Letters for George: Shadormas For Our Times

Saturday, May 23, 2020

Shadormas For Our Times

Dear George,

I don’t intend to make this a coronavirus blog, but it’s all that’s on my mind these days. Mostly I’ve been working on a series of shadormas about the pandemic. A shadorma is allegedly a medieval Spanish poetic form that consists of 6 lines with 3/5/3/3/7/5 syllables per line. One shadorma can be a short poem, or you can string a series together as I’ve done here. I say allegedly Spanish because “shadorma” is not a Spanish word, and no one has ever discovered a Spanish poem from the Middle Ages that was written in this form. One skeptic speculates that shadormas were invented in recent years by a postal clerk who had too much time on his or her hands. Anyway, they are enjoyable to work on. Usually I prefer to write light, airy poems, but the dark side prevailed this time. It is what it is. I wonder if this is how others feel.

Love,

Dave

Shadormas For Our Times

Nasty beast

This COVID-19

Satan’s spawn

Spread by wind

Racing through the populace

Hunting you and me

Wuhan first

And then Seattle

World on fire

Lethal scourge

A lucky few will escape

A roll of the dice

Job losses

Businesses kaput

Store meltdowns

Bankruptcy

Recovery takes ten years

Most will not survive

Stick to rules

We’ll flatten the curve

Hospitals

In distress

Doctors, nurses lacking gear

Medical war zones

The elders

Nursing home patrons

Prisoners

Hispanics

African-Americans

COVID’s after them

Stay at home

The world is closed down

Malls shuttered

No pro sports

Large gatherings illegal

Cities are ghost towns

Keep apart

Six feet, maybe twelve

Handshakes out

No more hugs

In this disconnected age

Friends cannot be friends

Don our masks

Cover up the smiles

Faces veiled

Muffled breath

Neighbors look like terrorists

I avert my eyes

Will we die?

Maybe, we’ll know soon

Eighty-two

Weakened lungs

A profile the virus craves

Hide in the bedroom

At the store

Peril from all sides

Crowded aisles

Few wear masks

Surfaces are festering

Illness resting there

Flawed leaders

Failure at the top

Denial

Nonstop lies

No regard for human life

Politics, that’s it

Drink Chlorox

Bleach will kill the germs

Shrinks them up

Roasts their skin

Covid Nineteen turns to ash

Sadly so will you

This lockdown

My spouse won’t have it

Rambunctious

Unrestrained

Off she goes to Fresh Market

Picking out new germs

Years to go

For this pandemic

Dastardly

Worse than SARS

Worst of all for folks like us

Will our lives come back?

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-POSTING SCHEDULE

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-SOURCES: Personal photos (e.g., family) are by myself or sometimes by another family member. Nonpersonal photos are usually obtained through Google Images. Nonpersonal factual info most frequently comes from Wikipedia and external links available there or from Google searches. Typically I cite sources at the end of the post. If you want to know a source and haven't located it through info I provide, Wikipedia, Google, or Google Images, please let me know at lundgrdc@gmail.com, and I should be able to help.

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-MORE OF MY POEMS: www.funnypoemsmaybe.blogspot.com

-NAMES: At my family members' request, I use "L" rather than our full last name and sometimes initials for first names. Where there's content deemed personal in a story, I may use pseudonyms.

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PROMINENT CINCINNATIANS

PROMINENT CINCINNATIANS

George Rieveschl was born in 1916 in Lockland, Ohio, the son of a paper mill worker and his wife. In 1933 he graduated from the Ohio Mechanics Institute and began looking for work in commercial art. With no success, he returned to study chemistry at the University of Cincinnati, earning his B.S. in 1937, an M.S. in 1939, and a doctorate in 1940. Joining the UC chemistry faculty, his research resulted in the discovery of Benadryl, an antihistamine used for allergy sufferers. Rieveschl left UC in 1943 and worked for Parke, Davis and Co. Returning to UC in 1970, he took a position as vice president of research. (NY Times; Ohio History Central)

JAZZ ALL-STARS

JAZZ ALL-STARS

Ron Carter (b. May 4, 1937, Ferndale, MI; jazz; double bass, cello, Piccolo bass, electric bass; active 1960-present; associates: Chico Hamilton, Cannonball Adderly, Randy Weston, Bobby Timmons, Thelonious Monk, Eric Dolphy, Mal Waldron, Miles Davis, Hank Jones, Houston Person, Art Farmer, Herbie Hancock; labels: Blue Note, CTI, Embryo, Milestone, Prestige, Sunnyside; 2,221 recording sessions, most-recorded bassist in jazz history; 3 Grammys; Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame (2012). (wikipedia)

EVERYDAY FOIBLES

EVERYDAY FOIBLES

Our Sunday morning tradition of brunch at Frisch’s came to an end with the pandemic, and we finally returned a while back. The restaurant was nearly empty, and every other table had a big sign that said “Closed”. The hostess was masked, and so were we. She gave us paper disposable menus and said we should pick our own table or booth. There was a bar code on the wall which allowed one to order and pay for their meal with their cell phone, but the waitress (formerly the hostess) did come and take our order. We had plastic silverware and two jelly containers each. The food didn’t taste as good as we remembered, and the prices were much higher. It took a long time for somebody to come to the cash register at the end of our meal. We’d ventured out thinking the pandemic was over, but I’m afraid we were wrong.

