Ice Covered Jewel...

 

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/11/2000 9:55:49 PM 9/26/2022 11:02:06 PM	2657

Ice Covered Jewel

Ice Covered Jewel:

Europa, thy name strikes a chord most fair,
As you shine in the dark I stare,
A world of ice under the sway of the King,
Jupiter, your master, do you wear his ring?

Under the shell of ice you wear, could it be?

A mystery in the blackness of night,
Farther from the Sun and light.
Tidal pull doth create your heat,
is there an ocean underneath thy sheet,

Of crystalline ice.

Could you harbor life out there,
Best hope yet found beyond Earth's air,
Future of Mankind you may call,
Oh, largest living crystal ball.

We shall see you soon, fair one.

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
(C)2000

Author's Comments

The possibility of an ocean out there on this beautiful world
hidden under a shell of crystalline ice, perhaps hiding life
in darkness warmed by the tidal effects of Jupiter's gravity.
It calls to us, "Come see!" Even if the idea is wrong or the
ocean exists in a barren state, it is a very good bet for
colonization by Mankind in the future. Jupiter's moon so fair.

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/11/2000 9:55:49 PM 9/26/2022 11:02:06 PM	2657

Comments
Janine Daniel	spinnys@hotmail.com	www.spinnys.com	8/21/2000 1:25:30 AM
I really, really love this poem. It makes me want to jump in my spaceship and explore the stars some more...*S*

Rollin' Rockets...

 

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/11/2000 6:12:32 AM 9/25/2022 7:40:04 AM	2475

Rollin' Rockets

Rocket Cowboy full of dreams,
I really dig those blast off schemes.
Innovation all the rage,
Help us beat the gravity cage.

$10,000 a pound is sure steep.

If you can find your way into the sky,
At $100.00 a pound I think I'll try,
Take a shot at the moon,
Who knows, maybe a launch in June.

Can this vision be fulfilled?

If the bank won't pass the buck,
Well, please don't feel you're out of luck.
There are those who would up & cry,
If they could just get to fly so high.

The rocket of the future is on the verge.

Helicopter rotors with rocket tipped blades,
Visions in a thousand shades.
Space travel as common as flight,
Another launch most every night.

Lasso that buck and build your dreams!

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
(C)2000

Author's Comments

I've followed some of the developments in rocketry
innovation in recent years. I really hope some of these
things come to pass, a new paradigm in rocketry might
just open the solar system for real, once the cost to get
up from Earth's gravity drops as these folks are envisioning.
See: http://www.rotaryrocket.com for just one of these ideas
that promise to change completely our future if developed.

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/11/2000 6:12:32 AM 9/25/2022 7:40:04 AM	2475

City Glow...

 

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/10/2000 6:45:47 PM 9/26/2022 7:53:07 AM	2408

City Glow

City Glow:

One of mankind's follies,
If you get your jollies,
From trying to see a star,
You certainly won't get far,

If you're in the city glow.

Under a cloudy sky,
Orange sunset that won't quite die,
It's even on the wrong side of the sky,
No need to wonder why,

Everyone's afraid of the dark.

It really can be beautiful,
And also when the Moon is full,
The stars hiding behind a man-made veil,
To obscure the astronomy trail.

Put your telescope away and enjoy.

Far away from the city, in lonelier nights,
Comes a breath taker, star light sights,
No scarce pin prick dancing here or there,
The universe in all it's glory, everywhere.

A falling star, brief, a satellite, so faint.

There really is a Milky Way, but it's not a candy bar.

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
(C)2000

Author's Comments

Just wishing I could have a better view of the natural night sky.
Once in awhile.

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/10/2000 6:45:47 PM 9/26/2022 7:53:07 AM	2408

Total Comments: 2

Comments
Sue Allie	bttfly9@yahoo.com	http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Garden/9843	8/10/2000 10:01:03 PM
I agree. A nice cloudless night, far from the city and I know I would enjoy watching the stars eating a Milky Way.
Daniel A. Stafford			8/21/2000 5:36:54 AM
Please visit http://www.darksky.org to find out how you can help reduce light pollution and preserve our natural night skies.

The Family Reunion Speech...

 

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/9/2000 6:11:09 AM 9/24/2022 10:24:21 PM	9702

The Family Reunion Speech

The "Family Deal". Hmmm. Some deal, you all get to eat and watch me give this speech!
That's ok, I love to talk & now you have to listen!

Family. It's a different thing than any other word. These are the people you hang with whether
you love them or whether they just bugged you right out of your mind. Of course, they're stuck for
it if you bug them right out of their skin, so watch it! Paybacks come with a "You never know when"
guarantee!

Family. These are the people you turn to when the last "Significant Other" in your life turned
in to that Mr. Hyde lookin' creep right in front of your eyes. They might say "I told you so", but
you turn to 'em anyway! Of course, if they do, you know every time their "Ex" drank the evil
monster potion, too. You already know the guarantee terms and who you are!

Family. If you're hungry, they will feed you, if you're cold, they'll give you a blanket. Whether or not
you're curious, they'll give you advice. Of course, they get cold and hungry, too, and I know the
guarantee terms, too!

