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Wednesday, December 16, 2009

another

The wine pours into my glass
A close friend to lean on
A deadly enemy and thief
Allowing a freer life and an earlier death
Life burning feverishly

Drinking to remember or to forget
To meet or to distance
Be included or excluded
To forget a bitterness in life
To live a bitterness better forgotten

We all have our reasons
Just pour me another

already gone

Numbed legs protest as the body rises
The back cracks and spasms
Hobbling to get the blood flowing
Brings pain from back to knees

Wind whips from everywhere
Smacks cold rain to the body
Chilling deep, begins the shivers
Reminding what freedom brings

Pains would be magnified without
That which brings the pains
Serving sentences for earning a living
A life sentence, no parole

There are others eager to get in
Lined up, no sentences of their own
Stuck in the chilled freedom
Seeking a way to get in

Hobbling inside the customers’
Place of business, all smiles
Eager to serve, idle chitchat
They’re not better off

All to earn a paycheck already gone
Eager to get home to the wine
While both can be had
Such is life

unearned

Indoors people shelter
And hole up for a winters’ night
Outside lies the cold
Affecting some more than others

The chill nags my side
Even under warm covers
As the wine worked its’ way
No longer an effect

I feel warmth to my right
Roll over and move in it’s direction
Putting my arm around her
My crotch against her ass

Her hot body radiates
Like the sun itself
Seeming to almost burn me
The one source

Awake and troubled
Remembering when I had no warmth
No roof, no food, nothing
Nothing but eagerness

Those less fortunate cross my mind
As if I were destined to return
To lose all but memories
Having failed at so much

Successes brought nothing
Ultimately all that was tried
Shouldn’t have been
On the edge again

But for tonight
There is refuge from the cold
Lying there no longer drunk
Soaking in the warmth of another

role

Ten percent unemployment they say
Then report on a man who was making $75 an hour
Now makes $46.
Tough times indeed.

People lived beyond their means
Bought a house
Paid medical insurance
Owned a car
Built on their headstart

Others slept on buses
Worked day labor
Never saw a doctor
So walmart could sell cheap
And stock prices could soar

I guess everyone
had their role in creating this depression

Saturday, December 12, 2009

What Purpose?

“Todays’ men have been feminized”
The bearded old man says,
Stating as if it were fact
Posture insecure, eyes crazy and worried
“the bible says…............”
His words meld together into mumble
My god, he means it as advice!
He does not do well as a parrot
What purpose does such a creature serve?

Ten Years and Part Time

Through the years he barely missed a day
Always on time, never a misstep
Good solid employee
Knows his stuff
Well liked, friendly, and productive

Now, after ten years of service
He stands there half dazed
Economy sucks, company downsized
He is part time, paycheck cut, lost all benefits
What will he do? Will he make it?

After all these years, he has nothing
Forced to look at the waste,
the ticking clock of age
the worsening doom of tomorrow
At least he has a job.
Many don’t

Soon Enough

Music from decades ago
Plays through orderly rooms
Makes its’ way out of the house
and fades into the darkness
of the stifled neighborhood

Two people dance in embrace
Broad smiles bringing dull aches
They move together
Knowing all the moves
It’s been so long

Touches of affection, tenderness
Shared memories and connections
Old electricities and passions
that knew no bounds
They had known no better

If only for a while to
forget the last few years
going in opposite directions
Relive when all was wonderful
Just one last time

Soon enough will come
the time to say goodbye
The two will exit the house
And to each other fade
Like music into the darkness

Friday, December 11, 2009

Attempting Poetry Again (oy!)

Heavy silent gray
still, lifeless
thick with rot

Dishevel surrounds
emptied bottled
dirty glasses
food left out to spoil

Remindful of hours before
life overflowed
laughter addictive
joys of brain chemistry
temporary treasure

Bodies lie silent
struggling to overcome
severely induced slumber
self inflicted
Sore mouths and muscles
Intimate strangers

One eye opens
pain flows to the temples
then to the lungs
Upset stomach
deep thirst
Slow rise
quiet hobble

Staring at red eyes
Drained face
Half dead body
Numb of pain
from decades of
earning but not getting

A silent stumble
Milk from the fridge
right out of the carton
immediately absorbing
Preserving the dead silence

Realization of nudity
Thoughts and feelings return
Combining normalcy
and absurdity

Regrets run long
Last night was not one
Needs were filled