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13 May: Journal of Thoughts
The Neighbour’s Window Installation (or how to snoop and call it poetry) scaffolding bolted. Carol brings outa tray of steaming mugs,labels swinging on thread,teabags left in. builder’s tea. half past eight. “over there,”a man points. he’s dressedfor chilly mornings,his breath clouding the air. a young guy carrieswindow framestwo panes each — says nothing,paces slowlyback to…
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12 May: Six Sentence Story
Part 10: Brigid’s Diary, Valence’s Saturday Market Spring 1836: Sun broke over Valence like pardon too easily granted; the Rhône ran molten and bright, the air rinsed so clean of coal smoke that it felt like a trick. Beyond it, the cathedral held its spine against the sky while the market spilled colour into the…
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1105: The Liturgy
Episode 10: Liturgy for the Saturday Market Valence, 1836: Where hunger measures every stranger I. The Root The people of Valenceare rooted in hunger — missed meals,children whose ribslearn to count themselvesbefore they learn their letters. This hunger speaks.And calculates. Every loafa fraction.Every coina remainder.Every strangera divisor in an equationalready too tight. Hunger empties the…
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The Old Woman With No Cat
The St Malo Sardine Incident(Or: A Feline Foreign Policy) The Old Woman stands at the counter in St. Malo,a case of sardines in lemony oiltucked under her arm,her wallet slightly lighter,her heart slightly french. The shopkeeper smiles.“A good choice, madame. For a special occasion?” She thinks of the cat,not hers, never hers,waiting on the windowsill,tail…
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Ten Things of Thankful
Just back home from a week road trip to Normandy in France. We drove our little electric car, and only once did I growl at Peder about not letting the battery drop below 15%. I love France. Love Normandy. The scenery. The history, that’s so closely tied to England. The food. The Food!! Amazing. So…
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6 May: dVerse Quadrille
Forty-Four Blooming Words a populationof self-seeded daisieson French verges. common,persistent,blooming anyway. no gardener names them,no border holds them;they take what is given. small faces turnto passing cars,white as breath,bright as forgetting, rooted where chancedecidedbeauty isenough. Written for dVerse Poets’ Quadrille: bloom ©Misky 2006-2026.
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5 May: Journal of Thoughts
The Captain A child sinks a shipwithout hesitation. The crew must be saved.The story requires it. The captain goes downwith quiet agreement; no trial,no question,no second thought. It is not cruelty. It is order in a child’s mind. A hand lifts survivorsfrom the water,sets them safely asideon the bathtub’s rim. The rest is allowedto disappear.…
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The Old Woman With No Cat
The Cat’s Nocturnal Quest (Or: a brief romance in three acts) ACT I: THE EXIT“Don’t wait up, old woman,” he purrs,tail held high like a banner of mischief.“I have… errands.Of a personal nature.Involves a wicked womanand a well-stocked pantry.” ACT II: THE RETURNDawn finds him back on the windowsill,whiskers tipped with cream,a single sardine tin…
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0205: Journal of Thoughts
5:30am, 2 May — Newhaven Ferry Terminal the house still holds nightin its corners. kettle breath,zips closing,the quiet certaintyof leaving. by eight,the ferry will loosen the landfrom beneath us. sea wideninglike a thoughtwe’ve decided to follow. I have packedfor French rain,for winds that speak lightly, and left a small, deliberate space for tins of sardinesin…
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0105: Journal of Thoughts
7:30pm, 1 May (Beltane) Car Packed and Ready once,I would have lain awakeon the edge of leaving, maps bright behind my eyes,the pull of elsewherelike a tide I couldn’t ignore. now, I sleep. because the road is known,the ferry a familiar hingebetween two roomsthat I have lived in long enoughto forget which one is mine.…
It's Still Life 