TENNIS GREATS

TENNIS GREATS

Henri Cochet (b. 12-14-01, Villeurbanne, France; d. 4-1-87, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France; 5-6, right-handed (one-handed backhand); amateur, 1920-1933; pro 1933-58); 684-186 W-L (78.6%), 90 career titles; ranked No. 1 (1928); Winner US Open (1928), Wimbledon (1927, 29), French (1926, 28, 30, 32); winner of 22 majors; a member of the famous “Four Musketeers” from France (Cochet, Rene Lacoste, Jean Borotra, Jacques Brugnon) who won 10 titles in 11 years at the French Championships (1922-32). (wikipedia)

MENOMINEE FOUNDERS

MENOMINEE FOUNDERS

Augusta Jane Chandler was born at Freedom, Maine, on Nov. 6, 1837, and moved with her family to Flat Rock, Mich., in the early 1850’s where her father and uncle engaged in lumbering. She married William Holmes, later the mayor of Menominee, in Flat Rock in 1859 and moved to Menominee shortly afterward. According to the Evening Leader, “She is honored and beloved by all who know her, and presides over her lovely home with becoming grace.” Mr. and Mrs. Holmes were among the founding members of the First Presbyterian Church in Menominee, and they raised six children. (Menominee Evening Leader, Industrial Number, 1899, p. 21.)

FAVORITE VACATION PLACES

FAVORITE VACATION PLACES

We lived in Ann Arbor for six years in the 1960’s so return visits these days are filled with lots of nostalgia. Our number one stop is Zingerman’s Delicatessen where Katja always buys some bread and other goodies to bring home. Zingerman’s is quite near to the Kerrytown markets which offer a great thrift shop. Tne University of Michigan campus is a pleasant place for walking, and its adjacent business districts to the east and the west offer high-end shops, bookstores, and good restaurants. A great place to visit.

THE HISTORY OF YELLOW SPRINGS

THE HISTORY OF YELLOW SPRINGS

The first white residents of what is now Yellow Springs, Ohio, arrived in the first decade of the eighteenth century, but the community did not begin to grow until the arrival of followers of Robert Owen in 1825. A hundred families came to Yellow Springs, hoping to create a utopian community based on socialism, although the utopian vision never clearly developed. Yellow Springs received its name from a nearby spring with high iron content, and people from across the U.S. visited the community hoping the spring water would cure their ailments. Antioch College was founded by the Christian Church in 1852, with nationally prominent education expert Horace Mann as its first president. (ohiohistorycentral.org)

MY WEEK (Mon., 11/11 - Sun., 11/17/24)

MY WEEK (Mon., 11/11 - Sun., 11/17/24)

I finally returned to the fitness center after a month’s vacation due to my cold. I read “I’m Just Crazy About Lawrence Welk” at my last poetry class, and Katja finished Jennifer’s lit class. Iko had his annual wellness examat the vet. Trump continued with awful cabinet nominees, including Matt Goetz and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. We watched a night of boxing, culminating with Jake Paul beating Mike Tyson in 8 rounds. There was a robbery at the bank across the street, and I think the getaway vehicle was parked in our driveway. I saw the Golden Ticket show at CCAC, and we went to our first symphony concert of the season (Bernstein, Shostakovich). The Bengals made a great comeback but lost at the end to the L.A. Chargers.

JAZZ ALL-STARS

JAZZ ALL-STARS

Ron Carter (b. May 4, 1937, Ferndale, MI; jazz; double bass, cello, Piccolo bass, electric bass; active 1960-present; associates: Chico Hamilton, Cannonball Adderly, Randy Weston, Bobby Timmons, Thelonious Monk, Eric Dolphy, Mal Waldron, Miles Davis, Hank Jones, Houston Person, Art Farmer, Herbie Hancock; labels: Blue Note, CTI, Embryo, Milestone, Prestige, Sunnyside; 2,221 recording sessions, most-recorded bassist in jazz history; 3 Grammys; Downbeat Jazz Hall of Fame (2012). (wikipedia)