Contributor Posts

In the Bistro,
having a quaff.
TV on, someone said,
"I prefer it OFF."

A black screen,
who would you thank,
if your favorite screen,
would be blank.

Not I, said one,
with a big grin
as vodka dripped
from his tan chin.

My love
has been gone,
four weeks, today.
I am alone.

I miss your sweet smile,
for you were the one,
who captured my heart,
my soul to the Sun.

Why do I worry,
now you've gone away?
Your no longer here,
while here I must stay.

Please guide me
in this new life of mine,
while I will remember
our memories entwine.

It was dark,
it was night,
I couldn't see,
until daylight.

Why should I,
come home with you?
What's on your mind?
What do we do?

Silver laced snow,
fell from afar.
Its journey, through space,
from a new fallen star.

What a wild journey,
to arrive where you are.
A mysterious time,
for you were a Star.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

What do the Earth and Moon look like from beyond the Moon? Although frequently photographed together, the familiar duo was captured with this unusual perspective in late 2022 by the robotic Orion spacecraft of NASA's Artemis I mission as it looped around Earth's most massive satellite and looked back toward its home world. Since our Earth is about four times the diameter of the Moon, the satellite’s seemingly large size was caused by the capsule being closer to the smaller body. Artemis II, the next launch in NASA’s Artemis series, is currently scheduled to take people around the Moon in 2025, while Artemis III is planned to return humans to lunar surface in late 2026. Last week, JAXA's robotic SLIM spacecraft, launched from Japan, landed on the Moon and released two hopping rovers. Explore Your Universe: Random APOD Generator

A Rose,
solo flower.
sprang forth
from a
crack, in
the pavement.
A lovely break,
or Nature's way
of mystery.

What horrors
lay here, within
when we talk of venial
but not of mortal sin.

What kind of World
would this be,
if we aren't
allowed to love free?

She was a serious child,
through her early years.
She excelled in tasks,
while mastering her fears.

Why the serious, look,
you have another day,
with others she knew,
and she walked away.

Life is too short,
she would say with a smile.
You must be strong
and endure all the while.

Live life to the fullest,
when given the chance.
Be a good companion,
while doing life's dance.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

How well do you know the night sky? OK, but how well can you identify famous sky objects in a very deep image? Either way, here is a test: see if you can find some well-known night-sky icons in a deep image filled with faint nebulosity. This image contains the Pleiades star cluster, Barnard's Loop, Horsehead Nebula, Orion Nebula, Rosette Nebula, Cone Nebula, Rigel, Jellyfish Nebula, Monkey Head Nebula, Flaming Star Nebula, Tadpole Nebula, Aldebaran, Simeis 147, Seagull Nebula and the California Nebula. To find their real locations, here is an annotated image version. The reason this task might be difficult is similar to the reason it is initially hard to identify familiar constellations in a very dark sky: the tapestry of our night sky has an extremely deep hidden complexity. The featured composite reveals some of this complexity in a mosaic of 28 images taken over 800 hours from dark skies over Arizona, USA.

Photo by Alistair Symon

Many people are wired to seek and respond to rewards. Your brain interprets food as rewarding when you are hungry and water as rewarding when you are thirsty. But addictive substances like alcohol and drugs of abuse can overwhelm the natural reward pathways in your brain, resulting in intolerable cravings and reduced impulse control. More at The Conversation ➜