Hot Reads & Other Stuff

The wind is blowing fiercely outside whipping the trees into a frenzy. The wind chimes are clanging merrily, though, giving quite the serenade. All the little birds at the bird feeder are puffed out. I guess they’re trying to stay warm in the cold wind. It’s grey. Another grey day. Every time we have one of these days in NOLA it reinforces how glad I am that I don’t live where winters are harsh. Day upon day of greyness would do me in for sure. I don’t mind the occasional gloomy day – sometimes it’s nice to cuddle up on … Continue reading Hot Reads & Other Stuff

Less is more at 5:30 am

At 5:30 every morning I get up to put drops in my dog Buddy’s eye. He had cataract surgery on December 7th and part of the aftercare is seven different drops at different times around the clock. Well, some of them coincide but you get the picture. He’s doing great, btw, finally able to see well enough to resume our daily walks which makes us both happy. Anyway, at 5am he has three drops that are given five minutes apart so in the five minute waiting periods I look at my iPad. Seems a theme has emerged this morning: less. … Continue reading Less is more at 5:30 am

Receding Matter

  Grey day, indistinct edges fade into tendrils of forgotten thoughts. The birth caul over baby’s face, the thud of dirt on crone’s coffin, everything in between so much receding matter. Ancient burial grounds fester beneath glass and concrete as the living replace the dead, decade upon decade. Water drips, minutes absorbed into earth. The juju beads hold no sway here. **** I don’t know why I write more on gloomy days. Continue reading Receding Matter

Recent Published Poems

Two of my poems, Hynopompia and Sustenance, were published in the Winter 2015 issue of Olentangy Review,  a journal that’s published astonishing writing for many years. Big thanks to Melissa and Daryl Price for supporting and publishing my work. My first publication of 2016, Away, is in Right Hand Pointing, an online journal publishing since 2004, which is forever online. Thanks to Laura Kaminski, editor, who is an accomplished poet in her own right.  I am a huge fan of her work. I am excited and humbled to be included with the talented poets in these issues. Continue reading Recent Published Poems

Charlotte’s Top Five

It’s end/beginning of year – list time! Although list posts are multiplying like rabbits online, I’ll go ahead and post my second annual Top Fives in books, movies, TV, and music. Note that these are not books, movies, TV, and music that debuted in 2015 but my personal Top Fives which means, although I’m not a slave to current pop culture, I am highly interested in good books, good movies, good TV, and good music regardless of when it was created. In addition, I’m posting my Top Five wanna-sees and wanna-reads for 2016. Wanna-listen is dependent upon mood. Here we … Continue reading Charlotte’s Top Five

Hot Reads & Other Things

So I had really planned to have a good dozen links to a good dozen poems and stories for this post, but then, life happened. I’m flexible, though, and decided to go with what I have because the two flash fictions, one video-poem, and one text poem here are dynamite.  You just can’t get any better than these. So, forthwith: “Hands” by Tara Isabel Zambrano in The Sonder Review and Fictionaut. “I stay up all night. I write. I give up cashews and pistachios. I spend my time looking at his things wishing they were gone too. My only sliver of comfort about … Continue reading Hot Reads & Other Things