“Oh shit! Here comes that son of bitch” Jake thought.
“Yeah, I aint pitched perfect,
Don’t mean I gotta be pulled.
Christ, its only the 3rd inning.
“This guy gotta be the worst manager, ever.
Sure, they got a coupla cheap hits,
Yeah, I walked a few guys,
I know, I know, the homers hurt.
“Dimwit is asking for the ball,
Screw him
So we're down 7 zip,
Not my fault our guys aint hitten.
I’ll just take a short walk around
My 5 buddies standen here.
Stop asking for the ball will ya
I’m just getting started, for Chrissakes.
“No I’m not given up the ball
Till I finish this inning.
Will ya stop followen me?
I get the next 3 yokels, I give you the ball.
“Ya think I don’t know I’m leaven the show?
Bozo, you walk faster, I walk faster.
At least the crowd aint booin no more-
There fuckin laughin, hysterical
“You crazy or somethin?
Got my buddies hoisten me off.
I’m up against it, the traitors
I’ll sue your asses, you wait, put me down”.
Friday, July 20, 2007
Ed
We are 2 days short of departure.
Ray & I will travel north,
Checking out the Golan.
Tuesday Ed heads home
Ed is my favorite milkman,
(Granted, not a very competitive position).
This volunteer gig has not met his expectations.
I’m not sure what he imagined.
A decisive man,
At an additional cost of $400.
He will leave today,
Rather than wait 2 days.
Leaving at 8 PM for an 11 O’clock flight,
Returning at midnight.
His flight had left 12 hours earlier,
Smiling sheepishly, accepting his error graciously.
We had met years earlier,
Sharing a love of tennis.
What I most like about Ed
Is his refusal to embrace bad news.
He is a unique person,
Bringing an ebullience
I’d never experienced,
And a belief that things will be great, or at least better.
Neither his demanding work,
Nor life’s share of woes
Had dulled the brilliance of his smile.
Ed is truly glad to meet you.
There is no hesitation in his handshake,
You have to prove your unworthiness.
I saw him awaiting word on a serious surgery,
We hadn’t been in touch for years.
He was genuinely delighted to see me.
Ray & I will travel north,
Checking out the Golan.
Tuesday Ed heads home
Ed is my favorite milkman,
(Granted, not a very competitive position).
This volunteer gig has not met his expectations.
I’m not sure what he imagined.
A decisive man,
At an additional cost of $400.
He will leave today,
Rather than wait 2 days.
Leaving at 8 PM for an 11 O’clock flight,
Returning at midnight.
His flight had left 12 hours earlier,
Smiling sheepishly, accepting his error graciously.
We had met years earlier,
Sharing a love of tennis.
What I most like about Ed
Is his refusal to embrace bad news.
He is a unique person,
Bringing an ebullience
I’d never experienced,
And a belief that things will be great, or at least better.
Neither his demanding work,
Nor life’s share of woes
Had dulled the brilliance of his smile.
Ed is truly glad to meet you.
There is no hesitation in his handshake,
You have to prove your unworthiness.
I saw him awaiting word on a serious surgery,
We hadn’t been in touch for years.
He was genuinely delighted to see me.
Wednesday, July 4, 2007
Keeping Ahead
Keeping Ahead
Merging traffic, long lines.
No one coming on the right.
No insidious soul looking to sneak past,
I am on “alert”.
Wait! here comes a villain,
Speeding down the shoulder,
Looking to avoid the line,
The line I am defending.
I must decide quickly.
Should I move and block him
Or remain in my position?
Hatred is rising, I must decide.
Do I violate the conforming acceptance,
Or ignore the rule while defending it?
I must decide.
NOW!
I can’t stand it.
I can’t let the bastard pass me.
I charge into the narrowing shoulder,
Force my way in, 5 car lengths gained.
KING OF THE ROAD!
Merging traffic, long lines.
No one coming on the right.
No insidious soul looking to sneak past,
I am on “alert”.
Wait! here comes a villain,
Speeding down the shoulder,
Looking to avoid the line,
The line I am defending.
I must decide quickly.
Should I move and block him
Or remain in my position?
Hatred is rising, I must decide.
Do I violate the conforming acceptance,
Or ignore the rule while defending it?
I must decide.
NOW!
I can’t stand it.
I can’t let the bastard pass me.
I charge into the narrowing shoulder,
Force my way in, 5 car lengths gained.
KING OF THE ROAD!
Morning Dove
Morning Dove
She didn’t seem to care,
Our presence, the latest of so many others,
Was harmless, perhaps annoying,
But necessary to fill her table.
Her feast, our crumbs.
A metaphor for survival?
Our kayak guide’s girlfriend keeps 19 cats,
Her house has no rats.
Could I come home to 19 cats?
There lies the dilemma.
Every form of life, from ameba to whale,
Calls for acceptance of the unacceptable.
Man is allowed to reject.
In doing so he joins innumerable
Life forms, perhaps sooner than necessary,
That chooses satiation over survival.
