Cat poems are sometimes grumpy cat poems. (We are waiting, actually, for the official Grumpy Cat to set up his sidewalk poem-writing stand.)
This is My Chair
This is my chair
This is my couch
That is my bed
That is my bench
There is my chaise
There is my settee
Those are my footstools
Those are my rugs
Everywhere is my place to sleep
Perhaps you should just get a hotel room
—Charles Bukowski (or maybe his grumpy cat 😉 )
Poetry Prompt
Try writing a catalog poem, like our grumpy cat did? It needn’t be a grumpy poem. You could wax poetic about tuna, or the sweet kitty next door.
Catalog poems use word or phrase repetition, as you see demonstrated in the above poem “This is My Chair.” Click here for a more complete discussion of catalog poems.
Thanks to our participants in last week’s poetry prompt. Here’s a recent cat poem we enjoyed from Nancy…
lick, lick, lick
paw over nose
in a patch of light
Photo by Claire Burge. Used with permission.
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Sometimes we feature your poems in Every Day Poems, with your permission of course. Thanks for writing with us!
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- Poetry Prompt: In the Wild Secret Place - January 6, 2025
- Journeys: What We Hold in Common - November 4, 2024
- Poetry Prompt: My Poem is an Oasis - August 26, 2024
Maureen Doallas says
Giving a Dog a Drawing Lesson
Draw me a head;
add a racing stripe of red.
Draw me pricked ears;
I like to hear who fears.
Draw me both eyes;
in them I fake surprise.
Draw me a mouth;
I’ll make it droop south.
Draw in coal my nose;
I got a thing for marking clothes.
Draw my neck long;
I’ll be angry if it’s wrong.
Draw me a soft, silky back;
I like my strokes, folks.
Draw my four paws;
give every one some claws.
Draw my tail fluffy;
touch it, I’ll turn huffy.
Draw me a sneer;
make it better than could Vermeer.
Leave in the cheese.
I saw a mouse I aim to squeeze.
Richard Maxson says
I like the scenario of this. It does capture how dogs and cats live together. Love the “Draw my tail fluffy…” stanza.
Marcy Terwilliger says
I’m in control
I’m huge for a kitten
I’m a Bengal.
Make me mad, I’ll climb high
Make me come down, I’ll bite your hand.
I’ll chew on your laptop.
I’ll chew your shoelaces into.
If your not careful, I’ll chew on you!
Now I’ll be sweet, you give me something to eat.
Now I will lay in your lap, stroke my head and I am out.
Shake your head all you like,
I’m king of the house and you should have thought twice.
Richard Maxson says
I am loving all of these. In my life I’ve had 14 cats. Marcy, your poem reminds me of my last cat Rascal, who was a biter.
Grace Marcella Brodhurst-Davis says
Cat Schooling
I am a cat –not your toy
I am a cat –I don’t like your toys
I am a cat –not of mischief devoid
I am a cat –I dislike your pretend voice
I am a cat –not your photo feline
I am a cat –I’m on my own time
I am a cat –not like your dog
I am a cat –I thrash my tail when crabbed
I am a cat –not the one who nipped the little brat
I am a cat –I hiss and spit at other cats
I am a cat –I can and do hold a grudge
I am a cat –not till I’m ready will I budge
I am a cat –My meow commands, not my purr
I am a cat –My leg rubs demand, not always for love
I am not your cat. You’re my human,
And I will mold you to suit my domain
http://gracebrodhurstdavis.blogspot.com/2013/11/cat-schooling.html
Richard Maxson says
Love “I can and do hold a grudge”
Richard Maxson says
Schrodinger’s Cat
Let’s once and for all
put this old test to bed,
if a cat is alive
at the same time he’s dead.
We all know for starters
a cat has nine lives,
from people who’ve had one
and watched them survive.
So here’s a cat in a box
with a fancy device
that releases a poison…
Wait! Think once or twice:
Whoever heard
of a cat-proof contraption?
Surely this treatise
has suffered redaction.
But let us go on…
in this box is a cat
or if you prefer
there’s this cat in a hat,
with no way to escape
(I know that you laugh)
with an isotope
losing its living by half
every hour that goes by.
Now, so goes this thesis,
a hammer will fall
shattering poison to pieces.
The thing you must know
is that nobody knows
if the hammer will fall
or that’s at all how it goes.
And this is the catch
that gives one misgivings,
if nothing occurs
the cat goes on living.
So, in these minutes or hours,
we can be happy or dread,
to imagine the cat living
or to imagine him dead.
Here’s one final thought
that will make your brain peel,
until we open the box,
both cats are real.
All cats know this story,
it’s been handed down
through cat generations
in every city and town.
It’s a puzzle and cruel
to hear of a cat
trapped in a box or
trapped in a hat
with a bottle of poison
that might break with a splat
and take all nine lives
all at once just like that.
But the story we know
is quantitatively ify,
most cats would be out
of that box in a jiffy.
It’s an unlikely tale
and it’s logic is lumpy,
but it accounts for why
all cats can be grumpy.
S says
Hey is there a way to send in a poem or writong? The grumpy cat has inspired me.
L. L. Barkat says
Hey, there, S. We have writing prompts on Mondays. Other than that, we do not accept submissions. Join us? We’d love to have you along. Here is this week’s:
https://www.tweetspeakpoetry.com/2015/12/07/house-home-playlist-and-prompt/
S says
Who wantsaid to read my poem? I have a few.
S says
I love this poem. Made easy laugh Thank you!