Welcome Fibby Bob Kinney (Fibzay)!

 I had planned to write a new blog post once a month but life got in the way. So it is the next year and we are well into it. I won't mention the political situation but we are all trying to make sense of it and live our lives with the best possible experiences we can. The list for guest authors on this blog is very full so I need to keep posting once a month.  Thank you to any readers who have come here expecting new posts. This one is going to make up for it. 

My guest author today is both a poet and a comedian. He is one of those people with whom you can spend hours talking about almost anything. I hope you enjoy meeting him. Here is the interview and please check out all of his amazing books. 

Welcome Fibby Bob Kinney or as you are now calling yourself Fibzay.

Where were you born and where do you live now?

I was born in a little town in Pennsylvania on a farm and we didn’t have any hot water. We lived just with all the vegetables and animals and chickens. We had dogs and  pigs. We didn’t have any plumbing in the house. It was a very rural background where I grew up, Practically in the dark ages and that’s then. Now I live in Florida in a nice house with my wife of 51 years. So it’s been quite a journey from the beginning to where I live right now. So that’s kind of my beginning and where I live now.

I think it's amazing that you were able to change your life so completely.

Do you have an occupation besides writing? Do you have any hobbies?

Yes, I do have a hobby. I am an avid player of video games. I’m one of the oldest players on Destiny video game, which I’ve been playing for ten years, and I’ve got many write ups. If you go to Google and look at the 81 year-old gamer write up on Reddit.

My friends, please go and read this amazing post including the story he wrote about the game here:

Who or what influenced you to stop doing stand-up and writing comedy to writing poetry?

I continued doing comedy actually until 2011.I lasted that long, but it came to a point. I didn’t go on the road anymore. I just didn’t wanna put in the late hours. I was ready to retire and just write poetry and since 2011 I’ve written twenty-five books. So I live happily here in Florida and play with my flowers in the garden. I have written 500 poems to them and I take my walk during the day and just relax play video games, watch television and write poetry and stories books and stuff. 

I'll bet you have exceptionally beautiful flowers from all that poetry.

I am fascinated by your history of being in the Village in the 60’s. Did you ever meet any famous comedians like Lenny Bruce or meet Bob Dylan? 

Yes, I did know a lot of celebrities. Let’s see when I go back to my early days I knew Milton Berle. I was at the Friars club. I met Henny Youngman, and when I met him I was wearing a checkered jacket. The first thing he said was it’s a great jacket.  Did the whole team get one? So that was my first meeting with Henny Youngman. When I was in college back in the old days, I had a rare interview with Thomas Edison’s son Theodore Edison, who lived in Edison  Edison, New Jersey. And the first thing I asked him, “So your father invented electricity.”  He said, “Yeah?” Who else did I know? JD Salinger very rare I got his autograph and I got nice stories about JD. When I was at The Comedy Store I knew Richard Pryor, and I knew Robin Williams very well.  I knew Jerry Seinfeld when he first started and Larry David and Paul Reiser. So I knew like a lot of celebrities before they were celebrities and a lot of them came out of my interviews when I was the emcee at The Comic Strip in  New York from 1976 to 1979. Gilbert Godfrey I never thought he would make it but look what happened to him and Larry David of course, became one of the most influential Producers in Hollywood so that’s just a little bit of what I did and who I knew and it does go on like I said I was a comic’s comic, so I knew a lot of of the guys even though I didn’t get to be famous just like Georgie Star, who was Lenny Bruce’s best buddy I knew him good. He was a great comic, but he never got famous because he was hit and miss. Sometimes he would be great other times, when it really counted on the additions he would not do well. Kind of like what I did. I’d be great at times, but when it came to the auditions for the big time with Johnny Carson and those I just kind of I don’t know what happened but it just didn’t work out for me anyway. So that’s just a little bit.

Wow, what a history to have met all of these people before they became famous. 

You were a host of two TV shows, one in Los Angeles and one in New York. Did anything unusual ever happen on these shows?

I did my shows in California with school children and they were local TV shows. They went well. I got very good reports on them and then in New York. I did shows with comics, and I brought them on and I  was a professor punster in a mythical college, where the comics would come on and they would talk about their jokes and it was good. It was just a lot of fun shows and nothing came out of them. No big people were on there. It was local shows. They were well received.

Please describe a typical day of writing for our readers.

The way that I write is I write from inspiration. I will get an idea and will sit down and the words will flow so I usually can write a poem probably in about somewhere between ten and twenty minutes At night I’ll get up if I get an idea and write it down then. And my short story is the same thing. I’ll take a couple days to do those, but I’ll just come from inner ideas or things that I see and get an idea about it and then I write it down and make a story out of it so it’s pretty much inspirational.

What made you decide to put out a book of poetry and then go on to write so many more including coloring books?

I had a lot of poems that I wrote and I kept publishing them. I published coloring books because I wanted to color my illustrations myself. I like to color so what I did is, I did all the illustrations from statues pictures of statues sketches of sketchers and then I put them in my two books my two coloring books so I’ve got a lot of pictures under the color and I had a real good time doing it and I’m sure the people bought the books. I got a few people who I saw who said, yeah we loved it and we love the coloring so they’re out there and both of those are coffee table they’re like 8 1/2 x 12  they’re really nice both of them.

When people read your poetry, what do you want them to find in it?

When people read my poetry, especially my fairytales it’s so nice to know that the kids are getting beautiful pictures and a very positive moral for children. So I have spoken to families they said the kids loved it and the morals are very positive and I wrote this so that they’re looking at old fairy tales with a more modern view. Thank you.

What would you say are the themes of your poems? 

I try to do a lot of poems about words about the value of words. I do a lot of poems about nature and flowers and poems about fairytales so the point is to show how important it is that we make our world as positive as we can so that’s why I don’t have any negative poems. All of my poems are positive.

That is a wonderful way to look at the world. I can't say that about my own work. It always goes with the emotion I am feeling. I do try to end with a positive note, though.

Are you working on a new book to be published? Please tell our readers about it.

