helter skelter people run to shelter

a hard rain falls
and gutters overflow
the sky cries a river of tears
down cortelyou road
helter skelter people run to shelter
from the storm
and i clearly see
my little blonde haired children
squealing laughing
splashing and rolling in that puddle
by the purple hibiscus
in the pouring rain
naked except that
one wears flippers
another gumboots
snorkle and goggles
let it rain
so my children can dance again
in a rain falling hard

a bit bemused by basha

i'm a bit bemused by basha.
first it was magic shampoo to thicken my hair
and then tips on weight loss and painted nails
and now its my wrinkles and crow's feet
that occupy her mind


she's bought me creams and strange elixirs
and gave explicit directions on how to apply them
to my eyelids like this...
to my cheeks and neck like that...
such intimate conversations
and displays on the landing
of fashion and style and american beauty

so
this morning i applied the collagen elastin
to my cheeks and neck
hoping the wattle will disappear
and the l'oreal eye defence to my
facial crevices and cracks
with mental reminders to stop smiling

i know basha will be keeping
a scrutinous lookout
to see how i'm progressing
and i would like to please her
and look again like the person i was
in the picture m. sent me on our
35th wedding anniversary
of a youthful glowing couple
on the front page of the weekly advertiser
both then never dreaming
that i would be here
and he would be there
and not
'will live in south yarra'
but east of manhattan

ebony bebony sharples

its midnight and i am eating marmalade jam
drinking tea with milkand two sugars
and talking on google chat
with ebony bebony sharples
about global wealth and cottage industries
our dreams and schemes
and escape plans to other lands
5 minutes of
lol and hehe
:) & :P and
(((((((())))))))))
=^..^=
i should include
some in my work reports
:D

balancing act

cute little squirrel
perched on the narrow rail
nibbling wholewheat bread
scavenged from the red bin
its all a balancing act as you can see

a long ways from home

ode to mothers day

sometimes i feel like a motherless child

a long ways from home
theres a bird calling at my window
with a strange tropical voice
perhaps shes from la floridia
or maybe new mexico
far away from home
but not
so far
as i
right now ...
way up in da heab'nly land
a long ways from home
strange bird

barely a tulip petal

rose's cat mikey died on monday
rose misses him like crazy
and basha screeches
about how yvonne didnt care
for him properly the weeked that he died
he was 21 for goodness sake

so - the tally for this week is...
henry witkoski
frances joss
and
mikey
also - now i think about it
the tulips all around the city are on their way out
barely a tulip petal to be seen
i stopped and drew one of the last ones
near the corner of 72 and maddison
yellow and 2 pistols
i might turn it into a postcard
send it to someone who appreciates
the significants of a tulip
with two petal - the last on maddison

sounds like summer

i know that summer is almost here
'mr softy' often visits my street
stopping most evenings just below my window.
with loopy loony jingle tune

the neighborhood kids come out in droves
to play on the street.
balls bounce off the factory walls and sidewalk
boys shout and whistle to one another.

there is a huge swimming pool next door now
and kids splash and squeal for hours and hours
basha
bought earmuffs
i muff with my mind

i notice that the tuba player next door
has progressed greatly since last summer.
he keeps good time with his practice tape
with his oompa oompa chicka chicka oompa
and is quite in tune most of the time
i wonder what happened to the guy who
took showers at 4am
and blew his nose loudly over and over
maybe he doesnt do night shift anymore

muted sound when trees are bare
are now clear as a bell.
i can set my clock to
the mudhin's call to prayer.
dogs bark.
the city thrums
pulsating through the endless concrete corridors.
airplanes overhead
on route to and from jfk
remind me
of the sounds of summer
i shared with you