Rainbow Color Coating

I park in the auxiliary gravel lot and along the path into the school there has been a pile

some sort of rainbow colored candy

one day we noticed that months have passed

yet the candy remains untouched

the World and Nature herself rejecting free food

he told me that growing up his mother would throw every piece of stale food outside for the birds and animals

and that this same phenomenon occurred with Fruit Loops

---------------

I've noticed that some of the most powerful forces at work on this journey of Life have been Love, Hunger, Time (in that order)

Can I Use Your W.C. Please?

a fringe benefit of the new pad
within walking distance on nice days
The Gloucester Writers Center. In their words,

The Gloucester Writers Center is a place for working writers in a working town. We are devoted to the exploration, development and celebration of our diverse voices through dialogue and the artistic process.

Snow cancelled our weekly meeting today
I decided to post my favorites
from the last three months, what an idea!
it inevitably depressed my soul
being happy with two sad limericks
from the last three months of material

------------
There once was a boy named Joe
He did not know where to go
He followed the sound
But when it was found
He found that he still did not know
------------
There once was a violin
I can't find where to begin
Plucked on the strings
But all that it brings
Is a feeling that I'll never win

Deodor:can't

I do not remember how old I was
when I started to smell bad
probably twelve or thirteen
since then I've rocked the OLD SPICE
classic style, original scent

and for over a decade I never considered the ingredients
or my lymph nodes

(according to wikipedia)

Lymph node is an oval-shaped organ of the lymphatic system, distributed widely throughout the body including the armpit and stomach... as filters or traps for foreign particles and are important in the proper functioning of the immune system...

the ingredients on my current stick include:

Alcohol Denat.
Propylene Glycol
Water
Sodium Stearate
Fragrance
Triclosan
Tetrasodium Edta
Yellow 10
Green 5

I don't know what most of those chemicals are
(what does Denat. stand for?)
why would I rub and smear them into my lymph nodes
every day

The Man Who Invented Food Pills

I got a call from the city.  Dan the Mailman had landed me an early birthday present, an interview, and was rambling furiously. 

"The Doctor, he's got to be in his seventies, maybe eighties, and he's been delivering the mail for years, the past eight years I've worked there at least" he sputtered, virtually out of breath in his enthusiasm.  I told him I was skeptical. 

"That's nothing.  I haven't even gotten to the good part.  The Doctor is perfectly healthy and yet he hasn't eaten food in years.  The Doctor is the man who invented Food Pills." 

--------

It was a long drive from the coast to the city and I had questions.  Flaws in the story.  I am cynical on most days.  When I arrived Dan was ready to answer the first question on my mind, before I even asked it.

"You're wondering how come The News isn't all over this.  The Doctor will probably tell us his story today because he doesn't know you're going to write about it.  Don't mention your blog.  Don't mention anything.  Try not to talk at all."

I told Dan that I get it and thanked him again for setting up the meet.   

"I told the Doctor you are giving up a failed career at music and applying for a steady job at the post office."

"Why?"

"Because details are important in a good lie"  

---------

"Stomach problems.  I couldn't eat hardly anything anyways"

The Doctor's explanation as to Why he didn't want to eat food anymore actually made more sense than I expected it to.  My questions had all nearly been answered so I tried to bait him.  "I love to cook.  It's cathartic.  You don't like to cook, Doctor?"

"My wife & I used to cook the most delicious meals together, nearly every night.  After she died, it just wasn't...." his voice trailed off.  I felt like an ass for asking for him that.

"Then I found Science" the Doctor said smiling.  His eyes lifted and brightened.  "We all know what you need: protein, vitamin C, calcium... I don't want to bore you with lists.  My compounds are laid out in detail in my journals.  The brass tax of it all is that I don't eat anything but my food pills anymore, since about the time your friend Dan started on.  He didn't believe me then, and I don't think he does now." 

Dan smiled.  "I'm gaining interest.  Tell him the best part." 

"The best part is that my stomach problems are gone..." the Doctor began to answer, but Dan interrupted him, "Don't hold back now Doc" 

"Shit.  I haven't the need to defecate anymore.  In years.  My pills are perfectly designed that my body absorbs the exact amounts of each element.  For years the formulas have been adjusted, to maintain this wonderful and unexpected side effect."

I was puzzled.  "You haven't eaten any food, or taken a shit, in years?" 

"That's right."  His answer was calm and seemed genuine.  "Your next question about mass marketing Food Pills is unnecessary because I have no interest in the work it would take to custom tailor the pills for each individual client.  In fact, I've grown bored of the subject altogether, but I am willing to assume my vintage Martin guitar will pique your interest?" 

The Doctor again, was correct.

--------------

On the ride home Dan broke a long silence, "I won't be as extreme about it as the Doctor is.  We can still go out for dinner on weekends with the girls, or whatever.  On occasion."

Sammy's Law

Sammy is a funky drummer and wonderful human who got himself into some trouble and then out of it and then past it, thankfully never losing any funkiness along the way.  Sam recently offered me this nugget of advice,

"Do not break more than one law at a time" 

Cell Phone Poems

Dec 14, 2013

Thought about quitting those mean cigarettes
As my ashes fell whiter than the snow
Piling up faster than my regrets
Nowhere to go but up, nowhere to go

Wondered which was purer the ash or snow
That got me on the great Robert Frost
His dark cold words always make me glow
Though I don't doubt the true meaning is lost

---------------------------------

Dec 28, 2013

Pregnant bartender loves this disco band
Dancefloor grandma swaying, can't hardly stand
Found myself drinking beers with the band wives
Tonight is the highlight of their bland lives