I in the process of working on one of them is going to be a sci-fi book of all things. My first attempt is going to be called "The Coffee Zombies" where you know people would drink too much coffee and become zombies. It's a good thing. horror but nobody gets killed. Nobody gets you know there’s no zombie they just become addicted to coffee and then everybody drinks all the coffee in the world and you can’t find coffee anymore. It’s kind of liket he second biggest drink in the world. The first drink is water.  So I’m saying that people can’t find anymore coffee. That's the basis of that, and then I got a new fairytale book coming out as well. So those books are in the works right now.

How can we find your work? 

All of my books are on Amazon.com and then Kindle. All you have to do is put my name in the search box just put in Fibby Bob Kinney, and they will all pop up. They can also go to Google and put my name on Google and my bio and my books will pop up there. So those are the easiest way to find my work

Finally, this is the question I always ask all my guests. Are you a plotter or a pantser? In other words, do you outline or do you just write?

Finally, about plot or do I outline or do I just write. Actually I do both. I mostly just write but once in a while, I will sit down if I have something important that I really know that has to be correct I will be a plotter, and then I will write it. So it depends on the moment depends on the subject about it, but I think both are equal. But I’m primarily it comes from my mind. Thank you so much and I hope that answers your questions. Thank you,

Now, my friends Fibzay has given me some of his work to display on the blog. I hope you enjoy reading his poetry and his stories.

Romancing the Pen

“The greatest romantic poet is the one that is in love with their pen: it is their pen that they place all their love, all their hope, all their dreams...in the unity of a wish - that it will give back to them; fame and fortune”...

The poet, male or female, has a spouse in their pen. It is a marriage made between human being and the extension of their thoughts.

So personal is the individual thought. It lives in the mind of the person who has brought it into being.

The mind as both mother and father gives birth to thought at the speed of light.

As I write these words my mind is delivering them directly from my brain.

The mind is an endless nursery that brings words into imagery.

As the maker of my mind I stand here  in living thought and direct all thought on the subject at hand into an endless chain of words.

They travel down my arm as an army in disciplined form and mount the vessel of my pen.

My pen as a sailing ship. The paper or visible screen of my smart device becomes a vast ocean to navigate. The pen has several disguises: a writing instrument, a stylus; even the thumbs of the writer can become the pen when it texts words upon the device held in its hand, or, all the fingers become the pen on the computer keyboard.

The point is, the mind gives birth, the hand is the gangway, the pen is the visible instrument as the ship , the paper or virtual screen is the ocean that the words must sail into reality.

The pen, in what ever form, is the writers lover. He or she must romance their pen. They seduce it so it willfully as it does their bidding.

I write these words upon the visible screen of my smart phone. The stylus I use is long and sleek with a bouncing tip. It taps the words in a paced rhythm upon the blank screen that brings them to life.

As if by magic with each tap, a letter appears in a permanent form. It shines upon the screen. The writer that uses this form to bring words to life develops a cadence. One similar to a marching band. Measured steps as if in an invisible drum beat keeps the rhythm in synchronized pace.

The words form phrases and turn into sentences. The punctuation as a drill instructor keeps the words in a manageable ordered march.

The sentences build into verse or paragraph and the marching band plays its tunes to the grandstand mind of the reader.

If the images do their job and make the reader feel the emotions that the piece intended then the writer as the high stepping band major has done their job.

I am the band leader of this marching article on the use of my pen as my baton.

I hope this little parade of words has given you enjoyment...if so, I salute you, and thank you for being part of this event that happened on the visual tablet that you are viewing it on...Fibzay 

(Fibby Bob Kinney (c) 1/23/2

Ode to my Inner Child

Although I have never seen him,

Nor talked or Joked with him,

Or, even grabbed a glimpse of him;

I am still his partner in bond.

At night, when  I am washed clean,

And lay myself down to rest,

Upon my feathered  bed;

Perchance to sleep, in wondering trance.

I long for the wishing moment,

When my lids begin to cloak.

My brain set adrift,

My thoughts to heaven's door.

Oh, the wonder of divine sleep.

Its crown, the coming dream,

Of things past and done,

With might and strength of ease.

All values soar into a heavenly realm,

When the brain is at its rest.

It is then the Angel scribe is at its best;

My guardian appears in thoughts to be.

My Angel, the counterpart of me!

He covers my soul in a  blanket of care.

I breathe upon my pillow, in rest.

My stretched body heaped upon the soft sheets.

My Angel, upon me in his protection;

Like a field of butterflies, and I,

The man , whose thoughts are true,

My dreams fill the darkness with life.

What wonder is this dream...

That every night continues its tale?

What is in my vast imagination, that

Unfolds upon the painting to be?

What great mysteries does he possess?

My Angel of thoughts, to have the power,

Over me, to make me weep in joy;

To throw my thoughts to a fever pitch.

There is nothing in this world,

With all its gold and jewels combined,

that could comfort me in time of need,

As my Angel that responds to me.

He is there at night in my bedchamber.

To guide me, without condition or effort,

But to blend with my soul and make me whole;

Without need or reprise for reward.

In a daydream, when I am lost in thought

He  is always there with me.

In the good and in the grief,

His love is real and unrestricted,

Whatever comes to pass, I know: that I am true to myself 

I will do my poetic gift to the best of my ability…Fibzay 

“I  shared this poem with You”...

(Fibby Bob Kinney  (c) 1/23/25

Fibby Bob Kinney Bio:

Although I did attend college with a Liberal Arts degree most of my knowledge is self acquired; as in my life I have followed my dreams to my destiny. I started my career as a poet in Greenwich Village,  U.S.A.

I became a stand-up comedian and went on to be the first Emcee at the World famous "Comic Strip" night club in New York City. I had a successful career as an entertainer: I was the host of my own children's show,"The Word Painter" in L.A. California. 

In NYC I was host of a  local cable show called, “ Professor Punster” it was a fun show where I interviewed comedic guests and we told stories with puns and funny innuendos.

I continued in my career as a comedy writer and entertainer. Now I am a poet and author of 25 books in print.

My first book, "Love's Little Liberties" and 24 others are available at Amazon, on Kindle, and other outlets.

