poem of the day 05.20.13

my only parade

the people who stand there in the rain

seem like aliens to me

because they are the same ones

who will ordinarily run through a thunder storm

seeking shelter

to get out of this kind of weather

but there they are with umbrellas

and garbage bag clothing

taking pictures and smiling their sunday asses off

well-meaning fools looking to be entertained

while i drink beer and eat grilled cheese inside a bar

easily amused masses

watching water-logged majorettes and horses give them a show

clapping and bobbing as fleets of fireman and cops

walk down the saturated streets saluting

as city council people come crawling down avenues

waving miniature american flags like vote pledges

in slick muscle cars from fifty years ago

christ, it seems so idiotic to waste one’s time this way

i went to a parade years ago

my only parade

a st. patrick’s day parade in pittsburgh

and i got in the head with a green bagel

thrown by none other than ronald mcdonald

hell, bagels aren’t even on the menu at mcdonald’s

that about did it for me

i figure people walk

up and down the streets here every day

derelicts walk into traffic with their pants down all of the time

and the cops and the fireman

are always racing after one disaster or another

but no one stands and watches any of this shit

except for me

my own parade of the damned

any time that i want it

only i’ll give these people the majorettes and the horses

now that

that you just don’t see every day

unless you live in disneyland.