REVIEW OF STELLAR POSSIBILITIES by John J. Dunphy

STELLAR POSSIBILITIES
Author: John J. Dunphy
Illustrator: 7ARS
Sam's Dot Publishing
[see bottom of post for ordering information]

You may have read my review of Dunphy's book, "Old Soldiers Fading Away," a serious collection of haiku and other small poetry forms. "Stellar Possibilities" is a very different collection of small forms, almost entirely scifaiku (haiku-based scfi-fi/fantasy form), with a decidedly humorous bent overall:

his turn to bowl -
the alien rolls a ball
in every lane

prom night
her alien date's boutonniere
growing from his chest

This is a good point at which to mention the illustrations by 7ARS, that so delightfully puncutate many of Dunphy's humorous poems.

Then there are surprise, more serious gems, such as:

cemetery
where once Dad's tombstone stood
his hologram

child's burial
weeping next to the parents
the android nanny

Dunphy's scifaiku also invite us to think about how future changes may effect us:

jury selection
prosecutor objects to
the defendant's clone

baptismal water
on the alien infant's forehead
sizzling

The book ultimately left me feeling I'd not so much explored the future or met charming and intriguing aliens (though these do abound), as been offered fresh views of here and now:

meteor shower
even more stunning seen from
another planet

Sometimes we have to leave "home" to fully appreciate and know it. This book offers us just such an opportunity, while also providing a fun, imaginative ride.

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PLEASE NOTE: Copies can be purchased through the author at:

The Second Reading Book Shop
16 East Broadway
Alton, IL 62002
$6.00, plus $1.00 postage
Illinois residents, please include 7.1% sales tax.
Out of USA, query for shipping rates.
Phone orders: 618-462-2830, Mastercard and Visa accepted.

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‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.

YOU MIGHT BE OLDER THAN DIRT, IF....

This picture is from an ad in a catalogue with all sorts of t-shirts. I've had it in my journal for ages for a quick fix when I need a good laugh.

I must be older than dirt, as the only one that doesn't totally apply to me is number 8. However, I am familiar with the brand name, though I never owned a pair. Out of curiosity I googled "P.F. Flyers" and the site says they are "canvas shoes with a posture foundation." LOL! I.e., sneakers, and the earliest had high tops, no less (at least from the pictures I saw).

As to the others, I clearly recall making myself sick on candy cigarettes and the sickly sweet liquid in the wax Coke-shaped bottles. I'd even then chew on the wax.

I loved all kinds of gum (Bazooka bubble gum -- yum), though blackjack was a bit too saliva inducing even for me.

Not only do I remember home delivery of milk in glass bottles, but on the same front porch the milk was left, stood an ice box. Yes, an ice box, not a refrigerator. The block of ice for it was also delivered on that same wooden front porch.

I remember what must have been the transition time from party-lines to single-user lines, as we never had a party-line. But I recall being surprised when a school friend's family did and I had to wait to call home for permission to stay over for dinner.

Not only do I remember those black and white newsreels, but I fondly recall double-features being the norm. You always got to see two movies.

And those telephone numbers with word prefixes? Oh, yes. I recall specifically "Ravenswood" and "Astoria," for example.

S&H Green Stamps! They almost caused a war in our household. Some of us would remember to save them and put them in the proper jar in the kitchen with the booklet they got glued into. Others would not and those who did felt we'd get cheated. :-D

Other memories of older-than-dirt times? Those old heavy black (land line, for any youngsters reading this) phones, with those slow rotary dials (d-d-d-d-d - shoosh --- di--shoosh -- ddd-ddd-d-d- shoosh). My father insisting they would never invent color T.V. Telegrams as a normal and usual way of contacting someone quickly when the news or greeting was of great import.

Ah, well, enough wandering down memory lane. I have future blog posts to work on and a lunch to make. If you are older-than-dirt, or close to it, what memories do you have? Leave a comment, if you'd like. I'm feeling nostalgic, in a good way for a change.

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‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.

ALL DAILY DREAMKU POSTED IN FEBRUARY 2007

The Two of Swords in The Maat Tarot, used by permission

The dreamku I chose for this month are a rather diverse mix of moods, maybe a bit more than usual, leaving me unable to determine an overall tone. So that's why I chose the card above representing stalement or balance, The Two of Swords.

Continuing on that theme of "two," you'll note around Valentine's Day a series of double dreamkus, followed by a single dreamku referencing two couples and "double exposure." I think my first choice of a pair of dreamku to post was unconsciously influenced by the coming of Valentine's Day. But, more importantly, I think all these pairs may have had to do with the dream symbolism of twins or pairs, such as appears in the dreamku: different glyphs//both mean butterfly//double new first name. I think it was Jung who said twins in a dream represent something new in the psyche that is not conscious yet. So it is both us and not us. Oy, may it be conscious soon! It's a long, uncomfortable birth.

ALL DAILY DREAM HAIKU POSTED IN FEBRUARY 2007


February 1, 2007

we’re too free minded
to be let on the train
camped by the tracks



February 2, 2007

he flirts
then asks if she’s dying
her hunger



February 3, 2007

cleaning up
she steals the tiny Tarots
back from them



February 4, 2007

ah, it wasn’t stolen!
I left it in
this cubby hole



February 5, 2007

he washes my back
how to keep the water
from draining away



February 6, 2007

I watch
the woman named Herring –
red-faced



February 7, 2007

she’s not listening
and I feel invisible
carnival side show



February 8, 2007

she puts in contacts
to hide her drugged eyes
assignation



February 9, 2007

my male feet
compete and turn me on
end game



February 10, 2007

compelling traces
the writing on the wall
morphs into this



February 11, 2007

On Names and Pairs (from the same dream):

the old woman says
they'll help me one more time
giver of names

different glyphs
both mean butterfly
double new first name



February 12, 2007

A Pair of Lights (from the same dream):

a community
lives around the lighthouse --
she belittles

I build my light
into a full-size lighthouse
fertile earth



February 13, 2007

Deja Vu (from dreams months apart):

the urge to help --
will he let me
dance with him

no one dances
together anymore
walking on eggs



February 14, 2007

What A Pair! (from dreams months apart):

she can't see
past his blindness
their ships pass again

he says he's sorry
as does she
only in a dream



February 15, 2007

each man of two couples
comforts his mate
double exposure



February 16, 2007

led up the endless
ladder into the night
her shiny boots



February 17, 2007

the serpent-dog
sidles up to my breast
et tu?



February 18, 2007

the girl attacks me
as I try to save her
echoing hallway



February 19, 2007

we reassemble him
on strings in his giant form
so many gaps



February 20, 2007

we ride a donkey down
with two tiger kittens
cliff’s edge



February 21, 2007

they put me in a
locked metal box with flowers
the giant gulps it



February 22, 2007

she comes back to life
we all restrain our feelings
cold breakfast



February 23, 2007

a gold fish’s
open mouth against the glass
ancient lure



February 24, 2007

well-formed but too small
the head, neck, and shoulders
of the horse she sculpts



February 25, 2007

the smart cat
wrestles the stuffed one down
data search



February 26, 2007

elevator free fall
limbs straight out I jam myself
above the floor



February 27, 2007

garden labyrinth
Archangel Michael protects
Satan and the boy



February 28, 2007

he flirts
but still owes me --
cash only


* * * *

‘til next time, keep dreaming,

Roswila
[aka: Patricia Kelly]
****If you wish to copy or use any of my writing or poems, please email me for permission (under “View my complete profile”)****My other blog: ROSWILA’S TAROT GALLERY & JOURNAL.