Walk in the Park for Sunday Scribblings

Coincidentally, I heard that phrase Thursday afternoon.
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Dentist's chair
all bibbed
he walks in
says,

“The two repairs
we're doing today
will be a walk
in the park.”

Phew! No pain.
Two sticks
sticking out
of my mouth

numbing
the needle sites.
First shot
in the font.

Ow! It goes on
and on.
A tear runs down
my cheek,

Second shot
in a fattier area
muscles tight
he pulls

and pulls
my cheek
for thirty
seconds.

While the Novocain
works on that one
he fixes
the first

“Is the second one
numb yet?” “No.”
Another shot.
drill,suction, air

drool, hanging thing.
When I leave I go
for a real walk
in the park.

Green

for ReadWritePoem March 24, 2008
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I stand in the office
of the motel we own
and watch our newest guests
get out of their vehicle.

Both people have cigarettes
in their mouths.
They unload their bags
then throw their butts

on the ground.
I have buckets with sand
placed around the building
for cigarette disposal

but, instead, they leave
those flattened white stubs
on my clean driveway,
looking like broken

crayons left in the sun
to melt. I retrieve my long-
handled dustpan and broom
then go outside

to sweep up their litter
and deposit it
in one of the sand buckets.
Out of the corner

of my eye, I see the woman
staring at me from their room.
She quickly closes
the curtains.

Dear Editor

Poem to the Editor for TOP January 3, 2008

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Dear Editor

Yesterday, as I was standing
in line at the IGA,

thinking only about
getting home after work,

I was delayed
while waiting.

Ahead of me
was a woman

with two young children
and a shopping cart

full of macaroni
and cheese, chips,

soda, Hamburger Helper,
Wonder bread, TV dinners.

There wasn’t an apple,
banana, or carrot in sight.

The hold-up was because
she couldn’t find her welfare

credit card.
The kids squabbled,

she pawed through her purse.
Finally, she found it

and I prepared to check out.
But, no, another delay.

I had to wait
while she purchased

beer, wine, and cigarettes.
She took out dollar

bills for that.
It was zero degrees.

One child had no hat.
The other had on

just a sweatshirt.
She lit up a smoke

as soon as she got outside
while I took out

my hard-earned money
to pay for her groceries.