My strength is in the Genre of poetry and story telling. I make many of my original fables and fairy-tales available on the poetry forums of today. As poetry is the backbone of literature and its high standards are paramount to my goals…Fibzay ( Fibby Bob Kinney; author-storyteller) 1/23/25

I love the picture with the lion!

You can find all of Fibby Bob Kinney's books on Amazon and Kindle. 
He has co-authored with Susan Joyner Stumpf as well as many other poets. This is no ordinary poet.When you speak with him, he only wants to keep telling you stories. I am honored to have had you, Fibby Bob Kinney as a guest on this blog. 

My next guest author will be here on February 28, 2025. I think it is going to take some time to learn everything about our present guest. This blog will be up for the entire time until I change it for the next guest. Do not hesitate to let your friends know about this fabulous poet, author, and comedian. Thank you for being my guest on the blog Fibzay, as you like to be called. It was a pleasure.

Until the next time, I hope all of you are staying warm, trying not to be too angry, and having some fun. Please leave a comment and don't worry if you don't see it right away. I have had to monitor the comments. 

Happy Valentine's Day and President's Day.

Updated Information

I'm happy to report I have found a way to allow comments for my poems. So if you were one of the people who read my poetry earlier, here is a chance to let me know how you felt.:) I have added all of the poems I have written so far through April 17th. Some of them are really different for me.:)

Also, wanted to let everyone know that Sherie Swift and I will be switching blogs on Thursday, April 19th. I will be posting the link here for everyone to see my post on Sherie's blog.

Hope everyone is enjoying the early spring weather!!!

Poems for Days 4 and 5

As promised I am posting each poem I wrote for this year's April Poem a Day. These are also posted on the comments of Poetic Asides with Robert Brewer where you will find some amazing poetry all the time.

Here are the poems for Day 4:

April 4, 2011

Prompt: Pick a person and write about him or her

Tailgater

What possesses you to ride so close to my car's back bumper
as if you were hoping to jump me and land wheels first ahead?

Like a dog pushing it's nose into you to get the food or the
pat on it's head you keep inching forward though my speed
increases you keep your same pace.

The right lane is clear yet you want my space
I know if I move you will surge ahead for a few miles, but then
you will find another moving slower than you and play the same
life threatening tag

I have seen your next victim clearing the way for your lethal game
You must be the king of all you survey mustn't you?

Tailgater you are a stain on the road
Though the sad truth is you don't know it.

copyright 2011 by Barbara Ehrentreu

April 5, 2011

Prompt: Write a silly poem or a serious poem
You decide which is which.:)

Toddlers take over Dunkin Donuts

Toddlers run back and forth
Their tiny feet toddling as they
explore Dunkin Donuts
Zip down the ramp and back up
Oh one fell
Up you go
Back to the race
Run little toddlers run
While the donuts grin on the wall
Singing you a happy running song
The coffee cups swing back and forth
To the music of your tiny legs
copyright 2011 by Barbara Ehrentreu



Angry scene

In the end I stayed
Though the anger
surged through my fingers
Yearning to throw anything
To hit him in the face
Smash in his nose and shut his
open mouth in mid curse
In mid angry outburst
The scene played out til
Undone
I slumped
Tears an afterthought
Brought on by years of
capitulation

The shell I had become
crumpled as the struts
crumbled and lay in a
heap on the floor
Nothing will change
My anger dissolved
As tiny star shaped
flowers filled the air

I rose sustained by
the nectar of the flowers
Secure in the knowledge
of my secret safe
Where I hid the joy
I found when in November
Strength came in an email.

copyright 2011 by Barbara Ehrentreu

Happy Rosh Hashanah to all!!!

I couldn't choose so I posted all the pictures I liked. These are my New Year cards to you!!!!!

Apples and honey with challah are traditional so you will have a sweet year!!!

I won't say this summer has been fun, because it hasn't. But at least my husband is better.:) We are all trying to get back to normal, but things keep getting in the way. I had to have a cataract operation in August and I'm still taking care of that eye. But guess what? I have to have the other eye done now in October. It's funny having 20/20 vision in only one eye, but soon it will the same for both and I'll be back to before 7th grade. That's when they decided I needed to wear glasses to see far. Only now all I'll need is reading glasses. Not wearing glasses all the time is going to be different for me.:) People will have to get used to seeing me without them too!

So Rosh Hashanah came very early this year. It crept up on me and suddenly it's the New Year! It's another chance to start anew. It's a chance to atone for my sins, but seriously, I've been trying to think of anything that I've done that I might atone for and with this last year I can't. I know that some of my family won't think that. I'm sure they have things they hold against me, but this year I have gone out of my way to make sure people were happy. Yet they never are! So next week when Yom Kippur happens I'll once again fast and hope that it will all be okay.:)

For everyone who celebrates, a Happy Rosh Hashanah -- Shana Tova!!

I was going to put my review of a new children's MG here, but since I haven't posted in awhile I'm going to do another post right after this with the review. Instead, I'm going to post the poems I have done since the last time I posted:

Poems Posted on Poetic Asides with Robert Brewer

Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Prompt: Use "as I was saying"

DECIDING ON DINNER

“What do you want for dinner?” I ask.
“I’m busy you choose,” one of them answers
I don’t want to choose.I’d rather be writing
my fingers tapping on the keys
My mind occupied with thoughts
no one there will want to hear
Instead I ask again to the air
“Should we have chicken?”
Then I think, too much to do
Raw chicken to marinate or

roast or fry and hours away from
my writing, and I decide no never mind

It doesn’t matter since it has sat on the
air like a giant empty balloon deflating
as I speak. No one is listening and I’d
rather be writing to this week’s prompt
So sad I am away from my computer and
in the middle of these uncaring people

with whom I must share my life

“What does anyone want for dinner?”
The silence spreads like a fungus
They are busy discussing the latest
political news and ignoring me
Until one of them glances over and says

“What did you say?”

