Ice

The assassination never happens. JFK runs for a second term in 1964.

Would he have kept Lyndon Johnson on the Democratic ticket, or dumped him for someone else?

(Clickable links would be appreciated)

IN 1861, Lee was the premier organizer of the US Army. Lincoln offered him the top spot to lead the army, but Lee turned it down to follow his state of Virginia into the Confederacy and subsequently became their top general.

So what if Lee had followed Lincoln and been the top commander of the Union forces? How would the Civil War have been affected?

Walked into a restaurant one day and met Sherrie, my waitress. She sparked poetry.

SHERRIE

All I wanted

was a bite to eat

Instead I got

swept off my feet.

Greeted with

a killer smile

Big bright eyes

Interesting style.

Delicate fingers

write my need

Then jauntily off

to retrieve my feed.

She floats about

on angel wings

Distracting my thoughts

Her movements sing.

Beautiful blonde

Tall and slim

A very nice girl

Perfect for Tim!

All I wanted

was a bite to eat

But a taste of Sherrie

is the ultimate treat.

6/20/09

I like my medium frame Taurus Tracker .357 Magnum and want to move up. Give me your thoughts on any .44 Magnum that's accurate, reliable and easy to use for my small hand size.

I'm not a hunter nor marksman - just want to be able to comfortably handle a variety of weapons.

What shotgun shell size and type gives less "kick" with best effective spread?

Are 3" shells more powerful than 2 3/4"? How does shell type (5 shot, 8 shot) affect recoil versus spread?

I have a new Stoeger 12 gauge Coach double-barreled - kicks like an elephant! I used 3" 5 shot. Too powerful? My 870 20 gauge feels fine with 2 3/4" 5 shot.

Not asking for "how I want to use it" opinions. Just looking for info on how shotgun shells work.

Recently purchased a Stoeger 12 gauge SxS Coach gun. The barrels indicate a 3" chamber. Can I safely assume that it will shoot both 2 3/4" and 3" shells?

The manual is useless. But I found 1 website that indicates that it will handle shells below 3".

TWO WHEELS

My dual-wheeled vehicle

Its exquisite tours

Fresh points of view

fling open new doors

Where nuance of adventure is explored.

There's flora and fauna

all of God's creatures

New people, their faces

architectural features

The world is my ultimate teacher.

It opens new paths

in more ways than one

Adding good value

releasing my Sun

Plus chicks love tight buns!

I greet all the walkers

and familys' on bike

A Beautiful Day!

On that we're alike

Connections are the bread of life.

Get close to the earth

push hard in the turn

Peddle furiously,

feel muscle burn.

'Tis good to occasionally churn.

Safety is key

I'm totally exposed

I do all the work

"Watch out! Bozo!"

The adverse of what I chose.

I'm one with my bike

and it with me

Another connnection

yet 'object'ively

Together, both of us are free.

I'll leave unsaid

all additional info

Unable to say

what fills life's bowlful

Biking? For me? Almost sinful!

PAWN'S PATIENCE

Should I be King?

My movement encased

Maybe the Queen

All over the place

A Bishop? A Knight?

A Rook who castles

The elite have power

Clothed in bright tassels

But Pawn I remain

Just one of the crowd

My strength is numbers

Both flanks I surround

To move 'cross a board

A Queen in due time

I'll finish the journey

One space at a time.

SPRINGBOARD DIVING (PART 2)

Conquering fear

Platform's ascent

Confidence quaked

Emotions amess

Past failure laments

Butterflys queer

Never content

Aiming my zeal

Surrendering thought

Accepting fate

Ego doth pull

Leap of faith

Airborne aloft

Body's display

Vision blurred

Twisting away

Tail would help

Like balanced cat

Always to land

Feet first, not back

Lifelong wishes

Soar like the birds

Fulfilling passions

To fly are my words.

Conquering fear

Found secret door

Trust be the knob

Turning, the core

SPRINGBOARD DIVING

It's scary to soar

off a 3-meter board

with a lifelong fear of height!

So I trust to fate

a Leap of Faith

for launching my body in flight.

One step then two

t'ward the edge of a plank

concocting my plan of attack

Last strong leap

to lift me aloft

praying I don't land

Flat on my back!

At takeoff time

I calculate odds

of successfully sailing to port

If mistake is made

Or focus doth fade

Just moments to push the abort.

Practicing more

disasters galore

I've trained my body to soar

I flip and flame

above the wet plain

'tis confidence open'd the door.

It keeps me alive

the ability to dive

to trust my body to act

When it does not

and I fail to fly

to accept my failure as fact.

One final truth

'bout learning to dive

"Success is far in the future"

It takes many tries

and hopes you won't die

Diving's a talent you nurture.

She comes into my life with beauty and kindness

One who gives love and forgives my thoughtlessness

All others fade into the distance

My horizon is filled with only her essence.

Dreams awaken, hope doth arise again

Life's desperate journey combines in her touch

The realization occurs, with no hesitation

All things are possible amidst her faith.

Though the spirit at times be soakingly dampened

Or put to the fire from man's nature sharpened

Her Sun contains the power to spur on this soul

To dry out the Black Dog, put flame to desire.

Is blessedness deigned upon all who live?

Can fortune's favor be so randomly spread?

Banish the questions! Think not so much more!

I accept God's gift

Forever

Your love

OUR MOMENT IN TIME

We have No Past.

The Future? No View.

