I'll just start with a James Wright poem

I looked back at what I had posted on my blog a year ago,
and though there was nothing entered on 9/09, this was listed
on 9/10 or 9/15 (can't remember).



Lying in a Hammock at William Duffy's Farm in Pine Island, Minnesota


Over my head, I see the bronze butterfly,
Asleep on the black trunk,
blowing like a leaf in green shadow.
Down the ravine behind the empty house,
The cowbells follow one another
Into the distances of the afternoon.
To my right,
In a field of sunlight between two pines,
The droppings of last year's horses
Blaze up into golden stones.
I lean back, as the evening darkens and comes on.
A chicken hawk floats over, looking for home.
I have wasted my life.

James Wright



I've always liked Lying in a Hammock, but my favorite has to be the one
about the ponies. What is the name? Oh, yes--this:

A Blessing

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Yesterday turned out to be pretty much the same old
same old, though I did manage to get to the grocery,
sort the mail, strip the beds, do some clothes, clean
the kitchen, and cook dinner. Decided to do ribs last
night--something we don't have often. I start out
with a rub, and since I was not going to grill these,
I rubbed them down with a mixture of garlic powder,
onion podwer, chili powder, cumin, smoky paprika,
kosher salt, & pepper. Then I wrapped them in foil
and cooked them on 300 for a few hours, opening them
to baste them in the natural juices from time to time.
Just before serving, I turned the broiler on, basted them
with barbecue sauce and let the sauce get a bit caramelized.

Served my baked beans. I use black beans, red kidney beans,
and navy beans. Mix those together and add 1 chopped jalapeno,
pure maple syrup or molasses, brown sugar, a smoky barbecue
sauce, onion powder, garlic powder, kosher salt and pepper.
Add some chopped bacon to the top and bake along with the
ribs.

Also had steamed broccoli with fresh lemon juice squeezed over
it and a tad of kosher salt. I had one baked potato left from
the night before (one of those huge Idaho bakers), so I diced
it and cooked it in some chicken stock until most of the stock
cooked down. Then I grated fresh garlic in there, added kosher
salt and cracked black pepper, some heavy cream, and some
chopped fresh chives. I just smashed the potatoes a little, so
they still had some chunks. It was great.

Then I made my three layer pound cake sinfully yummy dessert.
Just spread each layer with whipped cream cheese and cool whip.
Then spoon some of the berries over each layer. I used blueberries,
raspberries, and blackberries. Put them in a bowl and added a cup
of sugar and 3/4 cup Gran Marnier. Let them sit for at least 30
minutes. It was all very good, and good for my waistline (which
no longer exists anyway, so what the hell!).

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Today is overcast. My eyes are itchy and my head hurts. I bet
if I kept a log, I would find out that my head hurts and my eyes
are itchy far too often. I am sure it's allergies, but I don't want
to be on meds nor go to a doctor, so I should jsut shut up about it.

We are selling some property we have owned since 1978. We
should have enough money to paint the house, replace some
of the windows (though I will not do that if I can't get replacement
windows that look exactly like what I have--I love my windows--
most all of them are 7 ft. tall and triple-paned),
replace the gutters, and maybe even get the guest bedroom's
bathroom retiled. That is a job I don't want to take on, but may
have to.

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I'm disappointed that I chose two Stevens' poems from the
same collection--Harmonium. Generally, I like to select
a few poems from different collections to give the reader an
idea of how the poet's work changes/remains much the same/
takes on a different focus, etc. Oh well. Hopefully we'll have
a good discussion.

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Time to go walk Molly and get moving.