I seethe invisibly and try once more
“As I was saying…”
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

HAIKU
As I was saying
You don’t know the me inside
Only the outside
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu


Strolling down PA Street

My heart is breaking as I stroll through the offerings
Hearts on sale today
along with love here and not here
Party bores and walks through stores
Conversations on dead ears

As I was saying, PA street abounds with joy

Infused by the heady words of each poet
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu


Wednesday, August 20, 2010

Prompt: Write a poem about service of any kind

Ambulatory surgery ballet

This is not their first rodeo
I can tell by the casual way they all stroll around
Green suited they meander in
chit chatting with the nurses
who at intervals disappear to ministerto the supine bodies in wait for the doctors’
services – not all for eyes

My nurse, Tracey shows me to my cubicle
And unable to read or watch TV I listen and
wonder at the casual talking outside my curtain
as they drip drops and gel into my eye
and the ballet continues with each new bed
moving toward the opening doors

The prologue proceeds until my eye

filled with pupil-opening drops and numb
finally opens to the doctor who places more gel
inside and then it is curtain time

I’m on stage and my door is open
They lay me on a soft sculptured bed
and place me under a sheet leaving
only my eye exposed
I am a Cyclops bound to the table
Floating in an oxygen haze as I concentrate on
the light and behold a kaleidoscopeof color

bouncing in the air above my eye
Until finally the curtain lowers and the finale
As they walk me back to my cubicle they

are lining up more who must follow the
steps to the eye scraping ballet.

copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu


Poem #2

In Service to Us

The exodus began in secret
As if we could slink away

in the dark of dawn and
somehow heal the wounds

caused by our service

For citizens we said we came
To change their lives
Mold them into more
manageable shapes
more like us
Make them push away

their heritages and embrace
Americanism

We believed it would work
Through the the bloody
attack-filled years when

men and women sent
In the name of service to
liberty ate sand and sweltered
under a mid-eastern sun
Some came home damaged
Too many in flag draped caskets
returned to tear-filled eyes they
would never see. to half-grown kids,
to wives holding babies never to be
held by them

They had gone in service to their
country - bright eyed boys and girls
filled with patriotic zeal
Some against the war yet bound
by honor to serve to find the enemy
no matter the enemy kept changing
like a giant shell game

Now they returned sliding through
Kuwait's border. We saw the last
convoy still armed, roll to safety
and begin the long journey back
to where roads didn't hold IED's
in wait to destroy their friends
and cause them to shudder at each noise
Back to malls and the warm arms of
family
Back to the ease of Monday night football
and Saturday afternoon baseball

Back to barbecues and days around the pool
Back to the freedom they thought they were saving
fueled by the false fear of a political agenda
that pushed our best into the hot sands of Iraq.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu



August 27, 2010
Prompt: Use Whatever in the title and write poem about that


Whatever Happens will Happen

When I send it out there will be no fanfare
For it is an everyday thing to send an email
No matter the email has my life attached to it.
Whatever happens will happen
The story attached to the email has been

pulled from my mind in creative turmoil
Smoothed into existence and fine tuned
like a girl on her first date

But this girl’s been around
and knows the score
If you reject her she won’t lay down
like a defeated dog
Instead she will rise up and shine
after polishing and revision
rid her of the snags they found
But maybe they will hold hands
with her and savor the joy
oozed into each word as it
poured from my mind

Whatever happens will happen.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

Whatever…

A man rants false prophecies
while Lincoln’s statue looms over him
A reminder of real freedom
and the bravery of a one who walked
into danger and laid the path for others
And a man who walked upon it and found

himself on the steps next to Lincoln
The rightful place for MLK
a real prophet with a real dream

And fifty years later a bloated blowhard spouts lies
as his followers follow him like he were the
Messiah and listen as if his words were honey
But he spouts ribbons of hate

that leap into the crowd and bind
them, for in their minds they are patriots
They are fighting for their freedom

Knowing they had lived the dream all their
lives and now refused to accept MLK’s
dream had come to fruition.

And across town at the site consecrated by
the deeds of MLK were the ones who
had stood as guides as so many walked

the path to the dream
Celebrating the joy, the life, the awe of the
journey and the goodness of the man
as their speeches spread through the crowd
reminding all that hope was still alive

When freedom is attacked we must fight back

With truth and justice against the ribbons of hate
that wish only to twist the truth for their own ends
Spewed by false dreamers who wish to move the
country back to where some were separate but equal
and the color of skin mattered
As they twist the ribbons in their mind they vow to do
whatever it takes to get back that supremacy
While the ones who march for MLK’s dream

take a breath and say, “Whatever it takes”
And MLK wishes he were there standing next
to Lincoln and spreading the joy of hope.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

WHATEVER WILL BE WILL BE (for my husband on our anniversary)

We have traveled a long road together
since we pledged our love all those
years ago when we saw the future as
a green grass meadow we would skip
across to find our own version of Oz
Events haven’t gone our way
though your strong arms have been
there to soften those blows
When life imploded

your arms encircled me as if they
were breathing life into the husk of
my empty shell

I, the lion and you the bull, an unlikely pair
Tied together by a simple gold band
circling our fingers – the symbol of the

journey begun so many years ago when
you dropped to one knee on the horsepath
in Central Park and asked me to be with you
forever

Through too many moves and the joy of our daughters
Through times when I held your hand and prayed
so hard I thought the heavens would shake from
the effort. and I missed your arms around me
when I cried into my pillow still praying that you

would be spared as you lay there your heart healing,
incommunicado.

Resilient as a rubber band you have bounced back
time and again when life gave you sinkers
you hit them away like a baseball
All Star. And you were here tonight to celebrate our
life together though months before we thought
you had aged twenty years. Now you are back to

me though not the same I will still love you
For you were the boy who crept into my life when I
least expected and stole my heart and I gave it to you
as our future stretched ahead not knowing but
believing whatever will be will be.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

September 1, 2010

Prompt: Write: I’m going to set the world on fire


I’m shedding my good girl exterior
and donning my new virtual leather bustier

and studded collar to kick the ass of anyone
who keeps me from my dream

There’s no stopping me as I climb to the top
and light the match of joy
for all who wish to come with me
and follow the dream I seek
We will get on our virtual cycles
and tear up the internet with our
brand of truth and poetic justice
the flagbearers of freedom
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu


Come with Us (For Marie)

Come with us, Marie
Let your hair fly
as you ride your own
virtual cycle in your own path
Dream your own dreams
And fly over your own words
For we are together
a company of poets
whose lives create

images we must inscribe
From fireflies to lover’s passion
they flow liquid onto the screen

There for anyone to see
Our hearts and minds bared
nude to the world and at times
scraped bare as if the words have
seared off our flesh and exposed
the innermost layer of mottled skin

You are us and we are you
We write in free verse and haiku

We praise birds and trees, old lovers
and speak of events around us
They are our meat and we chew on
the muscle and gristle only to spit
it out in our own ways

We are poets
Flaming through each piece
with our own versions of passion and glee
Hoping to bring forth the words that
constantly swirl in our brains as we

watch this world and marvel at the joys
as we suffer from the sorrows.

