I want nothing memorable to happen this year
Nothing at all
Other than the status quo
Wake Up
Write Poetry
Go To Work
Go to Bed
Repeat over and over
Again
Until 2020
Outside the Box
The boundaries, rules and laws
That govern our physical, mental and
Material existence
Are but a box
Our thoughts and beliefs
Are contained within the box
In an unconscious manner
That limits us
Outside the box there exists
Unlimited possibilities
Unorthodox mannerisms
And impossible ideas
It is here where insanity and genius
Both reside
Sometimes one overtaking the other
Or both coexisting together
Each of us has such a box
That can be destroyed
And unleash our unfettered ideas
Onto the world
These unhindered ideas
Can both create and destroy
And lead us onto the path of insanity
Or brilliant insight
This is why the madman on the street
Is sometimes closer to Copernicus or Aristotle
Than you might be led to believe
The Nerds Have Taken Over
Right now
Thousands of programmers are pounding away
To bring you the latest software marvel
These geniuses lie hidden and
Out of sight providing a string of bytes
To your cell phone and computers
So you can post the latest meme
About your cat
Or the political system
They are the hidden heroes
That were picked last for kickball
And occasionally bullied at school
Now they run the world
And there is no going back
To the way things were
Technology is moving forward
Getting better faster and more clever
And we are hooked
As long as this addiction exists
Nerds will rule the world
The Pill Popping Driving Man
Taking pills
Lot of pills and
Driving hard
Long hours almost every day
To pay for those damn pills
That keep me
Balanced and
Sane
I’ve driven on almost every road
In Cincinnati delivering goods to
Pay for those
Pills
Used to get them shipped from Canada
A few years back
The local Pharmacy wanted $1600 a month
And I gave them the finger
I can bitch and moan about the cost
But they saved my life
They did
And gave me the opportunity
To live a working man’s life
And deliver packages to your door
All because of some chemical
In a pill
Don’t know what I would do without them
Possibly just bum around on the street
Asking for change and
Talking to myself
If society started caring
About the homeless
They would help them out with
A good doctor and a decent job
But they would rather
Buy bombs
And death than give a bum
A chance at a decent life
Which is why there are so many of them
Hanging out on the street
When they could be driving around and
Popping pills
Instead of being flushed down
The drain by people
Who don’t believe
That people can change
Never Alone Again
A kitten showed up on my porch
Worm infested and
Half starved and
Homeless
I felt as if it was bad karma
To leave him out in the cold
Given that I myself was
Homeless some years earlier
Looking into his eyes
I knew there was this bond between us
So I took him under my wing
Cleaned him up, took him to the vet
And christened him with the name
“Mr Giggles” and gave him a
Place to stay
And we hang out to this day
Two former vagrants
Once cast aside
Yet now living it up
Having the time of our lives
Knowing that we are survivors
Has made life so much sweeter
We savor its juices even better
When we share it together
Serenity
Every night I swallow a handful of pills
To keep my mind straight
And from thinking
That “they” are out to get me
There are all shapes and sizes inside my
Medicine dish
With strange names that are
Difficult to pronounce
Strange to think that without these
I would end up residing in some
Mental health facility
But instead I am sitting at a coffee shop
Writing about what could have been
If it wasn’t for those damn pills
That I curse yet allow me
To live an almost normal life
They used to throw people like me
In asylums and lock the doors
Some 50 years ago
Strange to think about that now
Instead I live among you “normals”
Writing, reading and even
Working to try to make the world a little better
Despite its many flaws
All because of those pills
That I curse and dread
And yet granted me
A life that I should not have had
Thank You
Thank you to the readers and fans that help keep me going. I am indebted to you for the letters and gifts that I have received over the years. I would like to spend a special thank you to a fan who sent me several pottery pieces with my words etched into the pieces. They are absolutely stunning.
Write or Die
Work
Read
Write
Work
Read
Write
Day after day
A routine that helps keep me going
On those days
When you just feel like
Smashing everything
And kicking the teeth out of
That guy sitting next
To you at the bar
Which is why I started this
Poetry Diary
It only takes one bad choice
To destroy your life
Better to write and live free