between jobs ...
i watched near-to-zero t.v.,
forgot to play the radio or cds,
never listened to holiday tunes
or hummed my way through the reindeer.

-decorated a far corner ... called it christmas.

holiday fuss complete ...
i cleared the fancy paper,
tore down the trim and lights,
read neruda and de sade,
never answered correspondence.

-piled things in a corner ... called it quits.

as the year ended ...
scrabble ruled the roost,
well-traveled, this word game,
followed us out for coffee,
poetry became a letter-tiled maze.

-my own words rested in corners ... called it quiet.

new year's eve,
we scared and embarrassed the kids,
dozed before midnight, after a dopey film,
nonplus over fireworks, no hell raised,
talked and loved, our drug to drowsiness.

-breathed deep, a corner room ... called it over ... 2002.

this newborn year ...
another job to begin, none too soon,
my hobby remained, being out of sorts,
as I spun my own wheels, produced no yarns,
poetry lost in the sheer lack of commotion.

-cornered, immobilized ... called now ... back to future.

... ever have an ample amount of "time off" and then proceed to get nearly nothing accomplished?!?!?!?!