We place our virtual arms around each other
For we are all the same
Our voices find the music so many ignore
in the darkness and the light
in the beauty and the trash
We live with a fire only we can understand

We are poets and that is enough
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu


DON’T REMIND ME OF FIRE

One night fire found me
Its constant companions smoke and chaos
surrounded me while it flamed
out of control poking out of windows
pushing into corners
Always moving
Climbing stairs and rolling over
bodies entwined in love

Fire doesn’t think
It places itself wherever there’s fuel
Licking the edges of elegant mansions
Or the sad cardboard lodging of the homeless
It’s the great measure of equality

And though I hid my eyes to stop the
scene in my mind the fire raged on

Blackening the outside as it destroyed
the inside in its mad mindless quest
Leaving in its wake the charred, burnt smelling wreck

Extinguished by the power of the hoses
it can be pushed into submission
But like a recalcitrant child its deeds survive
Though you may punish it and spray it out of existence
its pushy presence remains for days

Reminding one of the horror of its destructiveness.

Don’t remind me of fire.

copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

One thing I wanted to say was that one of these poems here fueled a political debate on the website. Some people decided that there was no reason to talk about war when the war is basically over. They thought that the poems were too political and decided to leave the poetry board on which I post. To this board's credit the discussion was very balanced and eventually we got back to writing poetry. Since this prompt on Fire caused some of my old feelings to stir it was very difficult for me. However, I don't think that praising soldiers is political. Also the poem that caused the furor, the one about MLK was only my take on a series of events on one day. My feeling is poets write their own feelings and that is why you can't judge poetry except on its own merit. If it makes you feel anything then it's good.:) So when people started arguing over my work I had mixed feelings. My first thought is always to make people happy. That's what I did. Therefore you see the poem about writing poetry. The other one is a poem in answerto the person who didn't like the idea of political poetry. So now you can go back and reread them and see them in a new way.:)

Look for my review of Nature Girl by Jane Kelley on the next blog. Jane is going to be my guest along with Sandro Isaack, the author of Stork MIA on Red River Writers Live Tales from the Pages on Thursday, September 24th at 3PM Central Time. She will also be a guest author on this blog soon. (Just click on the Blog Talk Radio icon on the sidebar and you will get there.)

Until the next time thank you to the new people who have visited and decided to follow this blog. Of course, thank you to my loyal readers.:) Sorry I haven't posted as much, but health issues related to my eyes have kept me very busy.:) I have a question for all of you.

What would cause you to feel that someone went beyond the limit in poetry? Would you be able to read a political poem that is not your point of view? How many of you are offended by any of the poems I posted here? Please leave a comment for me. I am really interested in knowing what you think for the future.:)

Poems for last week and this week and a peek at radio show guests

Vivian Zabel - publisher

4RV Publishing. My guests on

Red River Writers Live Tales from

the Pages on Thursday, June 24th.
Janie Franz - author of The Bowdancer series
Hear her on Red River Writers Live Tales from

the Pages on Thursday, June 24th.

This has been a very busy month for me. My husband's condition has pretty much occupied most days. He is a little better and more focused, but still he requires a great deal of attention. This month has been taken up by doctor's visits for him. He is set to go up to Boston in July to see not the top specialist but his second. The head of my husband's medical group is talking to the head of Massachusetts General to see if they can move it forward a little bit.

I can't believe that summer is coming next week! I am not ready for it at all, but I am going to try to get out to the pool. It sits there outside my window taunting me with happy people relaxing and enjoying themselves and making fun noises. But that will require buying a bathing suit, which is probably an entire blog post in itself.:)

I'm not here to write much, but I did want to post my poems from last Wednesday and my poem for this Wednesday's prompt. I have also been busy thinking about subbing my YA novel and I think that is going to happen this week! Yes, I am finally going to send it out and keeping my fingers crossed that this time it will be accepted. My luck has to change soon!!!

Meanwhile, here are the poems:

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Prompt from Poetic Asides website was choose 3 things you can see from your computer or laptop and write a poem about them:

new table, Betty Boop nurse doll, Balzac statue

In the course of events
a new table doesn’t compare to
winning the lottery or the joy of your
child’s first step

But for us the event, uncelebrated
as it was, brought a quiet happiness
replacing the trepidation we all felt
at mealtimes balancing paper plates
on knees while the Balzac statue
looked on safe on its temporary kitchen bar home

And the Betty Boop nurse doll, who had
survived inside the hermetic glass seal
of the antique china cabinet while smoke
invaded the place we used to call home,
must watch as a man twists in the vice
of his own body’s war upon him.

copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

More from my laptop

They traveled long distances
from their original home where
their angelic faces were painted
with delicate strokes – in perpetuity
dangling on the stone wall with goats
at their feet, maybe siblings or perhaps
close childhood friends. Such innocents
whisked from the chaos soon to come
in their homeland and carried across the
ocean to rest for years secure in a Queens
apartment. Bundled in cotton batting or
within old discarded pantyhose they journeyed
across the country, from Cortland to West Covina
Vestal to Buffalo resting at last in Queens again
chipped,diminished by the jostling of unconcerned
movers Long Island to Westchester plunked into
moving boxes until the last move when my numb
fingers wrapped them once more while I with breath
held prayed all would survive.

Steadfast they stand a shelf above a transparent preditor,
one who should be roaming verdant wilderness takes center
position on the first shelf its jaws closed
My birth stars dictate the symbol; form the core of my being.

