1.31.25

wade into the work 

wander

until you are anymore

no longer

sonder

with wonder (and a touch of guilt)

for not believing

you were only

doing your best

by what you were

given

#katyamills

1.5.25

the question I asked myself this morning: is there something wrong with me to not be dreading going back to work tomorrow after the holiday break? the answer: no. it just means you finally found work that uplifts and inspires you even while it tires you.  #katyamills

excerpt dec 4 from memoirs

"You would be a fool to unblock if you knew you were facing annihilation."

#katyamills

smoke break

i wanted to get to know you 

the bosses drove us hard 

leaving us depleted... 

you spoke. they caught us 

it's not a crime 

we needed the money 

they hid behind a story 

an don't care about ours 

i wanted to get to know you 

maybe on break

i don't smoke but 

i will

#katyamills

take a chance on

summer nights

the heat was deep and sustained forcing 

rolling blackouts like a wave over the power grid

you filled the void by malt liquor and fits of patriarchal tyranny

we have no candles i lied

descending the back stairwell i would rather 

take a chance on 

the street

#katyamills

fence

off my shift. 8am

sleeves rolled up we exchange uplifting words

you thank me for starting a pot of coffee

on my way home sleepy yawning i 

pass a house on MLK

yard littered with wheels and frames

a fence for stolen bikes

this work it keeps me

honest

 

#katyamills

guru 1

what is honesty really? 

they asked 

in a world full of lies

guru answered

stop asking questions 

do the good work 

#katyamills

4.4

poverty had almost destroyed them

they made up the balance

by kindness selflessness

and congeniality

#katyamills

Nevada morning

24 floors up encircled by a mountain range
dipped in snow

i was looking down on the streets by

the old Cal Neva. drunks and construction workers

walking the streets. cold dawn

you were watching bad chad on the tele
hunting junkyards for a contracted car

i stretched yawned tumbled on 

down to the lobby 4 my first cup of coffee

time to weld a chassis to this frame 

and get back in 

the game

#katyamills

2 work

got stuck in a loop again searching 

for the best self before we went extinct

could not find it on the phone

could not find it 

in a pill... 

found the best self

just going to work with you

and doing what we

do

#katyamills

co.nun.drum

keep working and you can work your way into and out of the conundrum we call life 

#katyamills

423am

run on 4 hours sleep

ice cream for breakfast wash

it down with house coffee they

dont paint a great face they wont

talk too much smack they aint 

buttoned up in the finest fabrics 

they just work hard a long day

ahead and they mean it 

sincerely   #katyamills

she.they.we.he.you

for hours 

she could not fall asleep 

he trying to keep his brother off

the streets we going to work every day they 

take time to truly listen you 

got something to say? 

what time what? 

say it!

#katyamills

fluence

under the influence

a stubborn yellow light

in a ramshackle hollow

breakin the tight weave

of farmland a scribbler

may do they best work 

#katyamills

luck.y

i'm a lucky one found

work that makes me think

and feel. congruent with my 

mission on this fucked up 

planet earth

#katyamills

por favor

please. do not become tired of life. work it hard and that's a lot. someone always gives up. let them. giving in makes not giving in stand out. what once was commonplace is super rare and meaningful. 

all and none

the tireless work begun
the shadow cast by the wrecking
ball was tall and long

long and tall

the glass shattered
the bricks did fall

only memory withstood
the assault

we were still under

the sun

all had changed 

and none

45

i found that when i slept for exactly six hours, my body and mind woke up rested and ready for the day. however, if i did not rise then and decided to sleep another hour, i had dreams and awoke feeling tired. forty-five years old and i am still learning how to sleep and when to rise! there is no work you cannot do when you are rested. so take your rest and do not be so busy for so long.

omnipotent coffee pot

goodbye to this old year and all her worries and wonders. goodbye to those who died in the struggle for right over wrong, and may you live on, in our hearts, in our slogans, in our tireless pursuit of social justice. goodbye to this old year and her snaking contradictions. goodbye to the mirror and faded reflections of ourselves. goodbye to the ones who had to move out of town, may your adventures be long and dreamy. farewell to the useless imprint of ugly headlines. goodbye to the addicts who took one too many. goodbye abused powers and the fear you inspired. goodbye to new threats of nuclear war. goodbye to depression and not getting out of bed. we are young and inspired, facing 18 hour days. we will not be tired. we will not be phased. out of mainstream culture there arose such a clatter, boys and girls turned their heads to see what was the matter. the bells began tolling, the sunlight was rolling. good spirits were working and smiling a lot. they had so much to offer and an omnipotent coffee pot. 2018 the new year just begun. there was plenty to do under the sun.

3

the third was full of frisbees and soaring like a bird. oils were dripping and smoke was rising, the links were hot as hell. when they discovered water in the park bubbling up from a pipe, the kids made ample use of it. everyone and everything within a hundred yards got wet, except the birds. soon it would be labor day and no one wanted to work but i was ready. i felt i could handle just about anything. the full moon was coming. so long as you got out there and under it, illumination was certain.