Text Message Haiku

Wed 01 January 2003
By John Mark Schofield in Poetry

From 2000 to 2003 I was a computer consultant in Southern California, covering a territory of Irvine to Oxnard. (If you don't know Southern California, that's a LONG stretch of road.) I coped by composing haiku and sending them to friends as text messages.

Traffic stalled.
The mind wanders to green fields.
I move 20 feet.

White pickup in front
Sign says "Corrosion Fixer."
Contemplate for hours.

Driving past a train
Nasty tank cars; toxic spills.
Hobos have it tough.

Vanity License
Essence captured in metal
Not very likely

Inflatable things
Car dealer's giant baby
Eye-catching but dumb

Ninety miles an hour
Almost clipped my fender
Wish there were a cop

Small bedroom window
seven feet from the freeway.
Somebody lives there?

So many SUVs.
An army of 4-wheel drive.
The freeway ain't dirt.

Stop your damn honking.
You want me to levitate?
I can't go faster.

Traffic @ dead stop
Relaxation technique not working
"Happy place" my ass.