Next to it viewed in profile its massive distinctive head
modeled from sand, painted black it had aged with white
spots ruining the smooth black fantasy. It’s haunches flat on the
shelf – perpetually guarding us all proud as the living model

These artifacts retain the loving
touches from gentle fingers
absorbing a family’s life.

(Hummel figure, glass lion, Newfoundland statue)

copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Prompt: Write a poem about being stuck.

Blocked Words

The words sit like polite guests
waiting for the moment to spring from my fingers
But that doesn’t come and instead they remain
in my brain unable to move until the right
order brings them forth

Meanwhile hands sit on the keyboard
while patient words bide their time
becoming unsettled and floating
Awaiting the moment when the right
sentence arranges itself

The first sentence, remains stuck
glued in the recesses of my cerebrum
Over run by Bthe clog of thoughts
surrounding it like the hair that
Keeps the water from draining

Recriminations, guilt, remorse
refuse to allow that fledgling sentence
to form – bullies disrupting the calm
Pain, distress and aggravation loose
themselves on the helpless words

that courageously form a line and storm
past the word bullies as the first sentence
appears and fingers bring it to life.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

Before I end this I wanted everyone to know about my June show for Red River Writers Live Tales from the Pages. I am going to have as my guests Janie Franz, who has visited here before as a guest author and finally Vivian Zabel publisher of 4RV Publishing. I always love having a guest that I have interviewed beforehand like last month with Eric Luper. Next Thursday's show should be great, because Janie's new work in the Bowdancer series is being published. Vivian will be talking about whether she is open to submissions and sharing a little bit of her list with us. 4RV Publishing publishes almost all kinds of genres. If you are interested in learning more about Vivian and 4RV this is a don't miss show. Vivian has a few books she has written that I'm sure we will be talking about on the show.

Until the next time thank you to any new readers. I'm so glad you decided to visit here. Also thank you to the readers who continue to come here to read my meanderings. Another giant hug to all the wonderful people who have sent me their thoughts and prayers and hugs. You are all the best and your support helps me so much!!!

Poems for Days 15, 16, 17, and 18

Picture for "To Be a Poet"

This week was very hectic due to needing to write a poem a day for April. So I didn't post them for the last four days. Also, my husband's health was not good at all. The doctor gave him a new medication after he got out of the hospital two weeks ago and it has been causing him to lose sleep and other things. The worst is how confused he seems and how angry he is about the confusion. He is going to the doctor tomorrow, I hope and we will finally get to the bottom of this mystery illness. They know he has high calcium, but they don't know what is causing it. The doctors keep trying to find the answer and wind up eliminating the diseases tested. But they never tell him what he has. So tomorrow he is going to make an appointment with a pulmonary doctor. You can add coughing to the list of symptoms he has. He has granulomas in his lungs that could be causing the cough. We'll see. I'll let you know when I know. In the meantime please pray for him. :) One of the poems I wrote is about his health problem.

For anyone who hasn't read my other posts all of the poems you see here and the other ones for Days 1-14 are also posted on Poetic Asides for Poem A Day.


April 15, 2010

Write a deadline poem

Deadline Day

We’ve folded and placed in the envelope
all the details of our existence
gleaned from magical math that
finds my piddly earnings somehow
too large to refund my money

I have done this too many times
rushing to the crowded post office
envelopes in hand stamped and addressed
Needing to verify they will arrive at their destination
with certified papers assuring their delivery

Hurry it’s 11:45 PM. Will we make it by midnight?
We fly to the car and race, palms sweating only
to find a line. The clock ticks off the minutes as
I bite my nails to the cuticles. At last at 11:59 we
reach the overworked postal worker and exactly
at midnight hand over our year’s financial history and watch it
drop into the outbox.

Next year we’ll do it the day before to avoid the crowds we say.
Repeating last year’s line word for word. We open the door into the
lobby and go against the crowd formed on the outside. I feel like I just landed
on the moon and will float away with the happiness that has replaced
my angst.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu



April 16, 2010

Write a poem about death of some kind:

Questioning Death (loosely based on Emily Dickinson’s “Because I Could Not Stop for Death”

When my time comes will Death come as a hot
guy in a tuxedo holding champagne and roses
Or will it be like the slide at the amusement park
a swift ride down a steep slippery slope?

Will he smell of Old Spice, take my hand
and walk with me like a lover?
Whisper tender words as he touches the small
of my back helping me into the gold Mercedes
in which we will ride toward the light?

Will I recognize him or will he introduce himself
Placing his calling card in front of me?
Tap dancing down the ruby encrusted path
as family and friends see the light go out of my eyes?

Unlike Emily I do not wish this. I would rather hide in
a safe room with the only key than be seduced by that
tempter. I will barricade myself before one inch of me.
falls into his spell. I already have a love – Life.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu



April 17, 2010

Write a poem about any aspect of Science

Science Stumped

It happened gradually
His energy waned and suddenly in front of me
stood a man who acted like 87 not his true
age of 67
His voice changed, grew hoarse along with
his disposition the crotchety croak of an invalid

Science intervened with blood tests and the
doctors placed him in the hospital for more
tests to be prodded and pricked, drained and chained
to a bed with a catheter to measure the liquid.

The diagnosis too much calcium in the blood seemed a
simple fix so they IV’d him and sent him home. Their work
was done, the level went down, so home he went with
drugs and vitamin D. Again probed and examined by his doctor
They increased dosage still not finding the root cause

Armed with charts and results the scientists continued to examine
with no results. As science ruled out cause after cause searching
for the reason for his cough, his lack of energy, his inability to focus
What changed this dynamo into a mewling sheep needing to have me
put on his socks? We wait as science deliberates his fate.
copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

April 18, 2010

To___________


To be a poet

If you listen to other people
The world is a different place for them
They ignore the beauty around them
In the growing grass they miss the bright yellow
dandelions and the rows of daffodils along the
roadsides. Each event they attend is seen on the
surface and not examined for images or emotions
Like my mind needs to constantly consider
Like the way the sound of the music reminds me
of a time years ago when I stood in a beer soaked
crowd with the smell of weed permeating the crowd
Lost in the sea of music and feeling like a piece of
a human ocean.

