What Does "The Internet of Things" Mean to You?

The Internet of Things

by Rachel Hoyt

image by bluebay

It's open to anyone and anything -

A network of both nothing and everything,

A world where both bad and good sink or sprout wings,

A place where our wants and needs gallop and sing,

A sacred dreamscape of imaginable things.

Copyright © 2015 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

This poem was inspired by two growing trends:

buying traffic and shifting blame for using ads to meet ends.

 

When Was the Last Time You Felt Awe?

Awe

by Rachel Hoyt

image by suphakit73

Along the way

wonder can stray,

end up on glassy ponds.

Amazing things

whip off of wings,

end up inside bird songs.

A night pitch dark

warms with one spark,

each light a sparkling hook.

Always around,

we seek, it's found,

each time we stop to look.

Copyright © 2015 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

This poem was inspired by an article on Jezebel about the importance of experiencing awe. Recent studies have shown it can make you a nicer person.

Technorati Tags: Awe, Wonder, Poem, Rhyme, Nice, Poetry

What Do the California Drought and NaPoWriMo Have in Common? These poems!

Since Governor Jerry Brown ordered Californians to cut back their water use by 25% on the dawn of National Poetry Month, I thought we might write some poems in honor of the drought to help motivate the masses. I've written a few rhymes which you may feel free to pass out for Poem in Your Pocket Day (Friday, April 24th). Or, use them as inspiration to write your own poem. If you need a bit of news to get your creative juices flowing, I recommend this article about how to survive a major drought or this one on water rights.

image by sritangphoto

Pure Genius

by Rachel Hoyt

One quite thirsty entrepreneur

bought water rights just to ensure

the world would drink up

his "thing", fill their cups,

and agree that one pays for what's pure.

2015 Drought

by Rachel Hoyt

The twenty-fifteen drought

made Californian's pout -

their golden state renewed,

their riches far eschewed.

Drought Acrostic

by Rachel Hoyt

Dollars can't buy more sense.

Rinse off your want for Earth.

Order can make times tense,

Unless you feel their worth.

Give thanks for every drip.

Hang on - firm, gentle grip.

To stay half full, don't slip.

Poems Copyright © 2015 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

Everything's Fishy In The Fish Business

Fishy Business

by Rachel Hoyt

image by olovedogs via freedigitalphotos.net

Wild fish,

Farm fish,

White fish,

Hued fish -

Mislabeled,

Finagled -

Slick impostors

Fill the rosters.

Mild fish,

Charm fish,

Fright fish,

Lewd fish -

Exposing,

Proposing -

It's all fishy,

Smelly, squishy...

Copyright © 2014 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

Are you sure the fish you eat is the type you think it is?

Apparently, there's a lot of bait and switch in the seafood biz.

Technorati Tags: Fish/span>, Fake, Poem, Rhyme, Thoughts, Poetry

What Does Trash Say to Mother Earth Each Day?

Trash Talk

by Rachel Hoyt

image by artur84 via freedigitalphotos.net

Our remnants talk back.

They smack and nag,

flaunting their right to still be:

"You're not my mother,"

says the old bag

floating deep down in the sea.

"I'm no man's brother,"

shouts the sharp frag

flying through space furiously.

"I'm no one's lover,"

grunts the worn tag

fuming within Mt. Debris.

Copyright © 2014 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

This poem was inspired by the many piles of trash on Earth -

in the ocean, on the land, and in space  - spoiling her worth.

Technorati Tags: Trash, Earth Day, Poem, Rhyme, Think, Poetry

Poetry Prompt - Crambo aka Bouts Rimés

In honor of National Poetry Writing Month, I'm bringing back a Friday tradition.  Bouts Rimés means "rhymed ends" in French and is a game or challenge where one person (me) makes a list of rhymed words and others (you) write the lines that end with those rhymes, in the same order in which they were given. It was known as Crambo in English and was quite popular in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Will you help me bring back this hip historical habit?

Wall

Drip 

Gall

Slip

Fall

Lip

Above are the words.

Get writing rhyme nerds!

