October 1, 2026

it’s october
it’s october!
it’s spooky season
the spoopiest time of year
a moment of witches and werewolves
and spiders and ghosts and full moon eyes of black cats
and vampires and scary stories and one flickering candle left in an
otherwise darkened room
of music with theremins and organs
and sound effects that send a chill up your spine
where skeletons can meet up with their kind
and dissonantly play their bones
like xylophones
until the coming morning

September 1, 2025

things i am looking forward to
as the season changes
from summer to fall:

not needing the a/c units blasting all the time
the smell of brewing pumpkin spice coffee wafting through the house
spooky music for morning pages
spooky things everywhere
the smell of fallen leaves being stepped on
the sound of fallen leaves being stepped on
the lessening of all these mosquitos
and feeling like the crisp wind has forced me
AWAKE
after months of lazy hazy summer days turned to nights turned to days

there is an ephemeral liminalness to autumn
that even though it harkens the coming of my most hated season
i still do love its passing by

February 13, 2025

hilarious
to me
that i recognized that one song
couldn’t place it
couldn’t place it
went to the internet
it almost didn’t help me
and then
like a light at the end of a
long, cold, dark tunnel
reddit user
simply stated
“Spooky Lake Tiktok”
and i am saved from
racking my brain about that
all damn day

[and i get to revel
in the spookiness]

August 27, 2023

listening
to spooky music
while the weather is still nice and warm
does not make the time fly
faster —
it instead
makes me believe
we live in a place
where halloween costumes
need not
be crafted
to fit oversized
over winter coats,
and trick-or-treating
need not
happen
in blusters of snow
and ice,
and the day after
need not
indicate
an immediate
seasonal
depression.

August 24, 2023

puppies
and cats
and kips
and me
and this house
already filled with memories
and at least one ghost
from the ’90’s
and spooky music
all year long

and that’s what makes a family

August 7, 2023

rain pouring/
pounding
on our little roof,
waking me up
long before the sound
of our collective alarms,
but lulling me into
a false sense of security
that i would be able to
fall gently asleep
once more

instead the internet/
and uneven droplets/
and awkward room temperature/
and brightness sneaking in
from a gentle sunrise
outside
kept me up since 5

and now
at 8:30
i’m downing this coffee
just to stay
alive

(but at least the weather is as spooky as our morning music)

September 25, 2022

snickerdoodles
and pumpkin pecan coffee
and spooky tunes
and writing poems
all
for
breakfast

~~~

i know
that it’s not
the same
but seeing our tiny puppy
in pain
reminds me of the stories
parents tell
of seeing their children
hurt
or sick
for the first time
and how frustrating it feels
to be utterly helpless

to not be able to explain to your baby
‘this cough will pass
you just need to rest’
or
‘i can’t magically make you better
even though i give you
every other
necessity
needed
for life’

wanting to do everything
and being able to do nothing
and those eyes asking for the world
which you’d give
in an instant
if you
only
could

~~~

thank you
Louka
for the treats
with the natural pain relief
so this puppy could get excited
about them
instead of concentrating on
her hurt leg
and helping her
sleep
some pain
away