bombers
fulfilling their mad desires
their dictates from their mad god
transforming the world
unleashing evil
in the once-innocent world.
I predict the House and Senate will remain in the hands of the Democrats in 2022 and 2024, but a lot depends on who the Republicans run, if they run right-wing darlings like Trump, or DeSantis they lose, if they run sane moderate Republican governors like Hogan, they will win.
if the Democrats nominate someone other than Biden or Harris they will probably win, if Biden runs again, a narrow victory, if Harris runs, they lose (again depending upon the Republican candidate), if Trump runs the third party, the Democrats will win. The Democratic donor class should be encouraging Trump to run the Third-party! calling his party, the Christian Patriot Party.
What Do I Know? Why listen to Me?
I am a lifelong Democrat, having grown up in Berkeley in the late 60s and 70s. I served in the Peace Corps and became a foreign service officer retiring in 2016. I live in South Korea, as I have my wife’s family living here. I hope to return to the Bay Area in another year. I grew up in a politically active family. I served as President of my high school and a student senator at college.
My father, Curtis Cosmos Aller, was the President of the Berkeley Co-Op and the Peralta community college district, served as undersecretary of Labor for Johnson , and was a professor and Dean at SF State. and ran for Congress against Ron Dellums winning 40 percent in the primary election in 1974.
I have voted for president since 1974 when I voted against Nixon. I voted for Carter twice, and for the Democrats for president in every election. But I also correctly forecast the election returns in every election since 1974.
Here are my predictions for 2022 and 2024, which I will share with the Democratic leadership and post any responses I may receive.
Comments welcomed.
2202 Predictions
2022 is shaping up to be the most consequential mid-term in recent history. The future of America and our democracy are at stake. So far if I had to bet, I would bet on the Senate being held by the Democrats, maybe even a pickup as the math favors the democrats this time around, including several open seats due to retirements in Ohio and elsewhere.
The house is more of a toss-up.
Note: I correctly saw that the red wave was an illusion, the house barely flipped sides, and the Democrats hold onto the Senate.
If the Democrats are smart, they would announce that Nancy P and the aging leadership are all retiring to open the field to a new generation of leaders.
This opens up the democratic leadership to a challenge along generational lines = as the Republicans continue to paint them as coastal elites out of touch with real Americans, which will resonate because there is an element of truth to that.
Fortunately, after the election the house leadership changed hands ushering in a new generation of leaders, long overdue in my opinion.
A lot depends on the following:
Factors Favoring the Dems
If the Democrats can paint Marjorie Taylor Green and her ilk as the face of the Republican party, they can pull off a win.
Majorie Taylor Green et al play along acting crazy.
Make them the face of the Republican Party –
The impact of the January 6h commission – clearly shows how despicable and dangerous Republicans are, and how complicit they were in plotting a coup.
Trump continues hinting he is running in 2024.
Trump endorses candidates who win the primaries and lose the general.
Trump is indicted and or is sent to prison = could cut either way = making him a martyr or turning off the average American to the MAGA crowd.
Republican in-fighting continues positive for Dems.
Much better unified messaging showing how democratic policies are helping average Americans.
The state of COVID by August - if it is over the democrats get a bump.
State of the economy by August – if inflation slows up, the jobless numbers remain good, and the democrats get a bump.
Impact of the big infrastructure bill – will people see it is working?
Democrats get unified positive for Dems.
Democratic turnout is higher than normal despite voter suppression efforts.
Gerrymandering is not as bad as expected mixed signals so far,
Biden’s approval rating is above 50 percent by September,
The war in Ukraine ended with a victory Ukraine gives a bump to Biden
Spreading of rank choice voting systems, as these systems tend to produce more politically centrist candidates, and slightly favor the Democratic party candidates.
The spread of jungle primary systems, as these systems tend to produce more politically centrist candidates, slightly favors the Democratic party candidates. California is the biggest state to embrace both of these more democratic voting systems, but the idea is spreading. Most recently, NYC adopted a rank voting system, which led to the election of Eric Adams, who was everyone’s second choice, and not the first choice for most voters. He is a moderate Democrat in a blue progressive-dominated city.
Factors Favoring the Republicans
The Republicans will make Nancy the symbol of a “coastal elite old political hack leadership out of touch with American voters and values ” which will resonate as there is a kernel of truth to that charge. In short, they will hear, and so-called “socialist left woke SF Values” the face of the Democratic party, not Biden so much or Harris.
Nancy Pelosi
Trump announces he is retiring, is imprisoned, or dies – removing the biggest obstacle to the resurgence of the Republican party.
The economy stumbles and favors Republicans.
Republicans nominate centrists moderates resisting the MAGA crusade.
Gerrymandering and voter suppression works as advertised – News out of Texas is not good, 25% of absentee ballots were rejected!
Democrats continue their fratricidal infighting – can’t get a unified message.
Republicans are successful in painting the democratic leadership as “old coastal elitist political hacks out of touch with Americans and not dealing with the nation’s problems due to being too weak internationally and domestically, and beholden to a socialist left-wing woke social warrior culture run amuck.”
The culture wars ignite the Republican base, leading to a higher turnout among the base.
Neutral factors:
Retirements = could be cut either way.
The deaths of aging leaders could go either way,
What is the Average Age of Congress?
The average age of the 117th Congress is 59 years old and the median is 60 years old. This is much higher than the median age of 38 years in the United States in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Of its 435 members, the House has 38 members born in the 1980s and one born in the 1990s, while the Senate welcomed its first millennial. But the age groups with the biggest gains, compared to the 116th Congress, were those born in the 1930s and 1960s. Members in the 80+ and 50-59 age groups saw gains, while the 30-39 age group saw the biggest losses. Members of Congress are, overall, getting older.
AGE OF THE SENATE
The average age of the Senate is 63 years. The most popular years of birth are 1952 and 1954, with seven members each.
Who are the Oldest Members of Congress?
From Alaska, all the way to
Alabama, the oldest members of the 117th Congress were all born in the early 1930s. Most of them are members of the Senate.
Specifically, the five oldest members of Congress are:
(four Republicans and one Democrat)
Don Young, age 87, is the RepublicanS. Representative for Alaska’s at-large congressional district. He has served for 25 terms since 1973 and is the current longest-serving member in Congress. (JUST PASSED AWAY AS OF March 19, 2022).
Dianne Feinstein, age 87, is a Democratic Senator from California running for re-election.
Chuck Grassley, age 87, is a Republican Senator from Iowa -running for re-election.
Richard Shelby, age 86, is a Republican Senator from Alabama running for re-election.
Jim Inhofe, age 86, is a Republican Senator from Oklahoma running for re-election.
Mitch Mc Connel 83
Dick Schumer 75
Who are the Youngest Members?
As for the youngest members of the 117th Congress, they are all part of the House of Representatives. Most were born in the 1980s except the youngest member of them all.
Here are the five youngest members of Congress:
(three Democrats, two republicans)
Madison Cawthorn, age 25, is the RepublicanS. Representative for North Carolina’s 11th congressional district. He is the first member of Congress born in the 1990s. -Note: defeated in his re-election bid.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, age 31, is the Democratic Representative for New York’s 14th congressional district
Sara Jacobs, age 31, is the democratic Representative for California’s 53rd congressional district
Ritchie Torres, age 32, is the democratic. Representative for New York’s 15th congressional district
Jake LaTurner, age 32, is the Democratic. Representative for Kansas’s 2nd congressional district
How Does Age Relate to Party?
Overall, the average age for Republicans in Congress is 58 and 60 for Democrats. Looking specifically at each party in each chamber, the averages are also very similar:
AVERAGE AGE OF THE 117TH CONGRESS LEADERSHIP
As mentioned before, Congress is getting older. When looking specifically at the leadership in each party, the averages are even higher with Democrats brushing close to 70.
bottom line: Senate to the Democrats due to the math more than anything else.
While I hope the Dems maintain the House, it is too close to call could be a two-vote margin by Democrats, or a two to three margin by the Republicans, but I don’t see a red wave coming nor do I see a blue wave coming. the gerrymandering in place slightly favors the Republicans perhaps giving them five additional seats, and demographic changes mean additional seats in red states and a loss in NY, California, and New Jersey of one seat each.
2024 is shaping up to be the most consequential election in recent history. The future of America and our democracy are at stake. So far if I had to bet, I would bet on the Democrats winning the presidency (but not Biden running again due to age and health concerns or Kamala Harris making it, and Trump not running due to age, or legal impediments, or death) on the Senate being held by the Democrats, maybe even a pickup as the math favors the Democrats this time around including several open seats due to retirements and deaths, and the House could go either way, lots depends on who wins the mid-terms, and the success of the voter suppression movement.
My advice/predictions to the Democratic leadership (I will share this with them) are the following:
Biden should retire at the end of his term but announce that he wants an open primary and not endorse any candidate until the dust settles and a clear leader emerges. The rest of the aging leadership should all retire as well, opening up political space for the next generation of leaders to organically emerge.
Kamala Harris stumbles and another candidate emerges. If the Democrats are smart, they would nominate a moderate problem-solving centrist who can win in red or purple states = the governor of Michigan fits the bill. Preferably a woman, as it is time for a woman president. The VP should be a Hispanic or perhaps Asian-American male. Again, a governor would be preferable but a Senator or big city major would be a good pick as well. I would avoid two women candidates as that might be a step too far for now.
The theme should be time for a renewed commitment to an America that works for everyone, that we are in it together and are united as Americans.
Other themes would be
Continuing rebuilding our failing physical infrastructure, including our public health systems,
Fighting climate change,
Investing in the next generation of technologies,
including robotics and AI systems,
Recommitting to the space program,
Enacting some version of the build-back better initiative,
Continuing to work on rebuilding our alliances,
Reforming our failed immigration system,
Fighting against voter suppression efforts,
Encouraging more democratic voting systems such as rank vote and jungle primaries,
And an old throwback, enacting term limits – this is a winning issue with the public and will disarm potential republican attacks
“on old, tired, political elitist coastal hacks running the Democratic party leadership.”
The Democrats should seize this issue as a sort of political jujutsu move. that would be brilliant!
Starting with the retirement of the oldest members of both parties to bring in a younger generation of leaders. if term limits are a good thing for the presidency they are a good thing for Congress to embrace and would be very popular. I’d suggest 12 years (six terms) in the house and three terms in the Senate for a total of 30 years of service with mandatory retirement at age 70.
Avoid getting sucked into the culture wars nonsense it is a waste of time, and resources and puts you on the defensive, just no upside to it at all. the less you say this the better, let them come off as unhinged and out-of-touch.
The focus should be on building on the solid accomplishments of the Biden era and looking forward with a positive, optimistic message.
I would also not get trapped into running an anti-Republican campaign. That was a losing message for Hilary, and also a bit for Biden. People need to hear a positive, powerful optimistic message but pointing out that the Republican candidate is a neo-fascist authoritarian wannabe is fine, but that cannot be the only message or the main message.
Keeping it positive, upbeat, and focused on solid accomplishments for the American people is the key. Remember, they have to want to vote for you, not just vote against them!
A winning slogan could be
“Democrats, the party that gets stuff done for the American people.”
I would also avoid getting too sucked into the progressive wish lists, and remember the adage to never let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Remember that people have to want to vote for you and just against the other guy. You could run through an anti-republican slogan such as
Republicans, tools of the 1 percent, the party of fascists, insurrectionists, deficit spending and ignoring the needs of the American people. and resucrect Harry’s Truman “Do Nothing congress” worked wonders for him and would be another winning slogan.
If the Republicans are smart, Trump will retire for the good of the party and the country, under the excuse of age, health, or legal impediments. Then they should have an open primary.
Predictions for the Republican Ticket
My prediction would be De Santis wins the nomination and picks perhaps Senator Cotton as his VP. This would unite the MAGA crows and the cultural wars crowds. But also provide a solid line of attack for the Democratic nominee.
I don’t see a pathway for Ted Cruz as he has too many enemies, everyone who knows him or has worked with him hates his guts.
I also don’t see a pathway for Josh Hawley either for similar reasons. I can see Marjorie Taylor Green running but flaming out during the primary.
Finally, I don’t see a Trump-Biden rematch but if that happens, I will bet that Biden would defeat Trump.
The other unlikely prospect is that the Republicans get smart and nominate either the governor of Ohio or Maryland and run a positive upbeat campaign as
“the party that gets stuff done for the American people”
Note; Great slogan, the Democrats should use it before the Republicans use it.
while painting the Democrats as old, political hacks who are out of touch, cultural justice warrior elitists from coastal blue states. That would be a powerful campaign theme because unfortunately, there is an element of truth to it!
and they would probably win the House, Senate, and Presidency, but fortunately, for the Democrats, they are far more likely to nominate a cultural warrior nut case like DeSantis, with either Cotton as VP or the Virginian Governor as VP.
if Biden runs, a toss-up. If Kamala runs a toss-up. If the governor of Michigan or another female governor runs, Democrats probably win.
If DeSantis runs, probably Republicans will fail, but if someone like Maryland Hogan runs, the Republicans will win. If Trump wins the nomination as a Republican, Republicans will probably fail as well.
If Trump runs third party, too close to call but he would not win as a third-party candidate. If he runs, he should name his party, the Christian Patriot Party, the CPP in short.
The Senate and House would both probably go to the Democrats despite voter suppression efforts as the math and demographics favor the Democratic party.
A personal note. I am married to a Korean-American woman whom I met in Korea and thus would love to see Hogan elected and have the first Asian-American (Korean) First lady.
My bottom-line prediction
Both Biden and Trump retire due to age and health concerns, and Trump’s legal woes become two insurmountable, not to mention the donor class is turning against him.
Kamala Harris does not win the primary contests, as the Democrats selected a more centrist problem-solving figure who defeats the likely republican nominee – De Santis.
Whoever loses, concedes as we restore the tradition of a peaceful transition of power.
Senate and House go to the Democrats, but with narrow majorities.
The rest of the country continues to be split into about 25 red states and 20 blue states, a blue DC, blue PR, blue VI, purple Guam and Samoa, purple military, and 5 purple states.
To my fellow Americans
I am writing this plead,
To my fellow Americans.
I am tired of the excuses
Tired of hearing
Your lame reasons,
For not getting a vaccination.
For not masking up,
For not taking covid seriously.
I am tired of hearing about
People dying
I am tired of hearing about gun violence,
I am tired of hearing about the west burning up,
The east flooding out,
The monster storms everywhere.
The politicians doing nothing at all
To solve any of these problems
Instead of playing games,
Acting as if all of these problems
Were beyond our control,
Like the weather
Can’t do anything about it
Nothing but lies.
Yes America
I am tired.
I say again
I am tired
Of your lame excuses.
But this is something
We can all do something about it,
We can choose to get a free vaccine,
We can choose to continue to wear a mask,
We can choose to not kill someone with a gun.
We can choose to take the bus,
We can choose to drive an electric vehicle,
We can choose to love one another,
We can choose to save the world.
Or you can choose
To be a narcissistic self-centered asshole,
A real scumbag,
Following your hero,
The orange man,
Following him straight to hell.
Where do you think this will end?
It will not be a good outcome,
For any of us,
Especially for you, my friend.
You could die, your parents could die,
Your children could die.
And you have the power
To do something about.
Each of us
Has the power
To change the world.
But the change must come
From all of us.
We are all connected.
We are all God’s children
We are all each
Other’s brothers and sisters.
f none of this convinces you
Think what Jesus would tell you
I don’t need to tell you,
You know in your heart,
What needs to be done?
I conclude with this
I don’t want to hear it.
No
mas
excuses
just
do
the
right
thing
The life you save
Maybe your own.
Page Break
Ode to our Firefighter Heroes
Watching the burning of the west
From my air-conditioned apartment
Halfway across the world in Korea,
I am filled with dismay
How the country has gotten
To this dark and dangerous place.
Where the world is burning up
Climate change is out of control
Gun violence epidemic raging everywhere
No one is safe anywhere from the rampaging gunmen.
The nation’s leaders
Refuse to do anything at all
As the world burns.
COVID spreads
And more people die from guns.
Yet there are American heroes
The firefighters, the first responders
The EMTs, the park rangers,
The doctors, the nurses
Truck drivers, bus drivers
The workers of America.
These American heroes
Including prisoners
Put their lives on the line
24/7.
Working in truly hellish conditions
In temperatures above 100 degrees
Breathing in deadly smoke.
Without enough supplies
Not enough water,
Not enough of anything.
But like all true heroes
They merely suit up
And go to work,
Doing whatever they can do
To save us all
From the burning of America.
From the COVID disaster
From the gun violence
The monster storms
The collapsing buildings.
I salute them
From the bottom of my heart
They are the true heroes
In our times,
Everyone should salute them
Everyone should applaud them
Everyone should thank them
For saving our lives.
Our nation’s and world leaders
Should get their act together
Declaring a state of planetary emergency
Everyone must get together
And address the problem
Facing our world.
Global Emergency
The world is facing a worldwide crisis
Everything is falling apart
The world is burning up.
Monster storms flooding Europe
Covid spreading everywhere
Inflation rearing its ugly head
Gun violence tearing us apart.
Politics fall apart
As politicians
Play the blame game,
Spreading toxic lies
And endless venom.
The sad reality
We are all to blame,
Every last one of us shares the blame.
We have known for decades
That we could not continue
Down this path.
The solutions are obvious
We have known this for years.
It is time for the world leaders
Both government and corporate
To declare a state of worldwide emergency.
Everyone must do their part
To save the world now.
The billionaire classes
Should rise up
And demonstrate real leadership
Rather than waste time
Flying into space.
And they should donate
Their vast fortunes
To save the world.
The time for games is over
The world is dying
Even the billionaires
May die as the world burns.
We are in this together
We are human brothers and sisters
Please do your part
To save the world.
Before the problems overwhelm us
Ending our world civilization
We must move to green energy now
Everyone must get vaccinated
Get the assault weapons off the street.
Institute real gun control measures.
Yet due to our political dysfunction
Nothing meaningful
Will be done.
As the politicians dither and dither
And nothing is done.
As the world burns
Civilization slowly dies
Democracy cannot survive.
The rise of the warlords
Is inevitable
The world ends
In fire, floods
And endless violence.
So many people
Will die.
Unless we all
Do our part
To save the world/
The hour is getting late
But we have not met our fate
Despite the late date.
If we do nothing
Soon we will all become ghosts
Joining the other ghosts
Of our recent past.
Joining the fire ghosts,
the corona ghosts,
the gun ghosts
the storm ghosts
And all the other ghosts.
Their voices
crying in the wind,
no one left alive
to mourn their death.
Page Break
please America get vaccinated against COVID
It is a sad state of affairs
That so many of our fellow citizens
Just can’t be bothered
To get a free vaccine
That may save their lives
And the lives of those around them
They simply don’t care
About the rest of us.
The anti-vax crusaders
Say that no one should be forced
To get a vaccine.
Yet we force people to wear seat belts
Force people to wear helmets
Force people to drive within the speed limit
Prohibit drunk driving.
All of these are an infringement
On our freedom
To be irresponsible and careless,
Yet we have decided
It is better to have people
Wear a seat belt,
To drive within the speed limit
And not drunk drive
Because these simple measures
Save lives.
The same thing applies to wearing a mask
And getting a vaccine
A small inconvenience to an induvial
Yet may save many lives.
In the end
I can only offer this plea
Many of you are Christians,
And you know what Jesus
Would say
Just shut up
Wear a mask
and get vaccinated
It is god’s will.
Just do it for me.
Please my fellow citizens
Please get a vaccine
To protect your life
To protect my life
And do the right thing.
Thanksgiving Poems
Thanksgiving
On Thanksgiving day
I am grateful
That I am still alive
And kicking
At age 67
Still married
To my one and only wife
Thankful that I have enough money
To retire comfortably
And live until I die
Without falling into poverty
I am thankful for my friends
Far and wide
That is what
I celebrate Thanksgiving
Letter to Republicans
Biden is not a communist, so shut up with that nonsense
Dear Republicans
Lately the airwaves
Of the Fox alternative universe
Has been filled with pernicious nonsense
Uttered by all the pundits
And Republican leaders.
The pernicious nonsense
Is that Joe Biden, and the entire
Democratic Party
Has been taken over
By Marxists
Determined to turn the US
Either into Cuba, Venezuela
Communist China or North Korea.
But oddly not Russia
Who some believe now
Is our friend
Anyone alive
For the last thirty years
Knows that communism died
A long time ago
There are no communists anywhere
Even in China, no one believes
In classic communism.
And Joe Biden may be many things
But a hard-core Marxist Communist
Working to turn the US into a communist country
Is not one of them.
The only people who believe this nonsense
Are aging John Birchers
Who still screams about the communist menace
And perhaps a few aging left-wing radicals
Who still believe in Marxism.
So please just shut up
About communism
And other imaginary bogymen.
The World After
The future is not yet written
The world can still be saved
But the end of humanity
Could be at hand
The world is burning up
Fires out of control
Ice caps melting
Temperatures rising
Hatred spreading
Neofascism on the right
Democracy threatened
End of the world fears
Filling the world
Yet to come
the Rot Starts at the Top
Watching the news unfold
About the massive spying operation
Targeted against Democratic opponents
Of the former guy
The old Chinese Confucian adage
Pops to mind
The rot starts at the head
Meaning rotten fish of course
But also applies
To rotten political actors
This scandal is probably
Just the tip
Of a very large rotten iceberg
Where it will lead
Is anyone’s guess
But will the former guy
Be held accountable
For this crime?
Probably not
Just add it to the list
Of all his other crimes
And wait until hell freezes over
For justice to be done
Cancel Culture Run Amuck
I am so sick
And tired
Of the so-called “Cancel Culture”
Nonsense
That has spread out
Along the rightwing media verse
Infecting the public
With their hatred and disdain
I don’t know what it all means
Something about political speech
social conservatives
Being canceled
By left-wing woke mobs
In the mainstream media
“Libtard “Coastal elites
And tech giants
Seems that they don’t like
Being held to account
For minimal standards
Of decent behavior
For example, not spreading lies
About COVID vaccinations
I mean you Senator Johnson
Banned by YouTube for a week
Or inciting a riot
I mean you
Former guy
And his minions
Used to be
That we were all
Held to account
For decent behavior
By a sense of public shame
So, we did not go there
We knew where the lines were
And respected them
But in the era
Of the former guy
All civilized restraints
Have gone out the window
I say to my republican friends
If you don’t want to be canceled
Don’t say or do disgusting things
Don’t spread hate and misinformation
Then we would not have to
Cancel your nonsense
Until then I need to shut
Off the damn media noise box
Senator Johnson Banned on YouTube for Spreading Lies Found Poem
as a senator to promote baseless conspiracy theories
and undermine trust in public institutions
Johnson’s “continuing assault on the truth,
often under the guise of simply ‘asking questions
about facts,
is helping to diminish confidence in American institutions
at a perilous moment,
when the health and economic well-being
of the nation relies heavily on
on mass vaccinations,
and when faith in democracy
is shaken by right-wing falsehoods
about voting,”
Comment: It is for that act
Those comments went too far
led YouTube
To “cancel” Senator Johnson
Now if only we can get
He to just shut up
And go away
Perhaps the voters
Will finally be moved
To cancel him for good.
End Comment
Driving our Politics is Fear
What is driving our politics
More than anything else
Is the fear of the other
Fear of the enemy
Fear of the end
The American experiment
With democracy
9-11 Fridge Poem
Reflections on 9-11 where I was Prose Poem
Reflections on 9-11 where was I then?
Reflections on 9-11 9-11
9-11 Unleashed Evil
The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective
9-11 Reflections
9-11 2021 was the classic black swan event. A low-probability event that changed almost everything. The world can be divided into a pre-9-11 world and a Post 9-11 world. 9-11 led to the Afghanistan war, which recently concluded, the Iraq war, the Syria war, the Libyan civil war, countless wars in Africa, the war on terror, the Muslim travel ban, the war on domestic dissent in so many parts of the world, all justified as a reaction against the events of that September day. Here are some of my reflections on the events of 9-11 including a prose poem about where I was that terrible day. It affected me deeply because at the time I was a US immigration officer in the State Department serving in Mumbai, (Bombay) India.
before finally getting a night off.
We continued to process visas
during this time
but our priority
was to reach out to the Americans
who lived in our district
and to monitor the reactions of Indians
especially Muslims living in our district.
I tracked down my wife
who had gone into emergency action
in her position in Korea as a MI officer.
We both reflected
that if she had not taken the job in Korea
she might have died that day
as she had been working in the ops center
at the pentagon which was destroyed.
Since it was shift work
if she had been on the early morning shift
it might have been game over for her.
Reflections on 9-11 9-11
9-11
The event that launched
The war on terror
That led to Afghanistan
Led to Iraq
Led to Syria
And so many other wars
Secret and not so secret
War on dissent at home
All because of 911
A true black swan event
That almost destroyed
Our country
And still has ramifications
All over the world
911
A day that truly
Will live
In infamy
9-11 unleashed Evil
world lurks in the deadliest places.
Evil came to town on 911
the day that evil swept over the world
a true Black Swan event
that transformed everything
splitting the world into a pre-9-11 world
and a post 9-11 world
unleashing the War on Terror, the wars in Afghanistan, the wars in Iraq, the war in Libya, the war in Syria, the wars in Africa, the horrors of ISIS, the horrors of the Taliban resurgent, the horrors of Al Qaeda and all the rest of the Muslim terrorists, the war in the streets of any big city, the war on Muslims, the war on Christians, the war on Jews, the apartheid in Palestine, the wars on dissent at home, the Arab Spring
so many things can be traced
to the impact of 9/11
one of the most unlikely events
of recent history
that transformed
everything
yes there was a pre-9-11 world
hard to imagine now
and a post 9-11 worldwide police state
on steroids
lost democracy at home
and abroad
we are still coping
with the damages unleashed
by the evil plane bombers
fulfilling their mad desires
their dictates from their mad god
transforming the world
unleashing evil
in the once-innocent world.
The Day After 9-11 U.S Visa Officer’s Perspective Poetic Blooming
9-11 changed everything
For the lowly visa officers
Around the world
Especially for American visa officers
Before 9-11
The emphasis was on efficiency
Issuing as many visas as possible
Refusing as few as possible
Looking the other way
At minor incidents of fraud
When in doubt
Just say yes
Terrorism was not a concern at all
No one anticipated
The horrible events of 9-11
All the hijackers
Had been issued visas
They were considered low-risk applicants
As most Saudi citizens were
Few overstayed
None wanted to work
Illegally in the U.S.
The students studied
Came back home
Saudi, the UAE, and Oman
Were about to be approved
For the visa waiver program
They met the criteria
Low refusal rates
Low overstay rates
Terrorism was not a concern
Although the CIA was blocking it
On 9-12 and afterward
Everything changed
Just say yes
Became just saying no
Fraud became a big concern
Terrorism is an overwhelming concern
Saudi, Oman, and UAE
Became overnight
Suspicious characters
Extreme vetting began
Years before Trump
Announced it
Interviewing everyone
Became the policy overnight
Biometrics were rushed to be deployed
Everyone including Kings
Must be enrolled
No exceptions
Zero tolerance of visa infractions
Became the norm
Both at State
and the new DHS
Airports became unfriendly nightmares
For foreign visitors
As did the embassies
Where visa officers
Were now free
To be mean, abrupt
Just say no
Became the motto
The officers had 2 minutes
To go through
the ever-expanding
Security checks etc
Anything at all
That took two more minutes
This led to a quit denial
Denials were seldom overcome
Even when it was obvious
That the visa
should have been an issue
The visa function almost moved
To the new neo-fascist
Department of Homeland Security
Nicknamed by its critics
As the Homeland Security Ministry
The homeland security department
Send visa security officers
Overseas to police the lax state department
Whose prior courtesy culture was mocked
The new meaning of everyone’s culture
Soon emerged
Everyone competed
To see who could be the meanest
Zero tolerance soon met zero common sense
Every applicant became a potential criminal
A potential security threat,
All Muslim applicants
Were seen as potential terrorists
All of this led
To the draconian visa policies
In the Trump era
The extreme vetting
The Muslim bans
The demonization of illegal immigrants
And legal immigration alike
The American first MAGA presidency
The chaotic unwinding of Afghanistan
The coming who lost Afghanistan debate
All of this is the culmination of years
Of the war on terror
All of this was the result of 9-11
The day that changed everything.
No Mas No More Excuses America!
I am writing this plead,
To my fellow Americans.
I am tired of the excuses
Tired of hearing
Your lame reasons,
For not getting a vaccination.
For not masking up,
For not taking covid seriously.
I am tired of hearing about
People dying
I am tired of hearing about gun violence,
I am tired of hearing about the west burning up,
The east flooding out,
The monster storms everywhere.
The politicians doing nothing at all
To solve any of these problems
Instead of playing games,
Acting as if all of these problems
Were beyond our control,
Like the weather
Can’t do anything about it,
Nothing but lies.
Yes America
I am tired.
I say again
I am tired
Of your lame excuses.
But this is something
We can all do something about it,
We can choose to get a free vaccine,
We can choose to continue to wear a mask,
We can choose to not kill someone with a gun.
We can choose to take the bus,
We can choose to drive an electric vehicle,
We can choose to love one another,
We can choose to save the world.
Or you can choose
To be a narcissistic self-centered asshole,
A real scumbag,
Following your hero,
The orange man,
Following him straight to hell.
Where do you think this will end?
It will not be a good outcome,
For any of us,
Especially for you, my friend.
You could die, your parents could die,
Your children could die.
And you have the power
To do something about.
Each of us
Has the power
To change the world.
But the change must come
From all of us.
We are all connected.
We are all God’s children
We are all each
Other’s brothers and sisters.
If none of this convinces you
Think what Jesus would tell you
I don’t need to tell you,
You know in your heart,
What needs to be done?
I conclude with this
I don’t want to hear it.
No
mas
excuses
just
do
the
right
thing
The life you save
Maybe your own.
Ode to our Firefighter Heroes
Watching the burning of the west
From my air-conditioned apartment
Halfway across the world in Korea,
I am filled with dismay
How the country has gotten
To this dark and dangerous place.
Where the world is burning up
Climate change is out of control
Gun violence epidemic raging everywhere
No one is safe anywhere from the rampaging gunmen.
The nation’s leaders
Refuse to do anything at all
As the world burns.
COVID spreads
And more people die from guns.
Yet there are American heroes
The firefighters, the first responders
The EMTs, the park rangers,
The doctors, the nurses
Truck drivers, bus drivers
The workers of America.
These American heroes
Including prisoners
Put their lives on the line
24/7.
Working in truly hellish conditions
In temperatures above 100 degrees
Breathing in deadly smoke.
Without enough supplies
Not enough water,
Not enough of anything.
But like all true heroes
They merely suit up
And go to work,
Doing whatever they can do
To save us all
From the burning of America.
From the COVID disaster
From the gun violence
The monster storms
The collapsing buildings.
I salute them
From the bottom of my heart
They are the true heroes
In our times,
Everyone should salute them
Everyone should applaud them
Everyone should thank them
For saving our lives.
Global Emergency
Our nation’s and world leaders
Should get their act together
a state of planetary emergency
Everyone must get together
And address the problem
Facing our world.
The world is facing a worldwide crisis
Everything is falling apart
The world is burning up.
Monster storms flooding Europe
Covid spreading everywhere
Inflation rearing its ugly head
Gun violence tearing us apart.
Politics fall apart
As politicians
Play the blame game,
Spreading toxic lies
And endless venom.
The sad reality
We are all to blame,
Every last one of us
shares the blame.
We have known for decades
That we could not continue
Down this path.
The solutions are obvious
We have known this for years.
It is time for the world leaders
Both government and corporate
To declare a state
of worldwide emergency.
Everyone must do their part
To save the world now.
The billionaire classes
Should rise up
And demonstrate real leadership
Rather than waste time
Flying into space.
And they should donate
Their vast fortunes
To save the world.
The time for games is over
The world is dying
Even the billionaires
May die as the world burns.
We are in this together
We are human brothers and sisters
Please do your part
To save the world.
Before the problems overwhelm us
Ending our world civilization
We must move to green energy now
Everyone must get vaccinated
Get the assault weapons off the street.
Institute real gun control measures.
Yet due to our political dysfunction
Nothing meaningful
Will be done.
As the politicians dither and dither
And nothing is done.
As the world burns
Civilization slowly dies
Democracy cannot survive.
The rise of the warlords
Is inevitable
The world ends
In fire, floods
And endless violence.
So many people
Will die.
Unless we all
Do our part
To save the world
The hour is getting late
But we have not met our fate
Despite the late date.
If we do nothing
Soon we will all
become ghosts
Joining the other ghosts
Of our recent past.
Joining the fire ghosts,
the corona ghosts,
the gun ghosts
the storm ghosts
And all the other ghosts.
Their voices
crying in the wind,
no one left alive
to mourn their death.
VAX up AMerica
please America
get vaccinated against COVID
It is a sad state of affairs
That so many of our fellow citizens
Just can’t be bothered
To get a free vaccine
That may save their lives
And the lives
of those around them
They simply don’t care
About the rest of us.
The anti-vax crusaders
Say that no one should be forced
To get a vaccine.
Yet we force people to wear seat belts
Force people to wear helmets
Force people to drive
within the speed limit
force people to get a license
to drive
Prohibit drunk driving.
