The Lonely Meatball

Other Things # 26 – My Pandemic Anniversaries

I felt I had to post something today because it is the one-year anniversary of my first post on The Lonely Meatball. I began my blog to help get me through this depressing period in all our lives, the Covid 19 Pandemic.

In October, the other important anniversary I’ve had during the pandemic is my Silver Wedding Anniversary. Nathan and I weren’t able to travel as we had hoped for this “milestone”, but we had our dear friends, Laurie and Jim, over for dinner, and they took this picture of us in my husband’s shop.

Had it not been for the pandemic, I probably wouldn’t have considered blogging. WD Fyfe actually gave me the idea, along with some guidance, and so I thank him especially. When I began the blog, I had a stash of old poems that had been sitting in a drawer for a few decades, and I hadn’t written a children’s poem in about 17 years. Now, I’m back to writing them because I do want to maintain the blog. It also feels good to be writing again.

My weird little illustrations are something I started because I had been told that “graphics” add to a post. They’re fun for me to draw and I’ve rediscovered that I love colouring. My ability to draw, as you can see, is limited, and it was likewise limited when I was a child. However, I would sit for hours and draw pictures of a fashion model duck, named “Klukes”. Why I called her that, I will never know, but I do know why she was a highly “stylized” duck — I couldn’t draw human faces well enough to satisfy my “standards” so I went with the duck.

Klukes had the body of a curvaceous woman as well as a fantastic head of hair. Her face was always in profile so you could see her incredibly long eyelash (I assume there were more) on the one bizarrely large eye you were able to see. (Remember, she was in profile consistently.) When I think about it, the one thing that truly set her apart from a human form was her beak. However, if a beak can be pouty, it was. As I recall, she had no neck. Being a fashion model, she was always in a fabulous outfit, and I would color those outfits joyfully. Her dress or skirt was long because little girls love long dresses. She had various hairdos as well. Without fail, there was a story running in my head, page after page, as I drew Klukes, and I loved her and those hours spent with her. One of my regrets in life is that I threw out all those old notepads full of Klukes. She does live in my memory, however, and so I have drawn her for you.

Ultimately, I do thank you for following and/or visiting my blog in the last year, and thank you especially for leaving comments and “likes”. Your readership has meant a great deal to me in what I know has been a challenging time for us all.

The Blanket Tent

I made a tent beside the couch

with my big brother, Nate,

and everything about our tent

was absolutely great.

We used some blankets from our rooms

and chairs to hold them up,

and crawled inside when it was done

with Sonny who’s our pup.

We asked our mom if we could sleep

together in our tent.

We were excited ‘bout the night —

I thought we’d be content.

We got our sleeping bags rolled out

and everything was right.

We got inside our sleeping bags,

and we began our night.

I said, “Tell me a story, please.”

Nate said, “This story’s true.”

He said, “Our house is haunted.”

I said, “I had no clue.”

“Our folks say it’s a secret

and you, I shouldn’t have told,”

said Nate, “but you’re my brother.”

I felt my blood run cold.

Nate told me all the details

before he went to sleep.

I listened to him breathing

and from our tent did creep.

I’ve never been so frightened,

and I was frightened bad,

and cause I couldn’t stop shaking,

I slept with Mom and Dad.

Nate had to take our tent down

and tell me that he lied.

He told me he was sorry,

so I was satisfied.

Nate has to do my chore list

along with all his work.

I figure that he’s learning

how not to be a jerk.

And cause I love my brother,

I’m sure no harm was meant,

and so I’m hoping Friday night

we get to build our tent.

A Dog’s Life

I’d really like to be a dog

cause their lives are the best.

Instead of doing homework,

well, I could sit and rest.

Anytime I wanted love,

I’d wag my tail with might,

and snuggle with my master

cause he would hold me tight.

In the yard, I’d run around

instead of raking grass,

and then collapse and go to sleep

when I ran out of gas.

Every day I’d get some treats

for doing little tricks,

and in the park, I’m certain that

my master would throw sticks.

But as I study as my desk

until I want to scream,

I know that if I were a dog,

I couldn’t eat this ice cream.

Tommy the Bully

Tommy was a bully

who bullied just for fun,

and any game he played with us,

he’d bully til he “won”.

He’d bully til we had to say

his foul ball had been fair,

and races that he’d lose, we’d say

he’d won by just a hair.

He knew just how to make us cry

if he was feeling mad,

and so we kids prayed every day

that he was feeling glad.

But then one day there came along

a girl whose name was Lil,

and when Tom said, “Hey, you’re too tall”,

she looked like she would kill.

She said, “I’m not the problem here.

The problem’s you’re too short”,

and then she shocked each one of us

by calling Tom a “wart”!

The rest of us just had to laugh

cause Tom’s eyes filled with tears,

and his wobbling chin told us

this ended all our fears.

He was like the rest of us,

so now we could be strong.

Yes, we were fairly certain that

his bullying was gone.

Tommy learned a lot that day

and does not bully still

because we all made sure to be

a best friend to that Lil!

Other Things # 25 – The Sillies

January 18, 2021 was a sad day because I had to put down Cody Code, one of the sweetest dogs ever born. Had he lived another week, he would have been 15 years and 7 months. We were lucky to have him for as long as we did, and I still fill with tears when I think about him.

