Tuesday, Oct. 16, 2007 - 9:32 p.m.
Reverse Gear
*************
friend got a call
on her cellphone at work today
our mutual pal is back in town to stay,
to dry out, to get real
after living the total honky tonk lifestyle
in the evil city for ther last five years.
hI got the" hey meet us at the beach" call and rendezvoudt at dusk to hook up
and see how city mouse was doing
her and her big brown dog
were back in small town life
til further notice
wow as she walked from her car to join us'
she looked like she was 50 years old
real slow on her feet
cup sized rings under her eyes
and her shrill voice
when she scolded her dog
sort of scared me
Life in the city has not been kind to her
and it showed.
She was nice to us
but seemed like she was just doing
your basic customer relations
warm but hot a full happy warm
her life in the past 5 years was spent indoors
selling $7 drafts to downtown art fags
and listening in on dope deals
and who knows whatever deals
are made in upscale downtown bars
She tried to make her life in the city
sound glamourous
but it came off
like a nightmare
" at least it isn't new York'
ya, in the very least
all that big money
she made at that bar
working 40 hrs a week
in the dark and noise and boozy chaos
she spent on party supplies
and the occassional random flight to Thailand
I didn't want to know why Thailand
But something somewhere
along the line snapped
and shes back in this little town
where she started
living at her parents house
and seeing a doctor
trying to get herself back together
before the pieces roll so far away
that they can't ever be assembled again
maybe we will meet for dinner
and a fire and a catch up session
Something is wrong, broken or missing there
the funny thing is
we can see the evil city
clear across the lake
from here on the beach
and it looks like a jewelbox
Her dog wears a beautiful collar
but is completely out of control
& is old enough to know better
it runs right into traffic here
its feet are hard from walking on concrete
and it will not look strangers in the eye
that dog has never seen space
or experienced freedom
and it shows
I hope she can get cured here this winter
because if she goes back to the evil city
it may be curtains..for keeps
I am starting to think that
cities are not proper places to live
they provide
convenient access to hell