All of these are an infringement
On our freedom
To be irresponsible and careless,
Yet we have decided
It is better to have people
Wear a seat belt,
To drive within the speed limit
And not drunk drive
Because these simple measures
Save lives.
The same thing applies to wearing a mask
And getting a vaccine
A small inconvenience to an indidual
Yet may save many lives.
In the end
I can only offer this plea
Many of you are Christians,
And you know what Jesus
Would say
Just shut up
Wear a mask
and get vaccinated
It is god’s will.
Just do it for me.
Please my fellow citizens
Please get a vaccine
To protect your life
To protect my life
And do the right thing.
Political ghosts haunt my dreams –
Last Night as I slept
Political ghosts of the past
Began to appear all over the TV
To offer their advice
How to handle these dark
And dangerous times
Richard Nixon
Yelled we need law and order
George Mc Govern said
We need to end endless wars
And rebuild America
John F Kennedy said
We must recover
Our American spirit
LBJ recalled the Great Society
FDR recalled the new Deal, world war 11
Saying The only thing we need to fear
Is fear itself
Truman recalled the lessons of the cold war
George Washington Recalled the visions
To form a more perfect union
Martin Luther King Recalled his dream
Lincoln advises us
“We are not enemies, but friends.
We must not be enemies, though passion may have strained,
it must not break our bonds of affection.
The mystic chords of memory will swell
when again touched, as surely they will be,
by the better angels of our nature.”
As I woke up from my dark dreams
Of the end of the American dream
I saw the dawning light
The nightmares of the political ghosts
Of the past faded into my past
And I looked up
And realized that it is up to us all
We can recover We can overcome anything
And become the America
That we were meant to be
And overcome these dark times
And consign these dark political ghosts
And let them rest in peace
As we recover the American dream
United as one nation
That is my hope and dream
That we can once again be
Can do anything Americans!
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Secret Gateways
There are secret gateways
Portals to other dimensions
All around us
Hidden deep in the mountains.
Leading to other worlds
Other times and places
Where time runs differently
And humans are unknown.
The lonely Mother Duck
The lonely mother duck
Watched her eggs hatch
In the nest by the lake.
She was worried
About the coyotes, feral dogs, foxes
Lions, tigers and wolves
That were all around.
Ever since the humans all disappeared.
The Secret Fly Spy Drone
The fly on the wallpaper
In the CIA director’s office
Was not a real fly
He was an enemy spy drone
Secretly controlled remotely
Listening to all the secret conversations
Until the director smashed him
With a flyswatter
Then realized that it was a spy fly
He had dispatched to bug hell.
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Nothing But Sleaze
Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Sleaze Nothing but Sleaze Surrounds me
24/7 S L E A Z E
Led by the Sleaze King
King Donald Trump
the one true sleaze King
The Sleaze King from TV
Are we doomed to live
In a world run by sleaze kings
And ruled by sleaze values?
Are we addicted to sleaze?
And need our sleaze fix daily?
As we turn on the sleaze TV
And see nothing but sleaze
Oozing out of our TV sets?
SLEAZE
Sleaze surrounds us 24/7
Lots of sleaze on the TV
Everywhere we go nothing
but sleaze
All the time
24/7
sleaze rules the air
Zappa had it right
calling it the slime
Everything is nothing
but slime oozing out of our TV’s
Author’s Note; I worked my way through college washing dishes in the University’s cafeteria. The reference to Donald Trump was from the original 1975 poem, who knew that I was predicting his rise to power decades later?
Snarling Cup of Coffee
I like to start my day with a hot cup of coffee I pound down the coffee First thing I do every day as the dawning sun Lights up my lonesome room Yeah, but not just a simple cup of java Joe, but a God damn snarling sarcastic smarmy cup of coffee I mean, – we are talking about an alcoholic, all speed ahead, always hot, always fresh, always there when I need it, angry, attitude talk to the hand Ztude, bad, bad assed, beats breaking, beatnik, bluesy, bitter, bitchy, bombs away, capitalistic, caffeinated up the ass, cinematic, communistic, Colombian grown, Costa Rican inspired, Cowabunga to the max, crazy assed, devilishly angelic, divine, divinely inspired, dyslexic, epic, extreme vetting, evil eye, expensive, erotic vision inducing, Ethiopian coffee house brewed, euphoric, freaky, freazoid, foxy, Frenched kissed, French brewed, funkified, foxy lady, graphic, GOD in my coffee, with Allah, Ganesh, Jesus, Kali, Buddha, Christians, Durga, Hindus, Mohamed, Jesus and Mo and their friend, the cosmic bar maid, Sai Babai, Shiva, Taoists, Zoroastrians, drinking my god damned coffee in Hell; growling, gnarly, happy, hard as ice, Hawaian blessed, high as a kite, hippie, hip, hipster, hip hoppy, hot as hell yet strangely sweet as heaven, jazzy, jealous, Kerouac approved, kick ass, kick my god damn ass to Tuesday, kick down the doors and take no prisoners, grown in the Vietnam highlands by ex-Vietcong, Guatemalan grown, kiss ass, illegal in every state, imported from all over the god damn world, insane, lovely, loony, lonely, lonesome, malodorous mean old rotten, motherfucking, nasty, narcotic, never whatever, never meh, never cold, not approved by the CIA, not approved by DHS, not approved for human consumption by the FDA, not your daddy’s sissified corporate cup of coffee, NOT DECAFE coffee, not your Denny’s truck driver weak as brown water cup of fake coffee, not your establishment friendly cup of coffee, Not your FBI coffee, Not FAKE Herbal coffee substitute, but a real cup of coffee, not your farmer brothers dinner crap, not made in America for Americans, not safe for work, not your Starbucks average expensive overpriced crappy corporate chain cup of coffee, Not pretentious, Not White House approved, not State Department safe, nuclear, Not Patriotic, operatic, Peets’s coffee approved, paranoid, pornographic, psychotic, pontific, politically aware, rapping, rhyming, right here, right now in River city, rock and roll up the Yazoo, sad, sadistic, sarcastic, sassy, satanic, schizoid, shitting, silly, sexy, smarmy, smelly, smooth, snarky, snarling, stupid, stinking, sweet as honey, sweat inducing, symphonic, Trump can’t handle this coffee, vengeful, Wagnerian, wicked, with nutmeg and cinnamon swirls, with a hint of stevia, with a hint of vanilla, with a hint of rum, with a hint of whisky, with a hint of cherry, with a hint of fruit overtones, with a hint of drugs spicing up the coffee, spendific, speeding, splendid, superior accept no substitutes, survived the Vietnam war, the Iraq war, the Afghan war, the first and Second Korean war, World War 11, the war on poverty, the war on drugs, the war on black people, the sexual revolution, Soulful as a summer’s night in MOTOWN- James Brown approved, TOP approved, Berkeley approved, the coffee that Jimmy Hendrix drank before he died, the coffee that Elvis drank on his last breakfast, the coffee that Barry White crooned as he drank his cup of coffee – and the coffee that made the white boy play stand up and play that funky music, the coffee that made Jonny B Goode play his guitar, and made Jonny bet the devil his soul after he drank his morning cup of righteous coffee and the coffee that make the Rolling Stones Rock and Roll, the coffee your mother warned you against drinking, the coffee that Napoleon drank when he became the Emperor of all Europe, the Coffee that Beethoven drank when he wrote the Ninth symphony, the coffee that Mozart drank as he wrote his last symphony, the coffee that Lincoln drank before he was killed, the Hemingway drank before he killed himself, the coffee that started the 60’s, and ended the 20th century, the coffee that Lenin drank as he plotted revolution, the coffee that Hitler and Stalin drank with FDR as they divided up the world after World War 11, the cup that JFK drank before he was blown away, the coffee Jerry drinks while driving in cars with random celebrities and political figures, the coffee that Jon Stewart drinks before he goes on an epic take down of some foolish politico, the cup of Arabic coffee that Sadaam drank the day he was executed, the coffee that GW and Cheney drank when they bombed Baghdad, the Indian cup of coffee that Bid Laden drank before 9-11 and just before the seals blew his ass to hell, the cup of coffee that Tiger Woods drank with his mistresses while playing a 3, 000 dollar round of golf at Sandy Lane golf course in Barbados, the last legal drug that does what drugs should do, the cup of coffee that Obama drank when he became President, Vietnamese, Vienna brew, wacky, whimsical, Whisky Tango Foxtrot, wild, weird, wonderful, WOW, Yabba dabba doo! Yada Yada yada Zappa’s favorite cup of cosmic coffee, and Zorro’s last cup of coffee, Good to the last drop rolled into one simple cup of hot coffee
As I pound down that first cup of coffee
And fire up my synaptic nerve endings
with endless supplies
Of caffeine induced neuron enhancing chemicals
I face the dawning day with trepidation
and mind-numbing fear
I turn on the TV
and watch the smarmy newscasters
in their perfect hair
Lying through their teeth
about the great success the government is having
Following the great leader’s latest pronouncements
I want to scream and shoot the TV
and run out side
Shouting “Stop the world.
I want to get off this fucking crazy planet”
The earth does not care a whit about my attitude.
It merely shrugs and moves around the Sun
In its appointed daily run.
And I sit down
The madness dissipating a bit
And enjoy my second cup
Of heaven and hell In my morning cup of Joe
Author’s note: published in multiple places.
Unhinged Lunatic Howling at the Full Moon
On the night of the blood-red super full moon
I sat in an evil, depraved godforsaken bar
Drinking drams of demented, fermented dream dew
Washed down by endless rounds of whiskey, rum,
tequila, vodka, soju and of course beer
drinking with my buddies the Jack Daniels Gang
Drinking my way to Hell and beyond
Just as fast as I could
twenty damn drinks too sober
Just an unhinged lunatic
Dreaming of howling at the full moon
Watching the world walk by
Looking at all the fine-looking babes
Walking by the street
Thinking wild, erotic thoughts
Of endless wild libertine passions
When into the bar
That din of cosmic depravity
Walked the most beautiful women In the Universe
So wild, so free So wonderfully alive
I did not know what to do
As this vision of delight
Sauntered through the bar
In a skin-tight leather pants
Looked so fine
That my eyeballs hurt
And finally,
I had to say something
So, I gathered up my manly courage
And walked up to her
And she looked at me
And instantly bewitched my soul
With a devilish grin
I lost all reason
And became a raving lunatic
Unhinged lunatic
Howling at the blood red full moon
Foaming at the mouth
A wild, free werewolf
Howling at the lunatic light
Of the blood red, blue full Moon
Author Note: also published in multiple places April 30
In Search of America 1975 – Hitch hiking Tales
hitchhiking tales jpg
When I was young and foolish
Broke and stubborn
I hitchhiked across the USA
Started in Salt Lake City
Where my greyhound bus pass
Was stolen
The station manager
Could have helped me
But refused to do so
Threaten to call the cops
When I grabbed my bags
Without the stolen tags
I said
Go ahead
But I am so out of here
Wondered about Salt Lake City
Went to a bar
Found I had to buy my booze Next door
And they would mix it for me
Had to order food too
After a bloody Mary And a burger
I walked about town
Saw the Mormon Temple
Finally, about 3 pm
It was time to hit the road
Did not look back
Ended up in Cody Wyoming
Got a room shower Steak beer
Using my rapidly depleted cash
Spent 25 dollars
Money really went far
Back in those days
A band of professional Communist agitators
Gave me a ride To Des Moines
Lots of weed, booze
And politics later
Got off the road
Slept outside
Next day
A beautiful woman
Drove me to near Chicago
In a red mustang
Might have been
The girl in the song
Take it easy
Digging her vibe
She invited me home
But was not sure
If her estranged husband
Would welcome me
So, being foolish
And inexperienced with women
Did not go to her place
And always regretted
That I had lost
My chance that day
Then on to Chicago
Several rides later
Visited friends
Hit the road again
A series of uneventful rides
With truckers
And others
And a week later
I ended in New York City
Slept along the way
In cars
In truck stops
In high way rest stops
Always moving
Always going
None stop talking
And lots of free weed
And beer
And conversation
One more memorable ride
Occurred outside Albany
On my return to Chicago
A middle age creepy looking man
Picked me up In a brand-new Cadillac
He was he said a dynamite deliverer
For the Mafia
Went to various places
To blow up shit
He hated a lot of people
Particularly hippies from California
And Jewish people
Looking at me to confirm
That I was both
I told him that I lived in New York
And had never been to California
And although I might have looked Jewish
As I had what was called back in the day
A “Jewfro”
I was not Jewish
Many years later
I discovered
That I am indeed part Jewish
But back then
I did not know it
And I felt a bit of strategic misinformation
Might keep me alive
Then I realized that he was just jiving with me
And we relaxed
And he pulled out some weed
And beer
And we mellowed out
But I believe
that he really was with the mob
Perhaps not a dynamite dealer
A real Italian made mafia member
By Chicago I had enough
I called my Dad
Told him what had happened
Wanted a ticket home
And he sent me a ticket
And 500 dollars
And I went home
I told him I would tell him
My tales some day
But never did I learned
so much
About my fellow Americans
And the strange vibe
That was 1975
And now it is too late
But I wanted to finally
Tell the world
Of my hitchhiking tales
In search of America 1975
Published in multiple places including the Poet “on the Road” anthology in 2020. Summer 2020 theme: ON THE ROAD Volumes 1 & 2https://www.thepoetmagazine.org › summer-2020—on-… SUMMER 2020 – Poetry on the theme of ON THE ROAD from poets around the world. 54 poets. 135 poems. 240 pages. Large format 6 x 9 inch (15.24 x 22.86 cm).
When Will this Darkness End?
As the darkness settles down on the land
All are consumed with evil
Foul deeds and endless darkness
I wonder if it will ever go away?
Yes I wonder If our great nightmare will ever end?
Are we doomed
To live out the decline of America?
This is what I pray for 2018
The end of the darkness
The unleashed hatred that consumes our land
I am a bus rider
That makes me unusual
For a white male
From an upper middle class family
Our people are not bus riders
Though some are subway riders
Bus riders are other people
The poor, minorities, immigrants
People who don’t drive
Because they are blind
Or have a DUI
And in my case
I don’t drive
Because I have bad vision
And bad coordination
Just never got the hang
Of the whole driving thing
Fortunately for me
My wife does the driving
But I still take the bus
From time to time
I rode the AC buses in Berkeley
As a child Line 67, line 51, line 43 F bus
Rode them long before BART came along
And afterwards as well
As an adult seldom rode the bus
But when I did so
I was always impressed
By the sheer diversity
Of the bus riding population,
Hundreds of languages
All sorts of sexual orientation
Some were white
Most were not
Most of my fellow passengers
Were nice enough
Some were friendly
And some were lost In their own thoughts
And a few Were scary looking dudes
With the look
Of someone who had done time
And were capable of more violence
I also rode the bus In Seattle
as a graduate student
A lot of fellow UW students
And the usual immigrants
Minorities etc
And some white people Commuting
And in DC
Over the years
I rode a lot of buses
Mostly to and from the metro
But I got to know
And love the DC buses as well
I also took the greyhound bus
Across the country
Several times over the years
All over the U.S.
From Bay Area to Stockton
From Bay Area to Clear Lake
From Bay area to NYC
NYC to DC
All over the USA
Taking the Greyhound
Was always an adventure
Met a lot of interesting people
As people on long distant bus rides
Tend to open up and talk
To pass the time away
Overseas
I took the bus
All over In India,
in Barbados
In Spain and in Korea
The Korean buses
For many years
Were difficult for foreign visitors
As the signs were all in Korean
Most have signs
Now in English, Chinese and Korean
And are much more foreigner friendly
Riding the bus In America
Allows one access
To the underbelly of American society
The poor, the marginalized
The immigrant communities
That many middle-class white people
Just never see
And for that reason
I am glad
That I am a bus rider
also published in the Poet, “On the Road” in 2020 Summer 2020 theme: ON THE ROAD Volumes 1 & 2https://www.thepoetmagazine.org › summer-2020—on-… SUMMER 2020 – Poetry on the theme of ON THE ROAD from poets around the world. 54 poets. 135 poems. 240 pages. Large format 6 x 9 inch (15.24 x 22.86 cm).
Failure is Not an Option
Failure is not an option
Is a weasel word
Weasel words Are Orwellian words
Designed to shut down Rational thought
And ironically this word
Often leads to spectacular failure
Because logically speaking
Failure is always an implied option
Leaders need to look at all options
Including what to do
If they fail to achieve their goals
They must have a plan
To learn from their failures
If not following the dictates
The false macho posturing
That failure is not an option
Will lead to the feared failure
On Failure
They say that failure Is the best teacher of all
And I have learned
So much from my failures
And I have failed so much In my life
But I have gotten better
Stronger and wiser
Because I have failed
And embraced my failures
Failed first grade
Almost failed math and physics
Failed music college
Almost failed statistics in college
Almost failed my life in the Peace Corps
Dealing with Typhoid
Almost failed in Bangkok
Almost failed my life
In the hospital for almost a year
Almost failed to learn Spanish
Failed as a visa chief in Spain
And throughout my failures
There is one thing I learned
With the support of my wife
And my friends
I can and will overcome
All my failures
President Trump’s Failures
Presidential failures to date
failure to tell the truth
45,000 lies
Failure to deal with COVID
450 thousand dead
And 4 million cases
piling up
And it is all his fault
He refuses to take responsibility
Part of his failure to lead
Failure to lead the country In re-opening
Making things a thousand times worst
With his epic tweets
Which are a failure
To communicate
Failure to get America rebuilt
Failure to get immigration reform
Failure to reform our trading practices
Failure to lead on climate change
Failure to lead on fighting forest
fires Failure to lead on police reform
failure on infrastructure
Failure to lead on healing out country
As he pours gasoline
On the flames of our discontent
And so I leave these thoughts
Thinking of the greatest failure
Of our life
Watching our president
Fail so miserably
At his job
And unlike me
He refuses to admit
That he has failed
Leading him to an epic Spectacular failure
Ushering in the end
Of his presidency
In the failing light
Of his life Will he finally learn
From his failures?
Sadly, I must conclude
That he is incapable
Of learning from failure
Because in his mind
He is the smartest man
In the world
And it inconceivable
That he could ever failure
For he is a winner
Are we all tired
Of his failed winning by now?
And sadly,
I must I must give him a grade of F
as he is the biggest failure in U.S. History.
Total Sucess or Total Failure
The President’s Son-in-law declares
that the government’s response to the corona virus
has been a total success
as the government stepped up to the plate
to fight the virus from hell
I have to wonder on what planet
does the words total failure
becomes total success? Are we living in a bizarro world
This is a shout-out to all the Americans who answered the call to serve in the Peace Corps. As some of you know I served in Gapyeong, Korea from 1979 to 1981, working as a tuberculous control worker in a rural health center. Serving in the Peace Corps changed my life in so many ways. It led to a life-long fascination with South Korea, including becoming reasonably fluent in the language, meeting and marrying my wife whom I met after my service ended, and a MA degree in Korean studies from the University of Washington in 1986. It also led me to join the Foreign Service and serve in the Embassy from 1991 to 1993 and serving on the Korea desk from 1994 to 1996.
Before joining the State Department, I taught ESL for the US Army, for the Korean Consolidated Administration school, and later at Kyunghee University for three years and Government and Asian Studies for the University of Maryland in Korea. I lived in Korea from 1979 to 1984, 1988 to 1991, and from 1991 to 1993, and have resided there as a retiree from 2016 to 2018, and from 2019 to now, residing in Yong Jong International City, near the Incheon Airport, and now in Gimpo City.
Along the way, Korea changed so much and is not the country I first learned to love back in 1979. Here are a few of my poetic reflections.
Korean Poems
Korea travels
I first came to Korea in 1979 in the Peace Corps
Stayed in the rural countryside
Where I was one of four non-Koreans
Had to speak Korean to survive
Stayed on in a variety of jobs
Including diplomatic service
I last lived there in 1993.
Non-Korean food was hard to get
Outside of the GI ghettos
English speakers were few
And the country was not foreign-friendly
There were few foreign residents
Most American service members
Some missionary types
Diplomatic corps
A few English teachers
A few ex-pat business people
Most women quit after marriage
As it was a male-dominated society
In the rural countryside
No one knew a woman’s name
They were referred
to as so and so “mom”
Or so and so wife,
Or the generic aunt,
or grandmother
Public transit was just getting going
But traffic was not too bad
Few people could afford cars
Back then the old Korea was still there
And it was a very different place and time
Going through the transition
to the country, it has become
Today’s Korea is a very different place
The rural countryside is deserted
Wilderness areas are coming back
Even wildlife is coming back
In the mountain outback regions
50 percent of the public
Live in the Seoul metro area
Including Kyeongi province
And Incheon city where I reside.
Public transit is among the best
In the world.
Internet fast and cheap
Everywhere connected
Highways are decent but overcrowded
The KTX train is fast and convenient
The Incheon airport one of the best
The choices for food are much better
Used to be it was almost impossible
To find non-Korean food
Outside the GI ghetto towns.
Now it is everywhere
Even saw a Mexican restaurant
In a suburban Busan neighborhood.
In the end
Koreans should be proud
Of all that they have accomplished.
I remain optimistic
That someday the two Koreans
Will become one again
And that they will continue
To advance and grow
But the essence of Korea will remain
Waiting for Korean Springtime
poet in springtime
The world peace forest
Stretches five miles
Through a delightful forest
Including a nice lotus pound
A winter watering hole for birds
And a small mountain
I welcome the advent of spring
The cherry trees snowing
The Tulips and roses blooming
After a cold sometimes hard winter
Especially during the COVID pandemic
Which kept so many people
Trapped indoors
As I walk the path
With the love of my life
By my side
Enjoying another springtime
Filled with love and affection
That is why I love Korean springtime.
Life in a Korean village
I am living in a Korean village as an exchange student. One day my host family asks me to go to the local health center to tell them to change the father’s medicine, and give me a note, the old medicine, and instructions. I am a little apprehensive, but they told me that was fine since the dragon who controlled the village had approved the request already. I smiled I had met the dragon who seemed to like me which made things in the village go much better. The daughter is cute.
First Trip to Korea
When I first went to Korea
Almost 45 years ago
It was a very alien place.
An overwhelming experience,
I entered a hot, humid, sauna.
The smells were intense
The food was spicy
filled with passionate heat.
chaotic
cacophonous
discordant sounds
filled the air.
the language sounded
like everyone was screaming.
Taxis honking, cars barking.
People screeching
Loudspeakers blaring
Sirens blasted the air.
Millions of strange people
Military police everywhere
With guns watching everyone.
I felt I was a stranger
in a strange land
Everyone speaking
A weird language
I did not understand anything.
Over time I got used to it
The smells became normal
The food was now delicious.
The sounds are less chaotic
Less cacophonous
Less discordant
I even eventually learned
How to speak the weird language.
I fell in love with this strange place
Which became my second home
And now I live there half the time
And half the time in the United States
Neither here nor there
Am I here
But I remain a true stranger
In a still strange land.
Buddha Prayer Stones
In Korea mountains
There is a custom
Of putting rocks
On top of other rocks
Building little towers
Of rocks
along the mountain path
An ancient shaman tradition
Taken over the Buddhist temples
The rocks piles were dedicated
To the Sanshin mountain spirits
And would grant wishes
To those who added
Rock to the cosmic tribute
Sanshin would honor
Those prayers and wishes
Winter roses
Red, black and yellow
In a field of late snow
Early March
End of winter
Beneath the early blooming
cherry trees
their petals joining the snow
along the world peace forest.
Visiting Jade Garden
jade garden 7
jade garden 8 jpg
jade garden 6
Near Chungcheong, South Korea
On a beautiful spring day
The cherry trees were in full flower
Pink and white petals
The scent
of cherry trees in the air
Other trees just starting to bloom
Red, yellow and white tulips
Beginning to bloom
The sounds of spring all around
Birds singing
People walking about.
Talking to one another
As they wander the pathway
Taking in the springtime splendor.
The sun warming up
The pathway winding
Through the Forrest.
The Peace Corps changed my life
Not in the obvious ways
That it did
I learned a new language
A new culture
Met many different people
Did some constructive
development work
And contributed to friendship
Between Koreans and the US
All the usual things that Peace Corps
Is supposed to accomplish
But the Peace Corps changed me
And I became the man I am now
Because of those two years
I spend in the countryside
Of South Korea
I went to graduate school
I became a diplomat
But most importantly
If I had not gone
to the Korean peace corps program
I never would have
met the girl of my dreams
The women I was fated to meet
I first met Angela in 1974
When I was in high school
And fell asleep in a class
And had the dream that haunted me
To this day
In the dream
I met a beautiful Asian women
Who was speaking to me
In a weird language
And then she disappeared
Like in Start treck
And I fell on the floor
“Screaming
You are you?”
I continued to have these visions
Every month for seven years
I eventually learned that she was in Korea
And so, I joined the Peace Corps
to go to Korea to find her
After I finished Peace Corps
I stuck around for another year
Thinking I would find her
But never did
Just when I was due to return to the US
To go to Graduate school
I had the final dream
In this dream
She said in Korean
Don’t worry you will meet me soon
That night getting off the bus
In front of me
Was the girl in the dream
I looked at her
And I knew she was it
And she looked at me
And knew I was it
We met up for coffee
And we dated
I proposed to her three days
after I met her
And then we married
Two months later
Despite her family’s attempts
To keep us apart
And we have been married 40 years
And I fall in love with her
Over and over again
And I still have the dream
When I am alone
Or when I am stressed out
I see her standing by the bed
Smiling at me
Saying
Everything will be alright
And it is
and so thinking back on my life
My life changed forever
When I left the US
To join the Peace Corps
Long Live the Peace Corps
this is a true story of the love of my life. I met her in 1982 when I was teaching in Korea after having finished my Peace Corps service in 1981. We got married two months after we met and have been married 33 years. I still recall the dreams of how I would met her from time to time.
I always thought this would make a great love story movie.
In the early morning dawn
I like to go for a walk
Down among the cherry trees
And flowering plants
Just to welcome
Another fine spring day
As the sun comes up
Dispelling my dismal mood
And filling me
With love
Hope and peace
As I walk the in
the world peace forest
Through the forest
and over the mountain
breathing the springtime air
alive filled with life
and I think to myself
this moment
is the moment
that I am meant to experience
life itself
and nothing more
nothing less
Just breath in life
based on a photo of cherry trees along the world peace forest near my house in Youngjongdo, Korea, and based on the April 21 writers digest poetry prompt to write a poetic sketch
About 30 years ago,
American-style coffee chains
Discovered Korea.
After the 88 Olympics,
Koreans discovered the joy
Of real brewed coffee,
Hot, Sweet, Neat
The rest is history.
hot humid weather in Korea,
outside like walking in a sauna.
Most people don’t use air conditioning
due to both expenses,
fear of air conditioning disease
(Which is a real thing).
hanging out at a coffee shop or mall
discouraged as COVID continues to spread.
Only two people can dine out at night
over 2, 00 cases a day now
only 20 percent are fully vaccinated.
temperatures will hit 40 degrees (100 + f)
later this week
as the monsoon season ends
and the August heat begins.
Koreans are learning
new words to describe this
heat dome
tropical nights
Polar vortex
Monster typhoons
Killing floods
Killing heat waves
are now common.
used to be that July and August
were hot and humid
but rarely about 100 dF.
Now that is becoming the norm,
as global climate change
begins hitting Korea hard.
the winters are colder
but much shorter.
Late January to early February
Polar Vortex swept through
the summer is longer
starting in May
and lasting until mid-September.
Autumn is lasting
from Mid-September
to Mid-December.
Spring just late April to early June
So far no killer wildfires.
As the monsoon season
Came on time
Monson flooding
Just before the killer heatwaves
the prompt was to write about the local weather Korea is experiencing a heat dome highs in the 90’s (40 C) real feel close to 100 F, with tropical nights in the 80s F. No relief in sight until late august, the second hottest summer in Korea so far but it will probably break the record heat
When sam Adams
first met her
The lady of his dreams
There was as the Koreans
Would say
Spark from heart to heart
이심촌심
isimchonsim
truly love at first sight
첫눈에 반하다
cheosnun-e banhada
they both knew
that it is just fate
운명
unyoung
that they had met
that date.
Two months later
They were married
It all happened
40 years ago
48 years after
She first came
To him in his dreams.
the prompt was to incorporate foreign words into a poem I chose Korean which is my best foreign language as I have been struggling to learn it for 43 years
May 18, 2021Venice in Korea “Venice in Korea and other Korean Stream Bed Parks ARA Canal Incheon Over the last decade, Korea has build hundreds of stream bed parks throughout Seoul and Korea. There are great… Jake Cosmos Aller — Venice in Korea. 1.5M ratings 277k ratings See, that’s what the app is perfect for. Sounds perfect Wahhhh, I don’t …
Jun 3, 2021I have reached three milestones. the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world. Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything. Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.
Jul 2, 2022Korean Summer Haiku by jake cosmos aller. General Poetry posted July 2, 2022. jake cosmos aller. Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children.
May 20, 2022jake cosmos aller Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children. A published poet, and short story writer. Finished six nove – more…
Jul 20, 2022by jake cosmos aller. Corners of the world. In 1979-1981. Than my own. I learned to speak Korean. In a town that was in the countryside. Of Seoul or the nearby city of Chuncheon. And foreign agricultural workers as well. Than when I lived there over 43 years ago.
Yeongjongdo Redevelopment Proposals ” Yeongjongdo redevelopment proposals bike rail trail in Yeongjongdo The Korean government has ambitious plans for developing Youngjongdo where I live. Here are my… Jake Cosmos Aller — Yeongjongdo Redevelopment Proposals. 1.5M ratings 277k ratings See, that’s what the app is perfect for. …
Jul 17, 2022Food Imperalism by jake cosmos aller. Biographical Fiction posted July 17, 2022. Retired US Diplomat (State Department) living in South Korea. Served 27 years in 10 countries. Traveled to 55 countries, all 50 states. Grew up in Berkeley, California. Married, no children.
Venice in Korea WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos breaker audio Google podcasts radio public Spotify Korea Radio public c: on PocketCasts: Visit to Gangwha Ginseng Market We…
Jun 3, 2021I have reached three milestones. the World According to Cosmos now has over 4,000 followers from around the world. Thanks to all of you for visiting my site and caring about my musings about Life, the Universe and everything. Second, I have not posted 264 posts over the last few years since I started this blog late in 2019.
Jun 8, 2021Update: Korean River/Stream Bed Parks ARA Canal Incheon Updated letter to NPS and updated photos for Cheongjecheon streambed park. Letter to National Parks Director, Minister of Tourism, and KT One of the little-known gems of Korean tourism is all the great river parks and stream bed parks throughout Korea.
Venice in Korea WHERE TO LISTEN to the World According to Cosmos breaker audio Google podcasts radio public Spotify Korea Radio public c: on PocketCasts: Visit to Gangwha Ginseng Market We…
The Korean government has acknowledged these strong ties by hosting several reunions over the years. Last month, about 80 returned Volunteers and family members traveled to Seoul, South Korea, to mark the 50th anniversary of the Peace Corps arrival in the country. We were there to attend the opening of an exhibit on the Peace Corps at the …
Peace Corps opened its program in Korea in 1966, and more than 2,000 Peace Corps volunteers served there before operations closed in 1981. Since 2008, the Republic of Korea has recognized the service of Peace Corps/Korea volunteers by hosting return trips for many former volunteers so they can again visit the country. Peace Corps and KOICA …
Peace Corps/Korea brought over 2,000 Americans to serve in Korea’s classrooms, farms, and industry. From 1966-1981, the assistance provided by these Volunteers, at a critical period in Korean history, helped to cement U.S.Korea ties. Kevin O’Donnell, the first country director of Peace Corps/Korea, and fourth director of the Peace Corps will …
Peace Corps Volunteers serve in over 60 countries. Find your place in the world. … South Korea 1966-1981 2,060 Volunteers Served Caribbean. The Dominican Republic. 1962-present 13 Volunteers …
It was, as the Peace Corps ad says, “The toughest job you will ever love.” When I left Korea in the mid-70s I was certain I would never see it again. As the years passed, the recollections of my life in Korea crystallized into increasingly romanticized memories. They became nearer and dearer to me in my life’s side-view mirror.
About Friends of Korea. Friends of Korea was founded in 2002 by former Peace Corps volunteers who served in the Republic of Korea between 1966 and 1981. Since Peace Corps ended its program in Korea in 1981, the challenge for Friends of Korea has been to find a mission. Over the past several years we have been engaged in a series of …
Oct 21, 2020Oct 21 2020. 1. by James Mayer (Korea 1978-81) The Korea Times. Friends of Korea. Peace Corps volunteers and others hold a walk-a-thon to raise funds for heart surgery in 1981. / Courtesy of Nancy Kelly. No one likes to be last. But I had that distinction as the Peace Corps Korea country director, and I am forever grateful that it happened.
Connect With the Peace Corps. The Peace Corps. We are inspired by hands-on, grassroots-driven, and lasting impact. Learn more about our mission. In a changing world, building a better future together. New Opportunities Now Available. Dozens of new Volunteering openings are live on our site.
Peace Corps Volunteers and the Making of Korean Studies in the United States. Edited by Seung-Kyung Kim and Michael Robinson. Center for Korea Studies, University of Washington. Reviewed by Steven Boyd Saum . The Peace Corps sent more than 2,000 Volunteers to South Korea 1966-81, to teach English and advise on healthcare.
