"Brevity is the soul of wit."    - W. Shakespeare

Agreeing with ol' Bill, I created short (four line) and shorter (two line) poems per topic. Enjoy, and let me  know if you have a favorite, replying to tjfobbe@gmail.com.                - TJ Fobbe (Highland Pk, St. Paul MN)                                                                                                                                                                               

Finer dining restaurant                                         Finer dining food delish,
Small, but pretty, food will flaunt.                       Bigger portions though you wish.
Entrees tasty that delight,                                    
Could be eaten one big bite.                                

Skinny though the bike lanes are,                      Bike lane won't protect you from
Close to every passing car,                                  Drivers who are careless, dumb.
Many choose to use them still,                            
Trusting every driver’s skill.                                  

Art when it’s the most abstract                           Weirdest artwork can attract.
Seems outrageous, really “whacked”.               There are fans of most abstract.
Yet it’s just the kind of stuff                            
Wealthy folks will not rebuff.                        

Walked dogs love to stop and sniff.                   Walked dogs love to stop and sniff,                
Best to let them have their whiff.                        Leaving too THEIR scent to whiff.        
They then too must represent,                       
Leaving here and there a scent.                             

Best among us die too young,                             Worst among us live too long. 
Long before some human dung.                         God, let’s chat, that’s just so wrong.
Life ain’t fair, and why is that?                    
God, can we please have a chat!                                

Want to find a happy place?                                 Innocence of toddler’s face
Look into a toddler’s face.                                    Helps to temper day’s rat race.
There you’ll see pure innocence,                                  
Simple joy without pretense.                                

Squirrels scamper extra quick,                           Cautiously? squirrels cross the street.
Climb trees, traverse branches slick.                Flattened fur reveals failed feat.     
Cautiously? they’ll cross a street.                         
Carcass sadly marks failed feat.                       

Need to cross a busy street?                               Shame on those who make cars wait,
Do so please with urgent feet.                             Crossing street with lazy gait.  
Don’t make cars slow down or wait                                      
While you show off lazy gait.                            

Some cannot resist its use,                                  Those impatient, filled with scorn,
Turning it into abuse.                                             Love to overuse their horn.
They, in traffic, full of scorn,                                
Honk incessantly their horn.                               

Neighborhoods need neighbors who                 Want our neighbors to be nice,
Do the things nice neighbors do.                        Make a yardwork sacrifice.
Keep things tidy in their space.                            
Be good natured, don’t disgrace.                

New homes that are built en masse                   Newest homes don’t come with shade.        
Come with seeded/sodded grass.                      Baby trees mean that’s delayed.                  
What there ain’t is ample shade.                                    
Baby trees mean that’s delayed.                            

Folks that have a lot of stuff                                How much stuff does someone need?
Cannot ever have enough.                                   Sadly wealth, for most, spawns greed.
As their incomes yearly soar,                            
Wealthy look to purchase more.                          

Parents fault cannot be hid.                                Goes unquestioned, kids come first.
Must engage when raising kid.                           Parents who think not are worst.
Apathy and negligence                                 
IS worst mom or dad offense.                       

Hope to win the lottery?                                       Lottery, it can be won.
Chance you will is, let me see…                          Chance you will though next to none.
Slimmer than the slimmest slim,                        
Dimmer than the darkest dim.                               

Little kids you can appease                                 Kids prefer just plain ol' cheese.
Buying pizza with just cheese.                            Makes for pizza order ease.      
Grown up toppings otherwise                        
Mostly lead to compromise.                               

Overzealous moms and dads,                             Proud dad thinks his kid is great.
Cheering on their Brees and Brads,                    Happy to articulate.         
Eagerly articulate                                    
That their kids are really great.                     

Stop signs in my neighborhood                           Stop signs in the neighborhood
Are not stopped at very good.                              Are not stopped at very good.            
Drivers slow to NEAR stop, yes.                         
STOP though “no” most must confess.                      

Looking older as we age,                                       Surgeries to hide the truth
Faces help us guess and gauge.                          Don’t do well preserving youth.
Surgeries to hide the truth                              
Don’t do well preserving youth.                                    

Good employees choose to leave.                      One by one employees quit
Company is blind, naive                                        While their boss stays, most unfit.
To the fact that every loss                                        
Had the very same bad boss.                             

Hard core pro sport fans it seems                       Not so sure it's for the best 
Care too much about their teams.                       To be pro sport team obsessed.
Worship level interest shown.                                     
Lots of time and money blown.                         

When you’re on an evening walk                         Nightly walk, pass dogs a lot,                     
You’ll see dogs most every block.                       Different types, and none named Spot.        
Seldom ever two the same,                                 
Each with a unique dog name.                          