Or when I see the ocean its expanse brings me back
to the time when I spent an idyllic afternoon on the rocks
overlooking a cove on Long Island Sound
Or how the sun sparkled like diamonds on the choppy water
Or how the water had hues of aqua and green with a touch of
deep blue or how the horizon looked like someone drew
with purple charcoal on the sky

The face of a poet may not show the movies we show inside
for ourselves and try to express in words that never seem to
say what we have seen
Like a blurred photograph my words always seem to fall short
striving for the one word to bring it all together

copyright 2010 by Barbara Ehrentreu

OMG What a Week! Postcard Friendship Friday Too!

Okay, this is definitely not a postcard, but you can download it yourself from the website and have your own Don Draper staring at you from your desktop like I do now. I'm considering it a postcard, because he's definitely saying hello with his eyes. :) This is one picture I could keep looking at every day.:) The only problem is since it's vintage there is a cigarette in his right hand. But that is a mere period detail. As I remember from my childhood and teenage years everyone smoked including myself. I wonder how anyone could breathe.

Speaking of smoking, there was such a cachet about it. Anyway, the first episode of the third season of Mad Men comes on next Sunday and I am so excited. If you haven't seen any of the first two seasons I would definitely buy the DVD and cram it all in before Sunday. This is such a great show that manages to convey the feelings and environment of the early '60s. It is like an Xray into the lives of the people I always thought had a great life.

I'll never forget when I was looking for a summer job after my freshman year in college I went to some of these ad agencies to get a job. The carpet was plush and the walls were wood paneled. The furniture was comfortable. The waiting room was better looking than any living room I'd ever seen.:) If only I could have lied better I might have gotten the job, but I could never say with a straight face that I wasn't going back to school in the fall. I spent a lot of hot days walking the Manhattan pavement in three inch heels and then I had to go home to Queens on a hot subway train filled with sweaty miserable workers. They didn't have air conditioned trains yet and let me tell you it was like being in a moving gym. Yuck. I gave up and took a job in a camp where there was fresh air and I could be out of the city.:)

Anyway, getting back to Mad Men, the guy in the picture, Don Draper, is my idea of a perfect postcard. So I present that to you.:) Sorry to the guys out there who would rather I had put the female character up there. I think you can find the curvy one, Joan, at the website too.:) Enjoy and don't forget to grab your own screen saver at the Mad Men website. Also while you're there you can make an avatar of yourself as you might look as a Mad Men character. Here is mine. Notice that I have a coffee mug instead of a cocktail glass in my hand. That is because I thought the background was going to be an office. It's hard to see what the background is when you're doing it. But I like that, because it makes me look so innocent and that's just what I was around that time. I was a pretty late bloomer.:)

I never had a dress like that and my hair wasn't blonde, but other than that not a bad look don't you think? I really like the pointy eyeglasses and the neat red handbag too.:)

Wasn't this quite a week? I mean So You Think You Can Dance finally had a winner and I did like Jeanine. I voted for Evan, because he's so adorable and he can't help his short legs and arms. Actually my own father had the same kind of body, but he wasn't a dancer.LOL So I'm very happy with the results and thrilled that we are going to be able to see the live show when it comes to our area. My daughter got us tickets and we were so lucky to get them early. By the time she was finished checking out, the tickets had gone up to twice the price. Who knows what they are now.:) We saw the live show last year and it was amazing, but our seats were far away. We're a little closer this year. We saw the show again tonight, because my other daughter had missed it. When we looked at Kayla dancing we all realized she wasn't dancing with the same crispness and we think that ( and this is purely our opinion so don't go spreading it around, PLEASE!!!!) she might have hurt herself. Just our opinion because she seemed to be having problems with her right leg. As I mentioned before, though, it's our opinion. But if it turns out to be true then you can say you read it here first.:)

The other thing that happened this week is John Hughes, filmmaker, died. I just went back to check on which movie came first and I saw that he did "National Lampoon's Vacation" first, which I saw in the movies and loved. He not only wrote the screenplay, but he did the soundtrack for it too! After this he wrote and directed "Sixteen Candles" and then "Mr. Mom" which he wrote but didn't direct. Then he followed this with probably the quintessential movie of the '80s, "Breakfast Club", another Lampoon movie, "Weird Science", "Pretty in Pink", which he wrote and produced but didn't direct, "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" he wrote directed and produced, "Some Kind of Wonderful" he wrote and produced, "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" which he wrote, produced, directed and wrote the soundtrack for. I could go on and on with the films John Hughes wrote and produced or wrote and directed or pretty much did the whole film, but he made too many films.:)

I always loved John Hughes films because he made his characters so human. They had such problems and they were usually regular people. Also he used actors who were relatively unknown at the time in many of his films. He used Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Andrew McCarthy, James Spader, Matthew Broderick, Jon Cryer (then a complete unknown) and the list goes on and on. Yet he also used well known actors such as Steve Martin and John Candy and comedians like Chevy Chase. Hughes always treated women with the utmost respect even if they were in uncomfortable situations. He also provided a romantic element in almost every film. Who can forget when Judd Nelson put the diamond earring into his ear. Now that's romance.:) Okay, I could probably watch all of these films over and over and not get tired of them. Oh wait, I have.:)

John Hughes has been a part of our lives and we haven't realized it. Many of the expressions that have crept into our vernacular come from John Hughes films. Even the expectations that kids have today were forged from watching John Hughes films. Who wouldn't want a boyfriend like Molly Ringwald's in "Sixteen Candles"? The kiss across the birthday cake is what everyone woman dreams of having with her significant other. Why aren't all men like John Hughes characters? Hughes celebrated the small town and the teens who seemed to disappear into the woodwork. Probably the most isolated character he ever wrote was Ally Sheedy's character in "The Breakfast Club". Yet he treated her with an elegance and understanding that allowed her true personality to come out. I haven't seen any blog posts on John Hughes yet, but I am calling him an American film genius.