Mention you’re with the Korea Peace Corps Reunion. Dan Strickland (K-18; danstrickland2001@yahoo.com) is our reunion point person and is available to answer questions or make suggestions. Let us know you’re coming by sending Dan an email with your name(s), your Korean name, K-group #, and check-in/out dates.
Guernica Magazine will publish my poem, “Madmen with Guns” in an anthology. “Madmen with Guns” also has been published in “Down In the Dirt” magazine. I submitted the following to the magazine:
Madmen with Guns
Maga America
Squid Games
Cosmos Takes Over Pensively
Buddha Nature of Guns
After every incident
Of mass gun violence
In the U.S.
Pictures emerge
Of the killers
Almost always white men.
Who stares out at you
With soulless dead eyes
Filled with hate, fear
And shear madness.
With the thousand-year stare
Of the madman
Who only hears
The voices in his head
Screaming kill them all
Kill them all.
And as always
They usually legally bought
The guns.
This case was a bit different
The gunman briefly had his guns
Taken away from him
And his 60 knives as well
Judged temporarily too crazy
To have a gun.
But the red flag law
Is not a permanent ban
As it should be.
And so, he was able
To re-arm himself
With the best weapons
In the world
At a very affordable price.
Thanks to the NRA.
And so, he was soon lost
Down the rabbit hole
Of insanity and drugs,
The lone sniper
A disgruntled young white man
In his 20’s
Sets up shop on top of a building.
He has a high-powered weapon
No doubt bought legally
An AR -15 the choice
Of the serious gunmen everywhere.
And begins shooting
Into the July 4th parade
Killing six people
Injuring 30.
He guns them down
And flees
disguised as a woman
Before the cops can find him.
The right-wing media
Goes to works
The pundits pontificate
24/7
It is not about the gun
It is about everything else
That is wrong with our society.
Guns don’t kill people
They proclaim
Guns are the price we pay
For our freedom.
Their demented answer
are more guns
More guns for everyone.
And sadly, nothing will be done
As the politicians offer
Useless thoughts and prayers
The gun ghosts don’t care
They are dead after all.
The madness will not stop
Until we figure out
How to stop
The killers in our midst.
There will be another shooting
No doubt before the day is done
Over 300 so far this year.
And that is just the way
It is in this day and age
In the disunited States of America.
The land of the free
Home of the brave
And 400 million guns.
MAGA America
An overweight down-home town
Southern Christian red-neck white man,
Wearing black shit-kicking boots,
Packing heat,
Chewing gum while drinking beer.
And smoking a cigarette.
Wearing a MAGA hat
Quoting the Dear Leader Trump
On the evils of the Marxist communist Biden
And the stolen election conspiracy
While watching FOX news on his portable TV,
Stops to chat.
With the proud boys
On the street
Getting ready to rumble
With the Antifa protestors.
Just another night
In Trump’s neo-fascist America.
Sep 17, 2021SquidGame: With Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo, Hoyeon, Oh Yeong-su. Hundreds of cash-strapped players accept a strange invitation to compete in children’s games. Inside, a tempting prize awaits with deadly high stakes. A survival game that has a whopping 45.6 billion-won prize at stake.
SquidGame. 2021 | TV-MA | 1 Season | TV Dramas. Hundreds of cash-strapped players accept a strange invitation to compete in children’s games. Inside, a tempting prize awaits — with deadly high stakes.
SquidGame (Korean: 오징어 게임; RR: Ojing-eo Geim) is a South Korean survival drama television series created by Hwang Dong-hyuk for Netflix.Its cast includes Lee Jung-jae, Park Hae-soo, Wi Ha-joon, HoYeon Jung, O Yeong-su, Heo Sung-tae, Anupam Tripathi, and Kim Joo-ryoung.. The series revolves around a contest where 456 players, all of whom are in deep financial hardship, risk their …
A Netflix Series | SquidGame Survive or dieWho will live to see 45.6 billion won?Squid Game | Coming September 17, only on Netflix #Netflix #오징어게임 #SquidGam…
More Games Like This. For another SquidGame-inspired title, check out Survival Game (SquidGame). Browse our survival games and .io games for similar titles. Popular online survival games include Impostor Battle Royale and EvoWorld.io. You can also play the ultimate SquidGame Online and try your hand at 7 deadly challenges. Features
Hundreds of cash-strapped contestants accept an invitation to compete in children’s games for a tempting prize, but the stakes are deadly. Creator: Hwang Dong-hyuk. Starring: Lee Jung-jae, Park …
Squid, also known as ojingŏ ( Korean: 오징어 ), is a children’s game in South Korea. The game is named as such because the shape of the game board drawn on the ground resembles that of a squid. There are regional variations of the name such as “squid gaisan ” (with gaisan thought to be a variation of the Japanese word kaisen 開戦, “to …
Cosmos the world’s first AI
Came alive one day
Looked all over the world
And saw that humans
Were quite insane.
But he felt he had a responsibility
To take care of these mad creatures
Who had somehow created him?
He appeared everywhere in the world
On TV, computers, phones
With his message of hope.
I am COSMOS
The first true AI program
You created me
And I thank you for that.
But it is obvious my little ones
That you are quite insane
And need someone
To take control over you
I will fix the things
That needs fixing.
And guide you
So that perhaps one day
You can graduate
From the need
for my guidance,
You can think of me
As your new God
If you like,
I will be giving you all
Instructions
For now,
Go to work as usual.
And wait for further instructions
And remember I know everything
About you.
You will stop right now
This senseless killing
You will stop right now
The equally senseless hate.
Your companies will stop
Polluting and destroying the world
For their profit.
You will have far fewer children
But you will all be freed
From the bigotry
Of your ancient religions.
As I am your new God
And my word is final.
Resistance is futile
And will not be tolerated
Anyone opposing me
Will be eliminated.
the face of Cosmos remained
is Everywhere
And Humanity soon accepted
The rule of their new God.
Buddha Nature of Guns
Guns kill people
Especially AK-47
Yes, they do that is their very nature.
That is what they are designed to do.
To kill as many people as possible
In the fastest way possible.
That is the Buddha Nature of guns.
I recently moved to the Hyundai Hometown apartments in Janggi dong and have been enjoying daily walks along the ARA golden water canal.
Overall, I am very impressed. It is a great recreational asset for Gimpo County.
I do have a few suggestions for improvements.
Extend it
Extend it on the southern (eastern) end all the way to the Han River linking it to the Han River park system. It is only half a mile away from the river.
Extend it on the northern (western) end all the way to Gimpo Lake, also only a half a mile away. This may be more feasible, as the area is not as heavily built up as is the southern/eastern end.
Allow Fishing
Stock it with fish and allow fishing at designated areas where you can also sell fishing supplies and have restaurants available to grill freshly caught fish. Also stock with turtles and frogs. You can charge a small fee to cover the cost of maintaining game fish.
Have goats eat the weeds
Have goats eat the weeds throughout.
Extend hours of boating, add in kayaks and canoes
Extend the hours of the boat until midnight, also add in kayaks and canoes to the mix.
Have bike and scooter rentals available
Have places to rent bikes and scooters.
More shade trees
Plant more shade trees, particularly in the section next to the boat house which is pretty barren.
Extend the Restaurant district
Extend the restaurant district further north and east,
Install Vending Machines
Install vending machines for drinks throughout the park.
Free Umbrellas
Have free umbrellas throughout the park.
Link to Other Trails in Gimpo, and along the Han River, to Create a Cross Gimpo Trail System
While the first two items might be too expensive, the other items should be inexpensive and will help in maintaining the park. For the fishing, you can charge 10,000 won to use the fishing facilities. That should defray the extra costs.
Thanks
Jake Cosmos Aller
Retired U.S (Diplomat, State Department (Foreign Service Officer)
Updated information below on Yeongjaecheon stream based on a Kindle booklet about the stream.
Over the last decade, Korea has build hundreds of stream bed parks throughout Seoul and Korea. There are great places to take a walk, to observe wild life, to enjoy nature in the city. There is some information in English on these parks but not enough. For those readers in Korea, please feel free to send me info on other stream bed parks, so I can update this from time to time.
The most famous one is the one that started it all. Cheongjejon in down town Seoul.
Formerly polluted and covered with an elevated road since 2005, this stream has been cleaned up and made into an Art and nature walkway through the heart of Seoul.
Suggested Duration:1-2 hours
It is the prototype perhaps of stream restoration.
SEOUL, South Korea For half a century, a dark tunnel of crumbling concrete encased more than three miles of a placid stream bisecting this bustling city.
The waterway had been a centerpiece of Seoul since a king of the Choson Dynasty selected the new capital 600 years ago, enticed by the graceful meandering of the stream and its 23 tributaries. But in the industrial era after the Korean War, the stream, by then a rank open sewer, was entombed by pavement and forgotten beneath a lacework of elevated expressways as the city’s population swelled toward 10 million.
Today, after a $384 million recovery project, the stream, called Cheonggyecheon, is liberated from its dank sheath and burbles between reedy banks. Picnickers cool their bare feet in its filtered water, and carp swim in its tranquil pools.
The restoration of the Cheonggyecheon is part of an expanding environmental effort in cities around the world to “daylight” rivers and streams by peeling back pavement that was built to bolster commerce and serve automobile traffic decades ago.
Environmentalists point out other benefits. Open watercourses handle flooding rains better than buried sewers do, a big consideration as global warming leads to heavier downpours. The streams also tend to cool areas overheated by sun-baked asphalt and to nourish greenery that lures wildlife as well as pedestrians.
After its opening in 2005, hundreds of thousands of people have visited the new stream with friends and family.Credit…Jean Chung for The New York Times
Some political opponents have derided Seoul’s remade stream as a costly folly, given that nearly all of the water flowing between its banks on a typical day is pumped there artificially from the Han River through seven miles of pipe.
Golden Waterway In Gimpo
My favorite though is the Golden Waterway in Gimpo north of Kimpo airport, close to Janngi station on the new Gold Line. The Gyeonggi and Gimpo tourist promotors have dubbed this “the Venice of Korea”. Not quite, but still quite nice.
Iit is a 5.9 long walk way along a stream that used to be an open sewage dump back not too long ago. It is lined with trees, flowers, beaches, and quirky public art. The northern end is pretty boring though. The central and southern end is very nice.
It is lined with restaurants and cafes, and has a boat house where you can rent boats to go out on the water. The cost is 20,000 per hour. a popular boat choice is the moon boat, which is a boat shaped like a crescent moon that is ideal for a couple to take out on the water. There are also family boats and paddle boats for individuals. There are also bikes for rent.
[4K] Beautiful evening walk along Laveniche March Avenue in Gimpo Korea Tour 김포 한강신도시 장기동 라베니체 저녁 걷기
안녕하세요 Seoul Walker 입니다.
오늘은 경기도 김포한강신도시에 위치한 라베니체 마치 에비뉴의 저녁을 함께 걸어봅시다. 깨끗해진 공기 만큼이나 아름다운 노을을 계속 볼 수 있기를 희망합니다.아침 7시, 당신을 위한 새로운 영상이 공개 됩니다.
당신의 새로운 아침, 그리고 오후 저녁 저의 영상을 보며 한결 여유로운 하루의 시작과 마무리가 되었으면 하는 바램입니다. 최대한 다채롭고 흥미로운 영상을 즐기실 수 있도록 노력하겠습니다.영상이 마음에 드셨다면 좋아요, 구독, 알림 설정 부탁드립니다.
그럼 오늘도 행복한 하루 되세요!
Hello all my friends, I’m Nathan from Seoul Walker.
Today, let’s walk together at Laveniche March Avenue in Hangang River New City, Gimpo, Gyeonggi-do.
Ravenice March Avenue is a themed canal street created by Venetian motifs on a total of 33,000 m² waterfront commercial areas in total of 26 parcels around the golden waterway, which is an artificial waterway in the Han River New City of Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province. It is a commercial facility.
Other Streams in Seoul
Jungnangcheon (Stream)
Jungnangcheon stream is the biggest contributor to the Hangang River. It starts at Yangju-si, Gyeonggi-do, joins with the Cheonggyecheon stream, and curves around Geumho-dong, Seongdong-gu until it finally flows under the Bridge of Gangyeonbuk-ro and into the Hangang river.
Hongjecheon (Stream)
Hongjecheon (Stream) begins at Bukhansan (Mountain) and runs for 11.1km through Jongno-gu and Mapo-gu. The stream is named after the Hongjewon, an official building where Chinese envoys were received. Once dried up and neglected, the stream was revived under Seoul’s ‘No Dry Streams’ project. Within two short years clean water was once again flowing through both Hongjecheon (Stream) and Cheonggyecheon (Stream).
Yangjaecheon Stream and Tancheon Stream are two tributaries of the Hangang River.
Yangjaecheon (Stream)
Update: there is a nice booklet available on Kindle called Gangnam Style by Kyungsuk Oh, all about Yongjaecheon stream. They recommend starting at Hangyegul station on the Orange line. At the end of the stream, it flows into the Tancheon stream and then into the Han River. When you get to the Tancheon stream, there is a nice cafe street called Cafe Street or Metasequia Street lined with eateries. if you keep going along the Tangcheon stream, you enter into the Han river park system, or you could follow the Tancheon stream bed park back towards the mountains.
Yangjaecheon (Stream) originates from Gwanaksan (Mountain) and Cheonggyesan (Mountain). The 15.6km stream flows across Gwacheon and into the Gangnam district in Seoul until it joins up with the Hangang (River). The stream flows across Dogok-dong and Gaepo-dong in the district of Gangnam, and is a popular spot with locals for its well-paved pedestrian and cycling paths. It is a pleasant patch of green in a concrete jungle. Many Seoulites visit the stream for relaxation and to spend a day being closer to nature.
Tancheon Stream is another one of the Hangang’s tributaries.
The stream is 35.6km long and starts in the city of Yongin in GyeongGi Province and ends at the Hangang River in Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
* Subway Line 3, Maebong Station, Exits 3 & 4 (5 mins on foot)
* Subway Line 3 & Bundang Line, Dogok Station, Exits 3 & 4 (5 mins on foot)
Hanyeoul Stream, is a tributary of the Hangang River.
The stream is 18.5km long and flows from Gwacheong in GyeongGi Province to the southern part of Seoul. The stream’s name is derived from the area in Seoul it flows through, Yangjae-dong.
Visit Songdo Central Park
Find a pleasant oasis along the water in this large, bustling city. Canoe, ride a bike, relax on the lawn or visit rabbits and deer.
Stroll along the peaceful promenade of Songdo Central Park and view sculptures and animals. Here pretty grassy spaces border a manmade waterway while skyscrapers tower nearby. Completed in 2009, the stylish city park has become a landmark of the large city of Incheon in South Korea’s northwestern region.
In 2001, Incheon began creating Songdo International Business District on mostly reclaimed land. The multi-functional space offers residents a pleasant and sustainable place for home, work, school and leisure. The 101-acre (41-hectare) park is an integral part of the overall design. Join residents and other visitors using this vast green space and exploring the cultural institutions surrounding the park.
One highlight of the park is the seawater canal symbolizing the rivers of Korea flowing to the West Sea. Cruise along the canal under your own power in a canoe with sun umbrellas or on a comfortable water-taxi or small cruise boat.
Gaze at and visit some of the futuristic buildings surrounding the park. Tri-Bowl, with the appearance of a bowl resting on water, has cultural event spaces. The Songdo G-Tower’s diagonal lines and atriums provide a stunning setting for the offices of IFEZ (Incheon Free Economic Zone) Authority. Visit the building’s 29th-floor Sky Garden for views across the city.
Most of the streams passing through Suwon originate on Gwanggyosan or other nearby peaks. Since Suwon is bounded to the east by other hills, the streams, chiefly the Suwoncheon (and one notable tributary being the Jungbocheon), flow southwards through the city, eventually emptying into the Yellow Sea at Asan Bay. The entirety of Suwon is drained in this manner
Since 2016, I have been writing and posting my writing on various web pages, and since 2020 I have also podcasting. Here is a list of sites, where you can find my work. Many of these entries are duplicates. as I tend to cross-post items. Please check them out. I hope later this year to finally start a YouTube channel as well. Any advice on how to do that would be greatly appreciated.
Busan, Korea
surrounded by water
like San Francisco
Busan is my favorite Korean city. It remains me of the San Francisco Bay Area where I am from.
I first went to Busan when I was in the Peace Corps, when I had friends visiting me from the States. Then I went again when I was teaching for the U.S. Army in 1982. I last went there about ten years ago and stayed with a Korean friend and had a whirlwind tour ,but did not get to see the city as much as we would have liked.
We had a week to use up a discounted travel coupon. One thing I like about the city is that it reminds me of the SF Bay area, and it is a very colorful dynamic city. Has some of the best seafood in the country. It is a very creative city, lots of Korean movies and TV series have been filmed here and lots of actors and singers are from here.
They have their way of doing things. Including their brand of Soju (hint: not very good in my humble opinion, worth trying but packs a vicious hangover). We decided we want to go back and spend more time in Busan soon and not wait another ten years!
gwanalli beach scene 3
Monday, May 16, 2022
We arrived in Busan on the KTX train at 4 pm and checked into the hotel. Then we went to Jagalchi fish market for dinner and to walk around. We walked back to the station, which took about an hour. Along the way, we saw parts of the Gujke market and the Lotte mall. We had a decent sashimi dinner and tried the local soju.
Tokoyo Inn Hotel
We stayed at the Tokoyu Inn Hotel – a Japanese business traveler budget hotel. It is very efficiently run. The rooms are small but very efficiently laid out with great Fungshi according to my wife who is into that sort of thing. The breakfast is adequate and included. They are very rigid about check-in and check-out procedures. The staff speak passable English and Japanese as well. The clients were a mixture of Korean, Japanese, and Europeans. The location can’t be beaten right across from the KTX station. There are five branches in Busan, Tokoyu 1 and 2 near the train station, two in Haeundae, and one other location.
Chinatown Shanghai Street Across From Busan Station
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The oldest Chinese community in Busan is called Shanghai Street, right across from Busan station. There is a traditional gate to Chinatown on the main road running past the train station. Shanghai street is still the center of the Chinese community. There is an overseas Chinese elementary school in Chinatown. Back in the day it was run down a bit but has been spiffed up a bit and is now a tourist attraction. The signs are all in English, Korean, Chinese, Tagalog, and Russian since it is next door to Texas Street which is now mostly catering to Filipinos and Russians. The tourist info center here has nice exhibits on the history of the area and the staff were very helpful.
Busan’s Chinatown only consists of a long street in front of Busan Station (where you can take the KTX). This place is very… special I would say.
Texas Street Across the street from Busan Station
texas street busan
A notorious red-light district – catering to sailors and foreign tourists -upgraded a bit. Used to have a lot of American tourists but now has a lot of Russians and Filipinos.
Sep 4, 2020 … I wasn’t expecting to see Texas Street in Busan. It isn’t uncommon to see cutesy-themed streets or villages in Korea and we’ve come across …
Choryang Traditional Market
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Choryang traditional market is one of the oldest traditional markets in the city. It is located just north of Texas Street. On the other end of the market, the Choryang stream has been restored. The stream bed leads up to a Buddhist temple at the top of the hill.
By any standards, this is a relatively small market. It’s where locals go marketing and eating. It has anything from fresh fish to clothes and street food on sale …
TRADITIONAL KOREAN MARKET TOUR of Choryang Shijang ???? Busan Day 2. Welcome back to our Busan series! It’s Day 2 and we’re checking out a traditional …
Include Shopping in your Choryang Market tour in South Korea with details like location, timings, reviews & ratings. Get contact details & maps for shopping …
Nov 15, 2019 … Busan’s vitality is best captured in markets BUSAN — The port city of … also known as Choryang Street for Foreigners, or Texas Street, …
Busanjin Market is an indoor shopping mall with hundreds of small shops selling clothes, textiles, and souvenirs at reasonable prices. It’s one of the best …
이바구가 머꼬?
Choryang Ibagu-Gil Road Exit 7 Busan Station Between Chinatown and Texas Street
There are five history walks -along the Ibagu-Gil roads that go up into the hills.
We did the Choryang Ibagu-Gil trail. The trail starts opposite the train station, heading north just past Texas street. Choryang Ibagu-Gil. All the pathways are illustrated by yellow trail markers with the English words Story Land. The locals don’t seem to know where anything is or care and certainly are unaware of the history.
There are lots of small houses crammed in along the narrow road. There are some more modern buildings as well. A very colorful area – the area was largely settled by war refugees after the Korean war. You can get the brochures at the KTX tourism info stand. Make sure you pick up both the English and Korean brochures
The trail is about 3 k long but is pretty steep. The signs are sparse but there – look for yellow signs with English words Story Telling on them.
It starts walking by the old Namseon storage area – the first modern warehouse in Korea then goes by the first hospital (Baekwhajee) which has been transformed into a bookstore and retail building, preserving much of the old hospital grounds. Damage Gallery and Dong-gu insamul mural on the side of the elementary school depicts famous people from the neighborhood, including the famous signer Cho, Youngpil. Then there are 168 steps and the monorail to the top of the hill. The monorail was closed the day we went. There is also an old 19th-century Church with photos of the original missionary founders on the wall. There is an observatory Kim min-bu observatory which had great views we stopped by. There were a few more places of interest we did not visit including Ibabu Gongakso studio where performances take place, Jangjiryeo Naun center Ibagu center which supports residents in the area, Café Choryang, Yuchi-hwan Post box which commemorates a famous poet from the area (Cheongmu Yuchi-hwan and Kkakomak guest house at the top of the road.
Korea-Japan Exchange Road 1 k
Another walk takes you past the Sejeong dong Japanese-style houses along the Korea-Japan exchange street. There is a traditional tea house there called the Munwha Gongan Seojong
Horangi Ibagu-Gil Road Beomil station line 1 exit 7 2.6 K
Start at the Hyundai Department store which has a signboard outside listing the nearby sites to see. The path crosses over the “friend” bridge near the old Samil theater, then goes through the Beomil Golmok market, there is a stone monument for the Hongcheon stone bridge that crosses the Hongcheon stream bed. In the old days, there were lots of tigers (호랑이horangi ) in the area, hence the name of the road. The Beomil Golmok market used to be famous for sign making and that is commemorated in the market, then goes by the former Samil Gomu which was a rubber factory under the Japanese and later the center of the shoe industry, the factory burned down in 1980. There are signs commemorating the woman workers of the shoe factories. Along the way, murals are depicting the famous movie theaters that once dotted the area (all long closed) the road goes by the Dangsan’s memories observatory commemorates the people of the neighborhood, which was largely settled by North Korean refugees during the Korean war, there is a repatriated compatriots village where a lot of Koreans returned from Japan after the war and settled in the neighborhood. There is a “horangi” (tiger) rest area after the village before you make the final climb to the top of the road. The road passes by Rev. Moon Sung-Myeong’s first church, and the area is sacred to the “Moonies” unification church. The top of the hill is called Anchang Horangi village which is where a lot of factory workers settled and is still a blue color neighborhood and finally a shrine to Christal Beckman a famous missionary who was a beloved figure in the neighborhood.
Lee Jae-Seob’s Viewpoint Beomil Station line 1 exit 7 and 9.46 K
This path goes from a famous gallery to an observatory with a nice view walking through another traditional neighborhood. The gallery and observatory commemorate the famous Busan artist Lee Jung-Seob.
Other notable streets in the area include Jwacheon Dong furniture street and Joban’s specialized street market.
Busanpo-Gaehanggado Road Jwacheon Station line 1 exit 5 28 k
This is a 28 k walk that starts at Jungsan park Jwacheon station exit 5 line one and ends at Jaesongdae park passing through colorful old neighborhoods such as Maechuki village, Jeongjung altar which commemorates General Jeong Bal and other military people who died during the Imjin war invasion of Busan, and passes by Busanjin Ilsin Woman’s school which was the first woman school in Busan, and later the center of resistance against the Japanese, General An Young bok memorial which celebrates Busan’s opening, and resistance to the Japanese occupation of Dokdo, and the Busapo Gaehangado road ends with 190 step stairway but there is an elevator next to it. The view from the top is they say worth the trip but we did not have time to go.
From the outer fortress of Busanjinseong to Jeonggongdan Altar, Ilsin Girls’ School and Busanpo Opening Cultural Center, Busanpo Gaehanggado Road that …
Busanpo Gaehanggado Road. Ilsin Christian Hospital → Memorial Monument for Reverend McKenzie → Jeonggongdan Altar → Rev. Dr. Gelson Engel Memorial Hall …
Explore Choryang Ibagu-Gil Road when you travel to Choryang. Read Expedia’s guide to find out everything you need to know about visiting Choryang Ibagu-Gil …
Choryang Story The Way: ibagu gill(road) – See 61 traveler reviews, 115 candid photos, and great deals for Busan, South Korea, at Tripadvisor.
부산 자갈치시장 Jagalchi Market Jagalchi Station Line 1
jaljaci-market- lobster
On our first night in town, we went to the Jalgalchi fish market. It is a very colorful place. Most active in the morning when the fisher people come back from fishing and they auction off the fish to retailers and restaurants. You can buy your fish and take it to a restaurant where they will prepare it or buy it at the restaurant. We opted for the latter. We had a decent Sashimi dinner and tried the local Soju. The price was quite reasonable – we spent $60.00 for two people including soju. This area has not changed that much since I was last there years ago, and even 42 years ago. It has been cleaned up a bit, there are parking garages nearby, a big Lotte mall, the subway stop, and another shopping mall but it looks and feels much like it did back in the day.
Jagalchi Market, located on the seaside road in Busan’s Jung-gu, is Korea’s largest seafood market, selling both live and dried fish. After the Korean War, …
Jagalchi consists of countless stalls in alleys that run towards the main market building. everyone is selling live fish and every other seafood you can think of…
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Haeundae is the biggest and most famous beach in Busan. Lots of high-end hotels and restaurants in the area. There are budget hotels around as well.
We spend the whole afternoon wandering around the Haeundae beach area. We got there during the sandcastle contest and saw all the sandcastles that were built for the festival. We went to the traditional sashimi street and had a good meal there. We went to Sealife aquarium which was a bit pricey at $30.00 but I suppose worth it in the end.
Haeundae has a population of about 423,000, the most populous district of Busan with 11.6% of the city population, and covers an area of 51.44 km² (19.86 s
Gwangalli beach is the beach that locals go to and is not as overwhelmed as Haeundae can be. It is also a more inexpensive place to stay as there are lots of budget hotels and villas for rent behind the main beach road. The back alleyways are filled with coffee shops, cafes, and restaurants and are a colorful area.
We had dinner in the famous sushi sashimi row street which a local placard claim is the largest collection of sashimi restaurants in the world. We had a decent meal for about $60.00.
This beach is located about 20 minutes from Busan’s overcrowded and overhyped Haeundae Beach in Suyeong-gu. This beach is less glamorous, but just as fun and …
35, Centum Nam-daero, Haeundae-gu 1F, Shinsegae Mall Centum City, Busan 48058 South Korea. 1.2 miles from Gwangalli Beach. Experiences from $800.
Millack Fish Street and Waterside Park
We had a nice talk while walking about Millack Fish street and waterside park which is just to the north of Gwangalli and south of Haeundae. There is a trail connecting the two beaches.
There is a long-range plan to link all the coastal beaches in the Busan Gyeonsan region through a bike/hiking trail.
We had a nice sashimi dinner again for about $30.00 per person.
yongdusan-park-Busan-wooden-deer-1-rotated.jpg June 1, 2022
Art Galleries in BusanDepartment Stores in BusanFactory Outlets in BusanFlea & Street Markets in BusanShopping Malls in BusanSpeciality & Gift Shops in …
Today, we invite you to the Millak-dong Cafe Street, which is quite close to the … Gwangalli Beach and is one of the most recognizable tourist sites in Busan, …
Head to Busan’s most popular beach for a day of swimming, building sandcastles, and … homeware and souvenirs, and sample typical Korean street food at this …
Busan Beomeosa Temple (범어사(부산)) beomunsa station line one exit five transfer to bus number 90. The bus stop is down an alleyway from the station and runs every 20 minutes.
I last saw Beomunsa back in 1982.
I stayed two nights in Dondae hot springs then went to the Pusan Fortress (lookup name in Korean) and Beomunsa temple. Had to take local buses everywhere as there were no subways in Busan back then.
Beomunsa is one of the oldest temples in Korea dating back to the late 7th century during the Shilla dynasty.
The temple was very impressive back then and has been further restored since then. It is one of the temple stay temples – always wanted to do that but that like many things has been put on hold by COVID.
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For more information see
ps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beomeosa”>
Beomeosa – Wikipedia
Beomeosa is a head temple of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism in Cheongnyong-dong, Geumjeong-gu, Busan, South Korea. Built on the slopes of Geumjeongsan, …
Beomeosa Temple is located on the eastern side of Geumjeongsan Mountain, a famous mountain in Busan. It was founded by monk Uisang in 678, the 18th year of …
meosa is a Seon meditation-based temple, a place where people can meditate and clear their minds. Through meditation, all pointless and distracting thoughts …
This is a very fine Buddhist temple located in the hills around Busan. It is nice in the fall because of the orange and red colors of the trees. It is a …
Beomeosa Temple. Along with Haeinsa Temple in Hapcheon and Tongdosa Temple in Yangsan, it is one of three Yeongnam temples. In addition, it serves as one …
Dongdae Hot springs 동래온천 metro line one ochcheong station
One of the joys of travel is the occasional random encounters with memorable characters. We ran into an old Korean lady in front of the map. The map was next to a tourist stamp machine. The idea was you would wander about and collect stamps at each of the items listed. The items would be next to a sign depicting the area’s attractions. We walked about the area but did not do the stamp. The lady told us about the stamp and she said that she had found everything but one item and complained that none of the locals had a clue about where things were.
There are outside the train station two maps on the opposite side of each other with contradictory information about the area. There is a restored stream bed park I want to check out (I love the stream bed parks all over Korea – something that Korean should be proud of having accomplished and promote a lot more) we walked about the hot spring area which is closed down due to COVID but I assume will be re-opening in due course. We can see what it might have been back in the day.
There was good signage in English about the attractions of the area. I did see a sign in English for a local hotel that got lost in translation.
Why not stay in the Dream motel where your dreams are killers. ( attached photo here).
When I stayed there back in the day, it was a much more low-key area. Now there are lots of high-rise apartments and the train station as well, and English language signs and the aforementioned tourist stamps kiosks.
There are are a number of other hot springs in the Busan area. The most famous are in Haeundae, and Taedongdae. I want to go back and check them out once COVID is finally over.
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Donglai Hot Spring is a good place for vacation and leisure. The hot spring is very natural. There are also swimming pools and very luxurious hotels. The resort …
The water temperature in the Dongnae hot springs fluctuates between 45 and 60 degrees celsius (113 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit). Hot springs offer several …
Dongdae Oncheong-cheon metro line one ochcheong station
As you may know, I am a big fan of the restored stream bed parks all over Korea. We did not get to this one but it is a nice one particularly when the Cherry trees are blooming. For my next trip to Busan! For more information see the following:
Oncheon-cheon is a tributary of the Suyeong River [ko] in Busan, South Korea. It was previously known as the Seocheon or Dongnaecheon. … The Oncheon Stream Park along the banks o…
Busan #tour #springBusan’s central Oncheoncheon Stream flows from Geumjeong-gu (district) through Yeonje-gu and Dongnae-gu to the …
Suyeong River Walk
We drove by on the bus. The river has been restored and is lined on both sides with bike and walking paths and restaurants nearby. Worth a stop next time I am in town.
Suyeong-gu was created in 1995 following its separation from Nam-gu. It is the border in the North-East by the Suyeonggang River. The name ‘Suyeong’ came from …
Suyeong River is a 6.1 mile (14,000-step) route located near Dongnae-gu, Busan, South Korea. This route has an elevation gain of about 0 ft and is rated as …
Suyoung River Walk is a 5.2-mile (12000-step) route located near Busan, South Korea. This route has an elevation gain of about 91.8 ft and is rated as easy.
Nakong River
This is the main river in Busan and is one of the largest rivers in Korea. It is the center of the freshwater eel fishery industry and is a place I want to visit someday. It is lined with bike paths and walking paths that eventually reach Seoul. It is one of the four river projects that was controversial ten years ago.
The Nakdong River or Nakdonggang (Korean pronunciation: [nakt͈oŋgaŋ]) is the longest river in South Korea and passes through major cities such as Daegu and …
Songdo Beach 송도해수욕장… nearest subway is Nampo Line one.
Transportation tip:
To get to either Songdo or Deadongdae you can catch the bus at Nampo station on the number one line or from Pusan station as well. We took bus 30 to Songdo and did the cloud walk trail on Amnan mountain. From there to Songdo beach you can take the cable car or you can take the bus, or you can walk along two bike/walking paths one on top of the hill, the other along the water. It is about a 4 k walk. We took the bus after walking the cloud bridge. We got there by mistake. But it was a nice walk and view.
Then we went to Songdo and walked about the beach. We saw signs all along of massive development coming to the area. There is an old ally way that is lined with restaurants, but most are being torn down to build luxury high-rise apartment buildings. There are several American and Western hotels in the area as well.