Rush means moving quick, so hey,                     Rush means hurry, which ain’t so,         
"Rush Hour" makes no sense to say                   Driving home, “rush” hour is slow. 
Traffic, three ‘til six, is slow.                                 
“STUCK HOURS” is more apropos.                      

Just a job ain’t good enough                                Doctor, lawyer mom and dad.          
When both parents are “hot stuff”.                     Kid can’t be mere college grad.              
Doctor, lawyer mom and dad,                    
Kid can’t be mere college grad.                      

Parents, love your children like                           Hug your kids forever like     
They were still a little tyke.                                  They were still a little tyke.       
Hug them tight at twenty-five,              
Always while you're both alive.                                      

Listen to our elders, please.                                Elders have a lot to say          
While they’re here it’s best to seize                   ‘bout how things were in their day.
Firsthand knowledge of the past,                       
How life then and now contrast.                       

Tons of steel lifts off the ground,                       Orv and Wilbur, first to fly           
Skyward distant city bound.                                Off the ground, not near the sky.       
If they were alive today                                 
What would Orv and Wilbur say?                           

Best things you can be combined:                     Loving, caring, selfless, kind…      
Loving, caring, selfless, kind.                              Nice is all those things combined.
Added up and more concise:                                     
Really, truly, simple…NICE.                              

Birds with just their beaks and claws                 Blessed with only claws and beak,          
Build nests nicely, without flaws.                        Birds build nests most magnifique.
Slim to none the likelihood                       
Clever humans do as good.                           

Youth sports sign up, organized.                        Youth sports coached is most advised.       
Free time play unsupervised.                              Need though play unsupervised.
Must do both, and nothing less,                                  
To attain the most success.                          

Multi-colored, or just white.                                 Some like Christmas lights just white.    
Which illumination's right?                                    Multi-colored though seems right.    
Christmas, best let kids decide.                           
White, I’m sorry, you’re denied.                    

Starved, stay clear of grocery store.                   Starved, stay clear of grocery store.
Else the stuff you should ignore                          Might buy just what you adore.           
Looks so sure to satisfy,                                 
You will, too much, junk food buy.                  

Outdoor summer gathering...                              Family, outdoor picnic...fun!
Food, friends, festive, fun...good thing.             Bees show up and now THEY’VE won.            
Then a bee, three interrupt.                                       
Four, five, eight, twelve, damn, disrupt.                    

Losing weight is difficult.                                     Weight loss comes to those who move,
Tougher yet when you’re adult.                           Eat less, better…just improve. 
Mainly you must want to move,                  
Eat less, better…just improve.                           

Things that have legs two or four.                     Things with lots of legs aren’t fun.             
Fine with that, but nothing more.                       Snakes, no thanks, their legs are none.       
Spiders, centipedes aren’t fun.                             
Snakes, no thanks, their legs are none.                       

Six eyes fixed on that last slice.                        Three stare at last pizza slice
Three guys thinking “it looks nice.”                   Each is full, still it looks nice.          
Even though each fella’s full,                                  
Tasty pizza has its pull.                                    

Bagging leaves is tedious.                                  Bagging leaves takes too much time.
Rake them onto tarps, less fuss.                       Rake them onto tarp, sublime.                         
Grab four corners up, compact.                       
Quicker, better than leaves sacked.               

Youngster tumbles, scrapes a knee.                Youngster owie, quick diffuse. 
Quick, diffuse, or else you’ll see                       “It’s okay” first phrase to use.              
Agony, like lost a limb,                     
Chance of their survival slim.                          

Neighborhoods of children play,                       Bikes, balls, games…just outside play.            
Bikes and balls and games all day.                   Neighbor kids once went all day.         
That was once upon a time,                      
When kids shrieked “I found a dime!”                      

Rummage sale, I’d rather not.                            All day yard sale, what’s your take? 
All day long and what you got?                          Eighty bucks, exhausted, ache.
Tired of cheap S.O.B.s.                           
Eighty bucks collected. Geez!                                

NBA and MLB                                                       Male pro athletes in one year
Average one year salary                                     Make what most make in career.
Will pay all Bob's bills and more,                             
Lifetimes three or maybe four.                               

When you’re bitter, extra mad,                          Angry, things could not be worse.
Furthest you can be from glad,                         Go ahead, feels good to curse.          
Feels quite good to curse out loud,                      
Even better in a crowd.                         

Dancing can be really tough                              Dance floor seldom big enough
When the dance floor ain’t enough                  When the music is hot stuff.     
For an overwhelming throng                           
Lured by their favorite song.                           

