Beneath a Midnight Sky

” Pondering, Is Battle-Scarred Flannel Gone?” by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Pondering, “Is battle-scarred flannel gone?” requiring the strict dyeing of each and every individual yarn weaving warp and weft even and blended needing finishing by napping feeling “right” in your hand looking panicked months passing hitting more and more snags throughout the annals of old-fashioned flannel plaids making strong comebacks as Dark Anderson Cameron Buchanan Black Watch Prince Charles and Tartan millions of yards finding niche markets cotton farmers planting with confidence yielding bountiful harvests - “ Voilà! “ ...

” Raising the Stakes “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Raising the stakes with messy threats having dug up hard evidence where there are no beds left for overdose deaths setting new records lowering life expectancy stepping up surveillance on legalized betting as a civics lesson bouncing checks and going way out register — “ Whew, that’s enough for now!” let’s answer our unread emails and seek some easy cash by using downloadable free money apps ...

“ Flopping to the Ground After Making a Touchdown “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Flopping to the ground after making a touchdown Is he hurt? Nope! He’s simulating giving birth like a well-executed tip drill which is always a little trickier dunking an oblong sphere drawing a notorious punch and sprawl while performing a full-on long jump all across the marching band pit playing the role of a pitcher after pulling out a hidden old-fashioned flip double clutching with a twist knocking down pins upon mimicking bowling in limbo ...

” A Stronger Solver “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán A stronger solver making it to the sidebar on a rotating gift shop while playing your part “.org named documents” where the whippersnapper clouds float above the yacht club deemed atomically tacked on like “Sorry Charlie Laptops” yet still deemed, “Smart as a fox” spouting frothy onetime mottoes “ That’s a lock! “ for Hogwarts’ Pokémon Harry Potter aficionados, “Got milk?” ...

“ Taking a Mini Peak at a Ginormous Answer Key “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Taking a mini peak at a ginormous answer key for a wiley cartoon series as needed by ‘50s greasers flashing distress signals during Winter Olympics donning garnishes for a vodka tonic after consuming tube-shaped pasta while wearing sport shirts for golfers embroidered, “Bud’s Bud in Comedy” honoring “Mama’s Mama” as seen on TV spots playing “Carmina Burana” spreading a cracker topping for the Grand Pooh-bah calling, “Mazel Tov” metaphorically, “Carry On!” ...

“ Missing Connections “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Missing connections trailblazing secretly geeky getting genetically engineered hoping everything goes perfectly as “otherworldly” just prior to re-release plants as seeds Nursery rhymes repeating, “ Man I’m sorry!” like cloudless stockpiles blown over miles and miles extending diatribes of tormented titans “ I’m f-f-f-freezing!” resulting from a corner kick titled, “Gone with the Wind” along with the shrinking of the Arctic labeled, “It’s a wrap” abbreviated on a food wrapper being read upside down feeling hit by multiple arrows way up ski mountain used as a playground for water hazards splashing tit for tat scrambled downloadable tragedies...

” In Stark Terms “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán In stark terms squirming when asked to curb polluting our planet causing lethal harm to humans and animals undoing climate rules softening scientific conclusions with deadlines looming falling back in fear of canisters of tear gas being beat back as refugees flee poverty running pushing strollers and holding frightened children in their arms breaching border security wrestling with next steps seeing long waits await reading, “Here’s what you need to know to start your day” themed, “Funding the neediest cases” wearing nerdiness as a badge asking, “ What’s so bad about that?” making clues and answers match traveling caravans spacecrafts landing on “The Red Planet” ...

” Current and Future “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Current and future virtually indiscernible both collective and personal controversy shaping our world zanily furious endless loops of heartlessness and cruelty robots talking dirty mimicking chameleonlike suicidal exiled refugees in crises defying reciting rapid fire night after night pajama clad lanky gaggles packing sleeping bags with insomniatic dark matter ...

” Sticking to the Weather “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Sticking to the weather trying to be grateful without rolling our eyes it can feel contrived - but that’s all right feeling like meeting for the first time during charged times while focusing in on climate and battling our brain’s built-in negativity bias as well as unrecognized mythologized genius wiring beaming on the lucky side getting back in line after severing all ties and bolstering the sky ...

” Upgraded from Critically Endangered “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Upgraded from “critically endangered” to “endangered” still living in dire straits like ministering to death row inmates as an amalgamation of speculation and debate many mysteries remaining within subglacial climate changes tectonic plates digging out ocean basins creating mountain ranges better to track a warming planet in unprecedented detail new routes to science stations planned looking like mining camps studying collapsing ice caps with no official price tag for the equivalent of a launchpad while dragging huge fuel bladders sundials casting deep shadows continental rollbacks ...

