Saturday, May 23, 2026

May 27: Susan Deer Cloud Brings It All Back Home

Susan Deer Cloud represents a big part of my history hosting Stone Soup Poetry. Some of my favorite events in the early years at the Out of The Blue Art Gallery involve Susan and the people she introduced me to, including the future publisher of my first book. I am proud to have Susan Deer Cloud closing out Stone Soup's fifty-fifth anniversary month. This is one more reunion you can't miss.

Join us on Wednesday, May 27, from 7:00 to 9:00 PM ET by clicking this link.

The meeting ID is 816 7309 2287

Password: stonesoup


My Saturday Haiku for Bluesky, 5-23-26


The rest of the year
takes place in single morning.
No turning back now.

Happy Birthday, Susan Eisenberg

 

 


Happy Birthday, Rob Sturma

 

 


Hooray

Today is the first day of the rest of the year.

Wake me up when December ends.

Friday, May 22, 2026

News from the Front, 5-22-26

It's the little victories that make me stop crying. 

 

 

My Friday Evening Music

I could have gone for funny, but my Dad's birthday is coming up, and I remembered this cover song by Muhammad Ali on an album put out when he was still Cassius Clay.  I got the CD version for my father when he was still alive. 

 

 


Wisdom from the Battlefield

Bruce Wise closes out the week with his Wise Words poem column. Thank you for reading Oddball Magazine. See you Monday.

 

Damn

I hate waiting.

 

Less and Less

Janet Cormier's Bamboozled No More! is ready for Friday at Oddball Magazine. 


News from the Front Is Back!

Damn all my stop starts.

 


Staying Home

Waiting for the AC repair people. 

Trying to get work done in the meantime.

 

Light Fantastic

Taken from Tuesday after the storm and blackout. Used a different photo of this sky for my newsletter. Want to do something else with this one.


Wayne-Daniel Berard, Virtual Thursdays Dire Literary Series Plus Q and A with Timothy Gager, 5/21/26

Yesterday's Dire today. Hosted by Timothy Gager. 

 

 


Happy Birthday, Jackie McRath

Keep on keeping on.

 

Happy Birthday, Bassma Habal

 

 


Happy Birthday, Mary Ann Honaker

 

 


If Pulp Fiction was a 2000s Move and Tarantino Love the 80s

The soundtrack would've hit different is all I'm saying.

 


My Friday Morning Music

Bruce Willis put out music, made a cringy video and even had a concert on HBO.  

 

 


Leopards Eating Faces Update!

 

Thomas Massie was never and will never be the savior of the GOP or anything else. Simply put, what was he doing when the GOP was amassing all their power? Letting it happen, of course. You can't get the power by any means necessary and somehow wipe the blood from your hands like it was never there.  

 

Thursday, May 21, 2026

Tonight: Wayne-Daniel Berard at the Virtual Dire Literary Series


Hosted by Timothy Gager. Click here to join the group and get information on how to join the call.

Break time!

 

What fun! Jim Behrle is this week's featured poet at The Arts Fuse. 


This Terrible Still Lull

James Van Looy writes how we all feel. 

Read It's All One Thing.

His weekly poem column appears every Thursday morning at Oddball Magazine. 


Happy Birthday, Warren Dean Fulton

 

 


Happy Birthday, Linda Griggs

 

 


Meg Smith Features at Stone Soup Poetry, 5-20-26

From this week's online gathering. Sorry the open mic got cut off due to me only able to get on the call and record fifteen minutes after we started. Thanks to Richard Spisak for stepping in as host. Thanks to Meg Smith for a wonderful reading.

 

 


This Day Needed to End


Last night was a bit of a mess with me having to go back to work and grab the cord to my uncharged laptop, but Richard Spisak pulled through serving as open mic host before I was finally able to introduce last night's feature Meg Smith, who put on a great show. Visit her website to support her work. Learn more about this year's events for Edgar Allen Poe and Jack Kerouac. Be back next week for the final feature of our fifty-fifth anniversary month, Susan Deer Cloud.
 

Wednesday, May 20, 2026

I'm Not in the Best of Places Right Now

I'm still having Stone Soup tonight.

Meg Smith is featuring.

I hope you're there.

We can all take our minds off of things.

 

That One Light Before the Next Tunnel

The Chad Parenteau's Lost Causes newsletter for May 20 is up now at Substack.


Breathing Out

Young Abigail Cain closes us out with photography by Edward S. Gault. Thank you for reading Oddball Magazine this Wednesday. Hope you come back. 

New Additions

Who's running ICE? Video from Poets of the Resistance I. A reprint of "America" by James Monroe Whitfield. All this up now at North of Oxford for May.


A Drop of New Blood

Welcome exciting new poet Devon Riddick with returning artist Thomas Riesner for Wednesday at Oddball Magazine. Glad you stopped by.

A Winter Poem? Okay!

 

Valerie Quercia cools us down with less heated times. Check out her work in Doug Holder's Lyrical Somerville over at The Somerville Times.

It's Happening

Stone Soup Poetry features Meg Smith this evening.

 

An Awesome Moment of Comics

Check out Hans Rickheit on YouTube with his new characters Prong and Preen. 



