The True Vine

And, borrowing from John's gospel, this is poem #365, and my prayer for the new year:

Cut off every branch

in me that bears no fruit, and

prune the ones that do.

A Dog's Life

Claus the Dalmatian

wears his goggles when he goes

out--sensitive eyes.

The Downside of Bacon

The only downside

of the big Sunday morning breakfast

is that I go to church--

and everywhere else after that--

smelling stridently of bacon.

Jailbreak

It's Saturday night.

Harried mom, crabby kids--

they want to go out

but I want them to stay in.

Can't we just have a nice evening together,

and where do you want to go anyway,

I cajole.

Suddenly, the situation strikes me as funny:

I remember hearing this a long, long time ago

only I was the teenager

trying to escape.

Mirror Mirror

Last night was Laguna Beach's first Art Walk of 2011. David and I went to our friend Carla Tesak's gallery, Salt Fine Art, for the opening of her new show "Mirror Mirror." Carla, who is originally from El Salvador, specializes in Latin American contemporary art and has totally turned me on to several of her favorite artists. Tonight I fell in love with the work of Luis Cornejo, a young Salvadoran artist who paints by blending both acrylic and oil (which I guess is technically difficult), and combines hyperrealism with flat, two-dimensional images. He draws much of his inspiration from the world of fashion, pop culture, and current events, and his paintings are meant to deliver a subtle social critique and challenge our ideas of perfection. I love this untitled painting (above). I'm not sure if my interpretation-as-haiku is what Cornejo intended; if I ever get to meet him I'll ask.

A woman in blue

wonders if she's playing the

game or being played

Killer Kitty

(Photo credit goes to my wonderful husband David!) This is a classic victory pose by our cat, who is not large but is definitely in charge of the critter population on our hill. Long may she hunt and keep us rodent-free!

Our mighty huntress

has struck again. Topanga,

one. Gopher, zero.

RIP, Christmas Tree

I have put our poor Christmas tree

out of its misery.

Rest in peace, shriveled little shrub;

it was high time we said goodbye.

Caffeine-Assisted To-Do List

Must clean out the fridge

and un-decorate the house.

First things first: coffee.

Pressing On

I focus on this one thing:

Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead...

I press on toward the goal

--Philippians 3:13-14

Has it really been almost a year,

this daily homespun poetry thing?

I'm pressing on toward the goal.

Winter in the Desert

when night falls it smells like snow--

sharp and clean and full of memories

and promises of what is to come

Oof

a lot of champagne

plus a little tequila

equals a headache!