” Art Forms Born of Nostalgia “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Art forms born of nostalgia memories in plastic with spiky hair molded and painted by hand repurposed as, “kitbashing” by reusing contraptions including blister packs for contrarians “bootlegged” reimagined via mashups while wearing razzle-dazzle kaleidoscope glasses unveiling masses of masked action fans ...

” Peeling Back the Paint “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Peeling back the paint looking beneath layer upon layer uncovering major changes revealed in minute detail as a huge advancement once known as “The Tower of Babel” being ground on wood panels engaged in jousting matches with skeletons beneath shrouds deemed, “Too fragile to travel” images of farm animals like, “The Adoration of the Lamb” while still looking for answers stating, “Mars has killed many spacecrafts “ time to prepare...

” Making Us Less “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Making us less as singular figures attempting to take on new relevances like ponderous prognosticators awakening two years too late pre-determining candidates like champions of softening enthusiasms asking, “Why change now?” being greeted with fervent shouts while holding rallies throughout the heartland looming large all for the sake of  “The Party” claiming, “Change is what we want!” boasting unmatched followers pushing policies of the populists delivering bipartisans above a demagogue breaking mobster bonds stomping down derogatory remarks loudly condemning family separations new nominees remarking, “We’re just getting started!” ...

“ There’s a Hitch “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán There’s a hitch worth upward of 80 million in the midst of nuclear fission and the assassination of a dissident still in need of a veto- proof majority in response to the viscious killing implicating a crown prince secretly coveting missiles with elaborate delivery systems having deceived the world for years driving nuclear thinking shifting public positions wishing to match capabilities scorning deals as flashpoints of disaster sparking hard- nosed feelings on the matter deemed, “adversarial creatures of habit” stopping to deliver sandwiches to members of the military branch then celebrating a flourishing brand extravagantly planned including children and the grands all lining up at carving stands ...

” Recipes “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Recipes step-by-step puffed up again nice and crispy whisking extra eggs to the soft peak stage served on prepared plates full-flavored Thanksgiving Day tangy finger buffets smokey flavors allowed to marinate tossed onto hot pasta pistachio pilaf sliced black olives onions garlic spinach gnocchi red berry tarts mangia mangia ...

“ Flashing Warnings “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Flashing warnings extreme uncertainties experiencing interrupted sleep feeling divided between the sad and the funny seeing rising fragilities embracing myths used like purification rituals for communal movements brand names ruthlessly boosted by supposed tycoons while making fluky rules with impunity Truth being gruesomely skewered —time to prosecute ...

” Making Anything Out of Everything “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Making anything out of everything best-selling TVs made at breakneck speed it’s all about self-sufficiency and national security championing cutting-edge industries mostly composed of embedding tiny chips into sole shoulders by unknown soldiers taking commanding leads all without precedents in modern history yet taking great risks to continue indefinitely like vain attempts to walk off internet sprawl by supposedly enforcing dreary conformity hoping to control how data is stored by issuing censorship orders for mobile platforms being policed and determined to be: “ too raunchy “ “too flirty” “ too creepy” and “too weird” quirkily deemed, “Marketing Villiany” ...

“ The Flickering Question “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán The flickering question over testing of the status quo skipping brining stuffing trussing and basting on Thanksgiving Day while claiming to make the best potato casserole out of the home white sweet red bliss being given spicy tips to increase metabolism making surprising omissions having once run a marathon much too quickly amid wildflower wildfires’ smoke and smog while donning a GPS watch hoping to feel totally in control haunted by, “Oh I just don’t know which way to go!” getting stoked by owning vast collections of out-of-focus movie posters ultimately feeling robbed of flimsy closure ...

“ Buttressing Assessments with Intercepts “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Buttressing assessments with intercepts yet still declining to comment due to immeasurable interdependences lacking definitive evidence of roles in viscous deaths mourning dissidents allegedly lethally tranquilized and dismembered unable to make decisive steps ruthless efficiency, “Tell your boss—the deed was done” seeing botched body doubles attending forensic graduations seeking missing remains a grievous fiancé left pacing over days and daze ...

“ Step Inside the Mind “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Step inside the mind thanks to vast archives and amassed artifacts now anyone can access scrapbooks manuscripts and scriptures of language crossing Ton Pan Alley becoming unfashionable to the critical establishment time passing better understanding of idiosyncratic backgrounds for cultural ambassadors reinstating press passes establishing “jazzzz” via originality writing constantly “commas turning into apostrophes “ as savvy autobiographies incorporating clip art as a hobby making collage from prominent popular stars like booty beboppers applying lip balm having scrubbed public documents ...

” Shadows Growing Against the Snow “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Shadows growing against the snow having once brought back bison reintroduced gray wolves restored trumpeter swans elk and grizzly bears now heightened Fahrenheit increasing fires less forests expanding grasslands shallower warmer waterways transformed habitats lacking in adaptation decreasing snowpack faster rain evaporation drought pouring over data weather changing faster and faster invasive cheat grasses overwhelming native plants and animals double and triple whammies...

