I have printed my ticket and gathered my agenda. I am flying out this weekend for Baltimore, MD. It is not a vacation. I will be traveling with a coworker to present a poster at a National Meeting. I need to travel light to make it easier so I’m trying to pack versatile clothes that will compact without wrinkling. So far I’ve laid out multiple clothing combinations and attempted to sort them by day/activity. I’m wondering if I can manage without a jacket or sweater. In the past the conferences have been in warmer areas – San Antonio, San Diego, Charlotte, Austin, Phoenix. This year it is in Baltimore. It is easier to pack for warm weather… I’m tempted to forgo the stylish clothes and just hang out in jeans. Then my professional conscience whispers that I’m representing my place of employment. Anyway I’ll have the suitcase packed by the time you read this. I will be gone 4 days. I have the poster printed and the extra Velcro in the travel tube. I just hope it doesn’t exceed the size requirements for a carry on!! I will try to visit while I’m at the conference but I can’t promise that I’ll have time, or a secure computer connection. If I don’t visit all of you – rest assured I will be making the rounds as soon as I get back!!
My dearest friends I bid adieu
It pains my heart to part from you
My travel takes me to the East
I’ll be back, I think, at least
While I’m parted from your view
I will miss you all ’tis true!
When I return in four days’ time
I’ll update the blog and post a rhyme
Missing my bed and pillow is tough
And missing your blogs is also rough
But I promise I’ll catch up as soon as can be
I’ll read all past posts I guarantee!
Until I return please be kind and good
And treat each other as I would.
For those with inquiring minds, the above poem is an Epistle poem. This poem is is read aloud as a letter. It may be a direct address; informal or formal in tone, and in any form from rhyming couplets to free verse. The audience can be external or internal to the poet. It is usually used for moral, political or religious discourse. Until I return please “be excellent to each other”!
A Different Perspective 
You may trust us to behave ourselves in your absence…well maybe not Just Joan, but the rest of us might manage.Bon voyage!
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Whaaaaat? Like I would ever misbehave!
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I think that is a song- Ain’t misbehavin’!!
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Loved the clip, Muri, I’m kind of a jazz nut. Fats and his radio, me and my computer, both of us just sittin’ here NOT misbehaving. I had a root canal redone Thursday, so life has been motrin, ice packs, smoothies, soup… not much energy for trouble-making. 🙂
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Yikes! I hope you are feeling better soon! I’ve had my share of dental procedures and I know exactly how you feel. I’d suggest 1 c. milk + 6 oreo cookies in a blender. Puree. Pour into a glass over 1 T. cool whip. Sip through a straw. I lived on this when my jaw was wired shut… It tastes good.
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Thanks, Muri. Jaw wired shut? Sounds serious. If the endodontist is to be believed, I should be fine in a week. The Oreo smoothie sounds fabulous, though I would have to make it with almond milk; the regular cow kind doesn’t agree with me anymore. Geez, I feel like such an old lady… crumbling teeth, lactose intolerance, pretty soon I’ll have prunes in the cupboard and a houseful of cats! 🙂
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All the crazy cat ladies I know are wonderful people with big hearts. And don’t knock the prunes – I keep a stock of them as well as dates… they are sweet, high in iron and no one steals them (unlike the M&Ms)!
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The cookie shake was delicious, Muri. When my sisters and I were little, our teenaged uncles taught us how to make “cake shakes” (submerge a piece of cake in half a glass of milk and mash it together with a fork) which are remarkably similar. I haven’t had one since I was six. I’ve owned as many as seven cats at one time. I learned I was allergic, but kept them all anyway until they died. One lived to be 23! No one steals your prunes? Really? When I worked in Internal Medicine (a doctor’s office for medically-complicated older people), we kept individually wrapped prunes in the candy dish. People took them. I watched one old lady empty the whole dish into her purse when the receptionist wasn’t looking. 🙂
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I was thinking about the kids in the house… though my sons loved prunes.
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Hahaha! Just Joan will behave – maybe behave badly but she most certainly will behave! I will see you all later!
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Have a good trip, and enjoy the conference!
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I intend to have a fun and educational experience and to have crab cakes at least once!
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And a good clam chowder, too!
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Absolutely! And with it being cold and rainy a hearty soup would hit the spot!
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It won’t be the same without you, Muri
but we’ll keep writing, don’t you worry!
The WordPress cloud shall hold in store
whatever you miss in Baltimore. 🙂
Funny you should feature an epistolary poem right when I’m suffering from sinusitis… That was the case when I wrote my first epistolary poem: https://justjoan42.wordpress.com/2017/03/19/the-write-to-remain-silent/. The second one is a “found” epistolary poem made up of lines from rejection letters I’ve received and my own between-the-lines additions: https://justjoan42.wordpress.com/2018/04/22/reading-between-the-lines/. Hope life finds you free from both sinusitis and literary rejection.
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I went back and checked out your posts! Good stuff – especially the rejection letter poem. I have some experience with the sinus infection but I’m a believer in the neti pot (which is fodder for a post in and of itself)!
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safe journey and i hope the wardrobe is sufficient. enjoy the difference in schedule and routines . thank you for introducing me to a new poetry form
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Thanks for the well-wishes and the visit! I was on your site and have now followed you. I can’t believe I’ve introduced you to a new poetry form as you seem quite accomplished!!
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oh you offer too much praise, i am really a beginner here and always happy to receive guidance and pointers and critique. thanks for the follow, i am enjoying reading your posts
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Like the poem. Safe trip. I hope you have some fun..or rest..or down time..something for you. 😉
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I will be busy from dawn to long after dusk! But it will be doing things I’m interested in and I’ll get to eat some fresh seafood – I’m counting on some crab!
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Happy trip..enjoy the experience and share it with us as you come back..
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You can count on it!
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Ah…You evidently inherited your great grandma Bessie’s poetry gene because this is the style she always used in writing her poems. Love it! I hope you have a good time in Maryland.
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I am! I went to the aquarium last night and geocaching the night before. I’ve met some nice people and had a good time so far!
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