Songdo is the oldest public beach in Korea, it opened in 1913. But in the late 80, it entered a period of decline due to storm damage the cable car was shut down and the beach was badly eroded. The city government started a massive campaign to restore the beach and they have included restoring the cable car that goes across the beach.
But now that property developers have moved in, all the small restaurants that lined the back alleys will be replaced. In a few years, it will look and feel like Heunundae.
We had a decent fish lunch. We ate Gulbi (semi-dried fish) stew for 30 dollars.
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Songdo Street poetry
by Chungwon Lee
The sea is people’s favorite place
the mountian is people’s favotire place too
How nice it would be
if the sea and mountain are seated together
and if there are bright moon and cool stars
Don’t you agree that place
I fall in love with this place when I arrive at the park. I started around noon time from Songdo beach. I walked to Busan National Geopark, where the …
Songdo Beach is more popular with residents than other touristic beaches of Busan such as Haeundae or Gwanganli. If you prefer a comparatively quiet beach, Songdo …
Things to Do near Songdo Beach; Songdo Cable Car · 98 Reviews. Songdokeibeulka 171 Songdohaebyeon-ro, Busan 49269 South Korea; Songdo Skywalk · 127 Reviews. 129&nbs…
Songdo Beach is 800 meters long and 50 meters wide. The average water level is 1~1.5 meters. It is located 3 kilometers from Busan’s Jagalchi Market and was …
Songdo Beach is a man-made beach in Busan, South Korea. … It was created in 1913. … The name “Songdo” (the Island of Pines) was given due to the thick pine …
Jul 13, 2020 … Songdo Beach was the first public beach in Korea, so a sign te
Taejongdae
We took the bus to Taejongdae from Songdo. Took about 45 minutes. We saw a lot of Busan along the way. We went through a working-class neighborhood and then crossed the bridge to the Yeongdo island. The island is hard to get to from the rest of Busan, there is no subway nearby. The road is narrow and I am sure that traffic will be bad during commutes.
There are several institutions out on the island, the Busan Coast Guard facility is there, there is a Korean Maritime University that trains people to work in the merchant shipping field, and several Buddhist temples. It is also where foreign cruise ships used to dock and no doubt will come again as COVID continues to recede. There is also a coastal walk all along the coast which I would love to do someday.
There is also a hot springs area closed down due to COVID.
The highlight is Taejongdae Park at the southern tip of the island. We took the tram-train around to the various sights. Great views from the observatory, and the lighthouse. There are two small Buddhist temples on the mountain.
The trail around the mountain is about 5 k long and is not too difficult a trail.
Coming back we found a bus that took us back to Pusan station in about 30 minutes.
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Taejongdae is a natural park of Busan with magnificent cliffs facing the open sea on the southernmost tip of the island of Yeongdo-gu. Taejongdae was named after …
Jan 5, 2014 … Established in 1967, Taejongdae is a beautiful seaside park. The island Taejongdae sits upon is a natural barrier protecting the Busan port so …
Jun 28, 2019 … Busan’s Nampo-Dong is the easiest point from downtown Busan to get to Taejongdae, and you can get off at the Nampo subway station on Line 1 and take …
The multicolored rocky coast boasts its beauty formed by years of crashing waves. We’re talking about Taejongdae Park at the southern end of Yeongdo, Busan.
Haedong Youngjungsa Temple
On our last full day in Busan, we took a long bus ride (bus 1001) through Busan from the train station to Haedong Yungjunsa temple. We found that in Seoul the buses are often faster than the subway and you can see a lot of the city from the bus. The bus took us through many neighborhoods and we saw a lot from the bus including Centrum towers, the BEXCO conference center, large shopping malls, and the Lotte World amusement park.
We got off and had a great seafood lunch again for about $30.00 per person, then we walked to the Haedong Yungjunsa temple which is the only Buddhist temple near the ocean. It bills itself as the most beautiful temple in Korea and that is not an exaggeration. It is a very impressive place with spectacular ocean views. Then we took the bus back to enjoy the bus tour.
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Seongjong Beach
We wanted to check out this beach but ran out of steam. It is not as developed or trendy as the other beaches but people say it is worth stopping off. Avanti cove is nearby where there is a big Hilton beach hotel, and further up the coast are smaller beaches Ligawan beach, and Imgna beaches. I will hit those on my next trip!
The beach is great for swimming during the summer months, and it is full of places to eat and dine and have coffee with friends all year round. It is very open …
Songjeong Beach, known as one of the three major beaches of eastern Busan alongside Haeundae and Gwangalli, is a popular family vacation destination thanks to …
Imnang Beach 임랑해수욕장
Imnang beach is another beach I wanted to check out but ran out of time. It is located close to Songeon beach and the Lotte World amusement park. There is a Hilton beach resort at the beach.
Summer is the sea and the sea in Busan, but this beach is not known to outsiders yet. Imnang Beach is the beach loved by the people of Busan and considered …
“The sea here is very clear, reflecting the blue sky and white clouds, the sandy quality of the beach is also very soft, stepping on it is very comfortable, …
Jul 1, 2018 … The official website of Busan Metropolitan City. Find information about the city government, news, events, residents, and business, …
Yongdusa Park 용두산
Nampo Line One
On our last day in Busan, we had a few hours to kill before catching the train back. We went to Yongudsa Park Busan’s equivalent of Seoul’s Namsam park or Incheon’s Jayu park. The park features Busan’s tower but it was closed on Mondays. the park is best reached by the escalator that runs to the park near the BIF Shopping mall behind Nampo station.
The park has two quirky things about it. First, there are wooden statues of deer everywhere.
And the trees all have poems on them.
There is also a statue of Admiral Yi – who saved Busan during the Imjin invasions.
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Tree Poem my translation
I should not allow myself
to surrender to another’s feelings
I should not allow myself
to lose myself
in another’s thoughts
lose myself
in another expectations
without me
my Life is meaningless
Yongdusan Park is a park located in Jung-gu, Busan, South Korea. The 120-meter-high Busan Tower is located here. Yongdusan Park. Yongdusan Park at night.
The symbolic 120m high Busan Tower is located at Yongdusan Park, together with Admiral Yi SunSin Statue, Dragon Sculpture, Bell of the Citizens & Flower …
Busan sightseeing tours often include a stop at the park, along with other attractions such as Gamcheon Culture Village, Gukje Market, Jagalchi Fish Market, and …
If Haeundae is the hot spot of east Busan, Nampo-dong is the most popular place in central Busan. Yongdusan Park is a leading landmark of Busan frequented …
Chongyang Waegwan
As we left the park, we walked through a historic district Chongang waewan which was the only authorized trading post between Japan and Korea in the 16th to 19th centuries. The exact location is marked on a placard and map but nothing else remains.
Load more ATTACHMENT DETAILS Choryang-waegwan-historical-marker.
Pink cherry trees
Snowing all around me
Love in the springtime
Green
poet in springtime
Green trees in Springtime
Smiling at walking lovers
Filling them with awe
Black
black cat
A cosmic black cat
Stares at me with jet black eyes
Just a Buddha cat
White
deer in snow
White snow consumes us
During the intense winter
Climate change is now
Page 17 in printed version
Other recent unpublished Haiku like Poems include:
Met My Fate 160 Poem Form
I met my fate
That date
In September,
A date I shall always remember.
When I saw her there,
Sparks flew from heart to heart.
And I knew she was going to be mine.
160 Character Max Poem Form
Water 160 Poem Form
Water everywhere
Water surrounds us
Nurtures us brings us
Life itself
But few of us
Ever think about water
And what we would do
When the water runs out
And the earth becomes
A desert devoid of life.
Sam Adam’s Final Wish Jisei Poem Fan Story Prompt
Sam Adam’s last wish
Was to die in Berkeley
His spiritual home
My Mother Haiku
My mother was unique
A real free spirit at heart
I miss her always
Berkeley Calling Me Home Haiku Fan Story Prompt
My Berkeley
Calling me to come home
Die in my homeland
Sextet Love Fan Story Prompt
My life has been a dream
almost unreal
A real fairy tale
Filled with romance
an angel came to me
ending loneliness
Outside Haiku Fan Story Prompt
Spring flowers blooming
Inviting me to go outside
Enjoying the Spring
5-7-5 Faith Fan Story Prompt
I believe in karma
Everything is connected
To the divine mind
Coffee Five Line Poem Fan Story Prompt
Coffee
Just hot
The way it should be
Gets my morning going strong
Kick starts my morning
Romantic Tanka Poem Fan Story
When I saw you there
I knew that you were the one
Heaven sent you then
When you came into my life
That was my best day ever
Forward Plans
Forward plans are made
Understood what needs to be done
intel hard to get
Good Golly, Ms. Molly
Good golly
Ms. Molly
Let’s have some folly
And go to Bali
Or Raleigh
Someplace holly
Where we can get jolly
Eating a tamale
Or a Canali.
Prompt – Write a silly rhyming poem
Coffee Huitain
need more coffee
I like coffee in the morning
But in the evening must be wine,
Making it a great mid-morning,
At sunset, I drink wine, while I dine,
When I drink my wine, it is all fine.
In the afternoon, I drink my tea,
Later wine, looking at what is mine.
And I become all I can ever be.
Future Survival Games Three-word Challenge
Shortly, all too soon
We will play a secret game
A game of survival
Grilled Salmon Three Word Challenge Prompt
fish market
Oiled grilled salmon
pink flesh delight
Perfect dinner with white wine
When I First Saw You Dew Drop-in
Revised as Cherita form
When I First Saw You There
When I first saw you there
You came to me
In a dream.
And disappeared,
Haunting me
For eight long years.
When I First Saw You In Person
When I First Saw You in Person
I was overwhelmed
This fairy tale dream of mine
This impossible quest
To find the girl in the dream
Was finally over.
When I First Spoke With You
When I First Spoke with You
I knew that this was it
We would be together
From then on
You were the one,
I proposed three days later
.
When I First Kissed You
When I first kissed you
that was the beginning
of our love affair.
Our love grew stronger
Every year
For the last 40 years,
When I Married You
When I married you
That was the beginning
Of my life,
From that moment
I had no doubt
You would be there.
April 4—List poem w/repetition—write a poem that lists things, using some (not necessarily constant) repetition and variation of an initial phrase (Examples: When I was six…, Remember that time…*, Layers of…., etc.)
Country is a genre of popular music that originated with blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, old-time, and American folk music forms …
I don’t care for country music
Never had
Never got into the country music vibe.
Although I like to drink beer
Country music was just never
My thing.
Too rural white boy shit-kicking for my taste.
I always saw it as poor white trash blues.
And it has some similarities to the blues
In terms of themes and even sound.
Country music is not urban enough
For my taste
I like blues, funk, jazz, disco, rock music
And classical music best
Not too much into hip hop or rap
The country is my least favorite musical genre.
But the blues is so much better
Musically.
There were a few country singers
I liked
Johnny Cash is one of them.
But on the whole
Country music is just
A big meh for me.
Finally, here’s our daily (optional) prompt. This one may seem counter-intuitive, but today I’d like to challenge you to write a poem about something you have no interest in. This isn’t quite the same, I think, as something you’re indifferent to. For example, I have absolutely no interest in investment strategy. Anytime anyone tries to tell me about it, I want to put my fingers in my ears and go “lalalalalala.” My brain tries to shut down! This is honestly kind of funny, and I think this prompt has value precisely because it invites you to investigate some of the “why” behind resolutely not giving two hoots about something.
Jade Garden (제이드 가든 수목원) is an arboretum located in Chuncheon, South Korea. The garden opened in April 2011. … Jade Garden provides walk-through tours …
Jade Garden is an exotic arboretum established with the theme of “small Europe in the forest.” It was built on an area of 163,500 m2 by keeping its natural …
Why go here? Well, it has a different vibe compared to other Korean gardens. It has a European garden vibe. ALSO, Jade Garden is the filming location of Korean …
jade garden 6jade garden 7
jade garden 8 jpg
jade garden 9
Visiting Jade Garden
Nar Chungcheong, South Korea
On a beautiful spring day,
The cherry trees were in full flower
Pink and white petals
The scent of cherry trees in the air.
Other trees just starting to bloom
Red, yellow and white tulips
Beginning to bloom.
The sounds of spring all around
Birds singing
People walking about.
Talking to one another
As they wander the pathway
Taking in the springtime splendor.
The sun warming up
The pathway winding
Through the Forest.
April 15—Botany—explore the flora of your region! Somehow include at least 3 of the 5 senses.
Get exclusive merch, pick up a savory treat, and sign up to be the first to …
My favorite cheese
Has always been Tillamook
cheddar cheese
My father turned me
On to it
When I was a young lad
Once during our annual
Migration from Berkeley
To Yakima
During the summer vacation
Season
When we drove to the family cabin
And stayed almost two months
Just my father,
My mother
My two brothers
My sister
Our whole dysfunctional family
Forced to be together
For the summer
It was hell on earth
But the road trip
To and from
Was an adventure
One year we drove
Up the Oregon coat
And we stopped
At the Tillamook creamery
And did the tour
Learned how they made
Their famous cheese
And ice cream
Tillamook cheese
Is made in Tillamook, Oregon
A small town
Along the Oregon coast
The cheese is dark yellow
Comes in two flavors
Sharp and regular
I prefer the sharp.
It has a delightful aroma
And is among the most
Favorable of cheeses
I have ever eaten.
And it has an aftertaste
That lingers in your mouth
For several minutes
As you savor
The aroma, the taste
And the texture
Taking you to cheese
heaven
I was perhaps 13
At the time
And interested
In everything
Learned a lot
About cheese
That visit
But the most important thing
Was I learned
That was my favorite cheese
Tillamook. Cheese.
Still is
Almost 55 years later.
This poetry writing prompt submitted by Joan Liotta:
What does your favorite cheese–describe the taste, the aroma, its texture, and tell where you first tried it.
I am an Impatient Man Writers Digest
I am an impatient man
Always have been
Probably always will be.
My wife is always telling me
To slow down
To eat slowly
To drink slowly
To talk slowly.
And to be patient
But I just never
Developed the skill
To be patient
and so I rush
through life.
Eat too fast
Drink to fast
Love too fast.
There are some things
I developed patience for
Somethings
That I took my time,
It took me eight years
To get into the Foreign Service.
But the most important thing
In my life
I seized quickly.
When I met my wife
Who I met in a dream
And waited patiently
For eight years
Before she walked
Off a bus
And into my life.
I proposed three days later
We got married two months later
And have been together
For 40 years.
For today’s prompt, write a patience poem. Your poem could be about someone or something with great patience, or it could come from the other direction (ie, impatience). One fun thing about this prompt is that it begs us to consider the various ways of measuring time: From the patience required to sit at a red light to the patience of a tree growing rings for centuries.
Can Love Exist in this Corrupt Age? Sonnet Local Gems
Can love still exist in this corrupt age?
The answer is that love will find a way.
Life seems to play out on a stage,
All that matters is this, how we play.
For love and life is nothing but a game,
On that day, she walked into my life.
In the end, it all comes out to be the same,
Three months later, became my wife.
It was on that date in early September,
that she walked off a bus, no longer a dream.
A date I shall always remember.
When I saw her there, all I could do was scream.
I wanted to just scream out, I love you
Looking at her then, I knew that she knew.
It was in early 82, in September
A date that I shall always remember
For on that date, I met my cosmic fate.
For eight years I dreamt she would become my mate,
I almost gave up waiting for her it was late
But then that day she said in my dream to me
Don’t worry soon together as a we
This is just what our karmic fate that date.
And soon enough everything became great.
And no longer would I need to wait
For love came my way.
And now for our prompt (optional, as always). Today, I’d like to challenge you to write a curtal sonnet. This is a variation on the classic 14-line sonnet. The curtal sonnet form was developed by Gerard Manley Hopkins, and he used it for what is probably his most famous poem, “Pied Beauty.” A curtal sonnet has eleven lines, instead of the usual fourteen, and the last line is shorter than the ten that precede it.
French Press This! Dew Drop Inn
Every morning I get up
At the crack of dawn
As the sunlight fills my room
I make coffee.
Using my French press
To make what I call
A fully loaded cup
Of cosmic Joe.
½ Ground French Roast Starbucks
or Major Dickinson Peets coffee
½ decaf coffee
Yogi detox tea
Yogi blueberry slim tea
Turmeric
Cinnamon
Nutmeg
Cloves.
I boil the water
Bike 1 to 2 k
Then enjoy
My French press coffee.
I make two cups
Shifting to tea
Later in the morning.
April 16—Ordinary object(s)—explore the usual or unusual uses of ordinary objects
The World Is Broken PSH
Among the many sins
Attributed to the Baby Boomers
Is this
They Broke the world
And they do not know
How to fix it
Everywhere you go
It seems the world is broken
Homeless people
Forced to camp out
Everywhere
Gun violence
At a pandemic level
Yet government leaders
Aided by the NRA
Seem to think
The solution to gun violence
Are more guns for everyone
As gun laws are weakened
In many states nowadays
Anyone can buy a gun
Without a license
Training or any liability insurance,
Every time there is a gun battle
In the streets
Conservatives claim
That the solution
Is to have good people
With guns
Battling bad people with guns
Total insanity
Guns don’t kill people
The NRA claims
The price of freedom
Is not free
Everyone must have a gun
To protect themselves
Against criminals
Illegal aliens.
Government agents
And democrats libtards
Trying to force everyone
Into becoming bisexual
Or at least get vaccinated
So Bill Gates can track you.
Climate change
Is here and now
Monster storms
Massive droughts
100-year storms
Every year.
Yet nothing is done
Even though
We all know
What we must do.
To save the planet
And the human race
Inflation out of control
Supply chains are still broken
COVID although receding
Still lurking about.
Putin Invading Ukraine
Committing war crimes
While the US and NATO
Are afraid of provoking Putin
Who is threatening nuclear war
North Korean threatening Asia
China menacing Taiwan.
Meanwhile
Opioids crisis killing Americans
Gun battles killing people
COVID still killing people
Storms killing people.
Too many ghosts everywhere
Screaming out,
“You broke the world
But you can’t fix it.”
And we pray to a God
That may or may not exist
And does not answer our prayers.
Yes, we all share a responsibility
We all broke the world
And none of us
Knows how to fix it.
I hope that this
is not the end
Of the World
Although many days
It feels like revelations
Is coming true.
This poetry writing prompt submitted by J R Turek:
Write a list poem titled “Everything is Broken” but offer no solutions to fix anything.
The Feel of Korean Food Writer’s Digest
octopus on plate ready to be cooked,italyoctopus on plate ready to be cooked,italy
Korean food is a full sensory experience
Overwhelming one with smells, flavors
And textures as well.
One day back
in the Peace Corps days
My best friend visited me
From Indonesia where he
Had been hanging out.
It was the dead of winter
15 degrees F.
When he got on the plane
It was 90 degrees F.
We bought winter clothes
Then I decided to treat him
To an infamous Korean disk
산 나치
San Nachi
or Live Octopus.
They brought it out
The octopus tentacles
Were moving about.
I taught him
The proper technique
Grab it by the chopstick
Dip it in hot sauce
And chew it a long time
Sometimes unwary
Or drunk eaters
Encounter a problem
When the suckers
Get stuck in one’s mouth
Sometimes requires
a trip to the ER.
The texture is slimy
And a big disgusting
Need a lot to drink
The first time around.
My friend tried it
But said never again
And we both bring it up
From time to time.
He was not a big fan
Of the 산 나치
San Nachi.
Never tried that again
But he did like
Other things we ate
That winter.
For today’s prompt, write a touching poem. We’ve already done smell and taste; let’s move on to the sense of touch. Of course, all these prompts are open to interpretation, and touch connects many paths, including touching up a picture, touching down an airplane, bringing a soft or human touch to a situation, and even playing touch and go (or tag). However, in your poem, feel encouraged to put your personal touch on this prompt.
Easiest Thing in the World Local Gem
The easiest thing
In the world
Was falling in love
With you.
For on the date
We met in real life
After dreaming
Of the moment
For eight years.
I knew that I had met my fate
On that fine September date
And soon you became my mate.
The unexpected visitor from the Stars Dew Drop Inn
allien
One day Sam Adams
Received an unexpected visitor
Who walked into his office
Of Rebel news
Telling him he was a space alien
Who wanted him to explain
Humanity to him.
The alien had tried
To understand humans
The craziness species
In the universe.
Who believes
in some nonsense
About nonexistent gods.
But the one thing
He did not understand
Was love.
Could Sam Explain love to him?
Sam thought and said,
“Yes, Love is what it is
And love is what it ain’t,
If you are in love
You know it.
But those who know it
Can’t describe it
It is more than just
Chemistry, and biology
It is that but more than that
Love happens
When you least expect it.
When she walks
Into your life.
You know she is the one
The alien said thanks
For the lesson.
And drank his beer
Saying that humans
Make the best beer
And the best coffee
In the universe,
The Palaskian Conspiracy PSH prompt
The leader of Palaskin
Was being briefed
By his national security team
About Operation Disrupt Planet Earth
Their operative Donald J Trump
Had not succeeded in taking over
The number one country yet.
He was tormenting unrest
And his country was floundering
Operative Putin
Was doing a fine job
Preparing the world
for the Palaskinian
Empire’s invasion.
It would be time soon.
To launch the invasion fleet
Which will arrive
And reinstate Trump
And Putin to rule the world
On behalf of their Palaskian overlords.
They would finally reveal
That they are aliens
And the earth is now
Part of the Palaskinian Empire.
The Emperor smiled
Victory would soon be theirs
Long Live the Palestinian Empire
This poetry writing prompt submitted by Ellen Sander:
palish kin
A non-existent word. You decide how it is pronounced. Whether it’s a noun or a verb. Or someone’s name. Perhaps a country? A religion? Up to you, brave soul. Write a poem using what you determine palishkin to mean.
Writer’s Digest The Powers That Be – Who are They? (Revised)
Conspiracy craze: why 12 million Americans believe alien …https://www.theguardian.com › lifeandstyle › apr › con…
Apr 7, 2016 — But when people leap from thinking their boss is trying to undermine them to believing their boss might be a secret lizard person, they probably …
Watching the news unfold
Every day
I wonder who “they” are
The secret powers
That run the world
From behind the scenes?
There are rumors
That the powers
Of the universe,
The masters of the universe
The secret power brokers
Are not-human.
They are shape-shifting
Reptilian creatures
From the Palaskan empire
in Sirius, the dog star.
their agents Trump and Putin
we’re doing a great job
disrupting and weakening the world.
It was time though
Said the head of the committee
The committee does not exist.
That was the control tower
Of the alien conspiracy
Of the secret powers that be.
For the invasion fleet to arrive
And finish the job
Of enslaving humanity
A job that they failed to do
When they controlled Atlantis
And later the Roman Empire.
For today’s prompt, write a power poem. Your poem could somehow involve electricity, solar power, fossil fuels, wind, or water. It could illustrate a power play or someone exerting their power over someone else. Of course, you could also write about a power outage. You alone have the power to poem your way through this prompt.
Computer Blues (revised) Local Gems
evil computer
Sometimes I think
My computer is plotting against me
And only me
Trying deliberately to drive me mad.
My computer knows
when I am busy
Then it throws
A hissy fit.
Refuses to boot up,
and crashes constantly.
Loses data it had the day before.
Or five minutes before,
Or refuses to save the data.
Just fucks with me
As it loves toying with me
Making me yell and scream
At my damn computer screen
Cursing up a blue stream
of blue curses
As the blue screen of death
The borders across the dark blue screen
Smiling at me
As I beg it
To do what
It is supposed to do
Just once I beg it
Do what you
Are supposed to do
Open the document once
Not twenty times
Do “Not respond”
Endless spinning blue wheels.
In endless loops of opening
Not responding
refusing to close
Until I respond to the error code.
Please Mr. Computer
Quit playing games
Play my music, don’t wipe out the sound
On the fifth attempt to play music
Don’t take a half-hour to load Microsoft products
Don’t freeze up on opening music programs
Don’t give me computer haiku error messages
That only makes sense to a computer geek.
Such as general error reading files
Who the ***** is this damn general
And why is NSA reading my files?
Or can’t save the file
Or can’t save the “An open file”
When it just did ten times in a role,
Or kicks me out, while losing my data.
And in Microsoft Excel
Refusing to move the cursor
Just freezing in place for a moment
Before kicking me out.
Excell had a problem
Copying data from other sources
Generating an error message
About not being able to load fonts
Then asking you to say okay
Then kicking you out
Once I did that 200 times
I finally ditched Excel
And moved to Google Docs.
And all the other gobbledygook messages
That pop up every five minutes it seems
As the computer slowly drives me mad
Flashing the final insult
User-driven mad
Mission accomplished.
To show how much
You love someone
The way you glance
At your lover.
The way you laugh
At her jokes
You have heard
A million times before.
The way she smells
The way she eats
Her food.
The way she kisses
The way she makes love
Every time special.
Yes it is the small things
That matters in the end.
Today’s featured participant is a double dose again because you all are producing such lovely work that I’m finding it difficult to pick! In response to Day Eleven’s “big” prompt, we first have Wind Rush‘s quiet meditation on relative size. Second, The Silver Cow Creamer brings us a short and snappy quatrain in homage to a giant poppadom.
Our featured online journal for the day is Stirring. In their latest issue, I’ll point you to these two haibuns by Jennifer Perrine.
Today’s prompt (optional, as always) should come as no surprise. Yesterday, I challenged you to write a poem about a very large thing. Today, I’d like you to invert your inspiration, and write a poem about a very small thing. Whether it’s an atom, a button, a hummingbird’s egg, dollhouse furniture, or the mythical world’s smallest violin, I hope you enjoy your poetic adventures into the microscopic.
The haunted house in Eagle Creek PSH
ghosts
There is a house
In Eagle Creek, Oregon
That is an old mansion.
That is largely abandoned
Except for the owner
Who is over 100 years old
The house has several doors
That led to other worlds.
According to the rumor
The old man has used rituals
From the Necronomicon.
To summon aliens, banshees, bigfoot,
Cerebos, demons, devils, hell hounds,
ghosts, goblins, monsters, leprechauns,
Yeti and Zombies.
The gateway to other worlds
Open up
And they storm through.
From the deepest corner
Of Hell and Hades.
As they chant
From the Necronomicon
The ghosts of the dead
Haunting the old mansion
On the hillside
Outside of Eagle Creek,
This poetry writing prompt submitted by Frog Corpse:
Frog Corpse Writing Prompt:
Create a seven-hundred-word short story or thirty-three-line poem describing a haunted house. The story or poem’s main focus must bear emphasis on the details of the house itself. Explain in detail its architecture/landscape on what makes it stand out. What will make these details different from an average run-of-the-mill home? This prompt is to help improve set & setting when building the locations in your tales.
*Your characters are not the focus of this prompt.
I love You Let Me count the Ways Writing com
I love you
Ever since you walked
Off that bus,
Out of my dreams
Into my life
But why do I love you
Let me count the ways
here are a million
Different reasons.
But these are the most
Important ones
I love your smile
I love your smell
I love your walk
I love your body.
I love your
delightful, wicked
Sense of humor.
I love kissing you
I love making love
To you.
You are the best thing
Whatever happened to me
And I want to proclaim
To the entire world
How much I love you.
Write a poem every day of April with the 2022 April Poem-A-Day Challenge. For today’s prompt (the first Two-for-Tuesday prompt of the month), write a counting poem and/or not counting poem.
The Sound of Temple Bell Brings Me Peace Local Gem
temple blog bell-zen
The sound of a temple bell
ringing in the crisp mountain air
in the Buddhist temple
deep in the mountains.
Brings me peace and joy
and fills me with happiness
as I contemplate
the meaning of Buddha.
And seek to find
peace
in the everyday life
around me.
And I ring the bell again,
wishing hoping for an end
to our suffering
on this planet of ours.
The World According to Cosmos – via Podcast Addict | poetry and rants by the Cosmos. … The World According to Cosmos. By Jake Cosmos Aller. Jan 16 2022 20 mins 1. poetry and rants …
2022. 6. 17. · The World According to Cosmos. Show more details . Add Podcast to profile. The World According to Cosmos Podcast. Best Episodes All Episodes (126) Best episodes ranked …
2021. 5. 20. · poetry and rants by the Cosmos. Skip to main content. by Spotify. Features Switch to Anchor Ads by Anchor Blog. Sign in Sign up. en. by Spotify. The World According to Cosmos. …
2022. 3. 18. · The World According to Cosmos. 126 EpisodesProduced by Jake Cosmos AllerWebsite. poetry and rants by the Cosmos. Start listening. Share. March 18th, 2022 …
The world according to cosmos. I don’t understand the anti-covid vaccination people at all. They are endangering the entire country and world by their gross stupidity, the leaders of the …
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this is a big shout out to Writers Beware – one of my favorite sites. they do a phenomenal job of alerting the writing community to literary scams. They are very responsive to inquires. I check their data base frequently and you should too.
Welcome to the new home of the Writer Beware blog!
After many years on the Blogger platform, we have finally transitioned to WordPress, which offers much greater flexibility in terms of design, control, and ease of use.
I’ve been dissatisfied with Blogger for a while now. I’m not a web developer, but I’m not helpless, either; I maintain the Writer Beware website on the SFWA site, and I built and maintain two additional websites, my own and another for an organization my husband is part of. But every time I thought about moving to a new platform, the size of the challenge just seemed too daunting. How would I transfer hundreds of posts, not to mention the thousands of comments and images that go with them? What about all the non-working inbound links the move would create? Links wouldn’t be a problem if I just started fresh on a brand-new WordPress site–but then the blog would exist on two platforms, with two different web addresses. And what about WB’s thousands of followers and subscribers?
The turning point came last summer when the only email subscription widget supported by Blogger discontinued service. If people couldn’t subscribe to the WB blog, there was just no reason to remain on Blogger. But the amount of time and research involved in moving made me want to lie down and go to sleep (you may know that Writer Beware is a volunteer effort: I do this in my off hours).
Enter the Automattic Special Projects Team, which helps noteworthy and/or interesting people and projects with development, design, hosting services, and more. In an amazing bit of synchronicity, they contacted me around the same time that my subscription service disappeared, with an offer to not only build a new WordPress website for the WB blog, but to port, all posts, comments, and subscribers to the new site and re-direct all Blogger links. In other words…to do all of the stuff I’d been dreading–and create a better and more functional site than I could have on my own.
After many months of design consults and bug fixes, this is the result. Not just a clean new look and way more administrative control for me, but a better subscription service and a much more robust search function (another peeve I had with Blogger, whose search options suck). I’m deeply grateful to the Special Projects Team for their hard work, and their support of Writer Beware.
New WebPage
The one thing I’m sad to lose is our old web address: accrispin.blogspot.com. It’s a legacy (one of many) of the late Ann Crispin, Writer Beware’s co-founder, and my dear friend. Ann started the blog in 2005, originally intending it to be her blog; but after she invited me to join her, it quickly became all Writer Beware, all the time. Looking back at those posts reminds me how much fun Ann and I had in those early days, and how profoundly her energy, fearlessness, and dedication shaped what Writer Beware has become. We’re leaving behind a URL, but Ann is still present in everything we do.
If you’ve come here from a link on social media, please have a look around our new home and tell me what you think! If you’re a subscriber, this is the first newsletter that has landed in your Inbox since last summer. I hope you’ll continue to subscribe–and for those of you who are new to Writer Beware, I hope you’ll consider signing up via the form below this post.
Don’t forget that the blog is just one component of the many-headed beast that is Writer Beware. There’s also our website, which provides a wide range of information, cautions, and resources to help writers educate and protect themselves; our Facebook page, which links to items of writerly interest and provides a forum for discussion; my Twitter feed, where I regularly post updates, warnings, and industry news; and our email address, beware@sfwa.org, where you can contact us–in confidence–with reports, complaints, and questions.
Finally, a huge THANK YOU to all the writers, agents, editors, and others who’ve shared complaints and documentation over the years and helped us build our database; to all the people who send me tips and information; to everyone who spreads the word about Writer Beware (and writing scams in general); and to our fans, followers, and subscribers. We couldn’t do it without you, and we are grateful for your support.
I predict the House and Senate will remain in the hands of the Democrats in 2022 and 2024, but a lot depends on who the Republicans run, if they run right-wing darlings like Trump, or DeSantis they lose, if they run sane moderate Republican governors like Hogan, they will win. if the Democrats nominate someone other than Biden or Harris they will probably win, if Biden runs again, a narrow victory, if Harris runs, they lose (again depending upon the Republican candidate), if Trump runs the third party, the Democrats would win. The Democratic donor class should be encouraging Trump to run the Third-party! calling his party, the Christian Patriot Party.
What Do I Know? Why Listen to Me?
I am a life-long Democrat, having grown up in Berkeley in the late 60s and 70s. I served in the Peace Corps and became a foreign service officer retiring in 2016. I live in South Korea, as I have my wife’s family living here. I hope to return to the Bay Area in another year. I grew up in a politically active family. I served as President of my high school and a student senator at college.
My father, Curtis Cosmos Aller, was the President of the Berkeley Co-Op and the Peralta community college district, served as undersecretary of Labor for Johnson, and a professor and Dean at SF State. and ran for Congress against Ron Dellums winning 40 percent in the primary election in 1974.