No sense hearing person’s voice.                    Texting now is more preferred               
Not when texting is a choice.                           To a phone call, spoken word.
Send some words, then get some back.                           
Talking, that’s old fashioned, Jack!                     

Was a time when mail was fun.                       Back when phone call cost would sting,   
Bills were few and junk was none.                  Letter writing was a thing.        
Phone calls cost a fortune, so                  
Letter writing stole the show.                   

Kids deserve a decent name…                        Parents, when you pick kid’s name,
Classic, simple, strong, but tame.                  Nothing weird, made up, or lame.       
Parents, don’t pick rare or weird,                        
Rather, good “old school” revered.                                 

Ice cream shoppe, three dollars buys            Fancy ice cream shoppe, big whoop!             
Single scoop, a baseball’s size.                       Three bucks for a single scoop.
Six bucks spent at grocery store                                  
Gets you 10 to 12 scoops more.                         

Can we just stop littering.                                Littering is just plain dumb.
Really, it’s the dumbest thing.                         Nowhere aren’t their trash cans some.    
There are trash cans everywhere.                            
Find one, put your garbage there.                 

Buying, prepping, cooking food.                     Food takes time to prep, cook, plate.
Lots of pre-eat time accrued.                          Only minutes to be ate.
Ahhh, alas it finds your plate,                           
Where it’s gone in minutes, ate.              

Baseball players like to spit.                            Baseball players like to spit.
Nearly all seen doing it.                                    Habit, and not gonna quit.
Ask them though and they’ll concede:                     
Just a habit, not a need.                           

Legos are the greatest toy.                              Legos, perfect gift to buy.
Keeps kids busy, brings them joy.                  Guaranteed to satisfy.     
Christmas, birthday gift to buy?                         
Legos always satisfy.                                

It’s assumed that only some                            How to earn “green thumb”, plant champ.
Have plant talent, skilled “green thumb”.      Start with decent dirt, keep damp.                
Get good dirt and keep it damp.                         
Not that hard to be plant champ.                                 

Perfect gift is obvious.                                      Perfect gift is surely cash.
Do not need to think, discuss.                         Spend on anything, or stash.
It’s what you can spend or stash…
Plain and simple: cold, hard cash.

Wait ‘til birth before you see                            Boy or girl? Find out at birth.
If the child is he or she.                                     Waiting brings far greater mirth.
Everyone should realize       
Joy of that “big day” surprise.

Spectate, that means watch the game.         Go ahead, cheer on your team.
Cheer, that’s great, but don’t be lame...         Just don’t be loudmouth extreme.
Acting like an idiot,
Screaming, yelling, without quit.

Feel like you’re about to sneeze.                   Just about to, want to, please!
Want to, c’mon, pretty please.                        On the verge, then lost a sneeze.
Ready, set, alas, let go!
Nope. Return to status quo.  

Traffic moving expertly.                                    Traffic moving, spread out, smooth.
Three lanes, spread out, smooth, yippee!     Jam that’s nearing will not soothe.
Oops, ahead, dead stop for miles.
Road work, one lane, zero smiles.

Thursday night is good because                      Mood improves come Thursday night.
Got the “week’s near over” buzz.                     Then there’s Friday, great delight!
Next, there’s Friday night, hurray!
Then the great Satur/Sunday!!

World would be a better place                          Wish the worst among us would
If, without a single trace,                                   Disappear, be gone for good.
Evil, awful, scary, weird,
Worst among us disappeared.

Quarter: shiny, flat and round.                        Quarter used to be big deal.
Kid sees, grabs up off the ground.                 Now it has far less appeal.
Nineteen sixty-eight: yippee!
Nowadays: not near the glee.

Endzone celebrations seem                           Endzone celebrations should   
In more recent years extreme.                       Have no hint of Hollywood.
Chest bump, hand slap is enough.
No need for the silly stuff.

From the couch we watch TV.                        Fall asleep on couch no prob.
There we drift off easily.                                 Head to bed, now it’s a job.
Get up, brush teeth, go to bed.
Wide awake with can’t sleep dread.

Offramp, turn lane, beggar folk,                    Beggar folk with sign in hand.
You can’t all be flat out broke.                       Your approach is poorly planned.
Also, please don’t make us squint.
Message write in big, bold print.

Hate, a word that might seem strong.         It’s okay to hate and curse
Using it though ain’t so wrong                      someone who is most perverse.
When it’s aimed at human dung.
Then it’s fine to share sharp tongue.