Family. If you're upset and crying, they'll give you a towel, a hug, and be stuck listening to you whine.
Then when you get done whining, they get to give you a load of advice and make you wash the towel.
The guarantee terms apply to this clause, too.

Family. If your house just got hit by a runaway bulldozer, they'll give you a couch and a blanket.
They might charge you rent by the day, but the advice is still free. All 25,000 words of it! God help
you if you can't pay the rent, there's a lot of dishes and laundry hanging around…..Of course, that
pain in the butt guarantee is still working.

Family. You wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them. Good thing, too, because you'd probably be stuck
working if you weren't here. I sure am glad I have all of you for family! 'Cause that guarantee means
next time it's your turn to give the speech. And I have to listen no matter how silly it is because you're
family.

I wouldn't have it any other way!

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
(C)2000

By: Daniel A. Stafford

Author's Comments

A friend asked me to write a humorous speech on the subject of "Family" recently,
as she has been elected to give this year's speech at the Family Reunion.
This is the result, which I hope is good for some fun.

	Library Home
Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/9/2000 6:11:09 AM 9/24/2022 10:24:21 PM	9702

Nebraska Scout...

 

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/8/2000 4:12:29 AM 9/25/2022 5:08:08 PM	854

Nebraska Scout

Eight years old and in uniform,
My mom the Den Mother in perfect form,
Little boys and plaster tracks,
Arrowheads and Indian attacks,

The Cub Scout Fair is this weekend!

We're doing a circus theme,
Blue shirts, yellow scarves, eyes that gleam.
I'm going to be the tattooed man,
And win the county art fair in which I ran.

Driving down a gravel highway a hundred miles.

Get to the place it's lot's of fun,
Clowns and strongmen and balloons with a BB-gun.
Poke your head there in place of the face,
And have good humor and good grace.

Head home with the blue ribbon and smiles on my tattooed face.

Take bath and wash it off they say,
But we soon find out not today,
The tattoos just won't come off of me,
For a whole week they will all see.

Magic Markers really work!

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
(C)2000

By: Daniel A. Stafford

Author's Comments

That was so much fun, and Mom & Janet did a wonderful job
drawing tattoos every where my blue jean shorts weren't.
Scrub all I might, that magic marker might as well have been India Ink.
I just laughed like a wild man and ran around in my "war paint". Grinning like
an idiot.

	Library Home
Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/8/2000 4:12:29 AM 9/25/2022 5:08:08 PM	854

Devil's Lake Imps...

 

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/8/2000 3:55:26 AM 9/27/2022 7:39:46 AM	906

Devil's Lake Imps

Five young children in swim suits all day,
Chasing canoes in the summer sun,
Never out of the water while we can swim,
Picnic for adults and out here on a whim.

Seventies tanned child in the golden hot sun.

Nudists play on the far shore,
And the sleeping beauty without any clothes will snore,
Out on an air mattress in the lake,
Wondering how much the sun will bake.

I won't tip her over.

We swam and swam all through the day,
Must have spent eight hours that way,
Water rats until our fingers wrinkled,
We definitely were more than sprinkled.

Devil's lake, memories that glisten in the sunlight.

Dive back in!

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford
(C)2000


By: Daniel A. Stafford

Author's Comments

Just a day camping picnic by the lake,
Childhood fun, Mom, Ginny, Al,
Me, Lori, Jeff, Brian, Brook. Early 1970's.

Author	Date Entered/Modified	Views
Daniel A. Stafford	8/8/2000 3:55:26 AM 9/27/2022 7:39:46 AM	906

A brief Status Update - And A bit Of History...

 

A brief Status Update - And A bit Of History...

 Hey All, just a few notes:

I was given a copy of an entire poetry website by the previous owner. The site went offline in 2015, and it happens to be the first place I ever published a poem, starting in May of 2000. Yeah, I've been writing poetry for twenty years now. Kind of amazing. 

The site was Lightverse.com - and I had 1.725 poems published on it by the time it hit the iceberg of hosting fees and joined the Titanic. Several poets I knew had many poems on there, including an old friend from high school in Madison, Wisconsin who brought me to the site in the first place. I guess you could say he's the reason I wound up becoming a poet, or at least why I found out that I was.

So the former owner gave me a backed-up copy of the entire website, as I was saying, about one year ago. Well, in the course of my past year's studies in IT, I have learned a very basic understanding of Windows web server, otherwise known as IIS. I have figured out how to make the web site partially run on my own PC, enough to recover the poems out of it. I will probably be at that for a few years. I've so far recovered one page out of 36 pages from the list of my poems.

So I spent this weekend hunting down an old Windows laptop that wasn't being used among my Madison people, and I got into the thing from here in California and spent about 14 hours wiping it clean, upgrading it from Windows 7 to Windows 10, installing IIS web server on it, and dropping a copy of Lightverse.com on it so it could be delivered to my old friend. He has no PC of his own, he's a street musician / busker in downtown Madison. He had been using the PC's at his church or the library.

Well, thanks to another Madison friend who donated the older laptop, the guy who got me started on poetry will be able to get his poems back from a dead site beginning tomorrow.

