It was a late summer evening. Jess and Cindy sat out on their porch watching the sunset while drinking beers. All their fields were full of tall cornstalks. It had been a cruel summer, but thankfully their crops had survived the heat.
“It’s still over a month until the harvest.” Jess stated.
“I know, but we should do well this year. It looks to be a good crop, despite everything.” Cindy replied.
“Don’t bank on it until we are finally harvesting it. Though the money will be welcome. Our finances are getting rather low now.”
“Shame none of your side projects have yielded much so far.”
“I still think we should give alpacas a go.” Jess suggested. Cindy screwed up her nose.
‘We grow corn. What do we know about raising alpacas? Raising animals can bring a whole host of problems we know nothing about.”
“I still think we should give it a go. We’ve got that small field we don’t use for anything. We could fence it off and try raising a small number of them and see how that goes. At least we’ll just be farming them for their fleece and not killing them for meat or anything.” Jess answered. Cindy shrugged her shoulders. “You’ve been quiet that last few days. Is there something troubling you?”
“I’m thinking about going to Faerie and seeing the Queen.” Cindy admitted. Jess raised her eyebrows.
“What?”
“Babradon told me if I wanted to get pregnant again I should see the Queen.”
“Okay.” Jess replied not understanding.
“She’ll help with ensuring the baby is carried to term.” Cindy explained. Jess began gently rubbing Cindy’s back.
“Are you sure you’re ready for that? The miscarriage devastated you. I don’t want to see you go through that again.” Jess told her.
“Well apparently the Queen can help with that. Babradon told me she helped my grandmother do the same. It’s due to my family having some fay blood, which is why I can walk through portals and see fay folk when others can’t.” Cindy told her. Jess slowly nodded her head.
“Maybe I should go with you.” Jess offered. Cindy smiled.
“Thanks. Don’t take this the wrong way, but I’m not sure if you’d be welcome. As far as we know your bloodline is totally mortal. I should only be away a couple of days.”
“Gee thanks. A couple of days our time, or theirs? A couple of days in Faerie could end up being far longer here.” Jess warned.
“I know. I’ll try to be as quick as I can.” Jess sighed deeply.
“Okay if you really want to do this, but what about the impregnation part? Unless the Queen is going to take care of that as well, IVF is really expensive.” Jess asked. Cindy laughed briefly.
“I guess we could try the turkey baster method, but we don’t need to worry about any of that until I get back.” Cindy replied.
“Artificial insemination? Just like they do with cows?” Cindy hit Jess in the face with a cushion.
“Thanks for comparing me to a cow!” They both laughed and stared out into the darkening sky.
“When do you think you’ll go?” Jess asked.
“Not sure yet. maybe I might wait until after the harvest.” Cindy answered.
“Whenever you decide to go it’ll be okay.” Jess told her. Cindy nodded. They both sat there and watched the stars slowly fill the sky.
“That’s great!” Sophia replied hugging her. She had been waiting for Hanna to return for over a year. Now she was back, Sophia could finally ask her out….
After the staggering non-response to my previous post, I’m wondering why I’m persevering with this blog. I’m getting half the traffic I used to and I’m sure I could do some more constructive things with my time. I think if this continues, I’ll look to winding up this blog by the end of the year. I don’t see the ;point of posting stuff here if no one is reading it.
“So you’re home finally.” Sara noted as she caught Emma sneaking back into the house after midnight.
“Yes.” Emma confirmed.
“You’re not going to give one of your usual flippant responses then?”
“Flippant? I’m never flippant!” Emma responded adamantly.
“Yet you’re well known for it. We do need to talk about our relationship. It’s clearly not working between us anymore.” Sara told her. Emma rolled her eyes.
Late Offering
there was nothing to say
we were lying in bed
together no longer able
to touch for fear of
opening wounds
the dark hiding us both
like wounded animals
I still loved you, or
thought I did & then
you began telling me
how you weren't interested
in coming around to see me
anymore & that you weren't
sure if you loved me, or
if you had ever loved me
casually inserting a sharp
blade through the gaps
in my ribs & so I began
playing all my Suzanne Vega
albums one by one
knowing how much
you hated her
Joanne Fisher
Falling in Love
it's those smiles she beams at you
when she serves flat-whites & toasted bagels
that makes you notice her
her face shimmers as if
under the layer of her skin
there is a clear light
making her translucent
eventually you muster the courage
to ask her out fearful
her face might suddenly
succumb to frost
when she says "Yes!"
your heart detonates
the world opens up into light
as if you so willed it
you could just float away
& walk among pristine white clouds
the tides rising in your heart
you grin like the village idiot
you go out to the movies
& walk home with her
the dark hides you both as you hold hands
as cars race furiously past
then on porch
your arms wrap around each other
as the night enfolds the hills
you hope this will be
a happy ever after
Joanne Fisher
Cadrina looked up at the castle ramparts. She would have to wait until it was dark before she climbed up the wall. She was particularly good at not being seen and getting into places she shouldn’t be in, but it was always a challenge. There would be keen-eyed castle guards always watching out for someone like her. She would evade them so long everything went her way, as it usually did. She would sneak along the wall and then down the steps, and then she would gain access to the one place she intended to be. For some rogues it was about gaining riches and notoriety, for her it was always about proving herself to the ones that mattered.
But she wondered would she always be expected to break into the castle so she could spend her evening with the princess every night?
Trying to do the Right Thing
she tells me about
the problems with
her girlfriend, & all
I'm thinking about
how beautiful she is
while trying not to
stray by running my
hand through her
long brown hair &
slowly sliding down
her huddled back as
she smokes cigarettes
& gazes out at the garden
in front of us, instead
I give her advice
that goes against
my own heart
Joanne Fisher
This poem was previously published on this blog in 2019 in a different form.
joanne the geek 