Let’s stop dressing up for stuff.                    Comfy clothes make much more sense.
Business/formal wear, enough!                     Dressing up is too intense.
High priced, stuffy…so absurd.
Cheaper, comfy…that’s preferred.

French fried, roasted, boiled or mashed     Inexpensive, versatile,
Baked, au gratin, scalloped, hashed.           Hey potato, like your style!
Inexpensive, versatile,
Taters don’t go out of style.

Broken brained, uncivilized                           Brains are broken, which is why
Live among us…not surprised                       Evil should not mystify.
That there’s always awful crime.
World we live in ain’t sublime.

Easy to be scared of heights,                         Spiders, snakes, and beasts that bite,
Toothy beasts, whatever bites,                      Scared of that, and any height.
Spiders, snakes, and all that crawls,
Haunted houses, creepy dolls.

Thirty bucks to park the car.                          Parking, tickets, beers and food.
Tickets, eighty bucks each are.                     Costly game, team lost, foul mood.
Couple beers and ballpark food.
Costly night, team lost, foul mood.

Walk each day a mile or two.                         Move, just walk, each day, one mile.
It’s the least that one can do.                         Else more pounds you will compile.
Need to move, burn calories.         
Else the outcome will not please.  

Many million miles away…                             Mars has very little worth.
Mars, but you can’t live there/stay.              Let’s just try to live on earth.
Let’s just try to fix our earth,
Where there is so little mirth.

No more sunset photos please.                    Sunset photos, no more please.
They’re more common than a sneeze.        Seen, so far, enough of these.  
Sorry, yours is not unique.
Any other snapshot seek.

Little kids love being chased.                       Children love when parents chase,
Knowing parents, silly faced,                        Catch them in a tight embrace.
Blurt “I’m gonna get you”, which
Send them running, laughter rich.

Had to spend a lot to get                               TVs once cost, weighed a lot.
Early color TV set.                                          Cheaper, lighter now when bought.
Never then could have foreseen
Giant, lightweight, cheap flat screen.

Easy to be nice, and yet                                 Easy to be nice, and yet
Many choose a crap mindset:                      Some can only nasty get.
Glass half empty attitude;
Always angry, always rude.

No one wants bad weather, but                   Weather people bored with “blue”
TV weather talent/nut,                                  Like it when a storm rolls through.
Bored by days of clear, blue skies,
Doesn’t mind a big storm prize.

Nice hard rain has left behind                     Puddles left by heavy rain
Puddles everywhere to find.                        Beckon children, fun insane.
There for kids to stomp on through,
Each wet splash sheer fun renew.

Each celeb designer dress                           Lifetime cost of clothes is less
Worn at Oscars to impress                           Than one actress Oscars dress.         
Costs as much as all the clothes   
Most have in their lifetime chose.

Why do people choose to live                      Why live where tornadoes rule?
Where the weather won’t forgive?               Hurricanes are extra cruel!
Damn tornadoes, hurricanes
Threaten southeast coast, and plains.

Open spaces that once were                         Open space where kids once played  
Where kids played without deter                  Now is buildings overlaid.
Are today, well, mostly gone,
Land developed, built upon.

Kids see vending “snack” machine               Kids cannot resist machine
Can’t resist junk food cuisine.                        Offering junk food cuisine.
Plead with either mom or dad:
“Hungry, starving, need it bad.”

Warm or cool is surely fine.                            Warm and cool are fine, but not         
Hot or cold is when we whine.                        Frigid cold or steamy hot.
Ninety plus and steamy, bad!
Minus ten with wind, egad!!  

Chinese takeout boxes are                             Chinese takeout boxes hold
Magical, unique, bizarre.                                 Meals, not two, but three, fourfold.
Crazy how much food they hold.
Meals, not two, but three, fourfold.

Really, basic crust, sauce, cheese,                Toppings more than two a waste,
By itself enough to please.                             Steal from pizza sauce/cheese taste.
Toppings more than two a waste,
Steal from simple pizza taste.

Driveway nearing, almost there.                    Turn the corner, house in sight.
Home alas, no time to spare.                          Soon relief from held pee plight
Race from car, burst through house door.
Bathroom reached, relief once more.

Thank God for the laborers,                             Laborers, can’t thank enough.
All hard working hims and hers,                     Work they do is worthy stuff.
Doing what most will not do,
Solo and sometimes with crew.

Wealthy need trips overseas.                          Some take trips to Greece, Spain, France.
Nothing short of that will please.                   Others buy new pair of pants.
Those just barely getting by
May not ever get to fly.

Under shade tree by the lake,                          Under shade tree by the lake.   
Shielded from the hot sun bake,                     Gentle breeze, sit, take a break.
Gentle breeze caresses face…
You have found your happy place.