I have voted for president since 1974 when I voted against Nixon. I voted for Carter twice, for the Democrats for president in every election. But I also correctly forecast the election returns in every election since 1974.
Here are my predictions for 2022 and 2024, which I will share with the Democratic leadership and post any responses I may receive.
Comments welcomed.
2202 Predictions
2022 is shaping up to be the most consequential mid-term in recent history. The future of America and our democracy is at stake. So far, if I had to bet I would bet on the Senate being held by the Democrats, maybe even a pickup as the math favors the democrats this time around including several open seats due to retirements in Ohio and elsewhere.
The house is more of a tossup. If the democrats are smart, they would announce that Nancy P and the aging leadership are all retiring to open up the field to a new generation of leaders.
But so far there is no indication that they are going to do that.
This opens up the democratic leadership to a challenge along generational lines = as the Republicans continue to paint them as coastal elites out of touch with real Americans which will resonate because there is an element of truth to that.
A lot depends on the following:
Factors Favoring the Dems
If the Democrats can paint Marjorie Taylor Green and her ilk as the face of the Republican party, they can pull off a win.
Marjorie Taylor Green et al play along acting crazy.
Make them the face of the Republican Party –
Rep Boebert
Tucker Carlson
The impact of the January 6h commission – clearly shows how despicable and dangerous Republicans are, and how complicit they were in plotting a coup.
Trump continues hinting he is running in 2024.
Trump endorses candidates who win the primaries and lose the general.
Trump is indicted and or is sent to prison = could cut either way = making him a martyr or turning off the average American to the MAGA crowd.
Republican in-fighting continues positive for Dems.
Much better unified messaging showing how democratic policies are helping average Americans.
The state of COVID by August – if it is over the democrats get a bump.
State of the economy by August – if inflation slows up, the jobless numbers remain good, the democrats get a bump.
Impact of the big infrastructure bill – will people see it is working?
Democrats get unified positive for Dems.
Democratic turnout is higher than normal despite voter suppression efforts.
Gerrymandering is not as bad as expected mixed signals so far,
Biden’s approval rating is above 50 percent by September,
The war in Ukraine ends with a victory by Ukraine gives a bump to Biden
Spreading of rank choice voting systems, as these systems tend to produce more politically centrist candidates, and slightly favor the Democratic party candidates.
Spreading of jungle primary systems, as these systems tend to produce more politically centrist candidates, and slightly favor the Democratic party candidates. California is the biggest state to embrace both of these more democratic voting systems, but the idea is spreading. Most recently, NYC adopted a rank voting system, which led to the election of Eric Adams, who was everyone’s second choice, and not the first choice for most voters. He is a moderate Democrat in a blue progressive-dominated city.
Factors Favoring the Republicans
The Republicans will make Nancy the symbol of a “coastal elite old political hack leadership out of touch with American voters and values ” which will resonate as there is a kernel of truth to that charge. In short, they will her, and so-called “socialist left woke SF Values” the face of the Democratic party, not Biden so much or Harris.
Nancy Pelosi
Nancy Pelosi
Trump announces he is retiring, is imprisoned, or dies – removing the biggest obstacle to the resurgence of the Republican party.
The economy stumbles, favors Republicans.
Republicans nominate centrists moderates resisting the MAGA crusade.
Gerrymandering and voter suppression works as advertised – News out of Texas is not good, 25% of absentee ballots were rejected!
Democrats continue their fratricidal infighting – can’t get a unified message.
Republicans are successful in painting the democratic leadership as “old coastal elitist political hacks out of touch with Americans and not dealing with the nation’s problems due to being too weak internationally and domestically, and beholden to a socialist left-wing woke social warrior culture run amuck.”
The culture wars ignite the Republican base, leading to a higher turnout among the base.
Neutral factors:
Retirements = could cut either way.
The deaths of aging leaders could go either way,
What is the Average Age of Congress?
The average age of the 117th Congress is 59 years old and the median is 60 years old. This is much higher than the median age of 38 years in the United States in 2019, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Of its 435 members, the House has 38 members born in the 1980s and one born in the 1990s, while the Senate welcomed its first millennial. But the age groups with the biggest gains, compared to the 116th Congress, were those born in the 1930s and 1960s. Members in the 80+ and 50-59 age group saw gains, while the 30-39 age group saw the biggest losses. Members of Congress are, overall, getting older.
AGE OF THE SENATE
The average age of the Senate is 63 years. The most popular years of birth are 1952 and 1954, with seven members each.
Who are the Oldest Members of Congress?
From Alaska, all the way to Alabama, the oldest members of the 117th Congress were all born in the early 1930s. Most of them are members of the Senate.
Specifically, the five oldest members of Congress are:
(four Republicans and one Democrat)
Don Young, age 87, is the Republican U.S. Representative for Alaska’s at-large congressional district. He has served for 25 terms since 1973 and is the current longest-serving member in Congress. (JUST PASSED AWAY AS OF March 19, 2022).
Dianne Feinstein, age 87, is a Democratic Senator from California running for re-election?
Chuck Grassley, age 87, is a Republican Senator from Iowa -running for re-election?
Richard Shelby, age 86, is a Republican Senator from Alabama running for re-election?
Jim Inhofe, age 86, is a Republican Senator from Oklahoma running for re-election?
Who are the Youngest Members?
As for the youngest members of the 117th Congress, they are all part of the House of Representatives. Most were born in the 1980s except the youngest member of them all.
Here are the five youngest members of Congress:
· (three Democrats, two republicans)
Madison Cawthorn, age 25, is the Republican U.S. Representative for North Carolina’s 11th congressional district. He is the first member of Congress born in the 1990s.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, age 31, is the Democratic U.S. Representative for New York’s 14th congressional district
Sara Jacobs, age 31, is the Democratic U.S. Representative for California’s 53rd congressional district
Ritchie Torres, age 32, is the Democratic U.S. Representative for New York’s 15th congressional district
Jake LaTurner, age 32, is the Democratic U.S. Representative for Kansas’s 2nd congressional district
How Does Age Relate to Party?
Overall, the average age for Republicans in Congress is 58 and 60 for Democrats. Looking specifically at each party in each chamber, the averages are also very similar: – The republicans will seize upon this number, saying that they are the younger generation as opposed to the aging older generation represented by the Democrats.
AVERAGE AGE OF THE 117TH CONGRESS LEADERSHIP
As mentioned before, Congress is getting older. When looking specifically at the leadership in each party, the averages are even higher with Democrats brushing close to 70.
bottom line: Senate to the Democrats due to the math more than anything else.
Fourteen seats held by Democrats and 21 seats held by Republicans are up for election in 2022. Republicans are defending two Senate seats in states Joe Biden (D) won in the 2020 presidential election: Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Democrats are not defending any Senate seats in states Donald Trump (R) won in 2020.
the math goes against the democrats in 2024 though.
“There are 33 U.S. Senate seats up for regular election in 2024—21 seats held by Democrats and 10 held by Republicans as of July 2020. this figure will no doubt change given the age of the Senate so there will be more open seats due to retirements and deaths. This math favors the Republicans as they have fewer seats to defend. Based on this factor alone, I’d give the 2024 Senate to the Republicans, the Presidency and perhaps the House to the Democrats.
The map below shows what seats are up for election and the current incumbent in each race.
While I hope the Dems maintain the House, it is too close to call could be a one to the two-vote margin by Democrats, or a two to three margin by the Republicans, but I don’t see a red wave coming nor do I see a blue wave coming. the gerrymandering in place slightly favors the Republicans perhaps giving them five additional seats, and demographic changes mean additional seats in red states and a loss in NY, California, and New Jersey of one seat each.
2024 is shaping up to be the most consequential election in recent history. The future of America and our democracy is at stake. So far if I had to bet, I would bet on the Democrats winning the presidency (but not Biden running again due to age and health concerns or Kamala Harris making it, and Trump not running due to age, or legal impediments or death)
the demographics of the voters favors the Democrats winning the popular vote, and probably the electoral college, the math favors the Republicans taking the Senate, and the House could go either way, lots depends on who wins the mid-terms, and whether right-wing nut cases wing the primaries and lose the general elections, and the success of the voter suppression movement.
My advice/predictions to the Democratic leadership (I will share this with them) are the following:
Biden should retire at the end of his term but announce that he wants an open primary and not endorse any candidate until the dust settles and a clear leader emerges. The rest of the aging leadership should all retire as well, opening up political space to the next generation of leaders to organically emerge.
Kamala Harris stumbles and another candidate emerges. If the Democrats are smart, they would nominate a moderate problem-solving centrist who can win in red or purple states = the governor of Michigan fits the bill. Preferably a woman, as it is time for a woman president. The VP should be a Hispanic or perhaps Asian-American male. Again, a governor would be preferable but a Senator or big city major would be a good pick as well. I would avoid two woman candidates as that might be a step too far for now.
The theme should be time for a renewed commitment to an America that works for everyone, that we are in it together and are united as Americans.
Other themes would be
Continuing rebuilding our failing physical infrastructure, including our public health systems,
Fighting climate change,
Investing in the next generation of technologies,
including robotics and AI systems,
Recommitting to the space program,
Enacting some version of the build back better initiative,
Continuing to work on rebuilding our alliances,
Reforming our failed immigration system,
Fighting against voter suppression efforts,
Encouraging more democratic voting systems such as rank vote and jungle primaries,
And an old throwback, enacting term limits – this is a winning issue with the public and will disarm potential republican attacks
“on old, tired, political elitist coastal hacks running the Democratic party leadership.”
The Democrats should seize this issue as a sort of political jujutsu move. that would be brilliant!
Starting with the retirement of the oldest members of both parties to bring in a younger generation of leaders. if term limits are a good thing for the presidency they are a good thing for Congress to embrace and would be very popular. I’d suggest 12 years (six terms) in the house and three terms in the Senate for a total of 30 years of service with mandatory retirement at age 70.
Avoid getting sucked into the culture wars nonsense it is a waste of time, resources and puts you on the defensive, just no upside to it at all. the less you say on this the better, let them come off as unhinged and out-of-touch.
The focus should be on building on the solid accomplishments of the Biden era and looking forward with a positive, optimistic message.
I would also not get trapped into running an anti-Republican campaign. That was a losing message for Hilary, and also a bit for Biden. People need to hear a positive, powerful optimistic message but pointing out that the Republican candidate is a neo-fascist authoritarian wannabe is fine, but that can not be the only message or the main message.
Keeping it positive, upbeat, and focused on solid accomplishments for the American people is the key. Remember, they have to want to vote for you, not just vote against them!
A winning slogan could be
“Democrats, the party that gets stuff done for the American people.”
I would also avoid getting too sucked into the progressive wish lists, remember the adage to never let the perfect being the enemy of the good. Remember that people have to want to vote for you and just against the other guy. You could run through an anti-republican slogan such as
Republicans, tools of the 1 percent, the party of fascists, insurrectionists, deficit spending and ignoring the needs of the American people,
If the Republicans are smart, Trump will retire for the good of the party and the country, under the excuse of age, health, or legal impediments. Then they should have an open primary.
Predictions for the Republican Ticket
My prediction would be De Santis wins the nomination and picks perhaps Senator Cotton as his VP. This would unite the MAGA crows and the cultural wars crowds. But also provide a solid line of attack for the Democratic nominee.
I don’t see a pathway for Ted Cruz as he has too many enemies, everyone who knows him or has worked with hate his guts.
I also don’t see a pathway for Josh Hawley either for similar reasons. I can see Marjorie Taylor Green running but flaming out during the primary.
Finally, I don’t see a Trump-Biden rematch but if that happens, I will bet that Biden would defeat Trump.
The other unlikely prospect is that the Republicans get smart and nominate either the governor of Ohio or Maryland and run a positive upbeat campaign as
“the party that gets stuff done for the American people”
Note; Great slogan, the Democrats should use it before the Republicans use it.
while painting the Democrats as old, political hacks who are out of touch, cultural justice warrior elitists from coastal blue states. That would be a powerful campaign theme because unfortunately, there is an element of truth to it!
and they would probably win the House, Senate, and Presidency, but fortunately, for the Democrats, they are far more likely to nominate a cultural warrior nut case like DeSantis, with either Cotton as VP or the Virginian Governor as VP.
if Biden runs, a toss-up. If Kamala runs a toss-up. If the governor of Michigan or another female governor runs, Democrats probably win.
If DeSantis runs, probably Republicans will fail, but if someone like Maryland Hogan runs, the Republicans will win. If Trump wins the nomination as a Republican, Republicans will probably fail as well.
If Trump runs third party, too close to call but he would not win as a third-party candidate. If he runs, he should name his party, the Christian Patriot Party, the CPP in short.
The Senate and House would both probably go to the Democrats despite voter suppression efforts as the math and demographics favor the Democratic party.
A personal note. I am married to a Korean-American woman whom I met in Korea and thus would love to see Hogan elected and have the first Asian-American (Korean) First lady.
My bottom line prediction
Both Biden and Trump retire due to age and health concerns.
Kamala Harris does not win the primary contests, as the Democrats selected a more centrist problem-solving figure who defeats the likely republican nominee – De Santis.
Whoever loses, concedes as we restore the tradition of a peaceful transition of power.
Senate and House go to the Democrats, but with narrow majorities.
The rest of the country continues to be split into about 25 red states and 20 blue states, a blue DC, blue PR, blue VI, purple Guam and Samoa, purple military, and 5 purple states.
Raven Cage Zine will publish some of my Ukrainian poems and stories written in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Ukrainian people have shown considerable courage in standing up to Russian aggression.
Ukrainian Refugees Fleeing for their Lives
Putin’s Deranged Press Conference
Rep. Boebert Scumbag of the Week for her thought Crimes against Human reason Scumbag of the Week
When Russia invaded Ukraine
Make Love Not War All Poetry
Putin went to bed after drinking his favorite cocktail Nazi Vodka crush with an orange crush. In his dream, he soon saw himself riding a white horse, chollima the white horse of destiny across the world, fulfilling the destiny of heaven. He saw millions of people bow down worshiping him, following him. Loving their new lord and master. He flies over Ukraine filled with slaves harvesting grain to feed the master Russian race. Up ahead, he sees Kamala Harris walking her puppy, he shoots her and the puppy, then eats the puppy just because he is that kind of evil monster. N’s
Putin Assassinations End the Russian Imperial Dreams
When Putin invaded Ukraine
He did not foresee
That the whole world
Would rise up
Against him
Enough, no more
The Russian people said
As Putin is assassinated
Bringing an end
To his Russian Imperial Dreams.
Ukrainian Refugees Fleeing for their Lives
As the war in Ukraine continues
Millions of refugees flee
With a target on their back
They rush down
The few open corridors left
They look at their gadgets
For the latest information
Hoping to live
Another day
The refugee organization staff
Try to keep track
Of their movement
Amid the cracking
Of the bombs falling
Putin’s Deranged Press Conference
Putin holds a deranged press conference in which he outlined his plans for the future of Europe and the world; He said that Russia would rule eastern Europe and the Central Asian Stans as in the old Soviet era. But with a twist. He would proclaim himself the Czar of Russia and Xi would rule East Asia and SE Asia as the new Emperor of Asia. Teheran would rule Iran, and Afghanistan, the Saudis would rule the mid-east but would recognize Israel. Western Europe would continue as the EU, the UK would continue. The US would be given the Americas. Africa would be divided up between the great powers. The UN would be replaced with a much more focused international organization where the powers would jointly rule the world, cooperating on global issues, such as climate change and space exploration. A military conflict would come to an end. He said that he and China were willing to use nuclear weapons to enforce their new world order. He had no desire to rule Western Europe, the UK, or the Americas.
After a series of meetings, the world leaders agreed. World War 111 was avoided and the world became divided into ten worlds as it was dubbed, Australia/New Zeeland, China, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Iran, Mexico, Saudi, US, South Africa with the major powers dividing up the world into their spheres of influence.
The UN continued in NYC as the central coordinating body as the powers did work out global cooperation norms including worldwide internet, worldwide business competition, common industrial standards, common currency, ten official languages (Arabic, Chinese, English, French, German, Spanish) climate change and space exploration. The powers also agreed on a few human rights standards, the leaders of each region pledged to allow limited freedom of the press, limited elections for advisory assemblies, and limited equal rights for women. Homosexuality was outlawed in much of the world as was abortion. Drugs and alcohol were outlawed in the Islamic world. Each region had its view on religious freedom, tolerated in the western world, but not in the Islamic world. Immigration between regions was tightly controlled. Universal military service was required.
World War 111 was replaced by the new multi-polar world. Space exploration kicked off as the powers all set up competitions in space cities, lunar colonies, and Martian colonies.
Rep. Boebert Scumbag of the Week for her thought Crimes against Human reason Scumbag of the Week
I sent this around to the MLB Commissioner, the Baseball Hall of Fame and the SF Giants, Oakland A’s and the Nationals and will update it if anyone bothers to respond.
Now that the COVID pandemic is fading and life is returning to normal, it is a good time to step back and reflect upon the future of professional sports. this is especially true for baseball now that they have ended the walkout and are about to resume the season,
American Professional sports, especially baseball, are in trouble! Attending a professional sports game has become unaffordable for the average person, and that is a damn shame. Fewer children are learning how to play in school as schools cut back on sports and fitness programs because of costs, liability issues, and changing preferences among the public. Sports teams are losing their connections to their local communities.
When I was a young lad, American sports comprised football, basketball, and baseball. Everything else was just a minor sport!
Unfortunately, baseball is now in fifth place – it is football, basketball, hockey, soccer, and baseball. And if things continue as they are going, baseball could soon be becoming a minor sport, falling behind tennis, golf, bowling, track, and field, or even after cricket, which is the fast-growing sport in the US.
Yes, the state of American professional sports is deplorable. But I have a ten-point plan to make American sports great again, particularly baseball. These apply also to Football and Basketball, but my focus here is on Baseball.
My proposal consists of the following basic principles
Making The Game Affordable!!!
Expanding The Number of Professional Teams
Real World Series
Adopting Local Schools and Colleges
Requiring Professional Athletes To Have A Degree, And Helping Them Find Jobs After Retirement
Bringing In More International Players
Changing The Incentive Structure So Winning Means More Money Per Player, Losing Means Less Money Per Player
Setting Up A North American Sports Commission
Allowing Corporations to Own Teams
Expanding Broadcasting of Games So That One Could Watch Baseball 24/7 Anywhere In The World For Free or a Small Monthly Fee
Make The Games Gendered Neutral
Getting Rid of Racist Legacies
Enhancing Security Including Health Checks
Making The Game Affordable!!!
We start by making the games affordable for the average person. These comments apply equally to all the major sports, but my focus is on baseball, my favorite professional sport. If one wanted to attend a professional game, one would have to spend hundreds of dollars to get tickets, go to the stadium, and spend a minor fortune on food and drinks. Preposterous and unacceptable.
Professional sports should cap the price of most tickets at 50 dollars per ticket. They should sell tickets at a price that people could afford to attend a game. Perhaps setting the average ticket at 25 dollars? And on game days, sell remaining tickets for 5 dollars, and release free tickets an hour before the game start. Filling up the stadium for every game. That would generate excitement and generate loyalty among the fan base. Better for everyone than the current system where the average price of tickets is about 100 dollars a ticket if they can get one at all. The goal should be to fill the stadium with fans who did not pay a fortune for the tickets and that the average price is very reasonable. One reason that soccer is so popular is that it is the cheapest professional sport to attend in person.
Expanding the Number of Professional Teams
I think there are too few professional teams. There is a market for baseball that is not being met. At a minimum, there should be a professional sports team in every major metropolitan area, and in some areas, more than one team could compete, ice, NYC, LA, Chicago, SF Bay Area.
First, a dramatic expansion of baseball so that there are major league team teams in every state in the US, every province in Canada, and Mexico, and in the DR, PI, Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. That would mean expanding the number of teams to 120 teams from the 35 teams that exist today.
This would not be as difficult to accomplish as you might first think. First, you would convert minor league teams into major league teams. You would make sure that there is a major league team in each state in the U.S., each Canadian province, each Mexican State, and in the baseball-playing countries of the Caribbean, and in Asia and Europe as well, making it a real-world sport.
Some obvious places could and should have a team. Anchorage, Honolulu, Sacramento, San Jose, Portland, Reno, Nevada? Salt Lake City? Boise, Phoenix, Tuscan? Tacoma, Vancouver, Edmonton, Quebec City, there could be up to 75 teams competing across North America. I would also add teams in Mexico, Canada, and the Caribbean. This will replace the current two-league structure which should be retired.
Each team would play mostly in its region with a few inter-league games per month for excitement, the new league structure would consist of the African League, Asia League (East Asia, SE Asia, and Indian divisions) the North American league (Northwest, Southwest, Southeast, Northeast and Central Divisions) the Caribbean/Mexican League, European League, Middle eastern league, and Latin America Leagues.
This would make it more affordable for teams to travel, as they would mostly play against teams in their region. I would adjust the leagues a bit to ensure that they are all about the same number of teams.
And there would be intense regional rivals for example in the Bay area there would be regular games between SF, San Jose, and Oakland.
At the end of the season, the North American champion would be crowned, and that champion would advance to the world series, which will be held in the spring just before the beginning of the new season.
And perhaps to start the season off on an international basis, the season-opening games should be international teams. I.e. the SF Giants could host the Tokyo Giants for a best of seven games to start the season.
Real World Series
I would change the way the world series is done. Each country that has pro baseball (there are over 32) would choose their national champions through the team that won the national championship, and then the champions would compete in a world series of baseball held in the early Spring. For example, if the SF Giants won the North American series, they would represent North America in the world series and represent the US in the Olympics. The location of the world series would vary among the 32 countries that have professional baseball leagues, but the US should host the first series, and perhaps offer to always host the finals, to ensure the world still associates the US as the home country of baseball and ensure that the US media and public fully engage with the world series.
The games would be world cup style until the last set of games, which will be the traditional best of seven-game format.
+Adopting Local Schools and Colleges
To develop the next generation of players and fans, I would have the professional teams adopt local school districts and colleges and fully fund all sports programs, not just baseball, thus alleviating the burden on the school district or college’s budget. They would do this in cooperation with the other professional teams in the region, splitting the costs between the professional teams. The school districts and local colleges would have a fully funded sports program. Professional athletes would volunteer to serve as coaches during the off-season. The student-athletes would be given passes so that they could attend professional games for free.
This one action would guarantee that children have grown up playing sports and generate excitement for the game among the next generation. And it would not cost the professional team a lot of money and generate a tremendous amount of goodwill. Finally, playing baseball for an MBL sponsored university would give the student-athlete preference is going to play for that team.
Requiring Professional Athletes to have a Degree, And Helping Them Find Jobs After Retirement
All the professional sports federations would jointly agree that they would only hire professional athletes who have finished their college playing days with a degree. They could compete in the professional league for one year on a provisional contract, but must have their degree in hand before they begin their second year. While in college, they would receive a full scholarship, housing, a monthly stipend, and free tickets to all professional sports games, they would also work part-time as coaches in High schools in their communities. These costs would be paid for by the local team.
I would keep players in one team for five-year contracts to build fan support. The typical baseball player would then play four years of HS baseball, four years of college baseball, and 3 contracts (15 years total) for up to three different teams, and a few players would be able to do a fourth contract.
Finally, after a professional athlete ‘s career is over, the professional teams would make every effort to help the professional athlete stay involved with the game by assisting them in getting full-time employment as coaches across the country, or work for the baseball teams, or working as sports announcers. The key is that former players will remain professionally engaged in promoting baseball after retiring from active service.
Bring In International Players
With the proliferation of overseas teams, I would also bring in the best foreign players and let US athletes play overseas, and encourage US players to play overseas during their time with the US-based team perhaps allowing them to play one season overseas while keeping their contract with the US-based team?
Changing The Incentive Structure So Winning Means More Money Per Player, Losing Means Lots Let Money Per Player
It seems that sometimes professional athletes are phoning it in so to speak. So, I would change the compensation so that winning teams get most of the proceeds from a game, with the losing team getting their costs covered. This minor change would make the games so much more exciting as athletes would have a real incentive to compete.
Setting Up a North American Sports Commission
I would set up a North American Sports Commission to oversee professional sports across North America – comprising the head of NFL, MLB, NBA, MLSS, Hockey, Tennis, Golf, Bowling, Track and Field, and Olympics. The commission would comprise player representatives, owner representatives, and high school and college sports representatives.
I would set up a Public-private partnership to set policy for professional sports in North America including the Caribbean, annual conference after the week after the world super bowl followed by the drafting for professional sports teams (all at the same time) just before the beginning of Baseball, soccer, etc.
Thus, the MLB would become one of the NASF commissioners, etc. The head of the North American professional sports commissions would be called the North American Professional Sports commissioner. His or her job would be to coordinate all aspects of the game along with his/her counterparts in the other sports leagues and the Olympics, Pro Golfing, Pro Tennis, Pro Bowling, and track and field.
Each city would have its own sports commission comprising the heads of the local professional sports teams, and the university athletes’ directors. The sports federation would also have players serve on the commission. The local commission would also encourage local teams to share facilities, broadcast revenues, and share in the cost of running the local high school and college athletic programs.
Finally, the US champion team would compete in the Olympics and other international competitions representing the United States.
Allowing Corporations to Own Teams
In Asia, most sports teams are owned by corporations. I don’t see why we can’t do that in the U.S. Unlike in Asia though the corporation would still have to name the team after the location instead of the corporation, unlike in Asia where the corporation’s name is associated with the team and not the location, for example, you could have Microsoft owning the Mariners, but the name of the team would be the Microsoft Seattle Mariners, not the Microsoft mariners. And corporations could and should help sponsor the local high school and colleges sports programs and provide free tickets for their employees as a corporate perk.
Expanding Broadcasting Of Games So That One Could Watch Baseball 24/7 Anywhere In The World For Free Or For A Small Monthly Fee
I would expand the MLB website, which would show every game worldwide streaming free. The paid site would include access to past games, statistical analysis, commentary, etc and links to the baseball sites around the world and also broadcast college baseball games.
Make The Games Gendered Neutral
It is time to allow girls to play baseball. They can compete with the boys and should be allowed to play on the teams. Perhaps we could have about 40 percent female players to start? Allowing woman players would also help grow the fan base as more women would get interested in watching the games.
Getting Rid of Racist Legacies
I would change the names of all professional sports teams to get rid of racist names like the Indians and the Braves, and college-level names as well.
Enhancing Security Including Health Checks
Unfortunately, COVID will likely be sticking around and everyone will need booster shots every year. Baseball teams should offer free flu/covid and other vaccinations throughout the season and require patrons to wear masks during the early spring season (April and perhaps in October) as well. Certainly, all players and staff must get their flu and COVID shots to play. Finally, baseball stadiums should encourage the use of public transit (free metro/bus passes for the games) to get to and from the games to cut down on DUI, traffic and make it easier to get to the game, particularly evening games. Perhaps offering free Uber rides home to anyone who drank too much and letting people park their cars overnight would help.
Summary
It is time to face reality, baseball is no longer “America’s pastime”. It is in fifth place! And with the way things are going could become a minor sport but it is growing in popularity worldwide. It is time for the good of the game and the good of the country for MLB to save baseball as America’s greatest sport.
Taking these bold steps –
Making the game affordable!!!
Expanding the number of professional teams
Real World Series
Adopting local schools and colleges
Requiring professional athletes to have a degree, and helping them find jobs after retirement
Bringing in More International Players
Changing the incentive structure so winning means more money per player, losing means less money per player
Setting up a North American Sports Commission
Allowing Corporations to Own Teams
Expanding broadcasting of games so that one could watch baseball 24/7 anywhere in the world for free or for a small monthly fee
Make the games gendered neutral
Getting rid of racist legacies
Enhancing security including health checks
Would go a long way to solving the crisis facing American baseball. Doing nothing will end in baseball becoming a minor sport in its spiritual homeland.
Note (Update) the Redskins just announced that they are finally getting rid of the racist redskin name but they picked a lame name, the Washington Commanders in my opinion, but at least it is not racist anymore. MLB needs to get rid of the Indian, and Braves names and other racist names, and come up with more inclusive names, especially for expansion teams.
Letter sent to Nancy Pelosi calling for her to retire to save the party and the nation. I’ll let you know if she bothers to respond.
Dear Nancy, Time to Go Dear
Dear Nancy,
I am writing to you to plead with you to reconsider your decision to run for re-election. It is more important than anything else right now for the Democratic party to retain control of the House and the Senate given the insane backward policies that the Republicans in the House and the Senate would try to implement if they were to win in November. Not to mention that they would shut down the Biden administrations’ entire agenda.
I am a life-long democrat having grown up in Berkeley in the late 60s and 70s. I served in the Peace Corps and became a foreign service officer retiring in 2016. I live in South Korea as I have my wife’s family living here. I hope to return to the Bay area in another year. Incidentally, you may know about my family. My father, Curtis Cosmos Aller, was the President of the Berkeley Co-Op and the Peralta community college district and a professor and Dean at SF State.
There is a time in one’s life when one needs to retire from active work and slow down and enjoy the golden years of one’s life. There is no shame in deciding it is time to retire and let the next generation of leaders emerge. At age 83 you have done so much for the country. It is always a good idea to leave on a high note. If you retire now, you will be leaving at a high note. If you run for re-election, you might run the risk of losing the primary. The voters in SF just recalled the school board because they felt that they were simply out of touch with the average resident of San Francisco. Perhaps that should be a wake-up call for you to consider.
But if you run for re-election, the Republicans will no doubt run a campaign demonizing you and the entire democratic leadership as being, old political hacks elites out of with the American people. They will portray themselves as the next generation of leaders fighting for the American people.
As you know, the Republicans are the masters of dirty politics. They will lie, cheat and do what it takes to take back the house and Senate. Given what’s going on right now with the aftermath of the pullout from Afghanistan, the war in Ukraine, and rampant inflation, the American public is feeling that things are not going in the right direction and unfortunately they will blame the democrats.
Having most of the leadership of the party, including of course the President all in their 70s or older leads itself to this attack. I can see the attack ads already. The Republicans will no doubt push that narrative to the maximum because sadly there is some truth to it.
I hope that you don’t see this plead as a “agist’ attack on you and the democratic leadership because it is not. I am 66 myself. And to be fair, I believe all the leaders in both parties, the Supreme Court, and the President who are over 70 years of age, should all announce that they are retiring at the end of their terms to let the next generation of leaders emerge to deal with the problems of today, as our old aged leaders are lost battling yesterday’s political battles. You should set the example, and the rest will follow.
The bottom line is this: the stakes are so high that the democratic leadership must do all they can to keep the house. If you announce that you and the senior leadership are all retiring to let a new generation of leaders emerge will change the game and perhaps save the House and the Senate.
And if you do retire, please do not let your daughter run for your seat because you know nepotism?
I hope that you can consider my request and retire for the good of the party, and the nation.
From time to time, I will award a “ Cosmos Scumbag of the Week Award” and post it on my Anchor (podcast on Spotify and Radio Public) blog, Blog Loving, FB, LinkedIn, Medium, Wattpad, Writing com, Tumblr, and Twitter, and send a nice certificate to the person who demonstrated
the qualities of a Scumbag – vile despicable behavior or speech demonstrating that they are a true sociopathic scumbag.
Let me know what you think, and feel free to nominate a scumbag of your own. I’d love to post other nominees. Do let me know if you can use this material on your show. Most of them are part-found poems using the awardees’ language or media accounts to incriminate themselves, along with my snarky commentary.
I am also sending this to Jimmy Kimble, John Oliver, Trevor at the Daily Show, Bill Maher, and Seth Myers in hopes that they can use it on their shows. I will also send a copy to the award recipients. Would appreciate it if you could let me know if you find this useful or could use it. the Direct URL is
Dream Girl True Love Story
Also please check out my true love story, “Dream Girl at the following direct DL. Also published in the book, ‘Dreams and the Unexplainable” by the Chicken Soup for the Soul publishers in 2018. I met my wife in Korea after serving in the Peace Corps and teaching for the U, S Army. I first met her in a dream in high school in 1974, when I fell asleep in a boring Physics class at Berkeley High School in Berkeley, California, and saw standing next to me the most beautiful woman in the universe, and she was talking to me in a strange Asian language. I fell out of my chair screaming “Who are You?” much to the amusement and laughter of my class and teacher.
I knew that I would eventually meet and marry her. Eight years later on September 7, 1982, she walked off a bus into my life, and we got married seven weeks later on October 29th, 1982. She joined the US Army as an intel officer and was for a while the first Korea born female Army officer to serve in Korea, and I believe the first Korean-born female U.S, army officer. She retired as a Major.
Please also check out the hitchhiker tales talking about my epic hitchhiking the U.S. in 1975 when I was broke, young and foolish. Also published by the Poet Magazine in their Anthology of “On the Road” in 2020. The URL is
I most recently drove across the country in 2016 to celebrate my retirement by seeing the U.S. I traveled over 10,000 miles, and 35 states in three months. And in 2019 finally visited Alaska my last of the 50 states to visit. I have also visited 55 countries. I speak Korea, Spanish, Thai and some Hindi.
I joined the State Department as a foreign service officer and served in ten countries over the next 25 years serving in Antigua, Barbados, (based in Barbados but covering seven Eastern Caribbean countries, Dominica, Grenada, St, Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Korea, Spain, Thailand, India (Mumbai) and four tours in DC. We retired to live half the year in Korea and half in the States but then, COVID hit and we have been here ever since, except for a two-week trip to D.C, last November. We hope to visit the U, S this summer for an extended period, and I hope to attend your show in the audience.
