Kathmandu Limerick

A proprietor of old Kathmandu
epitomized the spirit can-do,
selling hippies and monks
neckties and swim trunks,
and even sold ascetics kazoos.

Crab Phalanx [Haiku]

fiddler crabs
form a phalanx;
claws ready

Four Eyes [Haiku]

the glint in the eye
makes it look round and lustrous,
though it’s a moth wing

Kuala Lumpur Limerick

Two builders working in Kuala Lumpur
vied to outdo each other's grandeur;
but one tower is straight,
and the other one ain't.
So, I guess we know who won that war.

The Murder [Kyoka]

a murder of crows
congregates on the concrete,
and I feel angst.
sure, I’m smarter than a crow…
but smarter than the murder?

Harvest Cycle [Common Meter]

The field is neat; the stalks are baled;
the grain sits in baskets
to be carried back home to dry 
on thin sheets of plastic.

The chaff will be cracked from the grain
so that it can be ground
into flour, and baked into bread
that I'll eat sans a sound

as I enjoy the view.

Jaipur Limerick

There was an old painter from Jaipur
who painted ceilings, floors, walls, and doors.
'Til his boss raised a stink,
and said, "Paint it all pink!"
"I've not enough pink cans for that chore."

Claw Harvesters [Common Meter]

The crab, it had one tiny claw;
it couldn't be its first.
What kind of species harvests limbs?
Oh, they must be the worst.

Sympathetic Flow [Common Meter]

The stone man flows; the snake creeps down -
arm becoming viper.
It's slow, but silently it flows,
stealthy as a sniper.

And though he's stone, I feel him go
via sympathetic flow.
Mirror neurons fire in my brain,
taking me high to low...

or so it feels.

Chennai Limerick

"How big 's the beach?" asked a tourist in Chennai
"the beach is half-a-klick," came the reply.
"No, he's got it wrong;
it's six K. M. long,
but it is almost half a klick wide!"