Seeking St. Benedict
You know it’s going to be a bad day
when the toaster eats your waffles,
when the cable service goes out,
and when the HVAC maintenance
requires a new motor inducer
to the tune of $500. Even the weather
has turned cold and blustery after a series
of clement Chamber of Commerce days.
Bad days breed bad humor which can only
be assuaged by good friends, good food,
or good sex, none of which are on today’s menu.
Even the cat seems aloof, proof that he, too,
can sense the tension in the air.
When I leave the house and the garage door won’t close,
or when I return and the mail is mere junk,
I get downright ugly and rant around the house
ABOUT THE UNFAIRNESS OF IT ALL.
Then I feel real sorry for myself,
maybe cry for a spell, and begin again.
Always begin again.
Pauline,
ReplyDeleteJust so you know, I adore you. I am absolutely tickled by this draft- from the working title, down to the end of the piece, I am smiling. I really like the way you have started the piece with providing such a specific, inventoried list of seemingly domestic appliances. What's more, I LOVE the middle: "Bad days breed bad humor which can only / be assuaged by good friends, good food, or good sex, none of which are on today's menu"... fabulous! In all honesty, I cannot decide on whether or not I want more information about why these particulars are indicative of relief, but I do think it would be worth the while to expand and elaborate these idea ever more... especially in regards to what the narrator considers to be "good" friends, food, or sex... and why exactly none of these items aren't 'on today's menu'. Again, great job- I would love to an expansion of this draft.