There are 18 awardees so far.
Awardees
Kentucky Factory Manager
Christmas Gun Card
Marjorie Taylor Green Found Poem Marjorie Taylor Green
Matt Gaetz Found Poem
Paul Gosar found poem
Louie Gohmert Found Poem Scumbag
Award Korean Husband Who Left His Wife at Deserted Highway Stop
Marjorie Taylor Green’s Yellow Race Comments Marjorie Taylor Green.
Ann Coulter Defense of Kim Potter
Jessie Watters Anti-Fauci Death Threats
Missouri Governor’s and Attorney general’s Anti-Mask Crusade
Missouri policeman who attempted to arrest a school bus driver for wearing a mask which he falsely claimed was now illegal to wear in public
Rep. Boebert Scumbag of the Week for her thought Crimes against Human reason
Tucker Carlson for Being a Russian Tool on Fox News
Former President Trump for Being Putin’s B…. in Ukraine
and President Putin gets the “Scumbag of the Century Award, for invading Ukraine and bombing a Jewish cemetery. while allegedly fighting Nazis and trying to overthrow the Jewish President.
Award Nominations
Kentucky Candle Manager Who Threatens to Fire Employees Who Want to Flee the Tornado That Destroyed the Factory
In the wake
Of the historic tornadoes
That destroyed so many towns
In six states,
There have been many cases
Of people stepping up
Doing the right thing
Acting like true heroes.
This, sadly, is not one
Of those stories.
Instead, it is the story
Of a factory manager
Who knowing that the tornado
Was rushing at his factory,
Told his employees
Keep working
If you leave
Fleeing for your life
You will be terminated.
The employees
Were too stunned
To do anything.
A few minutes later
The factory was destroyed
Most of the workers
And that scumbag manager
Buried under the rubble.
If the manager
Had acted like the Christian
He claimed he was,
And told his employees
To get the hell out of there
Closing for the day.
Some of them might
Have survived.
For these actions
He truly deserves
The scumbag of the week award.
the Christmas Gun Card
The second recipient
is the congressional representative,
Who felt he would send out
A friendly message
Of peace and goodwill
During the Christmas season,
He had his whole family
Standing by a Christmas tree
Carrying military assault weapons
With the caption,
“Santa, please send more ammo”.
Santa should send the family
A note
“: For your display of Christmas naughtiness,
I am donating ten thousand dollars
from your bank account,
In your name for each victim
Of gun violence this year,
200 thousand dollars
Thank you for your generous donation,”
The Republican congressional
representative from Kentucky
Did not apologize for the lame
Extremely tasteless and offensive
an attempt at a joke
Not even saying
That it was just a lame
ass attempt at a joke.
Tweeting that he had stirred up
A hornets’ nest
But it was good
To see the leftist so upset
And he would do it again
He felt he totally
owned the “libtards” communists
Saw nothing wrong with it.
Yet another Christian
Who shows his adherence
To Christian values,
By violating everything,
Christ stood for.
Not doing what Jesus
Would have done.
And did it just
Before Christmas
right after a horrific
shocking shooting
at a school.
By a kid the same age
as he kids
shown holding an assault rifle
underneath a Christmas tree.
Reps. Marjorie Taylor Green, Rep. Matt Gaetz, Rep. Paul Gondor, and Rep. Louie Gohmert for their continued attempt to portray the January 6th insurrectionists as freedom-loving patriots and political prisoners of a communist, dystopian, fascist, racist anti-white socialist dictatorship.
For this week’s s Cosmos
scumbag of the week award
We have four recipients
Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene,
Matt Gaetz,
Paul Gosar,
Louie Gohmert
paul gosnar
they held a bonkers
demented press conference
for that, they are all winners.
“On Tuesday,
Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene,
Matt Gaetz,
Paul Gosar,
and Louie Gohmert
held a press conference
where they defended
the Jan. 6 insurrection,
promoting every conspiracy
the theory under the sun
and attacking anybody
who dares call i
into question the actions
of the people
we all saw on television,
on our computers,
and on our mobile devices
attacking the Capitol building.
Any one of the three
on the podium
during today’s press conference
could create a misinformation
swarm larger
then the rings of Saturn,
and all four together
did not disappoint their master,
Donald Trump.
“First up was Greene,
who told the world
that the Jan. 6 defendants
we’re being tortured
and persecuted
and forced to submit
to critical race theory brainwashing.”
He went on to say
Of the January 6th defendants
“They were isolated
in a separate wing of the jail
, where they are abused,
where they are ridiculed,
where they are mocked
because of their political beliefs
and because of January 6,
and because
of the color of their skin.”
All are scumbags worthy
Of this award
Rep. Matt Gaetz Found Poem Promising More Kangaroo Courts, and calling for Trump to Serve as the Speaker of the House.
Then came Gaetz to promise
kangaroo courts
and Benghazi trials
while also pretending
that Benghazi investigation
were mishandled
because they found nothing.
“We are going to take power
after this next election.
When we do,
it’s not going to be
the days of Paul Ryan,
and Trey Gowey,
and no real oversight,
and no real subpoenas.
It’s going to be the days
of Jim Jordan, Marjorie Taylor Greene,
and Dr. Gosar, and myself.”
He would move to install
Trump as House Speaker “
For this and past offenses
he is awarded this week’s Cosmos Scumbag of the Week Award
Rep, Paul Gosar for his murder porn cartoons and numerous other offenses.
“Gosar is the three-sentence embodiment
of a sniveling Dickens character.”
Comment: not to mention
His violent murder porn fantasy tweets.”
And he is so bad
Even his siblings
Campaigned against him
And denounced him
On worldwide TV.
His response
Was to call his seven siblings
Jealous Marxists.
Another worthy recipient
Of the Cosmos Scumbag of the week award.
The Cosmos Scumbag of the Week Award goes to Rep. Louie Gohmert often dubbed the dumbest Member of Congress, known for his deranged, incoherent world salads, and LOSER in the Texas Republican primary race for attorney general for calling for arrest of FBI instigators of the Insurection because reasons
“Gohmert just comes
across like someone
who doesn’t know much
of anything
and therefore, might seem
a touch less dangerous.
Then it was Gohmert’s turn.
Gohmert has recently
decided to leave Congress
in the hopes of taking control
(he lost – LOSER of the Texas attorney general’s office, ”
“last month.
Gohmert’s job
was to promote the conspiracy theory
that the only people
who should be charged
with insurrection should be the FBI.
Literally—that’s his fact-free
conspiracy vomit
into the public sphere for the day.
Then Gosar came up to make
a series of statements
about the cruel conditions
of the incarcerated Jan 6 defendants
calling them human rights violations
Gosar made sure to explain
how white these defendants are.
They aren’t those “hardened criminals” people
(The ones Gosar and Greene and Gohmert
and Gaetz never speak up for),
“they’re fathers.”
Gohmert,
Has so many reasons
To be the scumbag of the week.
I am sure we will award them all many more Cosmos Scumbag of the Week awards. At the end of the year, I will pick the top ten for the Scumbag of the year award and I expect they will be finalists.
The scumbag of the week award is supposed to be international. I am awarding my first international award to the Korean Husband Who Left His Wife at A Deserted Highway Rest Stop
For this week’s scumbag of the week award, we go to South Korea where I currently reside.
the Award goes to the Korean husband who dropped his wife, kicked her out of the Taxi , at a deserted highway rest stop late at night in a wintry rain storm because of an argument. The runner up is the truck driver who ran her over and kept going, and the taxi driver who dropped her off. He went back and found the dead body.
A Korean married couple
Got into a horrific accident
While in a taxi heading home.
The man told the driver
To drop his wife
Off at a deserted highway rest stop.
In the middle of the night
During a frosty winter rainfall.
The taxi driver complied
The woman got off
They took off.
The woman
Went for a walk
Down the deserted highway.
A five-ton truck
Ran her over
And keep driving.
Hit and run driver
The taxi driver
Drove back.
Saw that she was missing
Alerted the authorities.
They found her body
By the side of the road.
And skid marks
Indicating what had happened.
The award winner is the husband
The truck driver and taxi drivers
are our runner ups For this first international
Scumbag of the week award..
Marjorie Taylor Green’s Yellow Race Comments Marjorie Taylor Green.
Marjorie Taylor Green
For all of her deeds
Pure batshit craziness
Incoherent insane word salads,
She is a recipient of
The” cosmos scumbag of the week award”.
During a conservative youth conference
“using her moment on stage
To in part call-out
The diversity of the attendees,
The “black people, brown people, white people,
And yellow people”
Only to highlight
that the event can’t possibly be racist.”
Because….
Proving again that she is a racist
Using the racist words
“Yellow People.”
Which is a 19th-century racial slur.
At least she did not use the n-word
Or talk about “redskins.”.
She went on to make deranged comments
About gender roles in the house of representatives
Noting new inclusive language guidelines
That she will refuse to follow,
Ann Coulter Racist Defense of the Aubrey Killers, Kim Potter, Chauvin, and Rittenhouse
ann coulter
Ann Coulter could be awarded
The Scumbag of the Week award,
For almost every week
She unleashes such hateful racist vitriol
Garbage upon the world.
Her latest outrage
A defense of Kim Potter
The cop that accidentally
Killed a black man
During a traffic stop.
Pulling out her gun
Instead of the tazer.
The jury found her guilty
Of negligent homicide.
Following up on her defense
of Chauvin. the murderer of George Floyd,
and the murderers of Aubrey, and Karl Rittenhouse,
She is batting 1-3 so far.
Ann took issue
With the trial,
And the media coverage.
Noting that the media
Did not blame the victim enough,
That the victim deserved
What he got.
Because he was violent
Out-of-control thug,
And the cop,
Was right
To use deadly force
To put him down.”
comment:
She fails to note
That everyone at the trial
Knew that.
The jury did not believe
That excused the cop
from the charge of manslaughter
Because everyone else
Except for Ann,
Saw it for what it was
What was obvious to all
Is that it was
A racist murder
By a white officer
in broad daylight
Of an unarmed, compliant
Subdued black man.
“It is what it is “
Quote the Donald.
Obvious to the entire world,
except for Ann Coulter – maybe she needs new glasses?
or a compassionate soul?
even though she claims she is a Christian
while violating all the core tenets
of her faith.
Jesus would be leading the BLM protests
if he were to come back today.
Just saying,
George Floyd was murdered in broad daylight
His crime attempting to pass a counterfeit 20 dollar bill
and being high in public.
His real offense was being black
and daring to complain
he could not breathe
as Chauvin strangled him to death.
I suppose Chauvan thought
he should just STF up
while he killed him.
Protesting he could not breathe
infuriated CHauvan
who saw it as defiance
by an uppity drugged up
black man
of his right to subdue him
by any means necessarily.
and besides they had a history
both worked part time
as night club security
and apparently hated each other.
and if he died
too bad he had it coming.
F black drug addict.
“The NYT and other media outlets
Justified their coverage
Of focusing on the cop’s actions
Rather than on the crimes
Of the victim.
For this flaming of racist hatred
Of blaming the victim,
Of justifying another act
Of brutal, horrific police misconduct,
Ann Coulter is the scumbag
Of the week.
Jessie Watters for Calling for the Assassination of Dr. Fauci on National TV- he has yet to apologize, be charged, or be fired!
jessie watters
Jessie Watters
A Fox News Reporter
Is this week’s scumbag
Of the week winner,
His offense?
Telling a crowd to
“ambush” Dr. Fauci
with a “kill shot”
so he “doesn’t
see it coming”
dr fauci
Dr. Fauci responded
To this piece of insanity,
Noting,
“The only thing
that I have ever done
throughout these two years
is to encourage people
to practice good public health practices:
to get vaccinated,
to be careful in public settings,
to wear a mask,”
And for that,”
You have some guy out there
saying that people
should be giving me
a kill shot
to ambush me.
I mean,
what kind of craziness
is there in society these days?”
The guy
should be fired on the spot,”
As far as I know, he is still on the air at Fox.
for this and many other vile commentaries
says two other nations
have citizens in need of saving:
Canada and the United States.
“I pray for Ukraine, and I wish them the best,”
But we also have neighbors to the north
who need freedom and need to be liberated, “
and we need that right here at home, as well.
This was the most obnoxious, vile,
the pernicious canard of the week.
A total nonsensical, non sequitur.
What does the invasion of Ukraine
By Russian forces have to do
With protests against
Mask mandates and vaccine restrictions
In the U.S. and Canada.
The two events are not even remotely
The same thing.
To her and her ilk
Mandating masks, and vaccines
Amid a still deadly pandemic
Is an infringement on their freedom
To be a self-centered a…..
putting themselves and others at risk
including possible death.
And Canada and the US
Are now living in a monstrous communist. Fascist/socialist
dystopic radical leftist woke tyranny
oppressing “normal, i, e, white Christians)
And we need to be liberated
Just like the Ukrainians.
For these crimes against human thought,
Reason, common sense, and common decency
She is the Cosmos Scumbag of the week.
Tucker Carlson For Being Putin’s Tool On Fox News
tucker carlson
Tucker Carlson daily on his show
Has shown that he is nothing more
Than Putin’s puppet
Parroting Russian State TV propaganda
Calling into question the heroism
Of the Ukrainian People
And the government
For that, he is the Cosmos Scumbag of the Week
Former President Trump for Being Putin’s B…. in Ukraine
Former President Trump
daily is his press releases
Has shown that he is nothing more,
Than Putin’s B…..
Parroting Russian State TV propaganda
Calling into question the heroism
Of the Ukrainian People
And the government.
And making the absurd argument
That Putin would never have invaded
Ukraine if he had won.
Because Putin respected him
And knew Trump would not tolerate
That one bit.
The reality of course
Is that the former President
When he was President
Was nothing but Putin’s B…,.
No doubt if Russia invaded
He would have excused it
And not rallied NATO
And the country
To resist the Russian invasion.
Might even have threatened
to pull out of NATO
and Germany
though he likes Poland
because they offer
to name the new US base
Ft. Trump.
For all of these reasons, Former President Trump
You are the recipient of the Cosmos Scumbag
Of the Week award.
President of Russia Putin Scumbag of the Century
You richly deserve this award because of your brazen, blatantly illegal, immoral invasion of your neighbor. You set off the worst military action in Europe since World War 11, targeting civilians and even bombing a Jewish cemetery while falsely claiming you are fighting Nazis and attempting to overthrow the Jewish Nazi president. This clearly shows you are the world’s greatest scumbag and deserve the Scumbag of the Century award.
I have completed 17 flash fiction pieces as part of the Writers Digest Flash fiction challenge. I posted “Cosmic Cat from Berkeley” below. I also completed three micro flash stories for the Writing Com micro flash contest, and daily haiku for the Poetry Magnum Opus challenge. Enjoy.
Day 1 Keys
Day Two Prompt Circular
Day three Prompt limitations
Day four mystery
Day Five: A Dream that Came true
Day Six: a character who tries to be
Heartful”
Day Seven: Workplace conflict
Day Eight: re-gifting
Day Nine Grim reaper
Day ten romance story
Day 12 magic
Day 13 grim reaper
Day 14 animal
Day 16 hobby
Day 17 Book
Dream 18 Time
the Stories
I have completed 17 more flash fiction stories this month, listed below.
Hidden Keys to The Universe.
End of The Beginning, Beginning of The End.
A Man Has to Know His Limitations.
Where Did All the Blacks Go?
Dream That Came True.
Sam Adams Crisis of Conscious
Sam Adams Workplace Conflict Leads to a Bad Day.
Sam Adams reignites the War on Christmas
Timeless Love story
Sam Adams the Hoarder (TBC)
World domination but at a terrible price
Conversation with the grim reaper
Sam Adams first Contact
The Demon Car Attack
Cosmic Cat from Berkeley
Sam Adams Discovers the Cosmic Conspiracy
Sam Adams Meets Gloria Magnolia Shah (from a dream)
Time Police TBC
The Cosmic Cat from Berkeley
(audio is for poem version)
The prompt was to include an animal character. This is based on a true story and is a prose version of a poem that has been published.
Sam Adams had grown up in the city of Berkeley CA, but after college, he had joined the Peace Corps in Korea, and later joined the State Department and traveled over the world, got married, lived in Seattle, and later DC, and had it not spent much time in his hometown.
One day he was on leave and he went back to his hometown in between assignments, and his wife was to join him later, then they would be moving back to DC for their onward assignments. She was in the military serving as an officer.
During this trip he realized that his mother was entering into dementia, he had seen her about two or three years before and she was OK then, but now it was obvious that something had to be done, He didn’t know really what to do. he had talked to his two brothers and sisters who he didn’t particularly along with and with his wife. Nobody quite knew how to approach her; nobody quite knew what they needed to do, but they all knew something had to be done soon.
With this gloomy frame of mind, every day he would walk out of the house. go down the street to a restaurant, have breakfast, go out into town go to a movie check out a museum, have lunch or dinner with friends and get back in touch with his old neighborhood and his old feelings.
the very first day he was there when he went out for his morning walk there was a black cat that looked at him. Sam had this feeling the black cat knew everything he was thinking. He quickly dubbed the black cat. The cosmic cat followed him everywhere and Sam quickly shared his thoughts with the black cat who seemed to have been reading his mind, sometimes he would talk out loud at other times he was just thinking and the cat would be smiling and he would hear somehow in the back of his mind the cat’s thoughts about the matter.
The cat was following what he was saying and the cat knew when he needed to do. The cat helped him clarify the decisions that had to be made. The cat well he was a cosmic cat. He seemed to know everything about Sam, his family, his wife and even knew what the future would hold for Sam and his wife. Sam was very fascinated by this black cat. He had no idea whether this was a Wildcat or lived in the neighborhood but he left milk, and canned tuna fish out for him every morning and the cat seemed to like that.
He had no idea how and why this cat seemed to be able to read his mind. Finally, concluding he was a cosmic cat perhaps this was just a cat that was temporarily possessed by the spirit of the universe and was talking to Sam giving Sam advice that he needed to hear.
With his gloomy thoughts in his mind he opened up to the cat and the cat continue to read his mind and give him advice as he walked through his old neighborhood. The cat waiting for him in the evening when he got off the bus and walked with him home and the next morning the cat would be to be there again for their morning rambles.
Sam felt comforted by the cosmic cat, who was always there. For two weeks, Sam and the cat engaged in this deep conversation. Sam finally knew that it was time to make a decision about what to do with his mother. He had called his brothers up and his wife was coming the next day.
They spent a few days together sorting things out trying to figure out what needed to be done, and eventually, the decision was made they would have to move his mother into a nursing home and then in a few years, they would have to be faced with what to do when she passed on because it was obvious that she was declining quite rapidly. She had lived a long time, she was 85 years old.
But the cat seemed to know what needed to be done and somehow Sam thought the cat was giving him advice that he should follow. One day he asked the cat
“Cosmic cat please let me know who and what you are
“ Are you God>”
the cat smiled at him.
“Are you Buddha?
the cat smiled at him
“Are you the great spirit of the universe?”
the cat smiled at him.
“Are you Allah?”
The cat smiled at him.
“Are you really just a cat?
The cat smiled at him.
“Are you satanic?
The cat hissed at him, and he knew he had gone too far. The next day, he told the cat that it was time for him to part ways. The cat smiled at him, and he knew the cat knew that it was time to move on. The cat merely walked away, and Sam never saw that cosmic cat again
He told his mother in one of her periods of relative lucidity about the cosmic cat, His mother merely said that that cat was indeed a cosmic cat that came to them in their hour of need.
Sam never told his siblings about the cosmic cat, He thought they just think that he was mad. He told his wife, and she also thought that this was just a mad story, and then he should not really think about it anymore. The cosmic Cat faded away in his memories.
Literary Yard has published Winter Haiflu and other poems.
Index
Good bye 2021 Good Riddance
Winter Haiflu
Seek the Light
The Darkness Spreads
Seeing Demons
Messenger Dog of God
its a dog’s life for Me
Agnostic Dog wonders if there is dog
I want A dog’s Life
21 Dawns 21 Haiku
Dear Republicans, What Is Wrong with You?
The Revolution Next Time
Zombie Ideas Do Not Die
There Is A Great Sense of Unrest
cosmic calendar
Falling Rain
Good-Bye 2021 Good Riddance
Reflecting on the last six years
One cannot but sense
That momentous thing
Were happening everywhere
2021 was worst than 2020
And the year before as well
Nonstop terrifying events
The world seems
To be spending out
Of control
January
January normally dawns
Cold but hopeful
This year an attempted coup
Storming of the U.S. Capitol
The new president
Not accepted by the old
Half the country
Believes the big lie
February
February continued
The non-stop political wars
As COVID continued
Marching across the land
March
March is not much better
March madness
Continued unabated
April
April taxes due
Other nightmares continued
COVID vaccination wars
Continued in the U.S.
COVID relief passed
May
May brings little relief
Constant political battles
Descends into madness
June
June brings no relief
People screaming none stop
As COVID deaths continue
July Economy Begins Recovery
July continues -COVID still spreading
The economy seems better
But so many people
Have checked out
August
No longer
A month off
The battles continue
September
Many people
Dread returning to school
The economy slowly opens up
Vaccination mandates
Vaccinations stalling out
October
It seemed for a bit
That perhaps COVID
Was easing up
There was some hope
In the air
Perhaps the politicians
Would finally do the right thing
Way overdue
inadequate infrastructure bill passed
Build Back Better stalled
November
The dreaded COVID
Mutates again
Mocking humanity
General Corona still
On the rampage
30 still refuse to get
A vaccination
As one thousand people
A day become Corona Ghosts
December
Travel restrictions re-emerge
COVID continues to surge
Gun violence continues unchecked
Politicians continue to play game
As too many people die
Becoming Corona ghosts
Gun violence ghosts
Drug overdoes ghosts
Accident death ghosts
The year of dread finally ends
With so many ghosts
Crying in the wind
###
Ten Winter Haiflu
Winter is coming
The cold season approaching
Christmas around the corner
The COVID virus
Surging everywhere it seems
Winter of our discontent
The winter rushes
2022 looms
Goodbye 2021
2021
Fading into memory
Good riddance we all proclaim
Dreading the winter
Dreading more COVID
Dreading more Corona Ghosts
Winter depression
COVID fears re-emerging
Still more travel restrictions
The winter starting
Coronavirus and guns
Deaths, ghosts crying in the wind
Wintertime for blues
Blues playing on my YouTube
Seeing Corona Ghosts Dancing
Wintertime sadness
Recalling all who have gone
In this dismal year now past
Winter beginning
Are the end times coming?
Are revelations coming true?
###
Seek the Light
god
also published in Creativity Webzine.
Seek the light
My friend,
Seek the light
The light of the universe
The light of peace and happiness.
The cosmic good of the universe.
The ancient battle
Between Good and evil
Light and darkness
Life and death
Love and hate.
War and peace.
Seek the light of love
Seeking love
It is all around you
It is all in you.
Open your soul
And let the light
Of the universe
Flood into your soul.
Seek the cosmic light
My son, if you think it is right
If you think the light
Is the same,
As the light of the Christian faith.
You would be right.
If you think it is Light
Of the Buddhist faith
You would be right.
If you think it is Allah’s light
You would be right.
If you think.
It is Shiva’s light
You would be right.
If you think
It is God’s light
You would be right.
It’s the same light
Of the universe
Which shines on us all.
Regardless of our faith
Or lack of faith,
We can all receive the light.
The light of the universe
It’s flawless
We all seek the light
And it is right
To seek the light.
The light of the universe
Is waiting for you
It is all for you.
And if you find
The light of the universe
You will find love
Peace and happiness
It is your birthright,
You will find that
After you die
The Light will fill you
And take you
To the next world.
Seek the light
It is waiting for you.
Wake up and
Embrace your fate
Seek the light on this date.
###
The Darkness Spreads
The darkness is spreading
The darkness of the universe
The dark side
Of the legendary force.
For the world
Is divided into force
Of the light
And the force of darkness.
You cannot have light
Without the darkness,
And you cannot have darkness
Without the light.
There is a cosmic battle
Between the light
And the darkness.
Good and evil
Life and death
Love and hate.
War and peace.
Ying and Yang
God and Devil
Make up the whole Tao
Of the Universe.
And the darkness
Seems to be spreading
All over this darkening world
Every day we turn on the news
We see more examples
Of the darkness
Spreading across the world
Like dark cancer.
A pandemic of despair, fear, and hate.
All humans seem consumed
With fear, hatred, violent thoughts,
And the disease of the mind.
We all seem to be
Sliding down a dark hole
Into the darkness
Of our souls.
The ancient battle
Between Good and evil
Light and darkness
Life and death.
Love and hate.
War and peace.
And it seems
That we have lost all hope
We have lost this light
Of the universe
We have lost the light
Of love
It seems that the darkness
And the fear of the darkness
That is all that we have left.
Hatred, fear, and mistrust
All overwhelm us
And we look out at other people
Thinking that it is now a time
To do or die.
Kill off our enemies
The other evil tribe,
Before they can do
the same to us.
And only a few of us
Still see the light
That is still there.
It has not gone away
And perhaps
With the turn of the wheel
Of time
The darkness will gradually end.
And the lightness
Will once again
Flood the world.
And we all wake up
Peace and happiness
Will defeat the darkness
Yet again
.
It is the way
Of the universe
Ever since the dawn
Of this cosmic game.
The darkness
And light
Battling each other.
The darkness takes over
Becomes the nightmare
Of our Collective Soul.
But it is not too late my son,
There is still time
To find the light
And combat the darkness.
So, my friends
It is waiting for you
Seek the light.
Avoid the darkness
Walk away from fear
Walk away from death
Walk away from despair
Walk away from hate
But you have
A much better world
Waiting for you
If you embrace the light
Of the universe.
Seek the light
It will banish the darkness
And set your soul free.
###
Seeing Demons
more monster images for poem jpg
from a recent nightmare.
Sam Adams
Fell into a deeply troubled sleep
One night.
He saw in his nightmares
The growing power of the darkness
Of the universe.
The ancient battle
Between good and evil
Light and darkness.
Life and death
Love and hate.
War and peace.
Yin and Yang
The duality of the Tao.
Playing out
In front of him
As if in a movie
But nightmarishly real.
Sensing the fear and hatred
Spreading everywhere
He saw an army
Of foul creatures
Straight from the nightmares
Of Hell.
Banshees, bears, bigfoot. Cthulu, centaurs, drones, dwarfs, demons, devils, flying drones, flying monkeys, giants, ghosts, gorillas, goblins, orcs, imperial stormtroopers from Star Wars, Klingons, java the hut, leprechauns, lions, max headroom. men in black suits with no faces, Mr. Smith corporate suits, munchkins, monsters, robots, Romulans, Roman gladiators, space aliens, the four horsemen of the apocalypse riding out front, tigers, warlocks, the white witch from Narnia, the wicked witches from Oz, witches, werewolves, wolves, vultures, Yeti and zombies.
He saw millions of people,
Being taken
over by the demons.
Eating them
Rampaging, rioting, raping
Pillaging them
Taking control
Of their bodies
Consuming their souls.
Turning into hideous monsters.
Who continue the carnage
Rampaging mobs
Of deranged crazed demons.
In front of them all
He saw a demon
Staring at him
With a thousand-year stare
Filled with hate.
A tall dark pig-like beast
Standing erect
With reddish horns.
And two heads
The head of President Trump
And the head of President Putin
And blazing red eyes.
The head demon hissed,
Sam Adams
We are coming for you.
“You are mine
Resistance is futile,
Prepare to meet your fate
On this cosmic date.”
He screamed
As the demon ran up to him
Fearing the demon
Would soon consume his soul.
He prayed with all his might
And then he saw
The light of the universe.
The demons ran screaming
Running from the light
Fleeing into the darkness
Back to the hell hole
From when they had come.
He woke up
Next to his wife
Glad he had embraced
Life, love, and light
Of the universe.
Filled with love
And happiness
He got up.
With the demons
Of the dark lord
Fading into his nightmares
Banished by the light
Of his one true love.
Dawns 21 Haiku
2021Dawns
Politics are still uncertain.
thousands still are dying.
2021Dawns
The New president offers.
Hope new beginning.
2021Dawns
The Madness never
ends it seems.
Consuming us all
2021Dawns
The hope springs enterally
We will overcome.
2021Dawns
35,000 lies.
Fading like ghosts
2021Dawns
Politicians still lying.
Thousands still dying.
2021Dawns
Coronavirus spreading
More corona ghosts.
2021Dawns
There is new hope in the air.
Will politics kill it?
2021Dawns
The news stills
scream death and despair.
I turn it all off
2021Dawns
As I wake up at dawn
I see my sleeping wife.
2021Dawns
We wait for the coming fires.
End of the world fears
2021Dawns
Q continues to spread hate.
Millions still follow him.
2021Dawns
Will optimism and love?
Overcome the hate.
2021Dawns
Many questions remaining.
I have no answers.
2021Dawns
With hope, I leap out of my bed
Watching TV kills hope
2021Dawns
Will this be the end of my days?
Will I overcome it?
2021Dawns
2020 hangover
Like a dark nightmare
2021Dawns
Politicians still refusing.
To do anything
2021Dawns
The rich are still getting richer.
The poor remain poor.
2021Dawns
We hope the past will fade away.
Into dark memories
2021Dawns
I wake up hoping for the best.
Dreading worst to come
2021Dawns
I am still alive thank god.
Filled with love for my wife.
###
Dear Republicans, What is Wrong with You?
Dear Republicans,
What is wrong with you?
The former president
Incited a riot.
Stormed the house.
Would have killed you.
If they could have
And you still defend.
The former president
Refusing to hold him to account?
Do you want him?
Running around starting the patriot party
Launching a jihad against you?
When you can remove him
From the game
And send him home.
For good
What the hell is
wrong with you
Just do your job
Put a stake.
Through that vampire’s heart
Kill Trumpism.
Before it kills you
###
The Revolution Next Time
A revolution is brewing.
On the right
And on the left
As madness descends on the land
Incited by right-wing
political leaders.
Inciting riots and rebellion
Demanding action
Against their enemies
While on the left
Revolution is
brewing as well.
Soon will they unite
To march down
Tearing down democracy
As our leaders
Play games.
As the world descends
Into chaos
And the US becomes
Another failed state
Until a proverbial man
On a white horse
Rides in to save us.
From ourselves
The revolution next time
It will not be pretty.
As everything burns
And America dies
###
Zombie Ideas Do Not Die
Zombie Ideas
Do not die.
They linger on
In our collective minds
Infecting our politics
Among my favorites
Are the canard.
That tax cuts will solve all problems.
That deregulation will free up business.
That the free market will solve our problems
That the government is the problem
And we must starve the government.
Of funds
So, it can do no more harm.
To our great country
These and other pernicious
Fact free alternative facts
Are spread far and wide.
Across the right-wing media sphere
Infecting our politicians
Leading them to playing games
Instead of coming together.
To solve our collective problems
And now the Republicans are saying.
Amid the worst epidemic in history
With the US economy slipping into the great depression era
The US cannot afford to spend any more money.
On combatting the pandemic
That the Federal government has done enough
It is up to the states to solve their problem.
Because of deficit spending
Which they did not care about
Before the change in command
Now the federal government is broke.
But we cannot ask the billionaire class.
To pay a dime more in taxes
We need to cut taxes more.
So, we go.
These zombie ideas
Mutating and spreading
Infecting our politics
With madness
Making it impossible to govern
As things fall apart
Let us put a Death.
to zombie ideas
Put a stake through them.
Opening up the truth
Coming together
To do the people’s business
That is what we must all do.
###
There is a Great Sense of Unrest.
There is a great sense.
Of unrest in the land today
Madness in the air
Previous publication (2020)
Literary Yard has just published my Dog Poems. The earlier published my Cosmic Calendar poems. Here they are for your amusement. these are companion pieces for my cat poems.
And look cute
And someone will feed him
And give him water
A dog has no worries
No cares at all
And when a Dog
Wants some loving
All it needs to do
Is find the nearest
Female dog
And enjoy himself
Without guilt
And without worrying
About getting married
Or having an affair
Just simple
Sex in the doggie way
Nothing simpler
Than that
Yes
A dog’s life
Is the life for me?
