Brian Baker

Pretty bright and sunny here, though extremely cold. You?

Good morning, Brenda!

Thanks, Brenda. Really not a major loss for me, it's just that his FB posts since the orange turd got elected have been so full of rage-baiting and vitriol that they were increasingly hard to digest. It's so much better now.

For a moment please excuse the male toxicity but, politically-speaking, who would you like to slap the most? I keep thinking I know who my preference would be but then, suddenly, another shitty face shows up.

Had a tiny little outpost of MapleMAGA over on another feed and I finally jettisoned it today. Difficult to do as this person had previously been an important part of my life.

Come On Everyone! It costs NOTHING but KINDNESS to REPOST❗️

Too many people are hungry!

KIDS are hungry & Moms are beyond stressed!

Aww, thanks, Brenda! Always seems strange when something which seemed like nothing much more than a random thought one day actually gets published!

I hear you and you're right, there just doesn't seem to be any respite, does there?

I'm betting the best man to handle this is Dick Tracy!

You know those tiny, random thoughts which pop into your head and also somehow seem oddly poetic? Well, quite honoured that Blue Villa chose to accept 4 of mine!

I come across a pretty wide range of poetry and writing courses but the one I'd sign up for right away would be How To Tell When Your Muse Is Tired Of Being Your Muse. I suspect mine's getting there.

Live your life in such a way that no-one scrutinizes the backs of your hands.

Retired and well off enough that I could spend my last years doing pleasurable things but, honestly, if you told me I'd spend those years instead watching a steady stream of oligarchs, politicians, grifters and rapists all getting tried and shipped off to prison then that'd be my option.

include my poem in it! I was totally honoured and said yes! This "Best Of" issue is amazing and Jeff has even included his own photography, matching up his wonderful pics to the authors' writings. He did a wonderful job with mine! Well worth purchasing a copy or even subscribing!

Last year, I was fortunate enough to have a short poem, 'Of all the things we did, brilliantly, together' published in @stanchion.bsky.social . A few months ago, Jeff Bogle, Stanchion's editor, contacted me to say he was compiling a "Best Of" issue, in honor of its 20th edition and could he...

Hmm...where do you even buy a chunk of coal these days??

At least the hells we are all experiencing these days are fresh.

Good morning, Brenda! Have a great day!

Congrats, Francesca! And really no need to a[plogize--these days any little bit of good news from somewhere is more than welcome!

As one of your authors, Jeff, my most overriding expectation of you at any given time is that you simply take care of yourself and do whatever it is you think you need to do to be as healthy and as happy as you possibly can. Take care, my friend!

As parents, we're supposed to remember the first time we did stuff with our kids, but the last time is equally as significant, if not more.

This poem is from Whatever You Do, Just Don't (HappenStance Press, 2023), my second full collection...

SO powerful! And there's a reason for the c/w...

I think just the mere fact that you played golf with Trump should automatically disqualify you from ever being in whatever HOF you might ever have been eligible for.

YouTube video by Hannah Grieco First Kicking, Then Not (August 2025)

My goodness, @writesloud.bsky.social's First Kicking, Then Not has a book trailer!!

First watch, then buy your copy of THE hot flash book of the summer.

youtu.be/WKpIuQ9nCcM?...

This is a poem of loss, taken from Whatever You Do, Just Don't (HappenStance Press, 2023)...

Still offering up a bundle that stradles two eras of Stanchion Magazine, in print & PDFs for $20. That's 184 pages of poetry, prose & photography from talented people who were each paid for their work and weren't made to pay a fee. What a novel idea!

www.stanchionzine.com/product-page...

It saddens/embarrasses/infuriates me to say that if it was something which happened to men it either wouldn't exist or would be greatly mitigated.

Life-saving idea! Pass it on!

So beautiful!

Time to myself today. For the past 7 months, I've spent Tuesdays visiting a friend in the palliative care unit. Today, I no longer have (get) to do that. Lots of adventure in this man's life, a life filled with so much more joy than pain, as it should have been.