We have two other dogs, Bobbi and Sonny. Bobbi is a Bichon Shih Tze Yorkie, and Sonny is a Maltese Poodle cross. Bobbi will be 11 in June, and Sonny will be 4 in May. Because of the age spread, we could envision Sonny being alone for a long time, and we don’t want that to happen, so we got a puppy. Robbie is the same mix as Bobbi, and he was born on January 3rd.

Those of you who have had puppies around know that they are somewhat exhausting, like any baby. As a result, I’ve decided that I’m only going to post once a week for a while. As I type this, Robbie is asleep on my lap, and he couldn’t be more adorable. However, eventually, he’ll awaken. Anyway, that’s what’s happening in my life right now, and so I’m slowing things down so I don’t get frazzled as I concentrate on house-breaking Robbie and avoid stepping on him. (I found myself feeling somewhat frazzled today, and my “frazzledom” is what has motivated this post.) Below are pictures of “The Sillies”.

This is Robbie McGregor with his stuffed animals

The Martians

My brother likes to spy on me

cause Dean’s a little brat,

so one day, I decided

I’d fix that little rat!

My friend, Tommy, helped me plan

the way that I’d get even.

Dean would overhear us talk,

so he would be believin’.

Tom and I went to my room

cause we knew Dean was hiding.

Yes, down beneath my double bed,

Rat Dean was residing.

We settled down to have our chat

once I’d closed the door.

It was the time that I’d prepared

to even up the score.

“I sure miss Mars,” I said to Tom.

He said, “I miss it too.

Our invasion’s going well.

The Earthlings have no clue.”

I said, “We Martians are too smart

to ever be revealed,

because inside of human beings,

we are now concealed.”

“I sure miss eating bugs,” I said.

Tom said, “I miss that too.”

“But,” I said and slyly smiled,

“I’m snacking on a shoe.”

“I miss flying like a bird,”

said Tom, “but we’ll soon soar

throughout these skies and everywhere,

that’s once we’ve won the war.”

I said, “The Earthlings sure are doomed.

For them — it is the grave,

because we Martians are so smart

and we are truly brave.”

Mom called, “Lunch!” about that time,

and Tommy got lunch too,

so we sat down to eat our meal,

but Dean was not in view.

Soon enough, Rat Dean appeared,

looking white and scared.

Tom and I just smiled at him,

and at us, he just stared.

Dean told Mom what we had said,

crying as he did.

She made me tell him that I lied,

suspecting that he hid.

Now Dean cannot go in my room.

Mom said — it’s not his place!

And I can tell Dean wonders still

if I’m from outer space!

Parent-teacher Interviews

At parent-teacher interviews,

my mother heard a lot,

and each and everything she heard

used that darn word “not”.

I do not pay attention,

so I don’t know what to do.

I do not ask some questions,

so I really have no clue.

I do not keep my binder neat,

so everything’s a mess.

I do not write my homework down,

so, at home, I just guess.

I’m not the greatest student

and I guess that is a shame,

but someday it won’t matter —

I’ll be rich and I’ll have fame!

Roller Skates

Tommy got some roller skates

and slapped them on his feet.

He rolled outside and looked around —

these roller skates were neat!

He rolled up to the front yard gate

and opened it with glee.

Skating down the street, he knew,

would make him feel quite free.

To the corner he did skate

with underwhelming skill,

then turned the corner, and too late —

he spied the downward hill!

He didn’t have the skill to stop,

so down the hill he swept.

Everyone who saw him pass

screamed and yelled and wept.

But Tommy was a lucky guy

because he hit a bump.

It launched him up into the air

much like a skier’s jump.

Tommy fell into a tree

and upside down he hung.

He’s really not a stupid guy —

the trouble is he’s young.

That’s why what Tommy learned that day

is if you want a thrill —

buckle up your roller skates

and find yourself a hill!

Growing

I’ve grown three inches, maybe four,

and now I’m really sad.

The reason is my favourite shirt

now looks too short and bad.

Mom says tomorrow we will shop

and so I’ll have new clothes.

She says I’ll be a whole new boy

from my head to my toes.

And so tonight, I lie in bed

and know I’m growing tall,

and dressed Big Teddy in my shirt

cause inside — I’m still small.

The Spy

One Tuesday, as I lay in bed,

about to go to sleep,

I heard a voice that called my name,

a voice quite soft and deep.

“Hey, Pete,” it said, “are you awake?

I have to go outside.”

I was so startled by the voice,

my impulse was to hide.

But there before me was my dog,

two inches from my nose.

It was so strange to hear him talk,

I couldn’t move — I froze.

“Please let me out so I don’t pee

right on your bedroom floor.”

He looked so desperate, I got up,

and we rushed to the door.

After that, Butch talked a lot;

our set-up was quite neat.

He spied on people close to me —

one secret earned one treat.

And so I found out many things

about my brother, Brad,

and many of those things, I know,

sure made him look quite bad.

And so I thought I’d blackmail Brad

to make some extra cash.

If he paid up, I’d promise him,

his image I’d not trash.

My plan in place and set to go,

I went to find old Brad,

and then I overheard the words

that made me hopping mad.

“You won’t believe,” a voice did say,

“he takes his bear to bed!”

I heard my brother start to laugh

which filled me with great dread.

Today, I will not talk to Butch

because I know he lies.

He talks to Brad, which isn’t fair,

and, on me, that dog spies!