Terrain

They said her fur was rough
I thought it had improved
there were others with finer
silkiness shine luster look
clean with oil is how it felt

otter-slick sidewinder-new
territory sticking underneath
hay rolled leaving flat weather
we read about how Wovoka
Revealed what he was holding

Detour

The detour took longer than I thought
distracting myself in order to breathe
visions of everything dry and crinkly
rustling and catching it went under
day not ending moon quite translucent

Caught myself there so many hurdles
illusions gimmicks torn under little
leaves symbolizing leaving
sun meaning sunny day bright
ribbons turquoise red yellow

False Beach

At Celilo
lozenges litter
trees rimmed by teeth
What mistakes
lawn an oven

Baked-on trees
bronze sky
miniature pioneers
metallic
rude pointing

Wreath

Still Christmas

in La Grande


shadows
don't move
except
                    whistle rolling

Past town

out

to

Island City

The Painter

So thirsty
animals peel off
burning hills

following the river smell
Is that a bear or just willows
Is my mind clear or just my head

Legs warm the moon half
looking in the silver part
its necessary backing

He Sat Like That

Twisting angles crossed pretzels
wristwatch belt shoes
kids ran around
in her hair
happiest circus.

She taught me how
a blouse from curtains
rickrack turquoise
pink brown eyelids
up and down my arms.

Sammy got a candy bar
nails skittering
coffee
one cookie
canned goods
cupboard full.

She could repair
holes in suits
matching fibers
where ash burned
through nights
alone working.

We sang railroad
split the rum
getting ice cubes
coke gone too soon
there was so much
she didn't say.

Dogs In The Cave

No shoes her feet were black
standing in the cool
a child gave her
a piece of grass
to play with.

The drama there
familiar
so many in the nest.

I guess the trash
showed they had eaten.

The trash.

With Water From The River

With water from the river
the land turns lush finding birds
chimes turning clanking legs tucking
under the path different shortcut
I remember the school in Schurz
radiation up the road here
wheat rolling instead of alfalfa
but just as thick the horizon already
gave birth the canyon its elephant

She Said She Hated Deer

This might be a bad sign.
It is only the beginning
feels like the end.
Stepping carefully grasses short
for hiding.  The glass ceiling
tall light with extra air.
How could it be
they know my sister
my 8th grade friend
better?

At least the heart gets checked.
All systems go.
I said I hated wine but that's not true
I just don't let her drink me anymore.

The Size Of It

One arrived from down river
a cloud quite thick with meaning
and I mean dumping sharp punishment
in that canyon even boulders
could not help the hail

One had been there longer than suspected
taking up a lot of space inside
so it became the space just like
in outer space where it is jelly
it did not fall away on its own
I stepped on her hand under the tarp
I almost killed her is that why I wish
to go back to find out what happened

Later another river almost broke up
our parents half drowning everyone
Now she is not speaking again
the topic glass window panes
and how that is the most interesting
Maybe this is true non-fiction

Shaniko

Whoever said we could not find them
tickling the grasses eyes empty
out without clothes fasteners
protruding apartments
sage is the garden now
and then magpies
brushing everything flat
swirly landings the whole
picture including headaches
nostrils too dry to stand
wind a reminder of more

Shaniko has already been
yucking it up ice cream parlor
ladies and gents the town too big

Things made new but empty now
tourists no longer entertaining
ideas of wagons hitching them up

At The

My twins are always two
I see them reflections in the creek

Tame my twins stolen
Out the window spotting me

Seeing them spicy the way the world
We were just getting to know

Their house burned down
Fire burned down their house

Walking she points out the soft
Waiting not waiting they would be

This Time Stuff Did Not Matter

Holiday pressure
on the image
in a certain room
electric
didn't this send me
somewhere else
entirely
the Depot
quite restored
tracks parallel

Leggo My Ego

Where they pull apart a piece
fading beauty quite awake I
do my own slicing not mentioning
where I've made sharp work of it
kissing strange stones faces showing
changes in the light the clouds


All I know turning up 8th
this place still has its Buicks
right in town behind glass
sidewalks undergoing repair
expose the boardwalk underneath
walking past a thousand times
parallel and not so parallel

Fossil

Shaniko is where you leave your heart
dropping down into two levels
some of it familiar most of it not
backwards paying attention

animals rocks kids looking up
a large ungulate burnt stumps
bear black even a place called
Bear Hollow where who knows what
goes on meeting my eye expecting

Wasco

Night kept out by heavy cloth
so much there understanding
another matter telegrams
small binges to back then
birds chase the raccoon now
loping away from the juniper
healthy silvery into another tree

We All Have

Grass dancers tamp it down
crow hopping white pyramids
an eagle watches a small spring
two songs that we dance to
women were only recently allowed
inside the circle instead of the outer edge
floor lining up shortest we had fun
round dance the friendship dance why
did I have to get the Pendelton design
named Jerome was that the cruelty of Maupin
tonight between juniper and feathers

Bluebirds

The path is even cool well-worn
travelers rest there drink water
thinking of water lovers
trees answer any question
birds with worms flying around
careful with the fat pieces
meat filled with earth
listening on the garden posts
waiting until it's all clear
even longer disappearing

Feeling It

It's a machine.  (You are) in it
not in it.  It's beyond
a suitcase a bag baggage. 
Beyond myself Earth's pores teaming
with items precious all of them junk.

Old language to describe new
things the now finding an animal
underneath the fur of the sun
moon a blanketing
wave not the term exactly.

Left To Chance

There are other feelings undefined
early morning thunderstorm
Heat sub tropic plus
Beatdom falling away
This year the currants weak
too much rain spider nests
cedars the next town friendly

They decided
love would be held
in small baskets
spilling over the swale
lush yet static
blue heron cut outs
routine just one solitary
plural adding together

Trivial Pursuit

Chasing memory down hallways
paths through rain around lilies
past the likes of my own breath
breathing the silence of self
the hundred ways to keep alive
one look at the karma repair kit
thinking about the trinkets in there

Tall Grass Lemniscate

Something loose on that truck.
Even going over to the river.
Up the hill out to Nonpareil.
Everything happening outside.
Painted eggs an angel playing
beer stein weinkrug glass daffodils
cradle board cuckoo clock baby Vivian
framed in pine needles orchids the white
lamp wooden plates being here not here.

Wild Roses Wild Peas

Thirsty pink we saw hardscrabble inclines
he said it was Egyptian but really you'll see
next is the drive trees waiting rivers draining
The mystery of it One was art then there was
the other part meeting nowhere in the middle

Dogwood

What I said was what they did

they told me there is another way

I did not believe them too long

it was a rock after all now dark

Turtle Island lots of lights squirrels

at Super 8 terrible lime allergy

reported on Fox welcome to

This Will Be Normal

This is the next the best and the rest slipping
step to following dream time dreaming this
which has already happened chasing echo
round rainbow growling keep up with them
because there's more ahead Douglas County
Linn County all ears all tambourines.

Moon In Two

Split second logos

Through

To have things start matching up too much
that's where thoughts "make as much sense
as rock lyrics" where waterfalls and their
rainbows  invade dreams drops slowing
pour over the edge didn't that one just
flow through mossy places just upstream
where there were supposed to be messages
instead just echoes rich emptying overhangs
slabs directing the sun towards the trail
away from the trail others copied without
giving credit where credit was due