For my next trick, I want to see if I can start up a virtual live poetry venue for my area here in California. There is nothing here right now, it's literally the desert. 

Don't be surprised if I invite some of you. Or all of you. 

A little too tired to write more at the moment, but will soon.

Dan

What Is Poetry?

What Is Poetry?

Can I even begin to answer?

Let me try...

It's the subconscious spilling out through a conscious filter,

With a touch of beauty and heart,

A deep connection at the unconscious level,

Between all of us who are built this way, 

Looking through a word kaleidoscope,

At the fractal undermind. 

Maybe.

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford

© 08/07/2020

#Poetic Philosophy #Poets Poems

Tarash Sparau...

Tarash Sparau...

There is an ancient name,
They say it was sung by the last summer winds,
In chorus with the stormy gales of autumn,
Tarash Sparau,
The Song In The Breeze,
A magical creature of a season's moment,
The essence of the edge of summer and fall,
She wears a cloak of many colors,
It's vista is that of summer flowers,
Dancing with the turning leaves,
As the season turns all tawny and fire,
Last vestiges of soft pastel and brilliant riots,
Tarash Sparau's cool laughter in grey clouds,
Billowing pillows in the vast sky dimming,
There when mortals are not seeing the wood for the trees,
With their leaves of flaming crimson and yellow gold,
As the leaves broadcast the sunset of the season,
Tarash Sparau bears the horn of plenty,
Carrying it to now hale Autumn,
And Tarash Sparau's fine cloak of colors,
Whipping and flapping in changing breezes,
Resembles owls in the woods,
Or sometimes flocks of blackbirds upon the wing,
And this year Tarash Sparau cries crystal tears,
Raining from her pale sunset eyes,
For her sweet sister Summer is stained crimson,
And Angels with Soul Catchers surround her abed,
Dark eyed and solemn as they await a winter of the spirit,
Their halos of golden light offset by black feathered wings,
Their eyes all a mist for the duty they bear,
For again men's souls have taken the chill of Winter,
Haughty and cold and bringing endings with no remorse,
They have become minions of the Ice Queen,
Their souls puppets on strings in a frozen celestial lair,
And sweet Summer has wept herself to sleep,
Verde, Summer, buenos notches, y vaya con Dios,
Sleep in the arms of God,
Your sweet sister Primavera,
Oh angelic Spring and her gentle blue eyes,
Had no ill winds sweeping through her wild blown hair,
No, Tarash Sparau is bade by Autumn,
"Carry the prayers of men to the council of angels,
Let God's own ear hear the plight and wailing voices."
As an angel cups palms 'round every lit candle,
Tarash Sparau sings her tearful message,
Begging for kindness upon the ears of all,
Or at least all with a heart to hear.

AquarianM

By: Daniel A.Stafford
(C) 09/25/2001

Author's Comments:
I feel a sadness in the passing of summer, even more
than in so many years before, because this year,
winter took hearts and froze them still so long before
their time should ever have come, and those chill
hearts that have lost all mercy and caring wish to bring
more death into the world. I wish their eyes could see
visions of the summer's sweetness instead.

Optics...

Optics...

How lovely it is,

To decorate the walls,

To feel a touch of nostalgia in every visit to a place.

Easy,

Easy on the eyes.

Like a spiral notebook,

One you've written and drawn in,

On-and-off for years,

Soft in the hand.

Easy,
Easy on the eyes.

I look up and see stars,

A smiling Moon beaming down,

A raft of familiar faces.

Easy,
Easy on the eyes.

Not so hard on the heart,

Either.

AquarianM

By: Daniel A. Stafford

(C) 07/02/2018

Recovery Images For Poetic Constellations

Poetic Constellations is an online poetry forum that was originally hosted on EZBoards.com. It was later taken over by Yuku.com, which a few years after was taken over by Tapatalk.com.

Through the EZBoard & Yuku years, the forum kept the same look. For myself and many other online poets, it was our cosmic poetic home.

When I was notified that the takeover by Tapatalk was coming, I hurriedly saved some of the forum graphics. I had seen another EZBoard-gone-Yuku forum get eaten by the Tapatalk monster, and the site was completely whitewashed, all graphic customizations lost as Tapatalk converted everything to their sterile fuschia-and-white nothingness.

Proboards.com is a competing online discussion board provider, and one of our poets is helping us all move to that platform. Years of posted poetic history will be left in the bland white vault of Tapatalk, but at least the place will look something like out little poetic cosmos again.

These images are posted here for Queen Foxy, who has been working hard on this project. It's my way of relaying the graphics to her for use at our new online home.

Background:

New Post:

New Reply:

New Topic Create/'Reply Moon:

Sticky Post:

Constellations Gateway Logo:

Miscellaneous:

Locked post

Poll

These are all I was able to save before the place was eaten by the Tapatalk beast.



Show Notes:

Happenings in the web poetry universe: I have a long history with web poetry, and there have been many changes over the years. A big change in my poetic universe is happening now. Also, a reading of my latest piece, "Squeezing Time Out Of A Clockwork Lemon..."

Dan