This is also the week I am getting feedback on my latest chapter for my WIP from my critique group. So far I've only gotten one person's comments and I'm hoping by the end of the weekend that everyone will have commented. It took me such a long time to write this chapter so I'm really waiting for the comments. I don't usually feel that anxious about my chapters, but when you've been working on a chapter for over a month and then finally you get it written and you sub it you expect to see your critique. Our group usually gets around to posting our comments, but I wish everyone would be a little faster about it. :) We've discussed this problem and have no solution. We have a reminder for the group and it goes out in the middle of the week and at the end. Sometimes we have to wait for over two weeks to get comments and then it overlaps. But I love my group so I can wait to see all of their reactions. It's just such a let down when you were hoping for their thoughts.

Speaking of writing, how many of you have dropped by the blog post about Jennifer Banash? If you leave a comment or a question you can win a free book. I know some of you come and read and don't comment. This time you can win a great book just by commenting. What are you waiting for? It doesn't have to be long to be in the drawing. Just jot down something and your name will be in the hat when I do the drawing for Jennifer Banash's new book, Simply Irresistible. I will be reviewing it on Monday for anyone who couldn't get a copy. Thank you to the three people so far who are in the drawing because they wrote a comment. You are the lucky ones so far.

New things you should know about me are that I have an interview by RD Larson on her blog. Also, I am now discussing being a host on a Blog Talk Radio show with another author. More about this when we are ready to go on the air.:) I'm excited, because I love to talk as well as write and I'll be talking with authors of all kinds. I'm looking for people who have short stories and poetry published as well as authors who have published books. I am also going to be interviewing writers who are looking to be published. I might be letting people give their three sentence pitch on the air. This is all in the planning stage so stay tuned to see what's happening. This is all due to April Robins and Red River Writers without which I would not have been on the radio twice.

Day 7 - Poem a Day - April 7, 2009

Today's prompt for the poem was to write first a poem that was about clean and then prompt #2 was to write a poem about dirty. I took an event from both angles, but I couldn't post my second poem. I am only posting the Clean one here too. If anyone is interested, I might share it privately with friends.:) Think romance book language.:)

Here it is and this is a very short blog, because I have to sleep sometimes and I'm tired from everything today. Big thanks to Shirley from Luxury Haven who sent me a fantastic recipe for chicken. You must go there and get it.:)

Also, I will be interviewing Katie Hines on Thursday, April 9th and we will be discussing her new children's book, Guardian, which is coming out in June. Here is some of her information.

Katie Hines
Children's Author
http://katiehines.blogspot.comFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/people/Katie-Hines/1442953493
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/katiehines
Coming June 2009 - "Guardian" a middle grade urban fantasy

Imagine you have made a secret promise that can lead you to an incredible treasure and an ancient power. But in order to fulfill that promise, you must defeat an age-old sect determined to claim the treasure and power themselves.

The prompt from Poetic Asides with Robert Brewer:

"Prompt #1: I want you to write a clean poem. Take this however you wish. Clean language, clean subject matter, or cleaning the dishes. Of course, some twisted few will automatically link "cleaning" with hired hitmen. That's okay, as long as your poem is somehow linked to clean."

Prompt #1 - Clean

The Meeting – Her Side

A statue come to life.
A clothed David alive in
Starbucks.
Tee shirt clinging to his
muscled chest

I held my breath
hoping he would glance
my way. And he did
Piercing blue eyes shot
like an arrow into my heart
Fascinating scenarios crept
into my head as I wished I were
unattached. Then I realized
I had stepped on his toe.
Glancing into that chiseled
face I saw a smile that
promised more.
copyright 2009 by Barbara Ehrentreu

Until the next time, Happy Passover to everyone who celebrates it. Thank you to my readers and hope that you will comment on this. Remember, there is another poem that I am not posting that I will let some people see if they ask. :)

Poem A Day - Poem for April 5, 2009

Today my poem is about a landmark close to my home called The Kensico Dam. It has a lot of history attached to it. Here is a picture of it. Also go here.

The prompt for today as found on Poetic Asides with Robert Brewer was: "I want you to write a poem about a landmark. It can be a famous landmark (like Mount Rushmore or the Sphinx) or a little more subdued (like the town water tower or an interesting sign)."

Here is my poem for the day:

The Kensico Dam
by Barbara Ehrentreu

We take it for granted as we
pass, since it's set off the road.
Drivers anxious to speed to
their destinations rarely look at
the spot.

You would never know that

behind the massive concrete wall
gallons and gallons of water created
a giant manmade lake filled with
glistening fish ripe for the taking
Or that boaters glide on this lake
unaware that if a hole formed
In the enormous wall and it crumbled
they might be careening over the people
walking and running in the space created
long ago when courageous men pushed
the water away and built the dam
Leaving a park, yards of green grass
and concrete pathways winding along
the Bronx River Parkway and around the
green in the shelter of the dam

It looks peaceful as the walkers
Go ‘round the square each day. If you go around
Four times it’s a mile. Dog walkers and
in line skaters, runners and those with
canes, the young and the old, bikers too,
take for granted the safety of the wall
Never realizing the danger behind it.

On summer weekends they hold Fair days

The park is alive with balloons and music.
Each ethnicity shows its
joy in itself and hawkers can sell their
wares while dancers entertain on the
portable stage. Ethnic foods available
depending on the culture, brightly garmented
women and men strolling past booths
with free give-aways.

They renovated the park last year
Built a stone memorial displaying photos of
turn of the century men who worked here
in North White Plains. When most of it was
forest and farms. If not for the workers who
toiled to make it happen, this park would never be.
And where would New York City get its water?
copyright 2009 by Barbara Ehrentreu

************************************************************************************

This week I will highlight another blog and it could be yours.:) Good news!!! Our winner of the free book from Tim Hooker is finally connected with Tim and will be receiving her book soon.:)

This leads into my announcement of my next guest author, Katie Hines, author of Guardian, which is coming out in May. She will be here on April 9th and we will again be offering a contest for a free book. So if you post a comment on that day or the day after you will be eligible. You might not get your book until the book is published, though. :) So stop by on Thursday, April 9, 2009 to learn more about Katie Hines.

Until the next time thank you to my readers and hope to see more

comments with your poems. I hope you are enjoying these poetry posts, because I am loving them!!!!