"Brevity is the soul of wit." - W. Shakespeare
I agree with ol' Bill, which is why all my poems are short (four lines). Enjoy, and let me know if you have a favorite or two, replying to tjfpoetry@gmail.com. Thanks! - TJ Fobbe (Highland Park, St. Paul MN)
Finer dining restaurant Why are dogs our bestest friend?
Small, but pretty, food will flaunt. Not too hard to comprehend.
Entrees tasty that delight, Thrilled when we come through the door.
Could be eaten one big bite. Twice as much as time before.
Skinny though the bike lanes are, Walked dogs love to stop and sniff.
Close to every passing car, Best to let them have their whiff.
Many choose to use them still, They then too must represent,
Trusting every driver’s skill. Leaving here and there a scent.
Best among us die too young, Good employees choose to leave.
Long before some human dung. Company is blind, naive
Life ain’t fair, and why is that? To the fact that every loss
God, can we please have a chat! Had the very same bad boss.
Want to find a happy place? Squirrels scamper extra quick,
Look into a toddler’s face. Climb trees, traverse branches slick.
There you’ll see pure innocence, Cautiously? they’ll cross a street.
Simple joy without pretense. Carcass sadly marks failed feat.
Need to cross a busy street? Hard core pro sport fans it seems
Do so please with urgent feet. Care too much about their teams.
Don’t make cars slow down or wait Worship level interest shown.
While you show off lazy gait. Lots of time and money blown.
Some cannot resist its use, Neighborhoods need neighbors who
Turning it into abuse. Do the things nice neighbors do.
They, in traffic, show their scorn, Keep things tidy in their space.
honking constantly their horn. Be good natured, don’t disgrace.
New homes that are built en masse Folks that have a lot of stuff
Come with seeded/sodded grass. Cannot ever have enough.
What there ain’t is ample shade. As their incomes yearly soar,
Baby trees means that's delayed. Wealthy look to purchase more.
Parents fault cannot be hid. Hope to win the lottery?
Must engage when raising kid. Chance you will is, let me see…
Apathy and negligence, Slimmer than the slimmest slim,
IS worst mom or dad offense. Dimmer than the darkest dim.
Little kids you can appease Overzealous moms and dads,
Buying pizza with just cheese. Cheering on their Brees and Brads,
Grown up toppings otherwise Eagerly articulate
Mostly lead to compromise. That their kids are really great.
Stop signs in my neighborhood Looking older as we age,
Are not stopped at very good. Faces help us guess and gauge.
Drivers slow to near stop, yes. Surgeries to hide the truth
Stop though “no” most must confess. Don’t do well preserving youth.
When you’re on an evening walk Rush means moving quick, so hey,
You’ll see dogs most every block. “Rush Hour” makes no sense to say.
Seldom ever two the same, Traffic, three ‘til six, is slow.
Each with a unique dog name. “STUCK HOURS” is more apropos.
Just a job ain’t good enough Those who have good head of hair
When both parents are “hot stuff”. Ought to think ‘bout style and care.
Lawyer, doctor mom and dad, Sadly, that is not the case.
Kid must be “big” college grad. Lots of folks look out of place.
Listen to our elders, please. Tons of steel lifts off the ground,
While they’re here it’s best to seize Skyward distant city bound.
Firsthand knowledge of the past, If they were alive today
How life then and now contrast. What would Orv and Wilbur say?
Best things you can be combined: Birds with just their beaks and claws
Loving, caring, selfless, kind. Build nests nicely, without flaws.
Added up and more concise: Slim to none the likelihood
Really, truly, simply…NICE. Clever humans do as good.
Youth sports sign up organized. Multi-colored, or just white.
Free time play unsupervised. Which illumination’s right?
Must do both, and nothing less, Christmas, best let kids decide.
To attain the most success. White, I’m sorry, you’re denied.
Starved, stay clear of grocery store. Outdoor summer gathering...
Else the stuff you should ignore Food, friends, festive, fun…good thing.
Looks so sure to satisfy, Then a bee, three interrupt,
You will, too much, junk food buy. Four, five, eight, twelve, damn, disrupt.
Losing weight is difficult. Things that have legs two or four.
Tougher yet when you’re adult. Fine with that, but nothing more.
Mainly you must want to move, Spiders, centipedes aren't fun.
Eat less, better…find your groove. Snakes, no thanks, their legs are none.
Six eyes fixed on that last slice. Bagging leaves is tedious.
Three guys thinking “it looks nice.” Rake them onto tarps, less fuss.
Even though each fella’s full, Grab four corners up, compact.
Tasty pizza has its pull. Quicker, better than leaves sacked.
Youngster tumbles, scrapes a knee. Neighborhoods of children play,
Quick, diffuse, else you’ll see Bikes and balls and games all day.
Agony, like lost a limb, That was once upon a time,
Chance of their survival slim. When kids shrieked “I found a dime.”
