From Catching the Limit (Bedbug Press-Fairweather Books (2009).
This poem has appeared in Spectrum, Anthology of Magazine Verse & Yearbook of American Poetry (Monitor Book Company), Here We Speak: An Anthology of Oregon Poetry (Oregon State University Press), and Deer Drink the Moon: Poems of Oregon (Ooligan Press, Portland State University).
Used here with the author's permission.

Mark Thalman lives in Forest Grove, Oregon, where he has taught 7th grade English for almost thirty years.  His poetry has been widely published in small presses, college reviews, anthologies, and e-zines for the last three decades. His book, Catching the Limit, was published by Bedbug Press - Fairweather Books as part of their Northwest Poetry Series. Mark has served as a Poet-in-the-Schools for the Oregon Arts Commission, Assistant Poetry Editor for the Northwest Review, and board member of the Portland Poetry Festival. He is also an artist who enjoys painting wildlife scenes with acrylics. His two Golden Retrievers, pictured above, are named Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes. To learn more about Mark, visit www.markthalman.com. To purchase Catching the Limit, click on the book cover and contact Mark via his email address.