rogue roses and zealous zinnias

Last weekend's hard frost killed all the magnificent zinnias in front of my house, as expected, but to my surprise, one of the runts in the alley seems to be enjoying the cold:



Some of the French hollyhocks and French marigolds are still in bloom, too. And the rogue rosebush -- as unpredictable as ever -- is showing off a fresh yellow bud amid the dead and wilted:



I finally peeked at the seed exchange at the Inglewood branch of Nashville's public library. It was out of parsley, but I picked up packets for bok choy, chives, and three kinds of marigolds.

Recent publications:
"dicing up..." (tweet-sized poem) at 7x20
"the resident ghost..." (tweet-sized poem) at 7x20
"Ballad Breath" (audio and text versions) in Stone Telling 11

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Richard Rodriguez in T Magazine, 19 October 2014

In his essay "Signs of the Times":

Covering our bodies is a lifelong preoccupation, a disguise that represents a revelation. Most people my age have inherited the duty of clearing out the closet of a parent, spouse, lover or friend. The coats. Suits. Smell. Shine. The stripes, pinks, paisleys. Shoes! How can shoes retain the shape of souls? But they do.

In the bit about him "Behind the T" (page 50 of the print magazine):

There was a kid at my gym I used to see who had the Mexican Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Guadalupe, on one of his thighs, and the head of Satan on the other. Whenever he would do squats, the two flew in opposite directions.

This entry was originally posted at http://bronze-ribbons.dreamwidth.org/385671.html. I see comments at DW, IJ, and LJ (when notifications are working, anyway), but not on feeds.