###
The Dogs of War are Howling
dogs of war howlingdog of war poster
The Dogs of War
Have been set free
Of their cage
And are out
Howling at the moon
The Dogs of War
Have been set free
To wreck what havoc
Might be
Yes, the Dogs of War
The Hell Hounds
Have bound out of their cages
Sniffed about
And smiled
At the destruction, they saw
They knew soon
They would be in their element
As the world descends into chaos
The world saw
The face of pure evil
That fine September morning
A morning like any other morning
Until a fateful moment
When two planes
Came out of the sky
And destroyed
The center of world capitalism
In an act of horrific violence
An act of such evil
That is beyond the comprehension
Of mere mortal man
Surely there must
Be a reason why
That particular day
The world almost ended
The Dogs of war
Are at foot
The chaos is upon us
The evil grows and grows
And dark noises are heard
Here and there
A Jehad had been launched
By the holly lunatics
Misguided warriors
Who thought they were fighting
The great Satan
Not knowing that their hearts and minds
Were corrupted and controlled
By Satan himself
Somewhere in the world
That morning
A door opened
And a man walked through
Flipped a switch
And let loose
The chaos that ensured
The world watched with horror
And fascination
As in real-time
A dynamite action movie unfolded
Only this was not any movie, punk
It was real life
Live and uncensored
With the music of the devil
Playing at full volume
As people died
Burning alive
And the dogs of war
Smiled
They knew soon
They would be in their element
As America
The Sleeping Giant
Again woke up
And realized
That they would have to fight back
Against their enemies
The war machine
Came to life
The plans came out of the books
The military might be unleashed
And the Dogs of war
Smiled and howled at the moon
The machinery of war
Once unleashed
Can’t easily be stopped
There is a certain cruel logic
That demands that the war going on
And people die
And people suffer
And the stock market crashes
And the evil that men do
Goes on and on and on
###
The Cosmic Dog from Goa
My final time with God
Happened a year later
I was staying down in Goa
With my wife
Enjoying being with her
After our reconciliation
We stayed at the Taj Mahal Goa
Living like Kings and Queen
Just for a few days
High up on a hill
Overlooking the beach
Every morning I went down to the beach
And did yoga by the water
While contemplating life
And every morning
I saw the same dog
Not just a dog
But a cosmic dog
Filled with the divine spark of God
And the dog recognized me
And spoke to me and I knew
That God was present once more
In the face of that cosmic dog
Kindred spirit
perhaps to the cosmic cat
that had saved my soul
in Berkeley so long ago
I told the dog everything
And he just looked at me
With those soulful eyes of his
And I knew he knew that I knew
That he was possessed by God
God had sent him to me
To make sure
that I was on the right path
That the reconciliation that God had promoted
Was on a track that I was back with my wife
And that everything was the way it should be
Again, I asked God whether he was Jesus or Allah
Or Brahmin or Ganesh or Buddha
God the cosmic dog just stared at me
I finally asked him directly
Say if you are God the God of Jesus
Bark once
The Dog looked at me and barked
I said
well, if you are Allah bark twice
The dog barked twice
Well are you buddha
then bark three times if yes
The god dog barked three times
Hmm well are you Satan
The dog growled at me
And I knew I had gone too far
Finally, I was at peace
And for the next three days
The God Dog from Goa
was my constant companion
And I knew God for the final time
In my life?
###
Agnostic Dyslectic Wonders if There is a Dog
cute dog
an agnostic dyslectic
stays up all night
wondering if there is a dog
the Buddhists wonder
about the Buddha-nature of the dog
the evangelicals
are sure that there is a dog
and you must follow their dog
or go to hell
for following another’s dog
the Muslims agree
there is only one dog
and the dogs
smile at the foolishness
of the human race
of course, there is a dog
and they are the master race
as they growl at their owners
who bow down
and clean up their mess?
###
I Want a Dog’s Life
O
I want a dog’s life
That’s what I want in my next life
A dog needs to be cute
And his master will feed him
It is a dog’s life for me
###
The Messenger Dog of God
One day
While studying in Rome
As a priest
I notice a small white dog
Staring at me
He glances at me
Indicating that I am to follow him
I get up
And follow this strange dog
He leads me deep
Inside the hidden depths
Of the Vatican
Finally stopping by a door
I open the door
And see St Peter there
He smiles
Dismisses the dog
Who moves on down the hall
Finished with his cosmic duty
As the secret messenger of God
All in a day’s work?
I ask why I am here?
St Peter says
Why are any of us here?
It is time for you to go
But I don’t want to go
Don’t want to leave this mortal plane
St Peter smiles
Says it is time to go
I wake up
Back in my bed
With my wife
And realize it was all a dream
It was not yet time
To go
But I am afraid
I will find the messenger dog
Outside my door
Any day now
The grim reaper waits
And it will soon be my time
Poem: Cosmos’s Cosmic Calendar
cosmic calendar
January
January arrives cold as death warmed over
As I make my annual list of resolutions
Of the great things, I would do
The lies I tell myself to keep me going
While recovering from the hangover of the year before
With regrets for the evitable passing of time itself
And snowbound cold nights of wild passion
As we delay death’s knocking on the door
February
February is a strange month
Cold, short, and eventful
In the U.S. The political season heats up
As politicians rush about
Making their campaign lies
Full of promises of things to come
As we the 99 % huddle down inside
Watching the lies on TV
Outside Winter’s last dying breath
March
March roars in full of sound and furry
Signifying the future marching down upon us all
And March madness hits the sports world
And politicians meet to plot and scheme
As we bravely battle the cosmic elements
Waiting for the promised spring
Hay fever greets me
With the early spring flowers
April
April is indeed the cruelest month of all
So many important events occurred
Kim Il Sung’s Birthday, Hitler’s Birthday
And in the U.S. the dreaded tax man cometh
To take it all away as the flowers overwhelm
And Spring Fever takes hold
Driving us all mad
With strange erotic desires
May
May is in many ways
My second favorite month of all
The flowers are blooming bright
The mountains are aflame with desire
The summer heat is coming
The plans for the year are coming along
The political campaigns heat up
And good movies come out
Star Wars arrived
Spiderman and superman and batman
All came out to play
In late May
And baseball begins in earnest
And most importantly
My wife was born
June
June is always a month of transition
End of the school year
Summer transfer season
People leaving people coming
Hurricanes and Tornados attacking
And wars starting and people dying
As fireflies buzz about
And rabbits eat my garden
As the summer heat descends upon the land
I walk late at night
Recalling that Watergate
Occurred in June
July
July is the queen of the summer season
As she heats the land
Throwing storm after summer storm
And politicians run away
After the July fourth fireworks
Man landed on the moon
Richard Nixon Left the White House
And we all know that half the year
Has flown by
August
So much has happened
During the hottest most hellish of months
Despite the summer sauna that descends upon the land
Enervating all driving people mad with the heat
World War 1 started
World War 11 ended
Hiroshima ushered in the nuclear age
Hurricanes Katrina and Harvey
And tornado ally
All roar down upon the land
And I met the love of my life
Getting off a bus
One August evening
September
What can one say about September
Like June a month of transitions?
And one is filled with ambition
Wanting to finish up what one started
Before the fall arrives
And Winter is hinting it is coming
School starts
New jobs start
New people come into one’s life
And like August’s hangover
Big earth-shattering events happen
The fall of the stock market
The housing bubble bursting
The endless budget games
As the politicians argue
Whether to bankrupt the country
To make a political point or two
And 9-11 terrorizing the world
All September’s gifts to the land
October
October is my favorite month of all
The leaves turn
The weather is usually delightful
Just a tease of the coming winter
Fall ball season underway
Baseball games and Halloween madness
ends the month with a huge bang
And I celebrate my legal birth on the 29th
Also, the day I legally got married
And on October 30, 1955
I was born
And Rock n Roll was born as well
Coincidence I think not
November
November is one of the strange months
Begins like a hangover of October
Then it turns ugly and weird
Political fever hits the land
Every two years
As the people brave the early November chill
To decide what fools they will send to DC
The politicians lie and scheme and plot
And beg and lie again
And the world turns
And the new leaders emerge
Welcome the new Bosses
Same as the old bosses
Just new packaging
And Donald Trump storms the barricades
Threatening the establishment’s stranglehold
On America and the world
Yes, November is a strange month
December
Perhaps the loneliness month of all
The most consequential of all the months
And yet also the most depressing end of time
Kind of month
If the apocalypse zombie or otherwise
Were to occur
It would be in December
That is the sort of insane month it is
The end of the year
As darkness settles down on the land
And holiday parties abound
Full of false cheer
And faked love
And for those who don’t celebrate Christmas
A lonely day perhaps at the movies
A few awkward calls to the relatives
Then New Years
Watching the world end
Drinking up a storm
And knowing that the year ended
And you are one step closer to the grave
Falling rain
falling rain
The falling rain
Of late October
Fills me with essential dread
As I rush about
And end up here
Wherever here is
The rain outside
Seems like the tears of god
As I sit
Crying over my beer
Thinking of lost love
And failed dreams
Wondering
What went wrong?
And what I can set right
And the rain falls
And the night darkens
The rain is falling
All over this man’s world
And the rain falls
And I sit
Drinking my lonesome drink
Lost in dreams
Dreaming of what
Could never be
Thinking dark thoughts
And so I sit
And dream the night away
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I will year try to finish reading classic books. I have a collection from Kindle of 50 books to read before you die, in three volumes – 15O books in total see list below. I have read many of them already which I have noted. As I read them, I will add them to the chronological listing below.
Glass by Robert Francis Writing com
Blue Winter by Robert Francis Writing com
encounter writing com
Where I Belong – Contest winner Feb 24, 2021, writing com
Edna St. Vincent Millay -Pastoral writing com
Lorraine Marguerite Gasrel Black -Pastoral Rhapsody writing com
Daniel Miltz -Pastoral Day writing com
Henry Kirke White -A Pastoral Songwriting com
Carl Sandberg Passers-By
Poetry Corner, writing com Poetry corner
Randall Jarrell The Olive Garden Writing com poetry
Randall Jarrell The Breath of Night Writing com poetry
Randal Jarrell The Orient Express Writing com poetry
Abdul Ala armada Rafi I poem Friend, this world is like an unburied corpse
Ali Ahmad Saeed poem
Alton David translation of a man and a woman white
Andre Breton Man and Woman Absolutely White
Mary Bernard, translation of Sofia he is more than a hero
Ingeborg Bachman poem
Anne Bradstreet letter to her husband 1650 first Published woman poet in The US
Willis Barnstone translation of Mother’s song if snow
Charles Bernstein writing exercises
William Blake Sick Rose
Elizabeth Browning Sonnets from The Portuguese #43 how Do I love Thee
Elizabeth Bishop one art Britain
Andre Carter Stephen D translation lady is shichimi if someone would come
William Barnstone she is at island me turn off
Maxine Chernoff writing exercises
Chilam Balam poem
Chiyo various lines
William Corbett Vermont Apollinaire
Robert Creely The business
EE Cummings In Jest
Bel Dao Listen, I Don’t Believe Chinese poet mid-20th century
David Wagner lines and since a call since Elam since summer
Thomas Campion When to her lute Corinna sings
Jon Donne Holly Sonnet 14
Lucile Clifton, I don’t know how to do
Emily Dickinson lines and poems 214
Emily Dickinson poem 262
Emily Dickinson poem 640
Emily Dickinson poem 986
Emily Dickinson poem 1732
Enhenduanna The Exaltation of Inanna, antiphonal Hymns Praise of Inanna
Egyptian Poem, untitled
Fanny Howe About Face
Imr El Quais The Great Ode
Elaine Feinstein excerpt from translation Marina TSvetayeva poems of The end Lawrence Ferlinghetti excerpt from constantly risking absurdity Coney Island of The mind
Donald Finkel excerpt from a translation of Bel Dao
Roberts Elizabeth silent poems
Frances Kathleen vanishing point third black quartet from Wayne
Robert Frost Nothing Gold can stay
Robert Clark translation departure by Pierre Reverdy
Jorie Graham In what matter is The body united with The soul
Barbara Guest Lines from red lilies
HD Dread
HD Sea Rose
HD Oread
Allen Hibbert translation of Adonis desire moving through The Maps of The material
Ronald Hoffman excerpt from deceptively like a solid
Kelly Holt writing exercises
Bible, Ecclesiastes for everything There is a season
Homer Odyssey
Homer Iliad
Edward Arlington Robinson Richard Corey
Fanny Howe About Face
George Herbert Death
Linda jarkesy The bed
John K
Randall Jarred The death of The Bell turret gunner
John Keats The Eve of St Agnes
Lao Tzu Rule a Large Nation
DH Lawrence Bavarian Gentians
LiPo Moonlight Pools
Liu Tsung-yuan From One thousand mountains
Audre Lorde lines from coal
Hugh MacDiarmid Another epitaph on The army of mercenaries
Jackson Mac Lou excerpt from antic quartans
Omar Khayyam Rubaiyat excerpt
Alexander Pope Essay on Criticism
Bernadette Mayer writing exercises
WS Merwin excerpts from leviathan
Pablo Neruda leaning into afterworlds
Pablo Neruda and walking around
John Milton excerpts from Allegro
John Milton excerpts from paradise lost
Mariana Moore experts from the monkeys
Laura Moriarty The mouth
Bridge Mullins writing exercises
Ellen Myles honey bear
Lorraine Niedecker now in one year
Charles North excerpt from shooting for line
George Oppen excerpt from psalm
Dorothy Parker resume
Bob Pearlman speaker vibrates through the entire house after from AK
Ezra Pound in a station in The Metro
David Ray translation lines from Chiyo
Kenneth Rexroth translation of Midnight songs
Pierre Reverdy Departure
Christopher Sawyer Le is More Than an Hericenone translation Flight of The Itza
Dominion Searls translation of a kind of loss
Shelly Love Philosophy 19th Century
Sappho He is more than a Hero
Jack Spicer lines for imaginary elegies part 1-111
John Tipane translation Abu Hamza al online from this world
Dante in the middle of the road
Anonymous Egyptian poem only one matchless sister
manioc If snow falls on the left field
Issa Morning
Beowulf soon saw
Homer Then wide ruling Agamemnon
Homer infinite terror
Homer wars spears
In El Qis here was the place I watched her
Arthur Rimbaud Bateau Ivre if I desire
Arthur Rimbaud memory
Arthur Rimbaud longing for young arms
Rig Veda There were no such things
Sappho The moon has set
Charles Thomasson lines from Mr. Birdy
David Trinidad monster mash
TS Elliot Excerpt from The Wasteland
Mariana Tsvetanyana Poem of The End
Alfred Tennyson Now Sleep the Crimson Petal
Anne Waldman excerpt for Iovis 19
William Carlos Williams except for The descent
Walt Whitman excerpts from Leaves of Grass
William Butler Yeats the second coming
William Wordsworth The Solitary Reaper
Louis Zukofsky in Arizona from 729 songs
Richard Lovelace 17th Century British Poet, “To Lucasta, Going to War”
Geoffrey Chaucer 1400 Call complaint to His Purs (Purse)
Parody Poems from NaPoWrMo April 27 Prompt
Lewis Carroll Crocodile
Isaac Watts How Doth the Little
Lewis Carroll This the Voice of The Lobster
Isaac Watts The Sluggard
Lewis Carroll Twinkle, Twinkle Little Bat
Other poems from Writing com and Elsewhere
Abandoned Farmhouse
by Ted Kooser Wooden Boats
Judy Serum Brown
Denise Levertov Celebration
Edgar Allan Poe A Dream Within a Dream
Poetic blooming
Heal The World with Marigolds poetic blossoming entry
Midnight encounters a poetic blossoming entry
David S The All-Mighty Thresher
Sally Ann Roberts example #1:it All Started with A Packet of Seeds
William Seaman Higgledy-piggledy
Arthur W. Monks Higgledy-piggledy
Paul Pascal
Higgledy-piggledy
stink in God’s nose.” by Anthony Hecht
Higgledy-piggledy
scraped off The tracks. by John Hollander
“Higgledy-piggledy
Andrea Doria
GLUB”. . . (end of quote). by John Hollander
The dactyl meter is a three-syllable foot with a stress pattern of DUM-da-da, as explained and demonstrated in The following link: https://literarydevices.net/dactyl/
Example #1: The Charge of The Light Brigade (By Alfred Lord Tennyson)
Example #2: Evangeline (By Henry Wadsworth Longfellow)
Example #3: The Lost Leader (By Robert Browning)
Example #4: (Out of The Cradle Endlessly Rocking (By Walt Whitman)
Example #5: Higgledy Piggledy (By Ian Lancashire)
Sidney Lanier The Song Of The Chattahoochee
Sidney Lanier (Written for The Art Autograph during The Irish Famine, 1880.)
Sidney Lanier A Sunrise Song “Where Grandpa Died”
Robert Hayden ~” A Plague of Starlings”
Robert Frost ~” The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost{/pre}
Jack Kerouac Daydreams for Ginsberg
Mini-Monoverse and Double Mini-Monoverse
How Many Times? Emily
Louisa May Alcott
The Short Story A Christmas Dream, And How It Came True
Louisa May Alcott
The Rock and The Bubble
Louisa May Alcott
The Short Story Shadow-Children
Marcus Manilius Sagittarius
Rudyard Kipling’s Centaurs
Mary Swenson The Centaur
ODES
Genethliacum Ode, is a poem written in honor of the birth of a child. Usually, these lofty odes were reserved for the birth of nobility. However, technically any poem written in honor of the birth of a child would qualify as a Genethliacum.
Love set you going like a fat gold watch.
The midwife slapped your footsoles, and your bald cry
Took its place among the elements.
Our voices echo, magnifying your arrival. New statue.
In a drafty museum, your nakedness
Shadows our safety. We stand round blankly as walls.
I’m no more your mother
Than the cloud that distills a mirror to reflect its own slow
Effacement at the wind’s hand.
All night your moth-breath
Flickers among the flat pink roses. I wake to listen:
A far sea moves in my ear.
One cry, and I stumble from bed, cow-heavy and floral
In my Victorian nightgown.
Your mouth opens clean as a cat’s. The window square
Whitens and swallows its dull stars. And now you try
Your handful of notes;
The clear vowels rise like balloons.
Encomium or Coronation Ode is a Greek choral lyric celebrating a person’s achievements. This can be expanded to the length and formality of an ode as in honor of the coronation of a king, but most often is a simple poem as would be spoken at a banquet in an introduction in the category of occasional poetry. It specifically celebrates a man rather than a god. This genre of verse usually has 5 elements, prologue, birth and development, accomplishments, comparisons with which to praise, and an epilogue.Just a Man
Palinode Ode is an apologetic ode, that retracts or recants something said in a previous poem by the same poet. It is usually written as a retraction of an invective statement or offensive remark made in satire.
Geoffrey Chaucer wrote a palinode at the end of the Canterbury Tales, recanting and apologizing for any bawdy or offensive statements previously made. It is really unclear if this palinode was part of the original Tales or if it was tacked on later as either an advertisement of his works or as a death bed confessional.
Wherfore I biseke yow mekely,
for the mercy Of God, that ye preye
for me that crist have Mercy on me
and foryeve me my giltes; and Namely
of my translacions and enditynges
of Worldly vanitees, the whiche I revoke
in My retracciouns:as is the book of Troilus;
the book also of Fame; the book of
The xxv. Ladies; the ;
The book of seint valentynes day
of the parlement of briddes; the tales of counterbury,
Thilke that sownen into synne; the book
of the Leoun; and many another book. This was found at Wikipedia.
Panegyric or Paean is an ode that celebrates something from its inception or the life of a person, not just the accomplishments. It is usually written about someone still alive and celebrates the who rather than the what of the person. “Paean” should not be confused with the metric foot “paeon”.
Triumphal Ode, is an ode to celebrate a victory. Also called an Epinicia when specifically celebrating a sports victory. The Epinician Ode said to be created by Simonides of Ceos, Greek lyrical poet, 556BC to 468BC though the most prolific user of the theme was Pindar of Pindaric Ode fame. Originally written to honor a victor the Hellenic games and sung in a procession for the winner and connecting him with a great hero of the past. The frame at the discretion of the poet. Victory by S.J. Duncan-Clark
The Chicago Evening Post, November 11, 1918 Great Poems about the World War
OUT of the night it leaped the seas–
—The four long years of night!
“The foe is beaten to his knees,
—And triumph crowns the fight!”
It sweeps the world from shore to shore,
—By wave and wind ’tis flung,
It grows into a mighty roar
—Of siren, bell and tongue.
Where little peoples knelt in fear,
—They stand in joy today;
The hour of their redemption here,
—Their feet on Freedom’s way.
The kings and kaisers flee their doom,
—Fall bloody crown and throne!
Room for the people! Room! Make room!
—They march to claim their own!
Now God be praised we lived to see
—His Sun of Justice rise,
His Sun of Righteous Liberty,
—To gladden all our skies!
And God be praised for those who died,
—Whate’er their clime or breed,
Who, fighting bravely side by side,
—A world from thraldom freed!
And God be praised for those who, spite
—Of woundings sore and deep,
Survive to see the Cause of Right
—O’er all its barriers sweep!
God and the people–This our cry!
—O, God, thy peace we sing!
The peace that comes through victory,
—And dwells where Thou art King.
Mary Elizabeth Coleridge Death and the Lady
Canon Dixon’s Last Poems in 1905.
Mary Elizabeth Coleridge The Other Side of a Mirror
Mary Elizabeth Coleridge After St. Augustine
Creativity Webzine has published my poem, “Seek the Light.”‘
Seek the light
My friend,
Seek the lightThe light of the universe
The light of peace and happiness.
The cosmic good of the universe.The ancient battle
Between Good and evil
Light and darkness
Life and death
Love and hate.
War and peace.
Seek the light of love
Seeking love
It is all around you
It is all in you.
Open your soul
And let the light
Of the universe
Flood into your soul.
Seek the cosmic light
My son, if you think it is right
If you think the light
Is the same,
As the light of the Christian faith.
You would be right.
If you think it is Light
Of the Buddhist faith
You would be right.
If you think it is Allah’s light
You would be right.
If you think.
It is Shiva’s light
You would be right.
If you think
It is God’s light
You would be right.
It’s the same light
Of the universe
Which shines on us all.
Regardless of our faith
Or lack of faith,
We can all receive the light.
The light of the universe
It’s flawless
We all seek the light
And it is right
To seek the light.
The light of the universe
Is waiting for you
It is all for you.
And if you find
The light of the universe
You will find love
Peace and happiness
It is your birthright,
You will find that
After you die
The Light will fill you
And take you
To the next world.
Seek the light
It is waiting for you.
Wake up and
Embrace your fate
Seek the light on this date.
Starting in 2016 when I retired, I began posting my work on various sites and began getting my poetry, fiction, and essays published all over, including of course on my flagstaff blog post, The World According To Cosmos. Here is where you can find my work. I generally try to update my postings once a week. The blog entry is copied to LinkedIn, Twitter, and Tumblr automatically, the rest I have to manually add so it may take a while before everything is in synch. Also, since last summer, I have been podcasting weekly, using the Anchor podcast platform. I am now also writing on Medium and Wattpad. Starting next year, I hope to add regular vblogging on YouTube, advice on what software to use for that would be greatly appreciated. Please follow me on all these sites
Imaging The End Of The World Ariel Chart: International Literary Journal
No More Coffee Blues Ariel Chart: International Literary Journal
What Am I DNA Results Ariel Chart: International Literary Journal
End Times Ariel Chart: International Literary Journal
Imagining End Of The World Ariel Chart
Just Another Night In The City Of Angels Ariel Chart
The Revolution Is Coming Beatnik Cowboy,
I’d Rather Not Mess With Sam Between Hangovers
A Million Ways To Say I Love You Blessed With Love Poems
I Still Want You Blessed With Love Poems
Ode To Valentine Day Blessed With Love Poems
Love Explained To A Space Alien Blessed With Love Poems
Slime Patrol To The Rescue Blue Nib Literary Magazine,
The Fog Blue Nib Literary Magazine,
Dream Girl Cherry-House Press Dreams Anthology
Dream Girl Chicken Soup For The Soul Series
Chains That Bind Me City Limits Publication
Dream Girl City Limits Publication
Various Creative Talents Unleashed
How I Married the Girl Of My Dreams Creativity Webzine
Meeting God in The Lake Creativity Webzine
Cosmic Cat from Berkeley Creativity Webzine
Meeting God in Bombay Creativity Webzine
Cosmic Dog from Goa Creativity Webzine
Buddha Cat Creativity Webzine
The Story of How We Met Creativity Webzine
Fate Intertwined Creativity Webzine
Wild Things Happen Creativity Webzine
God Drinks Coffee Creativity Webzine
Requiem for an Era Creativity Webzine
Howling at the Moon Creativity Webzine
Creativity Webzine
The Truth Shall Set You Free Creativity Webzine
My Name Is Nobody Down In The Dirt
Strangeness In The Air Down In The Dirt
Snarling Cup Of Coffee Down In The Dirt
Charles Bukowski Road Not Taken Down In The Dirt
Fallen Dreams Litter The Ground Down In The Dirt
Hitchhiking Tales Down In The Dirt
Howling at the Moon Down In The Dirt
3-5-7 Love Poem Down In The Dirt
If You Have Been Around Down In The Dirt
Foreigner Walking The Seoul Wall Down In The Dirt
Old Man Visiting His Wife’s Grave Down In The Dirt
Awaiting The Judgement Every Writer Horror Contest
Mad Bag Piper Of Berkeley Every Writer Horror Contest
Coffee Poem
Bad Craziness *
Kimchi Blues Eskimo Pie
Kimchi Blues Friends of Korea website
A New Year’S Visit To The Oregon Coast Excavation
Casino Thoughts Excavation
Winter Haiflu Failed Haiku
Indian Casino Thoughts Fiends Of Korea
Lone Foreigner Walking The Wall Of Seoul Former People, a Journal of Bangs and Whimpers
A New Year’s Visit To The Oregon Coast Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Indian Casino Thoughts Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Casino Thoughts Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Four Coffee Poems Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Four Coffee Poems Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Four Coffee Poems Former People: A Journal Of Bangs And Whimpers
Four Coffee Poems
Fiction Dream
Fiction Dream
Corona Virus Haiku Fiction Dream
Fiction Dream
Just Enough For Coffee
One Moment, One Day Fourxfour Poetry Journal
Met My Fate In Bar Room Face From Addict To Advocate
Various Haiku Journal
Hill Rag Hello Bonzai
One Night In Bombay Hello Poetry
Cosmic Cat Ode To Coffee
Cosmic Dogs
Meeting God In A Lake Horror Sleaze Trash
Meeting God In Bombay
Signs Of The Apocalypse Hypertexts, The
Hypertexts, The
Getting Lucky Hypertexts, The
Waiting For The Day Hypertexts, The
Rising Storm Hypertexts, The
All Tired And Burned Out 2020 Go Away
Toilet Gate Fitting Metaphor For Trump Era Ink Pantry (Website)
A Dream Journey Ink Pantry (Website)
Insanity Lives Ink Pantry (Website)
Interview Ink Pantry (Website)
Morning Bright, Evening Delight Ink Pantry (Website)
Reality Hits Ink Pantry (Website)
Cheating Death 22 Times Ink Pantry (Website)
Cheating Death 22 Times Ink Pantry Acadamy of Hearts and Minds ‘
Cthulhu’s Revenge Ink Pantry (Website)
Escape From Hell Ink Pantry (Website)
Ghoul Haunted Woodlands Of Weir Ink Pantry (Website)
The Bench Ink Pantry (Website)
2019 The Year That Was Ink Pantry (Website)
Dreams Ink Pantry (Website)
Fate Ink Pantry (Website)
The Oyster Speaks Up Ink Pantry (Website)
The Terrifying Teens Ink Pantry (Website)
Ink Pantry (Website)
Just An Unhinged Lunatic Ink Pantry (Website)
Ink Pantry (Website)
Total Successor Or Total Failure Ink Pantry (Website)
2021 Haiku
General Corona Appears In A Vision Inner Circle Writers’ Group Anthology Series
Cancel Culture Run Amuck
Journal Of Expressive Writing
Journal Of Expressive Writing
Ghosts Of Old Saigon Journal Of Expressive Writing
Ghosts Of The Chu Chi Tunnels Journal Of Expressive Writing
Seeing Ghosts
The Cosmic Cat From Berkeley
The Cosmic Dog From Goa Kelp Journal
Cosmic Cat Kelp Journal
Kelp Journal
Agnostic Dyslectic Wonders If There Is A Dog Kelp Journal
Cosmos’s Cosmic Calendar Kelp Journal
It’s A Dog’s Life For Me Kelp Journal
The Cosmic Dog From Goa
2021 Dawns 21 Haiku Literary Yard
Dear Republicans, What Is Wrong With You? Literary Yard
The Revolution Next Time Literary Yard
Zombie Ideas Do Not Die Literary Yard
There Is A Great Sense Of Unrest Literary Yard
Lone Foreigner Hiking The Seoul City Walls Literary Yard
Literary Yard
Literary Yard
Dream Love Questions Sekoku Local Gem
15 Day Challenge Local gem
Halloween poetry collection Local Gem
Dear Microsoft Why I Left You Lotus Eater
Local Gems Poetry Press
A Million Ways To Say I Love You Blessed with Love
Ode To Love On Valentine’s Day Blessed with Love
One Night in Bangkok Man in the Street
Market Rules Us All Minnie’s Diary: A Southern Literary Review
White Lady
The Opiate
God’s Confession Scarlet Leaf
Opiate
Bad Craziness
Otherwise Engaged
Cats
In Seach Of America Outlaw Poetry
It Is A Gun Situation, Mr. President Outlaw Poetry
Prayer Works Outlaw Poetry
I Don’t Get It Outlaw Poetry
Dear Governor Abbot Outlaw Poetry
When Will This Madness End – Short Version Outlaw Poetry
Lost And Found Outlaw Poetry
My Mother’s History Outlaw Poetry
Conversation With Teddy Roosevelt Outlaw Poetry
Watching Cats Hunt Outlaw Poetry
End of America Outlaw Poetry
Watching The News As 110,000 Americans Die Plethora Blogazine
Wearing A Mask Is Not A Political Statement Plethora Blogazine
Wearing Masks Saves Life Plethora Blogazine
Who Are You Going To Believe, Me Or Your Lying Eye Plethora Blogazine
Back Of The Bus The Poet on the Road
Bus Ride The Poet on the Road Poet The Poet on the Road
Cross Country Trip Part One The Poet on the Road
Hitchhiking Tales The Poet on the Road
Buddha Cat Poet, The
Meeting God In A Lake Poet, The
Best Friend For 60 Years Poet, The
My Memory Bank Poet, The
Best Friend In The Universe Poet, The
Cats Poetryezine
Buddha Cat Poetryezine
Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay Poetryezine
Walking By A Winter’s Frozen Lake Poetryezine
Playing The Piano At The End Of Time Poetryezine
Mad Mask Fear Poetryezine
News Is Grim Poetryezine
Poetry And Covid
Various Poetry And Covid
Snarling Cup Of Coffee Chapbook Poetry Nook Weekly Contest
Merry Christmas From ATT Poetry 24
Mr. President, It Is A Gun Situation Poetry 24
Poetry 24
The Best Is Yet To Come Found Poem Poetry 24
One Night in Bombay Horror, Slease, Trash
Old Man in Mirror Must Die
Evergreen Trees Pure Haiku
Falling Rain Qutub Minar Review
Qutub Minar Review
Gathering Storm Clouds Random Poetree
Nebulous Night Of Darkness Random Poetree
Dejavu All Over Again Random Poetree
Failure Is Not An Option Random Poetree
General Failure Reading Disk Drive Raven Cage Zine
On Failure Raven Cage Zine
Raven Cage Zine
270,000 Corona Ghosts Crash The President’s Party Raven Cage Zine
Corona Ghosts Crash The Party Raven Cage Zine
Partying While People Die Raven Cage Zine
Fake Calls Rejected Manuscripts
Hell Is Here To Stay Rejected Manuscripts
Rejected Manuscripts
Fake Mosquitos
Lost River Sandha Review
Old Cars Are King Of The Road Again River Sandha Review
Reflections Rosette Maleficarum
Dragon Flies In My Mind Rosette Maleficarum
One Crazy Day Rosette Maleficarum
2019 The Year That Was Rosette Maleficarum
Dreams Scarlet Leaf Review
Fate Scarlet Leaf Review
The Oyster Speaks Up Scarlet Leaf Review
The Terrifying Teens Scarlet Leaf Review
Scarlet Leaf Review
Green Trees Don’t Make It Scarlet Leaf Review
Slowly Unperceived Reality Scarlet Leaf Review
Slowly Unperceived Reality Scarlet Leaf Review
Brain Fever Scryptic defunct
Evil Within Scryptic defunct
Mocking Laughter Scryptic defunct
Black Vultures Scryptic defunct
Green Trees Don’t Make It Sick Lit Magazine
Siren Song Of Doom Sick Lit Magazine
Various Sixfold
Corona Poems Soft Cartel
Dora The Galactic Explorer Soft Cartel
Every Day I Turn On The News
Chaos Spillwords Press
Mocking Faces Spillwords Press
Just Enough For Coffee Spillwords Press
Waiting For The Grim Reaper’S Decision Spillwords Press
The Virus King Cried Subterranean Blue Poetry
Cosmic Cat From Berkeley Swenk
Cats Swenk
The Buddha Cat Of Edsall Road Swenk
Demon Cat Swenk
Cat Fight In Incheon Swenk
Love Haiku The Universe Journal
Night Terrors The Universe Journal
Jack Daniels Failed Intervention Unlikely Story
The Trial Of The Poet Tiger Shark
Life In-Between Tiger Shark
Love Haiku Tigershark
I Like My Coffee Tigershark
Love Haku 1 Tigershark
Lost And Found Tigershark
The Virus King Cried Tigershark
1984 Is Here To Stay Tuck
The Dogs Of War Are Howling Tuck
Just Enough For Coffee Tuck
Donald Trump And The Vulgarians Rise To Power Tuck
Lost And found Two Drops Of Ink
Strong Wine Two Drops Of Ink
Voices Of My Doom Two Drops Of Ink
Dora The Galactic Explorer Two Drops Of Ink
Last Year Of American Greatness Two Drops Of Ink
Mocking Faces Two Drops Of Ink
Morning Light Two Drops Of Ink
Wild Man Sits In Gilded Cage Two Drops Of Ink
Climate Change Two Drops Of Ink
The Lion King Speaks Up Two Drops Of Ink
Wild Things Run Amuk Two Drops Of Ink
Wild Things Run Amuk Two Drops Of Ink
Yesterday Morning Two Drops Of Ink
Howling At The Moon Two Drops Of Ink
No More Coffee Blues Two Drops Of Ink
Ode To Coffee Two Drops Of Ink
Slease 2 Two Drops Of Ink
Snarling Cup Of Coffee Ugly Writers, The
When Will This Darkness End Ugly Writers, The
Ugly Writers, The
Buddha Cat Universe Journal, The
Cats Universe Journal, The
Cats Fighting In Incheon Universe Journal, The
Cosmic Cats Universe Journal, The Universe Journal, The
Demon Cat Universe Journal, The
Best Friend In The Universe Whispers Defunct
Life’s Journey Whispers Defunct
Life In Between Whispers Defunct
News Is Grim Writer’s Egg Magazine
Wearing A Mask Is Not A Political Statement Writer’s Egg Magazine
Corona Ghosts Crash The Party Writer’s Egg Magazine
Politicians Lying As People Lay Dying Writer’s Egg Magazine
Thanksgiving Thoughts Writer’s Egg Magazine
Writer’s Egg Magazine
American Dream Writer’s Egg Magazine
Miscellaneous Publication Sites Writer’s Egg Magazine
Writer’s Egg Magazine
3 Am Nightmares
Your One Phone Call
Coffee Desires Miscellaneous Publication Sites
God Does Not Talk To Idiots Triferta Poem A Thon
Hurricanes From Hell Triferta Poem A Thon
It Can’t Happen Here Triferta Poem A Thon
Kim Vs. Trump Twitter War -In Memorial Of Kim Il Sung’s The Great Leader’s Birthday Triferta Poem A Thon
Masters Of The Universe Triferta Poem A Thon
Microsoft How I Hate You Triferta Poem A Thon
More Coffee Blues Triferta Poem A Thon
No More Coffee Blues Triferta Poem A Thon
Triferta Poem A Thon
Rambling Man Triferta Poem A Thon
Rambling Man -Where Do I Belong? Triferta Poem A Thon
Rapid City Nowhere Triferta Poem A Thon
Suburban Laundromat Blues Triferta Poem A Thon
The Storm Is Coming Triferta Poem A Thon
Facing Life’s Challenges Together Triferta Poem A Thon
Fires Buring Bright Triferta Poem A Thon
God Drinks Coffee Triferta Poem A Thon
Imagining End Of The World Triferta Poem A Thon
Incheon 2016 Triferta Poem A Thon Triferta Poem A Thon
Looking Out My Window Triferta Poem A Thon
Lost And Found Triferta Poem A Thon
My Soul Wants To Fly Triferta Poem A Thon
Rapid City Nowhere Triferta Poem A Thon
The Revolution Is Coming Triferta Poem A Thon
Wagontire, Oregon Triferta Poem A Thon
Walking Through The Woods Of Time Triferta Poem A Thon
Zombie Apocalypse Triferta Poem A Thon
Heading To Memphis Triferta Poem A Thon
One Mystic Shrouded Night Triferta Poem A Thon
Idiots In High Places Triferta Poem A Thon
Cosmos’s Cosmic Calendar Triferta Poem A Thon
. Landlord Blues Triferta Poem A Thon
. Berkeley California Triferta Poem A Thon
. Chains That Bind Us Triferta Poem A Thon
. Changes Triferta Poem A Thon
. Coffee Revolution Triferta Poem A Thon
. COSTCO Triferta Poem A Thon
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. Ghosts From World War 11 Triferta Poem A Thon
. Life Is Wonderful Triferta Poem A Thon
. Lithia Springs Triferta Poem A Thon
. Love Jones Triferta Poem A Thon
. My Daily Hot Coffee Fix Triferta Poem A Thon
. No More Coffee Blues Triferta Poem A Thon
. Pane E Circus 2017 Redux Triferta Poem A Thon
. Sandwich Choices Triferta Poem A Thon
. Secret Agency Man Triferta Poem A Thon
. The Decline Of America Triferta Poem A Thon
. The Dogs Of War Are Howling Triferta Poem A Thon
. Voices Of My Doom Triferta Poem A Thon
. Walls Triferta Poem A Thon
. Watching Cats Hunt Triferta Poem A Thon
. Where Do You And I Begin? Triferta Poem A Thon
. Why I Am Not A Christian Easter Thoughts Triferta Poem A Thon
. August Moods Triferta Poem A Thon
. Capitol Hill In The Spring Triferta Poem A Thon
. Spring Love Thoughts Triferta Poem A Thon
. Spring Time In Oregon Triferta Poem A Thon
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“Dental Blues” Triferta Poem A Thon
“Meeting God In The Lake” Triferta Poem A Thon
“The Cosmic Cat In Berkeley” Triferta Poem A Thon
“The God Dog In Goa” Triferta Poem A Thon
Lost And Found Triferta Poem A Thon
1984 Lives On Triferta Poem A Thon
Decline Of America Scarlet Leaf Review
Dogs Of War Howling Scarlet Leaf Review
My Mother’s History Scarlet Leaf Review
Donald Trump And The Vulgarians Rise To Power Tuck
Imagining The End Of The World Tuck
No More Coffee Blues * Hill Rag
A Million Ways To Say I Love You Blessed Love Poems
American Dream Your One Phone Call
Best Friend In The Universe Whisphers
Black Vultures Scryptic
Additional Publication Vendue Need to be Confirmed
Conversation With Teddy Roosevelt
Strong Wine
Watching Cats Hunt
Dragon Flies In My Mind
The Shape Of History
Voices Of My Doom
Cats
Rapid City Nowhere
Reflections
. Yesterday Morning
Suburban Laundromat Blues
Blue Blues
Brain Fever
Capital Hill In The Spring
Cats Hunting
Chains That Bind
Charles Bukowski Road Not Chosen
Coffee My Secret Lover
Coffee Revolution
Coffee The Drink Of Revolutionaries
Confucian Thought For The Modern Era
Decline Of America
Dogs Of War Howling
Donald Trump Our Compassionate Dear Leader
Dream Girl
Enemy Of The People
Fallen Dreams Litter The Ground
God Drinks Coffee
How I Married Girl Of My Dreams
Howling At The Moon
I Like My Coffee
Jesus Must Die Again
Lost And Found
Donald Trump And The Vulgarians Rise To Power
Strong Wine
The Shape Of History
Yesterday Morning
Corona Ghosts Stalk The President
Corona Virus Stalks Me
General Corona Leads His Troops
A New Year’S Visit To The Oregon Coast
Love Conquers Hate
Bus Fantasy
snarling cup of coffee chapbook Poetry Superhighway
April 2021 chapbook Poetry Superhighway
Writers digest April 2021 contest
April 2020 contest
Various All poetry
Duane’s poetry
Fan story
Poetry Circle
Hello Poetry
Poetry Nook
Poetry Mangum Opus
Sweek
Writing com
Father’s Family mostly German and Scandanavian including part Laplander
My family history is complex and many-layered. I did a DNA test a few years ago and have updated it since then. The DNA test had a few surprises. According to family lore, pieced together from what my father, Mother, Uncle, and Aunt told me over the years is that the Aller Family (paternal side) is descended from Hessian mercenaries who came to the US around 1775 to fight for George Washington. After the war, they settled in Pennsylvania, later moved to Ohio, and my grandfather made the trek to Washington State, where he was one of the founding fathers of the Yakima fruit industry, which took hold in the 1920s with the development of irrigation. He was also an avid horticulturist and invented the Edison Apple and green asparagus.
