Never panic. Post 9\/11 angst and guilt here in the *safe* zone.<\/p>\n
PADDLING<\/strong><\/p>\n Clouds of tulle, hushed cavern Low PH, high FSH. Every bleary morning She ingests capsules devoutly; black cohosh, she thinks, peering through water marbled<\/p>\n with contrails of oar weed. It\u2019s early, before the heat He gains good speed heading up the fjord past mule A Harley blowtorches Highway 101 as she ups Husband rushes back to Porpoise Bay, his freedom for her Hey, let\u2019s to do it in a canoe he\u2019d joke. Do black bears eat off paper plates Never panic. Post 9\/11 angst and guilt here in the *safe* zone. PADDLING Clouds of tulle, hushed cavern suite, desiccated starfish, muted conch, hurricane lamp decor. Five hundred thread count sheets lulled her, triple-moisture night serum, pilewort slathered. Twitchy sleep, the lie of white lace. Central nervous system, slipper socks seek the floor, grope for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12],"tags":[149,236,324],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=349"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/349\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=349"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=349"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/heatherhaley.com\/hh2\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=349"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nsuite, desiccated starfish, muted
\nconch, hurricane lamp decor. Five hundred
\nthread count sheets lulled her,
\ntriple-moisture night serum, pilewort slathered.
\nTwitchy sleep, the lie of white lace.
\nCentral nervous system, slipper socks seek the floor,
\ngrope for codeine, find scars, blue bruises,
\nsource blacked out. Yesterday\u2019s kayaking lesson?<\/p>\n
\ntea, tottering on the balcony, a smidgen
\nof remaining suppleness to torment. How tempting
\nto toss off throbbing veins, lost arches,
\ndead cells. Still, she is grateful to see
\narbutus, ivy-swathed cedar above bifocal lines.
\nHypothalamus the true culprit
\naccording to renowned naturopath, Dr. Snyder.<\/p>\n
\nred clover, wild yam, calcium-magnesium, ginkgo
\nbiloba. How could she have forgotten? No one is spared.
\nTide in, swim dock, cabin cruiser with purple blinds
\nswaying with speedboat wash. Colossal crabs
\nculled. Sun teases prone bathers. No suit
\nflattering enough. A long heron lights upon the pier,
\ndandy in his powder blue tux. Her depths are pure,
\nfree of lines, cracks. Small consolation<\/p>\n
\nirons out shimmering. Soon everything will be flat,
\nas if scorched by a linen setting. Below, tidal currents
\nrip up a roiling stew. Wily seals, giant octopi,
\ncockles, wolf eels, gill sharks. Just try going out there
\nin that. He does, husband the quintessential man\u2019s man,
\npaddling to Skookumchuck. Dead reckoning
\nincludes smoke breaks at Piper, Sockeye Points.<\/p>\n
\ndeer, bobbing skiffs of fishermen, probably out for Coho
\nthis time of year, and a yacht,
\nyellow goat of a dog on deck. Good time indeed,
\nstopping off to hoist pints at Millie\u2019s marina pub.<\/p>\n
\nthe telly\u2019s volume. Chunks of red double-decker.
\nWhite gauze masks a woman\u2019s scorched face.
\nEdgeware Road Station. ATTACKS ON LONDON.
\nTrains. Buses. Sightings. Suspicious packages
\nmushroom. Three detectives unload five shots
\ninto a chubby Brazilian electrician wearing the wrong coat
\nat the wrong time. Terrified tube drivers. It will be difficult
\nto convince her grandson the bogeyman is not real,
\nto explain that unlike Americans, we British suffered no loss
\nof innocence. She understands why the boy is a homebody,
\nwhy he didn\u2019t ask many questions that day, focused
\non Thomas the Tank, ignored cascading twin towers.<\/p>\n
\nsecurity. She is sick of herself. Her shrewdness. She is safe,
\nleaning over the railing, wondering why she is still
\nstanding and not at King\u2019s Cross as she was a year ago.
\nHe reassures her. You are a useful engine.<\/p>\n
\nDon\u2019t drag your kayak onto the rocks. Fibreglass hulls.
\nThey track well though. Let\u2019s put in right here. Get in.
\nOne leg at a time. Like pulling on a pair of trousers.
\nPlace like so. Sit on the edge,
\nweight on the paddle.
\nYou\u2019re not going to break it.
\nIs that a compliment?
\nThis is how you wield the paddle.
\nPut it in as if the water\u2019s hard on top.
\nFloat planes
\nwill make waves. Turn in.<\/p>\n
\nlike Yogi and Boo Boo?
\nDo you have pepper spray?
\nAm I just hiding out here?<\/em>
\nCome on. Pay attention.
\nApproach barriers with stealth.
\nDon\u2019t get wrapped.
\nPeel out of the eddies.
\nStay close to the shoreline for now.
\nWork together. Use our rhythm.
\nOoh, that\u2019s a good idea.<\/em>
\nIf we tip, get out.
\nFind your partner. First thing.
\nDon\u2019t swim away. Don\u2019t lose your craft.
\nNever panic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"