It’s the time of the year when families get together across the miles, across the generations, and across the political spectrum. For better or for worse, that was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

We think they’re good for our pups, protecting them from their own urges to lick or scratch. But plastic cones are far less fun – and let’s face it, they’re confusing – for those pooches who have to don them after a visit to the vet.

Instagram and iPhones have made everyone a photographer. But some folks, and one Texas Standard listener in particular, get more pleasure out of the old ways of taking photos. This Typewriter Rodeo poem is for Rick.

For many folks around Texas, allergies are a year-round problem. This Typewriter Rodeo poem is for them.

The intimacy of the medium of radio was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

The sweater you wore to work has you sweating by the end of the day. Next morning, you’re looking for a winter coat behind the tank tops in your closet. Yep, it’s November in the Lone Star State.

The Texas Standard asks listeners for poetry requests. This one is for Jess.

Some trees in Texas never really lose their leaves — but others are shedding dramatically right now. The inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem came from what some neighbors may do with those leaves.

Don your face paint, costumes and masks for Halloween, but don’t forget that it’s not always movie monsters or villains that are the scariest ghouls to haunt our waking days. That was the inspiration for this Typewriter Rodeo poem.

The Typewriter Rodeo takes requests — and this one came from a Texas Standard listener training for a marathon.