The dove continues to ignore us,
Irritated by our occasional swipes,
That should tell the silly bird
It’s time for her to find a worm.
She seems to counter,
“I’ve certain rights to these crumbs.
My life is devoted to this table.
I want you to leave”.
She didn’t seem to care,
Our presence, the latest of so many others,
Was harmless, perhaps annoying,
But necessary to fill her table.
Her feast, our crumbs.
A metaphor for survival?
Our kayak guide’s girlfriend keeps 19 cats,
Her house has no rats.
Could I come home to 19 cats?
There lies the dilemma.
Every form of life, from ameba to whale,
Calls for acceptance of the unacceptable.
Man is allowed to reject.
In doing so he joins innumerable
Life forms, perhaps sooner than necessary,
That chooses satiation over survival.
The dove continues to ignore us,
Irritated by our occasional swipes,
That should tell the silly bird
It’s time for her to find a worm.
She seems to counter,
“I’ve certain rights to these crumbs.
My life is devoted to this table.
I want you to leave”.
Saving the World
Do you remember leaving your ego behind,
Having no need to defend the minds “I”?
It often happens when your back,
Not your brain, triumphs.
We three volunteers, joined 15 others,
Performing chores,
If just for 3 weeks,
That might have meaning.
Something happened day one.
I counted 9 non-jews, 9 women
And nine people over 30.
18 Zionists out to save the world.
OK, maybe not the world,
Possibly, not even Israel.
As back up replacements for warehouse soldiers
We performed such high risk functions as blanket folding.
Before dismissing our efforts,
Honestly rendered,
Consider an army without folded blankets
One shudders.
Finished by 3 PM,
We tended to settle into small groups,
Based not on age, economics, sex or academics.
Rather we found one another through humor and beliefs.
Not religious beliefs but humanitarian ones.
For most this wasn’t their first volunteer effort.
We quickly were family, siblings,
Sharing histories, bullshit and causes.
Joining us in the final week
A member of our sponsors New York office
Brought his perceived role with him.
We did not let him in.
He existed with us, but not of us.
His presence allowed us to see
How we had joined hands.
Not forever more, but for this occasion.
Having no need to defend the minds “I”?
It often happens when your back,
Not your brain, triumphs.
We three volunteers, joined 15 others,
Performing chores,
If just for 3 weeks,
That might have meaning.
Something happened day one.
I counted 9 non-jews, 9 women
And nine people over 30.
18 Zionists out to save the world.
OK, maybe not the world,
Possibly, not even Israel.
As back up replacements for warehouse soldiers
We performed such high risk functions as blanket folding.
Before dismissing our efforts,
Honestly rendered,
Consider an army without folded blankets
One shudders.
Finished by 3 PM,
We tended to settle into small groups,
Based not on age, economics, sex or academics.
Rather we found one another through humor and beliefs.
Not religious beliefs but humanitarian ones.
For most this wasn’t their first volunteer effort.
We quickly were family, siblings,
Sharing histories, bullshit and causes.
Joining us in the final week
A member of our sponsors New York office
Brought his perceived role with him.
We did not let him in.
He existed with us, but not of us.
His presence allowed us to see
How we had joined hands.
Not forever more, but for this occasion.
Lost Dreams
Vinny went to Rome.
Stayed at a hotel out of town.
He enjoyed the comforts and space he wanted,
And failed to see Rome.
To experience requires involvement,
Abandonment of comfort in favor of uncertainty.
I will not find lost dreams
By standing in a good light.
Stayed at a hotel out of town.
He enjoyed the comforts and space he wanted,
And failed to see Rome.
To experience requires involvement,
Abandonment of comfort in favor of uncertainty.
I will not find lost dreams
By standing in a good light.
Suspending Belief
Kaua’i announces itself in slow motion.
Weather is part of it,
Roads require it
And Kamaanina’s* live it.
Haoles*can’t abide the pace.
Driving behind cars moving under the speed limit
Is a wake up call,
If you’re listening.
Homogenized western fundamentals
Find resistance from a local attitude
That moves slowly toward
Recognition that 60 seconds make a minute
Now before the second and minute hands
Crush the inchoate sense of time,
You can today, not tomorrow,
Slow the gears, and cautiously, exhale.
Chances are it won’t work,
Much effort spent defending “I”
Does not allow slack-key-guitars,
And roaring down the highway at 25 miles an hour.
*Haoles = mainland Caucasians
Kamaanina’s = locals
Weather is part of it,
Roads require it
And Kamaanina’s* live it.
Haoles*can’t abide the pace.
Driving behind cars moving under the speed limit
Is a wake up call,
If you’re listening.
Homogenized western fundamentals
Find resistance from a local attitude
That moves slowly toward
Recognition that 60 seconds make a minute
Now before the second and minute hands
Crush the inchoate sense of time,
You can today, not tomorrow,
Slow the gears, and cautiously, exhale.
Chances are it won’t work,
Much effort spent defending “I”
Does not allow slack-key-guitars,
And roaring down the highway at 25 miles an hour.
*Haoles = mainland Caucasians
Kamaanina’s = locals
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