Large life plans are often made,                     Plans made drinking late at night
Which next day will surely fade,                     Start to fade next morning’s light.
When folks have too much to drink,
Causing them to “big talk” think.

Ding on car door quarter inch,                       Car door tiny scratch, “Oh well”.       
Noticed but without a flinch.                          Spouse, however, thinks “Oh, hell!”
Spouse though later sees said ding,
Makes noise like got big bee sting.

Ninety-five is plenty hot,                                 When its really hot, stay in.
And that’s in a shady spot.                              Just let mother nature win.
Much worse in the sultry sun.
Stay in, mother nature’s won.

Outdoor work is worstest when                    Steamy hot outdoors, no prob, 
Temp unshaded nears one-ten.                    When you have an office job.   
That’s when you’re a lucky slob
Just to have an office job.

Monthly five, six day ordeal,                          Women physically endure
Nine month pregnancy appeal,                      So much more than men, for sure.
Painful birth then breast feed fun…
Women cannot be outdone.

Hydrate we are often told,                              Drink some water, yes, of course.
Almost to the point of scold.                         Just not ALL the time, don’t force.
Water is important, yes.
Stupid though to drink obsess.

Lots of people choose to run                         Runners don’t have happy face.
Though their faces don’t say “fun”.              Why not walk at decent pace?
Those who walk with decent pace
Seem to have more cheerful face.

Mozart and DaVinci, wow!                              Mozart and DaVinci are  
Go ahead boys, take a bow.                            Best at what they did, by far.
Beauty, brilliance unhatched.         
What you gave us goes unmatched.

Priceless what a child might say                   Priceless what a child might say,
When they try best to convey                         Each response a fun bouquet.
Something that is on their mind,
Observations kid defined.

Motorcyclers, there are some,                       Motorcylers who are dumb
Arrogant and somewhat dumb,                     Weave through traffic quick, ho hum.
Who treat traffic like a game,
With “I’ll race, weave through it” aim.

Burgers, we are so obsessed,                         Burger, no such thing as best.
Looking always for the best.                           Home grilled version should pass test.
One you make at home should do.
Season, grill, right temp, yahoo!

Great if you have learned to climb.                If you learn to climb things tall
One fun way to pass the time.                        Also know how not to fall.
If though you ascend things tall,
Best to know how not to fall. 

Husband strangely loses life.                         Spouse has sudden, sketchy death.         
Murdered. Who else but the wife?                 Check out spouse who still has breath.
Wife killed. Hmmm, husband, of course!
Could have gotten a divorce.

Little children, daycare group,                        Daycare kids in coupled line.
Walk together, quite the troop,                       Holding hands, cute, just divine.        
Holding hands in coupled line,
Crazy cute and just divine.

Cotton candy, crazy stuff…                             Cotton candy, marshmallows...
Whipped up, airy, sugar fluff.                         Airy, spongy sweets are those.
Marshmallows are sweet but bland,
Spongy unless fire tanned.

Walking means you’re moving, great!          Walk or jog or bike, just move! 
Jogging elevates heart rate.                          Anyway to find your groove!!
Biking covers lots more ground,
Helps you faster get around.

Bedroom window open wide,                         Sleep with window open, then
Letting summer breeze inside.                      Cricket, nearby, loud, kills zen. 
Good night sleep assured, and then
Cricket, nearby, loud, kills zen.

Happy is a dog that’s fed,                               Want to see dog’s spirit soar?  
Shares at night a child’s bed.                         Leave house, come back, open door.
Want to see dog’s spirit soar?
Leave house, come back, open door.

Good to take care of your yard.                    Don’t obsess about your lawn.
Just don’t try so very hard                             Do your best and then move on.
That you every day obsess.
Find a hobby, decompress.

Sickness, hunger, homelessness,               Vital to acknowledge, stress:        
Hate, corruption, death, distress,                World is really quite a mess.
Evil tyrants, endless wars… 
This great world, it’s mine and yours.

Car that pulls up next to you,                        Please don’t be a big bozo,
Music blaring, cuts right through.                Blasting your car stereo.
Bass beat thumping, feel the noise.
Can’t believe someone enjoys.

Swapping friendly “hi/hello”                         Feels quite good to say “Hello”
With a person you don’t know,                     To a person you don’t know.
On a walk or anywhere,
Only helps with one’s welfare.

If you brought back people who                  If alive to see things now
Died in nineteen twenty-two                        Long deceased would say “Oh, Wow”!
So that they could see things now,
They'd respond with more than "Wow"!

                                                                  © copyright 2026 TJF Poetry

 

 

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