They think every idea they have is somewhere between Genius and Great!

Normally I wouldn’t care, but when one of these deep thinkers arrived at my 7 years old daughter’s birthday party and told her to put her jacket on and that she was leaving with him to buy anything she wanted… I had the audacity to say no.

” She might want to hang out with her little friends, some of whom she doesn’t see every day… ”

As soon as I turned my back he took her shopping.

I pick my battles and said nothing, but when I can’t trust adults to not undermine my wishes around my children… never again will you get the chance mofu!

Dennis Mantin

Reading Writing Arithmetic…

Of which there’s only 1 R…

Perhaps the second R is repetition.

Perhaps the third R is remember.

A tried and true method for Learning that seems to be getting lost in the age of computers.

Writing, repeating, engraving, reading, words, numbers.

The art of writing or engraving words with a pen on paper and memory retention are directly linked.

Dennis Mantin

The battle for nasal passages is on… Memories of my childhood are awakened.

One snot drenched cold followed by another and then again…

The seasons of discontent are held at bay now with Nyquil, Otrivan and drugs snot available when I walked miles to school in snow drifts to tall to imagine…

Dennis Mantin

1988 Don’t talk to strangers.

1998 Don’t get into a car with strangers.

2018 Call Uber.

I never learned to determine the difference between the looks, that say, l love you, I’m desperate for attention; or I’m bored and you’ll do until something better comes along.

I understand myself better now and don’t strive for anything beyond friendship.

Sex is nothing but a business transaction, that’s paid now or later.

4 days of rain… November pain.

I under heated roof.

Yards from homeless soggy wet.

The perspectives are not lost.

I have been there…

Dennis Mantin

The air changed in a snap.

From warm as breath to icey frost.

Shoulders sag, hunkering down.

Wearing their powerlessness like goose down and wool…

It’s here where the madness comes with the mittens.

Imaginary drifts blocking their paths in darkening skies and the slush slush slushing sounds of frozen freezing snow.

Accept, Breathe, Listen.

See the beauty in this.

Step in the moment.

One foot in front of the other. No one gets out alive… The journey is here!

Dennis Mantin

The Principal of my daughter’s new school asked, ” Do you pick up your daughter for lunch all the time?”

” Only when I can. I’m working nights … so I am able to this week.”

She reiterated her attitude of contempt. ” That seems unusual! ”

Really? Doesn’t it seem ridiculous and strangely sad, that a father taking his daughter to lunch is deemed unusual?

Dennis Mantin

The counselor asked the group of us if anyone could share their most embarrassing moment…

I knew Peter would be the first. He loved the sound of his own voice and had been unusually silent for days. He was a former priest and a crack addict, which was bound to take this to a whole other level.

” I was in a Rabba grocery and I was hungry. ” He began and scanned his audience. ” I stole a yogurt and some avocados. The manager of the Rabba caught me and gathered around his staff and said…

” This is what a THIEF looks like! THIS!!!… is what a thief looks like. ” I began to picture Peter the crack addict thief, wearing his robes and white collar, being admonished by the grocery clerk when he continued.

” He took the yogurt and avocados and told me to leave. As I was leaving he threw one of the avocados at me which hit the door jam at head level… I was very fortunate that the avocado didn’t hit me as it wasn’t ripe yet and very hard… I could have been really hurt. ”

I couldn’t stop laughing and was unable to hide my joy. After a few seconds of this, Peter said to me. ” Could you please explain to me what it is you find so funny? ”

I contained myself long enough to reply, ” Do you steal green bananas? ”

Later when I was trying to recount this story to someone who wasn’t there, I said, ” And everyone was laughing. ”

Someone who was there tapped me on the shoulder and said, ” No Dennis… only you were laughing. ”

Dennis Mantin

No there’s nothing new here.

The wind and sun between us Dear.

And I’m just holding back…

All that came before you.

I have that kind of power!

That has nothing to do with me.

You could say I’m lucky…

I’ll just go with blessed.

If luck has any part…

Tis I have you as my guest.

Dennis Mantin