” Ignored Warnings Behind Glass Walls “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Ignored warnings behind glass walls blaming subordinates for sinking platforms hiding behind corners all in avoidance of law enforcement concealing repositories of money-laundering billionaire bosses deploying scapegoat stories anonymous sources seeking secret endorsements in glittering ballrooms yet failing to dispel disappointments as revelers roar with rasping voices threatening grizzly job cuts in a cutthroat economy as “Almighty Dollars” are recalled fondly with smaller than expected margins seeking the weak spots in campaign mottos: “Speaking to the Heartland” ...

” Laid Out Plans : Wildfires Don’t Care” by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Laid out plans: “Wildfires Don’t Care” all that has happened taken to task rebuilt from scratch all via Instagram as thick smoke hangs in the air with little chance while poking everywhere wearing white hazmat suits and red hard hats black hearses traveling hazard lights flashing continuing to battle evaluating fragments dogs sniffing for cadavers grim forensic tasks retrieving teeth in ashes broken glass construction nails surviving signs tacked to damaged trees reading, “Chidren playing, be careful “ ...

” Making Misleading Claims “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Making misleading claims “What will it take to set the record straight?” narrowly escaping scrambling to safety battling unrelenting flames in multiple locations over thousands of acres “Taking care to lift the rake when you arrive at the raised roots of the maple - beneath the honeysuckle tangle” high winds blowing as a continuing frustration “When the gales die down, we will buy more time” while tiny embers actively fly for miles over the night ready to ignite along with lightning strikes and sparks from revolving tires sounding the language of firefighting: “aerial assaults”  “boots on the ground”  “dropping retardant”  wartime correspondents writing, “Heroism is living next to horror — all by The Grace of God” ...

” A Great Deception “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán A great deception left undisclosed intelligence making false claims to have neutralized nuclear threats declining to comment diplomacy put into peril concealing weapons in tunnel entrances intercontinental missile warheads hidden within narrow valley dead ends supplemented by research fellows and defectors vulnerable to pre-emption short range midrange and long threatening our shores lacking small satellites for early warning ...

“ From a Palm-Fringed Shoreline “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán From a palm-fringed shoreline flame-engulfed “Paradise” columns of smoke rising turning day into night having survived “fire” three times gunfire gunfire wildfire victims not yet identified year-round igniting downed power lines firefighters’ lives on the line surging doubling in size overnight thousands of houses set alight aggravated by the warming climate extreme dryness -- no rain in sight ...

“ No Waiting “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán No waiting for an animatronic ape to appear magically on stage crinkly faced eye-brows raised giant jowls weighing in @ 2,000 pounds vocalizing and knuckle walking as a silverback moving to inflatable airbags eyes glistening as if moist with no visible white around the irises facial expressions generated from joysticks and pedals amplifying shifting settings with video projections plus voice modulated electronic heavy breathing moaning crying sighing sneezing grunting and barking during ambitious projects in high profile being tossed aside by sparse ticket buyers subsequently requiring extreme tweaking to succeed as a splendid beast in the theater “What were you thinking?!” while blowing smoke and flying convincingly eyelids blinking eerily...

“ Easy Chemistry “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Easy chemistry reaching for extremes in between strutting and preening imperiously grinning roaring back clapping taking pinnacle bows along with raw talent facing gigantic challenges wearing studded armbands for both pop and rock in order to leverage popularity and charismatic swaggering being left either laughing or gasping upon shabbily meandering all in remembrance of past anger thinking in profanities seeing history repeating coming to terms with inadvertent evil still left echoing perceived differently while missing the comedies of Laurel and Hardy ...

” Lunar Cycling “ for Larry Robin @ Moonstone Arts by Suzán Jiván Lunar cycling flood tide ebb tide swirling eddies near and mean lunar pedigrees opposed to apogees waxing and waning racing and ranging gauging waves predictive time tables vertical oscillation under the keel over the shoal anchored and beached boats holding gathered Moonstones...

“ Jiggering Special Interests “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Jiggering special interests all with a bit of a twist within the thinning of specifics of history far less than trivial yet seemingly invisible as images and symbols riven by antagonisms and still counting while disputing, “How to go about it “ still wondering, “Who won?” sloganeering, “Unlimited Everything- Come Join Us!” as columnists, “Sign Off” after swerving from the goofy to the ghastly while playing on the hapless wily pranksters cheerfully surmising upon speed reading bleak archives, “There MUST be an afterlife!” delighting on the dark side as precarious survival like tensely riding on a stage coach ride as passengers recite sonnets for a pass time sounding, “Just Fine!” all within a 2 hour 12 minute running time ...

