Reviews from

Border Control

musings while gardening...

40 total reviews 
Comment from Thomas Bowling
Excellent
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Did you call ICE? That probably wouldn't do any good, They have a catch and release program. You're better off to just get some Round Up.

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    I had to look up ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), not being familiar with the American acronym. Round Up is more familiar, though gradually being outlawed in some parts of the world. I'd better be quick.
Comment from Gloria ....
Excellent
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Love this one, Tony. The allusion to JFKs fairy tale Camelot is most apt as are the favoured plants and that all important issue--border control. The Kiss-me-quicks a fun inclusion in that lot. ;-)

Terrific meter and rhymes throughout and my guess is a little trickier than one might think.

And of course this would go over just as well as political satire as it would in a Home & Garden magazine which means exceptional writing.

Gloria

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    I was actually thinking of King Arthur's Camelot! LOL. I'd forgotten about JFK's - equally, if not more appropriate!
    I'm experimenting a bit with slant or near-rhyme at the moment. Having been a bit confused by the differing terminology I looked it up and found that pretty well all the terms mean the same thing, i.e. half rhyme, near-rhyme, lazy rhyme, approximate rhyme, inexact rhyme, imperfect rhyme, off rhyme, analyzed rhyme, suspended rhyme, or sprung rhyme. I guess that Jim's Forza Rima challenge has got me thinking!
Comment from Janet Foor
Excellent
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Border Control is an excellent poem. Great musings while gardening.
Fun and yet oh so true. Hate those uninvited invasive species.

Good rhyme and smooth flow.

Well done

Janet

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Janet. I enjoyed your review. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from crybry67
Excellent
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I really like your poem. I think you write eloquently about a subject on all our minds lately. I like the use of the garden to symbolize our country. We have a real challenge ahead, plucking out all those weeds before they choke out the flowers that bloom here.

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Crybry. I enjoyed your review. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign and cherished woodland wildflower in Europe. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from Sandra Stoner-Mitchell
Excellent
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Those weeds get in everywhere, don't they? And once they're in, they are a devil to get rid of. I love your plant selection, I have most of them in my garden, and the weeds! I've just used this new weed killer that you just dab some on one leaf and it takes it down to the root. Job done! Excellent poem, Tony! :) Sandra x

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Sandra. I enjoyed your review. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign woodland wildflower in Europe. I, too, use RoundUp or Glysophate when occasion demands, though I believe that it is soon to be made illegal in some parts of the world. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from krys123
Exceptional
This work has reached the exceptional level

Good California morning to you Tony;
- I would like you to be aware that I will know when your name hits my eyes in the message box that I'll know that a great poem is coming up to read.
-In this poem is no different than any my expectations would allow as I have fun, also being a gardener, to enjoy the way you worded so eloquently, gardening away the flock of weeds that notoriously invade the borders and even are tough enough to come inside the circle of trust that the other flowers enjoy.
-Your rhyming and rhythmic skills really help with your enjambment to flow smoothly throughout your writing without a hiccup.
-Just by knowing the imagery that is well described and expressed that of your flowers and that you've chosen to talk about this being idea where you must but I consider it a weed and we have that a lot here also. I forgot what plant it was in your picture?
-Are you aware that ships from Australia and New Zealand, especially, came to the California coast back in the 17th and early 1800s with plants and trees to help with the growth in this California coast during a very bad blight, beetle infestation, Gypsy moth, and California coastal ice plant had canker blight. I know this because I was a horticulturist for 3 years for the state of California around Asilomar Beach near Monterey and Pacific, California back in the late 70s early 80s.
-Thanks for sharing Tony and take care and have a good one.
Alex

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Alex. I enjoyed your review and your kind remarks. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob or wood sorrel, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign and cherished woodland wildflower in Europe.
    Yes, I'd heard about some revegetation in California from Australia and New Zealand, but didn't know the reason for it.
    Best wishes, Tony
reply by krys123 on 06-Oct-2016
    There revegetation from Australia and New Zealand was a godsend and I found only about three trees on the state park property that were Monterey pines because they were over 200 years old so I propagated them to reestablished the Monterey pine from the New Zealand and Australian pine. Those little trees at first, sprout from seed in 19 days and within 19 days I had over 10,000 seedlings. And then two months I had 9000 trees and 1-gallon containers. We had only revegetation here and it was a great success. Thanks for your interest and you are very welcome your poem was fantastic.
    Alex
Comment from Saikripa
Excellent
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A nice piece to read. A simple way to convey that like flowers, positive people are welcome in my garden and those with dark underlying vibes need to be weeded out.

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Saikripa. I enjoyed your review. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign and cherished woodland wildflower in Europe. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from nancy_e_davis
Excellent
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A good metaphor of what is happening in our country. I can see it as a garden being invaded by undesirable plants that are unwelcome because they are sour and break the rules and are getting out of control. Like your garden, America needs border control. Good jobTony. Nancy

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Nancy. I enjoyed your review. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign and cherished woodland wildflower in Europe. Best wishes, Tony
Comment from Pantygynt
Excellent
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The migrant issue, though delightfully understated here is a clever piece of personification. The near rhyme in S2 will undoubtedly be missed by our allies who don't believe such a thing is anything other than a forced rhyme. Thanks for the new word, propagules.

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Jim. I enjoyed your review. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign woodland wildflower in Europe.
    I'm experimenting a bit with slant or near-rhyme at the moment. I guess that your Forza Rima challenge has got me thinking! Having been a bit confused by the differing terminology I looked it up and found that pretty well all the terms mean the same thing, i.e. half rhyme, near-rhyme, lazy rhyme, approximate rhyme, inexact rhyme, imperfect rhyme, off rhyme, analyzed rhyme, suspended rhyme, or sprung rhyme. I guess that forced rhyme s just one step further.
    Best wishes, Tony
reply by Pantygynt on 04-Oct-2016
    Forced rhyme in my book is like Market Garden a rhyme too far. Lol. By the way the contest isn't mine but Mark Valentines. He produced a piece that was full of it an I commented that it was more formal rima than terza rima. He then asked me if I minded him using the name for a contest.
Comment from Mystic Angel 7777
Excellent
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I really enjoyed this one. The rhyme and meter are flawless throughout and that took some diligent focus given word choices such as "adventitious propagules". The imagery is lovely and paints the happy garden picture wonderfully. Every plant secure, happy, and thriving and THEN incomes the intruder - different and taking up space and resources. Great metaphor for the issue of national border control. Nicely done and I thank you very much for sharing it.

 Comment Written 03-Oct-2016


reply by the author on 03-Oct-2016
    Thanks, Mystic Angel. I enjoyed your review. Different people's perceptions of what is a weed and what is a flower transpose rather well to the whole fraught question of immigration. The soursob, pictured, is a proscribed and highly invasive weed here in Australia but a benign and cherished woodland wildflower in Europe. Best wishes, Tony
reply by Mystic Angel 7777 on 03-Oct-2016
    I guess it's true that one man's treasure is another man's rust :). It was simply lovely and blessings for sharing it.