There will be no winner. This is just for fun

and the joy of rhyming a smile for everyone.

A California Walnut Farm That Emulates Sustainability

Sustainability

by Rachel Hoyt

image by watiporn via freedigitalphotos.net

Sustainability

Understands what we need,

Supports the greater we,

Tames impatience and greed,

Asks the sun to shine free,

Invites the wind to blow,

Nurtures our trash with glee,

Annexes water's flow,

Believes in harmony,

Impedes daft destruction,

Looks for what should, could be,

Inspires waste reduction,

Tries to think like a seed,

Yearns for Earth to be freed.

© 2013 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

This news about a California walnut farm inspired me

to write an acrostic poem about sustainability.

Technorati Tags: Sustainability, Farming, Recycle, Rhyme, Poem, Poetry

A Poem Pondering Off-Shore Fracking

Sinking Feeling

by Rachel Hoyt

 

 image by sakhorn38 via freedigitalphotos.net

 

I've got a sinking feeling

that we're sinking our own ship.

Although some hands are reeling,

on the sails they have no grip.

 

Pirates plunder the shallows

digging for buried treasure,

hoping the sea won't swallow

them and their sordid pleasures.

 

Nearby on sailboats, speed boats,

and yachts we sail along blind,

hoping that innocence floats

and ignorance calms the mind.

 

Deep down below bubbles hope,

a vital resource and glue

which bursts when prodded or groped,

dropping all it held onto.

 

I stand on land protected

by valiant hands dense with love,

gazing at seas injected

by greedy forces from above.

 

My ship is anchored, for now,

if yours sinks will mine follow?

Will the sea warn me somehow,

before it starts to swallow?

 

© 2013 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

 

 

After reading of a sink hole that is slowly swallowing a town,

I was glad to know that nearby fracking was mostly shut down.

If only the ocean nearby was ruled by those whom it could drown...

A Poem Inspired by Edward Snowden and Other Leaks

The Leak

by Rachel Hoyt

 

image by Jomphong via freedigitalphotos.net

 

 

I heard it in the drip,

"A leak is like a rip.

Once one drop gets to speak,

the flow will never be weak.

Drips enjoy splashing about,

helping leaks really spill out.

Once the pool starts to form,

spilling becomes the norm.

The first drip gets the blame,

though all drops fall the same."

 

© 2013 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

 

 

Snowden started the leak that now flows,

but is his leak worse than the ones that followed?

Thursday Thoughts - An Allegory for Reporting, Journalism, and Spying

A Fly On The Wall Allegory

by Rachel Hoyt

image by idea go via freedigitalphotos.net

Fireflies flew out of his mouth

and sparkled around the room.

Lucid eyes stared vacantly south,

hunting for things to consume.

Soft glowing lights made the eyes see

the shelf of sad, empty jars.

Pots growing hands grabbed them quickly,

like they were precious rocks from Mars.

Empty glass jars soon became full

of blinking lights held in jail.

Hands of sass screwed lids tight - heave, pull -

**boom** just turtles in sparkling hail?

© 2013 Rachel Hoyt. All rights reserved.

It's not safe to be a fly on the wall

or possibly to know secrets at all.

Read here about reporting's fall.

Technorati Tags: Words, Journalism, Poem, Rhyme, Write, Poetry

Friday Fun Day - Crambo aka Bouts Rimés - Bunbury

Bouts Rimés means "rhymed ends" in French and is a game or challenge where one person (me) makes a list of rhymed words and others (you) write the lines that end with those rhymes, in the same order in which they were given. It was known as Crambo in English and was quite popular in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.  Will you help me bring back this hip historical habit?

 

Here's a photo I took of a little shelled friend I visit sometimes when my thoughts need to bend.  Use it with your poem if you like or tell us of your 'friend' who causes creative spikes.

 

 

 

Bunbury

Imaginary

Fantasy

Audacity

Traveling

Unraveling

Memory

Trajectory

 

 

Above are the words.

Get writing rhyme nerds!

There will be no winner.  This is just for fun.
If you will, rhyme a smile here for everyone.