Rummage sale, I’d rather not. NBA and MLB
All day long and what you got? Average one year salary
Tired of cheap S.O.B.s. Will pay all one’s bills and more,
Eighty bucks collected. Geez! Lifetimes three or maybe four.
When you’re bitter, extra mad, Dancing can be really tough
Furthest you can be from glad, When the dance floor ain’t enough
Feels quite good to curse out loud, For an overwhelming throng
Even better in a crowd. Lured by their favorite song.
No sense hearing person’s voice. Was a time when mail was fun.
Not when texting is a choice. Bills were few and junk was none.
Send some words, then get some back. Phone calls cost a fortune, so
Talking, that’s old fashioned, Jack! Letter writing stole the show.
Kids deserve a decent name… Ice cream shoppe, three dollars buys
Classic, simple, strong, but tame. Single scoop, a baseball’s size.
Parents, don’t pick rare or weird, Six bucks spent at grocery store
Rather, good old school, revered. Gets you 10 to 12 scoops more.
Can we just stop littering. Buying, prepping, cooking food.
Really, it’s the dumbest thing. Lots of pre-eat time accrued.
There are trash cans everywhere. Ahh, alas it finds your plate,
Find one, put your garbage there. Where it’s gone in minutes, ate.
Baseball players like to spit. Legos are the greatest toy.
Nearly all seen doing it. Keeps kids busy, brings them joy.
Ask them though and they’ll concede: Christmas, birthday gift to buy?
Just a habit, not a need. Legos always satisfy.
It’s assumed that only some Perfect gift is obvious.
Have plant talent, skilled “green thumb”. Do not need to think, discuss.
Get good dirt and keep it damp. It’s what you can spend or stash…
Not that hard to be plant champ. Plain and simple: cold, hard cash.
Wait 'til birth before you see Spectate, that means watch the game.
If the child is he or she. Cheer, that’s great, but don’t be lame…
Everyone should realize Acting like an idiot,
Joy of that "big day" surprise. Screaming, yelling, without quit.
Feel like you’re about to sneeze. Traffic moving expertly.
Want to, c’mon, pretty please. Three lanes, spread out, smooth, yippee!
Ready, set, alas, let go! Oops, ahead, dead stop for miles.
Nope! Return to status quo. Road work, one lane, zero smiles.
Thursday night is good because World would be a better place
Got the "week's near over" buzz. If, without a single trace,
Next, there’s Friday night, hurray! Evil, awful, scary, weird,
Then the great Satur/Sunday!! Worst among us disappeared.
Quarter: shiny, flat and round. Dozen plates in cupboard stacked.
Kid sees, grabs up off the ground. Usage of the twelve, if tracked
Nineteen sixty-eight: yippee! Might show that the bottom one
Nowadays: not so much glee. Has been handled close to none.
From the couch we watch TV. Offramp, turn lane, beggar folk,
There we drift off easily. You can’t all be flat out broke.
Get up, brush teeth, go to bed. And your cardboard signs are crap,
Wide awake with can't sleep dread. Scribbled, stupid message…scrap!
Hate, a word that might seem strong. Let’s stop dressing up for stuff.
Using it though don't seem wrong Business/formal wear, enough!
When it’s aimed at human dung. High priced, stuffy…so absurd.
Then it's fine to share sharp tongue. Cheaper, comfy…that’s preferred.
Indoor plumbing, holy cow! Broken brained, uncivilized
Talk about life changer, wow!! Live among us...not surprised
Running water in a sink. That there's always awful crime.
Goodbye outhouse, no more stink. World we live in ain't sublime.
Easy to be scared of heights, Thirty bucks to park the car.
Toothy beasts, whatever bites, Tickets, eighty bucks each are.
Spiders, snakes, and all that crawls, Couple beers and ballpark food.
Haunted houses, creepy dolls. Costly night, team lost, foul mood.
Walk each day a mile or two. Many million miles away…
It’s the least that one can do. Mars, but you can’t live there/stay.
Need to move, burn calories. Let’s just try to fix our earth,
Else the outcome will not please. Where there is so little mirth.
No more sunset photos please. Little kids love being chased.
They’re more common than a sneeze. Knowing parents, silly faced,
Sorry, yours is not unique. Blurt “I’m gonna get you”, which
Any other snapshot seek. Send them running, laughter rich.
Had to spend a lot to get Easy to be nice, and yet
Early color TV set. Many choose a crap mindset:
Never then could have foreseen Glass half empty attitude;
Giant, lightweight, cheap flat screen. Always angry, always rude.
No one wants bad weather, but Nice hard rain has left behind
TV weather talent/nut, Puddles everywhere to find.
Bored by days of clear, blue skies, There for kids to stomp on through,
Doesn’t mind a big storm prize. Each wet splash sheer fun renew.
© copyright 2026 TJF Poetry
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