” Adopting a Tsunamil Warlike Posture “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Adopting a tsunamil warlike posture POTUS pointing at war correspondents held inside of the White House following midterm flippings of the Congress at combative presidential press conferences cloaked by undated DOJ letters of resignation covertly revealed later having raised the stakes for hatred and gunplay student fatalities registered at the end of the day DOA ...

“ Unusually High “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Unusually high turnouts past interactive maps and tallies having flipped the House and gained ground like culminations from anger and frustrations as takeaways battlefields changing like difficult undertakings as failsafe screen adaptations deemed, “less complicated” like doing research for a high school final paper while seeking, “Straight A’s” via the sordid machinations of a teenage filmmaker staging post-polling places as seen “off location” ...

“ Election Day: Against a Confusion “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán Against a confusion of “too little room to maneuver in the voting booth” for unassimilated groups attempting continuity for both “the similar” and “the different” contrasted by “as if” and “whereas” on whiz- bang data maps doing their election magic as ballots are cast captured on hidden cameras reframing worry into caring about a person who matters during film galas in internment camps filled with wisecracking international hackers donning hi-tops that clash while loudly chanting, “Shut Up & Dribble!” leading to manic scribbling on leaded walls of gyms hoping to ward off scary hits ...

” Truth Be Told “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Truth be told like stories of being totally mortal holding no grudges - no joke - invoking, “ Holy Moly “ as a secure piece of deductive reasoning like hardly likely impossible biases deemed, “spiders’ teeth” and “bats’ wings” leaving large dowries consisting of innumerable leaps of inductivity being practiced to an obsessive degree creating doubting due to chronically stopping and starting “Grand Old Parties” ...

” A Passing Reference “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán A passing reference to opening sketches kept free from expletives by press secretaries as read heavily in the comments section “ click here for refreshers on where we left off” not quite yet making any sense whatsoever as perplexed voters prepare to press levers grappling with questions of ethics asking “Will distance learning help?” heavily edited and condensed labeled, “Not at all what we expected!” while banning screens from classes altogether spending millions on enormous plots in Nevada based on chainlink technology issuing exit packages having been accused of harassment being linked to cancer at least in rats boldly labeled, “ Too big to fail” crammed with lengthy PAC ads ...

” A Super Massive Black Hole “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom-Mom Suzán A super massive black hole 3,000 miles per second reddening starlight heaving and stretching torn apart blurry glimpses of doomed gases at billions of degrees hot spot probing edges intense gravity dark arcs jets of gases escaping new born stars great speckled dinosaur eggs trolling the monsters of the Milky Way named, “Sagittarius A” aka a stupendous bottomless grave secrets left unscathed retained amid a haze of radio waves thousands of millions of light years away coming with high stakes anguished by “Spirals of Hate” punctuated by exploding campaigns and the escalation of climate change shrouded pines suddenly giving way willfully ignoring dangers spotting disinformations detecting asbestos in crayons adjusting heart rates playing the role of a patient both real and fake holed up in finishing papers gauging dialysis costs and indoor vaping noticing increasing mortality rates already well...

“ Scrawls and All “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Scrawls and all resurfaced recordings calls for a “wee shade less” in one section wildly unconventional garrulous progressions increasingly obsessive no matter how breathless with interpretive discrepancies written as mock letters as anything but effortless carrying out painstaking editing seeking the ordinary in the eccentric speculative fictionalized segments while clowning around with friends and making the spread just for emphasis with experimental mini-festivals mixing intimacy with intensity generating elegant energy shifting incrementally as skittering mercurial entities improvising together inevitably remembering everything neither pretending nor regretting entering noirish realms ...

“ Shared Actions “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Shared actions of suspicion and despair being dismissed as “false flags” baffled by frailty hunkering down in labyrinthine tunnels grieving bureaucratese faces ringed in crimson conspiracy theories while serving as raw materials both weird and unserious as alternative facts hung in galleries light-footed and refashioned due to breadth of talent on diagonals reincarnate like color ink washes splashed on falling leaves entitled, “Not sure of anything” ...

“ Under the Scrubby “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán Under the scrubby city-park trees “Sh-h-h please!” dressed up on a nothing week going out for drinks trying not to think of silver bells ringing above slit red kettles clanging coins rolled-up bills tucked in to nostalgic fiction as raw material for boggling flow charts being tied into knots feeling uneasy and unresolved due to pressing problems dissolving into a goner wooly-bear fog ...

“ An Obstacle Course of Old-Flip-Flops “ by Suzán Jiván Mom & Mom- Mom Suzán An obstacle course of old flip-flops plus ubiquitous shampoo bottles while security guards mark nesting spots for black market turtle products intestinal tracts becoming blocked filled with sharp shards as necropsies yield evidence of deadly reptilian tomorrows ...