There's only this Moment

Just Me.

Just You.

There is no Season.

No Winter.

No Fall.

No Work where the Drones

Prance about in the Hall.

No Christmas with Santa

And Donner

And Blitzen,

No Evil either.

No Bast@rds.

No Vixens.

Absent are Clocks

Or other Timepieces.

No War.

No Killing.

No Cons.

No Fleeces.

Negated as such

Is Old Age

And Despair.

No Sadness.

No Sickness.

No Death in the Air.

No Rat Race.

No Speeders.

No Deadlines to meet.

No Meetings to make.

No Stoplights to beat.

All that is left

Is Your Sweetness and Mine.

Just Me.

Just You.

Our Moment in Time.

COME, TAKE.

Come, take my hand

Let us walk in unison upon the bridge

that spans our rivers of hesitation.

Amidst that courage we shall breathe freely

and sculpt our love's redoubt.

Come, take my heart

Entwine it with your golden ring of Emotions.

You've captured me, enraptured me.

Touch the fire of your Sun's bestowment.

For all that you give me

I redeem in you

infinitely.

Come, take my soul

Rend from me the false facades of fear.

Invest within me of your virtuous Truth.

Our beings, fused as one

shall rewrite mankind's love

as heaven and earth meet

in the Union that is Us.

Come, take me

And join in my sonnet of celestial bliss.

Together to dance in rejoiceful harmony

of life

of love

of We.

Becoming short skirts and lovely long legs,

And plenty of coffee with her easy-up eggs;

Candles and poetry, a kiss on the cheek,

Asleep on the couch, her dreams she doth seek.

Bundles of pics and letters and cards,

Inspires me to be nothing less than her Bard;

Glances and smiles over upturned collars,

A mere look from her is worth countless dollars.

Long black dresses and glasses of wine,

Dinner's at eight, soaked suits are at nine;

Be it Sal's or Tony's or Rosewood or Ki's,

Wherever she goes, the men use their eyes.

Sheer black hose with a seam up the back,

'Pleasures' is right, her charms do not lack;

Clanking and clinking with bracelets and rings,

The sound of her nearing makes my heart sing.

Puppies and Kats, and imagination galore!

Sweetness and light, with truth as its core;

All of the Angels, and more, that is she,

The only conclusion is that God has blessed me.

THE POET

Words

650,000 of them!

Shall we use every one?

Tapestry to weave in our way

Words

Audiovisual magic

Sensual, enigmatic

Touching all things, all days

Words

Gently falling

Or forcefully jarring

Ultimately us, omega popinjays

Words

Syntax & grammar &

Mispellings mean naught

In the end, we will have our say

LOGICAL CREATIVITY

25 years

Digital thought

Logical, exact

Vulcan's loft

Rigidly sane

Solidly plane

1 + 1 = 2

Never to change

Using this canvas

Flexibility cruel

Find satisfaction

In changing the rules

Logic doth trump in

Hexadecimal world

My only recourse

Imagination's whirl

Click OK

Your fate I decide

Thoughtful skills

Guiding your ride

Aiming to give you

The ride of your life

While making work

Less adding strife

Combining rational

With creative being

I offer the world

My true feeling.

TV

Most useful invention in the history of Earth

is squandered in the most hurtful ways

Violence and killings and sex and drugs

About us, it has much more to say.

This wonderful tool of teaching and mirth

is filled with the most awful bullsh!t

Commercials and ads, most of them sad

Completely bereft of all benefit.

Shows are comprised of trite silly lies

that add zero to thought and reflection

Nothing is learned, nothing affirmed

absent is any connection.

Worldwide News! You're right there now!

But do any us really see it?

We tune out the crys. We tune out the sighs

'Til one us ultimately gets hit.

So grab the remote and push the OFF button

And grasp for yourself a life

One that has love flowing over your cup

Absent the media's strife.

All I ask of you is to post a web address that will give a good overview of poetic styles (iambic, pentameter, etc.) and a history of poetry, along with info/links where I can explore each one more intimately. I'm looking for more of a reference guide than a 'how to write poetry' guide.

I could grind through a bunch of websites using a search and learn nothing. I figured the best recommendations would be gotten from some people who know (that means you, Elaine :).

I love words but know zero about poetry. Can you help me combine these two interests by answering with your favorite poetry reference website?

Will this question get deleted like many of my others?

WORDS

Words

650,000 of them!

Shall I use every one?

Tapestry I can weave in any way.

Words

Audiovisual magic

Sensual, enigmatic

Touching all things, all days.

Words

Gently falling

Or forcefully jarring

Ultimately me, omega popinjay.

Words

Syntax & grammar &

Mispellings mean nought

In the end, I will have my say.

Life is unfair

Anything you can do

To tip the scales in your favor

Will make it a little less so.

MOM'S FRIGHTFUL DELIGHT

On Halloween night, my Mother did say

No treats for the trickers who didn't obey

The rules were simple, all must invoke

"Sing me a song, or tell me a joke"

Watching the bums, clowns, ballerinas

Stand 'fore Mom, finding arena

Horrible voices, terrible puns

Getting their treat, strange task doth done.

Year after year, song and dance recalled

Poor little children, some ready to bawl

Mom forces voice, allows them to call

To taste of her smile, sweetness the draw

On Halloween night, everything right

Darkness the theme, but home is all bright

One more chapter, with Mom at the crest

On so many levels, She was the Best!