This Is Different

I haven't seen this take yet. Does this mean I'm going to see memes of Trump kissing Epstein throughout Pride Month?

Graffiti sticker: Trump Had Sex With Epstein

A Moment of Comics

Thinking of someone I know who was always a bit of a chameleon like the character in Daniel Clowes' short story "Gynecology." A shell of a human being assuming identities and discarding them when it suits him, leaving a trail of hurt people in his wake. Last I checked, he attempted being an AI guru, shedding the family man role he assumed for two decades. What role is he wandering to now? Enjoy the final page to the short story below from Eightball #17, later collected in the collection Caricature. 


American Haiku: Satire Choking on Blood

When I started my Sarcastic Haiku series, I wrote my first American Haiku. An American Haiku doesn't care about tradition, formality or history. it takes as long as it wants to make its point because America. You can read others I've written since by clicking here and scrolling down. 
 

American Haiku: Satire Choking on Blood

Justice serves itself!
Trump innocent forever!
Everything's legal! Everything's legal!


Happy Birthday, Donald Vincent

 

 


Your Wednesday Morning Poetry


William J. Barnum passed away in 2019. I miss his existence in our world. Sadly, this is another poet whose work isn't online very much. In fact, nearly all his work online is because of me. Some of his work is on the old Stone Soup online journal Spoonful, Some of it is on my YouTube. Today, I'm focusing on this excerpt from his poem “Pierrot, The Wanderer,” courtesy of Oddball Magazine, which I also edit.

Tuesday, May 19, 2026

This Thursday: Wayne-Daniel Berard at the Virtual Dire Literary Series


Hosted by Timothy Gager. Click here to join the group and get information on how to join the call.

Hard Reset

Jason Wright's Jagged Thoughts poem column is up now at Oddball Magazine. 

 

Getting Back in Form

Finding My Worse Self, Part Five: Before It Kills Me. Read it on my Patreon.


Throwing Things Together

Self-proclaimed new Poet Eliza Hansen is paired up with artwork from Edward Michael Supranowicz this Tuesday at Oddball Magazine. 

This Week's Most Distinguished Network Name

It's amazing what people will name their online networks. I'm always trying to hijack Wi-Fi when I'm commuting, so I often come across a number of interesting names. Every Tuesday, I post the most impressive and/or cringe-inducing names.

*Sniff* These Pixar kids grow up so fast!

Gen X Haiku

First I asked myself what would happen if I heard it in the Stop & Shop, then it happened. 

 


Happy Birthday, Eric Wasileski

 


Monday, May 18, 2026

Comics Spotlight: Alex Soriano

Thank you for reading Oddball Magazine this Monday.

Help

I need to escape.

For Ron

Thanks to Jen Kohl for letting me pair one of my photographs to go with her tribute to Ron Goba. Take a look now at Oddball Magazine. 

Annoying Thought of the Day

The last thing young people learn to read is a room.

Teach Your Own Numbers

Anne Skove makes math fun for the first time ever in this week's comic. Read "She Who Laughs Lasts" now over at Oddball Magazine. 

 

Escalating

 

It's Later Now, Part Thirty-Seven: Summer Fool. Read it on my Patreon.

Sales Savvy Squirrels?

Mike Mesterton-Gibbons on a new British marketing campaign kicks off the week at Oddball Magazine. Be safe this week!

Two More Days

Meg Smith Features at Stone Soup Poetry this Wednesday. 

 

I Wonder

Is Snopes going to try and "debunk" those photos of Trump's hair from last week?

Practice Haiku

Welcome to Monday!
Now get in line to receive 
your morning beating!


About Time

I've been waiting for this bush outside our home to finally sprout up. Sadly, this will all be gone once it gets really hot. 


Happy Birthday, Zoe Cacavas

 

 


Happy Birthday, Colleen Michaels

 

 


Happy Birthday, Tanima Kumari

 

 


Happy Birthday, Gillian Devereux

 

 


Happy Birthday, Geoffrey Fallon

Hope TSOSP returns someday.


Had to Check

I saw this newer sticker of Marianne Radnitzky's bundled up character. Given how cold it was for most of April, I'm not surprised. Maybe one of her more more springy characters will pop up soon.


This Week's Friendly Reminder

These are dark times. No time for subtlety. 

Sticker: "Resist," woman facing front with two middle fingers

Saw this David Hasselhoff cover of Echo and the Bunnymen and decided I would cover obscure covers by celebrities. Not everything can be a cover of "Common People" by William Shatner. 

 

 


Sunday, May 17, 2026

My Response to These Stupid YouTube Motivational Videos

I want my clipped Bobcat Goldthwait to be the next Willhelm scream.

 


Next Week: Magic Time

Meg Smith features this coming week at Stone Soup Poetry.

 

More Ron from a Moron

As far as I can tell, this is also from the Goba Salon in December 2009. Regardless, it's a photo I like of Ron and Laura Kiesel, who has a new book out. I hope to share more photos of Ron along with a tribute poem or two in Oddball Magazine this Monday. I wanted to post more of Ron on his birthday week, but the week got away from me. Apologies.

 

Happy Birthday, Lynn White

 

 


Happy Birthday, Ian Thal

 

 


Your Weekly Dose of God

Saw another painted "Jesus Saves" cross on a Mattapan side street.