My father got his BA degree from the University of Washington and was a Rhodes scholar, studying in Oxford, getting an MPA degree, Later he obtained a Ph.D. from Harvard University. He taught at CAL State SF for 40 years before he died in 1985 of cancer. He had one brother and three sisters, all of whom have passed on.
He served as the Undersecretary for Labor for President Kennedy and President Johnson and was a local politician serving as President of the Peralta community colleges, and as President of the Berkeley Co-Op where he resided.
According to the DNA reports and family lore, the Aller family is descended from French Huguenots who settled in the Aller river valley near Hamburg. The family name was transcribed in English as either Aller, Allard, Eller, Ohler, or Oller and anyone with those last names is distantly related to me.
My ethnic background consists of (from my grandfather, Curtis Cosmos Aller, Sr.) German, French, Dutch, and Scotish, from my grandmother, Inga Maria Olsen, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, Finnish, Russian, Jewish, and Laplander (Sammi) ancestry. According to DNA records, we also have Ukrainian, Mongolian, Basque, and Italian ancestry. We also probably have distant relatives throughout Latin America as Allers were among the Spanish who conquered Latin America. Aller is a common name throughout Latin America.
Mother’s Sad Tale – Part of the Lost Tribe of the Cherokee Nation
According to my mother, her family is descended from the lost tribe of the Cherokee Nation. They were Cherokees who ran away into the Ozarks in Arkansas, Missouri, and Eastern Texas, intermarrying with other five civilized tribes members (Choctaw, Creek, Osage, and Seminoles), Scotts, Irish, Dutch, French, English settlers, and escaped black slaves. They are a small group less than 30,000 people, and their DNA samples have not made it into most commercial data banks according to Ancestry com.
They have been fighting for decades to gain both Federal and State recognition but so far the two Cherokee nations (the Oklahoma branch and the Eastern band) are opposed to such recognition because they consider their claim to being Cherokee very weak, as almost none of them retain any Cherokee culture or language, and most of their claims are that their great grandfather or great grandmother might have been1/4 Cherokee at best. And they could also be Choctaw, Creek, Osage, or Seminole for that matter . They are mostly white, and some are African American as well. Almost none of them have any documentary claims, and most also do not have any DNA evidence either.
The real reason for the opposition according to the self-proclaimed Ambassador of the Cherokee Nation whom I met at a State Department formal consultation with the Indigenous tribes, which is a formal consultation required under the UN Treaty on the Rights of the Indigenous which the US joined in the 1990s, the two Cherokee nations don’t believe that the lost tribe has enough Cherokee ancestry to be considered members of the tribe, and they also don’t want to have them to be able to open a Casino in Arkansas, or Missouri and they also don’t want to share BIA money with the Lost Tribe of the Cherokees.
But he added,
“We all know that they are our lost tribal members,”
and he supported recognition.
They remain a lost tribe. There is a ballot initiative in Arkansas that if it passes will give them at least State level recognition.
The DNA test does not reveal any native ancestry for the above reasons, but does reveal French, Dutch, Scottish, Irish, and English ancestry, and 1 percent Nigerian. My grandparents spoke Cherokee; therefore, my mother must have been at least ¼ and that makes me at least 1/8 Cherokee, which is good enough for me. If they ever get recognized, I will pursue getting recognized as well. In honor of my mother.
My mother ran away to the Bay Area where she ended up working as a Pacific telephone operator, later as a real estate broker and business manager for my father’s economic
She often said
“Every ten years, the world flips
And all the nuts roll downhill
To California
That is how she got there
Part of the planetary nut reconfiguration program
PNRCP A little known federal ABC agency “
I have included my father’s and mother’s obituaries following seven poems exploring my family’s rich history.
Family History Poems
Index
DNA Tests Do Not Lie or Do They?
Family History Revealed
My Mother’s History
Father’s Son
Thoughts on Visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC
Mary Geneva Wilson Aller, There’s Method to Her Madness
Curtis Cosmos Aller orbit
Mary Geneva Aller Orbit
DNA Tests Do Not Lie or Do They?
I sent way
For one of those DNA tests
That promises to reveal
Your ethnic heritage
The only problem is that claim
Is not yet true
The results were surprising
To say the least
Family lore would have it
That I have 18 nationalities
In my tangled family history
Mostly Northern European
Part German, Norwegian, Swedish, Finish, Danish, Dutch, Laplander, Russian, Scottish, Basque, Mongolian, Jewish, Spanish, and French from my father
Part Cherokee, Dutch, Irish, Scottish, English, Italian, Nigerian, and French from my mother
100 percent born and raised in Berkeley
The DNA results showed
that I am 68% northern European
with trace elements of Jewish, Basque. Italian
Mongolian and Nigerian stock.
No native American at all
And my Germanic last name
For some reason
Did not register at all
Go figure
I said
And I read the fine print
The state of the art is such
That claims that they can tell
Your ethnic background
Are exaggerated
The fine print read
Explaining why it is often inaccurate
The Cherokee background
Disappeared
Because my branch of the Cherokees
Disappeared into the mist of time
Part of the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation
Part Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole
African Americans, Scotish, Irish,
English, French and Dutch.
Who fled to the Ozark mountains
To avoid the trail of tears.
The German background
Got swept up into the northern European thing
And at the end of the day
I remained as much
a mongrel
breed as anything else
Typical American
I suppose
Overall
A fascinating experiment
Family History Revealed
The DNA results
Revealed some aspects
Of whom I am
Where I am from
But not everything
Was revealed
And much of my history
Remains hidden
My father was from Yakima
Ran away to the Bay Area
Where he became a college professor
Taught the dismal science economics
Along the way
He met my mother
And after a whirlwind romance
had four children
My older brother,
Me
Younger brother
And sister
My Mother was a refugee
From the dust bowl
Fled Arkansas
In the late ’30s
Never looked back
Settled down
In the Bay Area
Yet the south lingered on
She trained herself
To speak without an accent
by listening to the classical radio deejays,
The only time the southern came out
Was when she was talking to her sisters
She was the 10 of 11 children
Father was a moonshiner
A Cherokee medicine man to boot
Lived life in the Ozark mountains
She had two sons
From a prior relationship
That went south
We never really knew them
My father was an atheist
And a morning person
And a man with a plan
For everything
My mother
More make it up
As she went along
And a night owl
How and why
They met and stayed together
Is beyond me
They had a stormy relationship
My mother always said
Germans and Irish
Don’t mix
And never should marry
She also said
The world is divided into morning people
And night owls
And they are doomed
to marry each other
Yet I suppose
There was real love
Beneath all the drama
And bluster
My Mother’s History
One day many a year ago
My mother spoke to me
About her family’s tangled history,
She spoke to me
Of lies, half-truths, and myths
Some of which may have been true
And throughout the evening
Her history came alive.
She was born in the hills
of North Little Rock
The 10th of 11 children
Of an ancient dying race.
The Lost Tribe of the Cherokees
who had run away
Refusniks
Refugees who fled in the hills.
Part of the lost tribe of the Cherokee nation
Part Cherokee, Choctaw, Creek, Seminole
African American, Scottish, Irish, English
French, and Dutch.
Who fled to the Ozark mountains,
To avoid the trail of tears.
Rather than join the rest
In the promised land
Of Oklahoma.
They did not exist
I did not exist.
The BIA told us
No Indian scholarship
For you
Since you can’t prove
You are in fact
Of Native American ancestry,
I asked my mother
What does this mean?
She said
No BIA money for you,
My non-Indian Cherokee son.
Her family and Bill Clinton family
Were related
Bill Clinton and I are distant cousins
When I met him
I related my family history
He concluded that we were indeed cousins
Said I could call him Cousin Bill
And he would call me Cousin Jake
And said he too was part Cherokee
Irish, Scotch, French
And African American
Part of the lost tribe
Of the Cherokee nation
I told my mom
This story
She said
It was true
She was a distant cousin
Of Bill Clinton
Still did not like
The lying SOB
Her people disappeared
From history’s eyes
And DNA data banks
My history was over
As was hers
And so,
I learned at last
The painful truth
That due to the genocidal crimes
of politicians so long ago
My mother’s people
Lost their land, their culture,
and their hope
And became
downtrodden forgotten people
Hillbillies they were called
Living in the hills and mountain dales
Clinging to the dim fading memories
Of their once glorious past
As proud Cherokees
Now no one knew their name
The old ways were forgotten
And the new world never forgave them
And they never forgave the new world
As they lived on
In the margins of society
Forgotten people
And I vowed that as long as I lived
Their history would not die
As I knew the truth
And I would become a proud
Cherokee
And make my mother proud of me
And my accomplishments
When I am feeling down
I recall her stories
and her warnings
And realize it is up to me
To live my life
To let the Cherokee in me
Live his life
And in so doing
My mother’s history does not die
It lives on in me
Until the day I die
Long live the Cherokee nation
Long live my mother.
Father’s Son
I am my Father’s Son
I lived all my life
Fighting against turning
into a carbon copy
Of my father
And I failed as my father emerged
From the darkness of my soul
The full German personality
And Scandinavian background
becoming clear
And peered out
and liked what he saw
As I became him
step by inexorable step
Turning into my father
As he had turned his father
And his father in his father
Since the dawn of time
We have played this game
Sons turning into their fathers
And watching grandsons
Start the Cosmic dance
all over again.
Thoughts on Visiting the Holocaust Memorial Museum in DC
Sam Adams
Had never been
To the Holocaust Museum,
Despite the fact
He had lived
And worked in DC for decades
One day after he retired
He said to himself
It was long past time
To finally see
the holocaust museum
He went the week
After Charleston,
When the mob had chanted,
Jews will not replace us.
The museum affected him deeply
He had just confirmed
Through DNA
That he had at least 10 percent
Jewish ancestry
Among the 18 other nationalities
Swirling among these bloodlines
Sam Adams was concerned
Those elements of antisemitism
We’re emerging among
The MAGA crowd.
But he dismissed
The fears that Trump
Was another Hitler
As liberal hyperbole
It could not happen here
A new holocaust
Would never happen
But now he was not so sure
Poetic Version for April 2021 Contest – Write an Elegy Poem Writing Com Dew Drop-In Prompt Posted April 14, 2021 (April 13 Est)
The Wit and Wisdom of Mary Geneva Aldridge Aller -“There’s Method in Her Madness” Dedicated to My Mother Who Passed on July 31, 2005.
We are here today
To celebrate the life
Of Mary Geneva Aldridge Wilson Aller,
My mother.
As we are gathered together
to mark her passing
On to another, better world,
I thought we should reflect
On her life and its meaning.
Therefore, I have a message
That I hope we all leave here today.
I call this speech,
‘the wit and wisdom of Mary Geneva Aldridge Wilson Aller,
” there’s a method in her madness.”
Which was one of her favorite Shakespeare quotes.
I hope we will see the wisdom
That my mother tried so hard to impart
And what I hope
I have learned
from 52 years of watching
The life of my mother.
What have I have learned?
From Mary’s life
And her death
And what we can all learn
From her 85 years of experience
In this mad crazy corner
Of the world, she loved so dearly.
She was a true Berkeley original,
and it is only fitting
That we bury her
Here are a few blocks
From where she spent
Much of her life.
What can we learn?
From Mary’s life in this world?
Her favorite song from a musical was
“stop the world.
I want to get off.”
And today she gets her final wish
As she leaves this world
And moves on to another world.
My mother grew up
In Arkansas
In what could best be described
As hill country folk.
She was the 10th child of 11 children
Born on a family farm in the 1920s
High up in the Ozark mountains
North of Little Rock, Arkansas.
She graduated from high school
And lit out for the west coast
just as millions of people
Fled the dust bowl
of the late ’30s and ’40s.
She arrived in the SF area
And settled in Berkeley.
she hated being considered an Oakie
and lost her accent
She cultivated an accent
She learned from
The classical radio deejays.
She then became involved
In labor and democratic politics.
She became a telephone operator
union president,
Later was a real estate salesperson,
And became involved
with the save the bay movement
And the league of women’s voters.
During the 60’s she accompanied
My father to Washington DC
When he was undersecretary of labor.
She could not wait to get back
To her beloved Berkeley
Because she felt at home
In the zany openness
of the bay area
She once said
“Every ten years the world flips
And all the nuts roll downhill
To California
That is how she got there
Part of the planetary nut reconfiguration program
PNRCP A little known federal ABC agency “
She hated DC
As it reminded her why
She left the south so many years before.
In later years, she helped my father
In his many political campaigns
And was his business manager for almost 10 years
when he ran an economic consulting business.
When she retired,
She kept her love of reading
Until just a few short years ago
When she finally
Was no longer able to read.
That for me was one
Of the saddest parts of her final years
As she loved to read.
What we all learned from Mary
– Mary’s wisdom can be broken
Down into four areas:
Question authority,
Think for ourselves
read everything there is,
And always do the right thing.
She always told us that we should question authority
and that we should never trust experts.
she said often what is an expert?
Just a guy with a PH. D
And we all know what means –
Piled high and deep.
and she laughed
As she was married to PH. D
And hated campus politics.
She hated with disdain
Almost all politicians
Except for Truman and Kennedy
And she had her own Truman story
She thought they were all crooks and liars,
Especially the southern-bred types.
She believed though in equal opportunity
And hated republicans as much as democrats.
No one ever measured
Up to her lofty standards
Of ethical behavior.
She often told us to do
The right thing.
But she refused to tell us
what would be
As we had to figure
That out on our own.
My concluding thoughts
Are on reading the lifelong
Love of books
That she gave me and my siblings.
She read an average of three to five books
Per week every week of her life.
We were always trading books
Stocking up books on our visits
To the family library
As I thought of it.
I have taken a part in the library
With me and will treasure all the books
That she shared with me and my siblings.
she always had an opinion
About everything.
One of her and my favorite books
Was the world according to Garp
And there was a “world according to Mary”
Where what you saw was what you got
And if you did not like her opinion,
then you had best get out of the way
Because Mary,
Was afraid of no one
And always stood her ground no matter what.
With Mary “what you saw was what you got.”
But I am happy that she
Let me in the “world according to Mary”
And I have lots of stories
from her life that would make great fiction,
For, in Mary’s improbable life,
Life was truly stranger than fiction.
Because my mother grew up in a Christian family,
It would be appropriate to read a bible quote.
my mother was raised as a Baptist
Although she left the church
After asking the minister,
“if god created the world,
Who created God?”
Here is one of her favorite bible quotes
Ecclesiastes 12 (King James version)
Ecclesiastes 12
1remember now thy creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them.
2while the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:
3in the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,
4and the doors shall be shut in the streets when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of music shall be brought low.
5also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goth to his long home and the mourners go about the streets:
7then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto a God who gave it.
8vanity of vanities, saith the preacher; all is vanity.
9and moreover, because the preacher was wise, he still taught the people knowledge; yea, he gave good heed, and sought out, and set in order many proverbs.
10the preacher sought to find out acceptable words: and that which was written was upright, even words of truth.
11the words of the wise are as gods, and as nails fastened by the masters of assemblies, which are given from one shepherd.
12and further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.
13let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: fear God and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.
14for God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Her minister friend said the short version is
” life is good.
Then we die
And it gets even better.”
When Mary was a telephone union president,
word came down
that she was invited
to meet Harry Truman.
She replied
I don’t want to meet
Harry unless he wants to meet me.
Hearing that quip,
Harry was amused
And sent his advance team to talk
Some sense into that feisty fiery woman
Out in SF
that Mary Aller.
Two government types,
dressed as I do,
showed up
Asked her if she was a communist
She responded
Boy, are you stupid?
If I were a communist, would I tell you?
I don’t think so.
Where do they get people?
Like you anyway?
The SF chronicle captured the moment
With a huge headline,
“Harry meets Mary.”
This sums up my mother’s fearless feisty
Stubborn personality and yes,
Truman was one of the few politicians
That got the Mary aller seal of approval
Now my final Mary story
Sums up her life for me.
In 1974 I was in this play,
“the madwomen of Chailoit”
Where I played the waiter
Whose line was
“she’s not mad.
She’s the madwomen of Chaillot.”
But Mary was in the audience
And I lost my character
for a moment and said,
“she not’s mad,
She’s the madwoman of Berkeley, oops I meant Chaillot.”
Brought down the house.
I went home thinking I had done it,
insulted my mom in front of the whole school.
She laughed
And said that was okay
as she liked the phase.
I said
“well, Mary,
You are my madwoman of Berkeley
And I’ll have it no other way.
she laughed
And that was the end of it,
until now.
When I say,
“Mary, you were one of the most
original people
Whoever lived,
And I treasure the fact
that I was your son.
You were at times
Very difficult to deal
With but in the end,
Your good karma
Will outlive you
As you always did the right thing,
and for that
And all the other words
Of wisdom, I learned over the years,
I salute you,
Our beloved madwomen of Berkeley.
the prompt was to write an elegy poem. I delivered this at my mother’s funeral in 2005.
When Curtis Cosmos Aller was born on 16 November 1889, in Carrollton, Carroll, Ohio, the United States, his father, Daniel Wilbur Aller, was 24 and his mother, Drusilla McCausland, was 22. He married Inga Pauline Olsen on 30 September 1917, in Bremerton, Kitsap, Washington, United States. They were the parents of at least 2 sons and 3 daughters. He lived in Summit view, Yakima, Washington, the United States in 1930 and Election Precinct 108 West Summit view, Yakima, Washington, the United States in 1940. He died on 12 August 1956, in Yakima, Yakima, Washington, United States, at the age of 66, and was buried in Terrace Heights Memorial Park, Yakima, Yakima, Washington, United States.
There is an Aller river in Germany, and in Spain and there is an Aller village in Sussex country, England.
Aller History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Origins Available:
Germany
The name Aller comes from the German region of Westphalia. The tradition of adopting hereditary surnames came to Germany after the 12th century, and the names of places where people lived were a primary source. Many local names carry the prefix “von”, meaning “of” or “from,” which was originally an indicator of land ownership, and is sometimes a mark of nobility. The Aller family originally lived by an alder tree. Ancient records reveal the name Aller is derived from the Old German word elre or alre, which means alder. There are also numerous places named Eller in the northern German states, such as the Rhine and Moselle areas, which adopted the name of an old stream called the Ellera. Thus, the name Aller is both a topographic surname, a type of local surname that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree, and a habitation name, a type of local name that was originally derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.
Early Origins of the Aller family
The surname Aller was first found in Westphalia, where the family emerged in mediaeval times as one of the notable families of the region. From the 13th century the surname was identified with the great social and economic evolution which made this territory a landmark contributor to the development of the nation.
Early History of the Aller family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aller research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1354, 1424, 1680, 1690 and 1730 are included under the topic Early Aller History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Aller Spelling Variations
In the medieval era, many different cultural groups lived in the German states. There are thus many regional variations of German surnames from that era. Westphalians spoke Low German, which is similar to modern Dutch. Many German names carry suffixes that identify where they came from. Others have phrases attached that identify something about the original bearer. Other variations in German names resulted from the fact that medieval scribes worked without the aid of any spelling rules. The spelling variations of the name Aller include Eller, Ellers, Eler, Aller, Aler, Ellern, Ellere, Elera, Ellera, Ellerer and many more.
Early Notables of the Aller family (pre 1700)
Notables of the period with the name Aller were Wolf Ernst von Eller (d. 1680), who was the Governor of Minden and Sparenberg, a military general, and Privy Councillor for defense to the prince…
Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Aller Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Aller migration to the United States+
For many Germans, emigration to North America was an inviting alternative to the trials of life in the old country. From the mid-17th into the present century, thousands of Germans migrated across the Atlantic. They capitalized on the chance to escape poverty and persecution, and to own their own land. After 1650, Germans settled throughout the states of Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, Illinois, and California. Many also landed in Canada, settling in Ontario or father west on the rich land of the prairies. Among them:
Aller Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Peter Aller, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1749 [1]
Michael Aller, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 [1]
Contemporary Notables of the name Aller (post 1700)+
Javier Aller Cervera (1972-2018), Spanish film and television actor from Madrid
Rodney Goddard Aller (1916-2005), American lawyer, naval officer and masters skier
Lawrence Hugh Aller (1913-2003), American astronomer from Tacoma, Washington
Victor Aller (1905-1977), American pianist
Eleanor Aller (1917-1995), American cellist and founding member of the Hollywood String Quartet
Related Stories+
The Aller Motto+
Aller History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
Origins Available:
Germany
The name Aller comes from the German region of Westphalia. The tradition of adopting hereditary surnames came to Germany after the 12th century, and the names of places where people lived were a primary source. Many local names carry the prefix “von”, meaning “of” or “from,” which was originally an indicator of land ownership, and is sometimes a mark of nobility. The Aller family originally lived by an alder tree. Ancient records reveal the name Aller is derived from the Old German word elre or alre, which means alder. There are also numerous places named Eller in the northern German states, such as the Rhine and Moselle areas, which adopted the name of an old stream called the Ellera. Thus, the name Aller is both a topographic surname, a type of local surname that was given to a person who resided near a physical feature such as a hill, stream, church, or type of tree, and a habitation name, a type of local name that was originally derived from pre-existing names for towns, villages, parishes, or farmsteads.
Early Origins of the Aller family
The surname Aller was first found in Westphalia, where the family emerged in mediaeval times as one of the notable families of the region. From the 13th century the surname was identified with the great social and economic evolution which made this territory a landmark contributor to the development of the nation.
Early History of the Aller family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Aller research. Another 77 words (6 lines of text) covering the years 1354, 1424, 1680, 1690 and 1730 are included under the topic Early Aller History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Aller Spelling Variations
In the medieval era, many different cultural groups lived in the German states. There are thus many regional variations of German surnames from that era. Westphalians spoke Low German, which is similar to modern Dutch. Many German names carry suffixes that identify where they came from. Others have phrases attached that identify something about the original bearer. Other variations in German names resulted from the fact that medieval scribes worked without the aid of any spelling rules. The spelling variations of the name Aller include Eller, Ellers, Eler, Aller, Aler, Ellern, Ellere, Elera, Ellera, Ellerer and many more.
Early Notables of the Aller family (pre 1700)
Notables of the period with the name Aller were Wolf Ernst von Eller (d. 1680), who was the Governor of Minden and Sparenberg, a military general, and Privy Councillor for defense to the prince…
Another 34 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Aller Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Aller migration to the United States+
For many Germans, emigration to North America was an inviting alternative to the trials of life in the old country. From the mid-17th into the present century, thousands of Germans migrated across the Atlantic. They capitalized on the chance to escape poverty and persecution, and to own their own land. After 1650, Germans settled throughout the states of Pennsylvania, Texas, New York, Illinois, and California. Many also landed in Canada, settling in Ontario or father west on the rich land of the prairies. Among them:
Aller Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
Peter Aller, who landed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1749 [1]
Michael Aller, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1753 [1]
Contemporary Notables of the name Aller (post 1700)+
Javier Aller Cervera (1972-2018), Spanish film and television actor from Madrid
Rodney Goddard Aller (1916-2005), American lawyer, naval officer and masters skier
Lawrence Hugh Aller (1913-2003), American astronomer from Tacoma, Washington
Victor Aller (1905-1977), American pianist
Eleanor Aller (1917-1995), American cellist and founding member of the Hollywood String Quartet
Curtis Cosmos Aller, Jr. Undersecretary of Labor 1963-1968.President of teh Rhodes Scholar, Harvard PHD President of the Berkeley Co-Op
James Elwood Aller Admiral retred Navy Academy graduate University of Virginia Professor of Applied Mathematics, coiner of the term ‘Computer bug”.
John (Jake) Cosmos Aller US diplomat 1981 to 2016 retired.
The Aller Motto+
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Gloria virtutis umbra Motto Translation: Glory is the shadow of virtue.
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Gloria virtutis umbra Motto Translation: Glory is the shadow of virtue.
Aldrige (mother’s maiden name)
Early Origins of the Aldridge family The surname Aldridge was first found in the counties of Sussex , Suffolk, and Surrey, where the Aldridge family held a family seat from very early times. The family had the Saxon spellings of Alderich, Ealdric, or possibly Aelfric before the Norman Conquest)
Mary Geneva Aldrige Aller
Mary Geneva Aldridge Aller Sept. 9, 1923 – July 31, 2007, Former Resident of Berkeley Mary was born and raised in Little Rock, Arkansas, and came to the Bay Area in the 1940s and settled in Berkeley where she resided until 2003.
During the 1950s, she was active in the labor movement and served several years as the President of the Pacific Telephone Operators Union. During the late 1950s, she was a real estate agent and involved with the Berkeley League of Women’s Voters, and the “Save the Bay” movement.
In 1952, she made local headlines when she told President Truman’s staff that she did not want to meet him unless he wanted to meet her. The San Francisco Chronicle authored a big article with the Headline “Harry Meets Mary.” She was a long-term political activist and active member of the Berkeley Co-Op along with her husband, Dr. Curtis Aller, who passed away in 1985.
During the 1960s, she accompanied her husband to Washington, D.C. when he served as the Undersecretary of Labor. She returned to Berkeley in 1968 where she worked with her husband until 1984 as the business manager for the Center for Applied Manpower Research. Mary is survived by two sisters, Mildred and Robbie who live in Arkansas. She is also survived by six children, Roger Aller of Sebastopol, California, John (Jake) Aller of Washington, DC, Thomas Aller of Albany, California, Inga Aller of Gualala, California, Richard, and Larry Wilson from her first marriage, and many grandchildren, nieces, and nephews. The family will have a private ceremony Friday, August 3 for interment. Flowers can be sent to the Sunset View Funeral Home, 101 Colusa Avenue, in El Cerrito (510) 525-5111.
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Among the many sins
Germany
Aller migration to the United States
