Wednesday, June 25, 2008









while the presenter and the organizer and the guy from the front row
fiddle with the projector,
a big woman in a small metal chair
by the exit
holds a slice of pizza
it hangs limp and sweaty
like a tired dog's tongue

the black olive
lodged on her chest
rides the wave of her contented
exhalations
i am pretty certain
she'll be the first to bolt
once the pizza's eaten.

and i
i am putting on my best show
of interest
loading up my paper pad balanced on my knees
with chunks of wisdom, sage cutlets
of technological insight
but the fan above is unimpressed,
it will not clap
just whirs,
shuffling the air, knocking
listless flies off course

i wish these chairs would screech
but they just emit a dull low rumble
and the beige carpet only sighs
when it's trodden on

i think of all that i have not done
and will never do
the hours wasted, the days torn
like the calendar beside the light switch
june ripped in half

as i
place big black bullets
beside a list of next month's
topics

the sun strolls in late
slides down the wall
and collapses
by the garbage can.

9 comments:

Ippoc Amic said...

there was more than black bullets on that paper pad...good use of idle time spent with adults and a child prodigy

~ lauren said...

oh! that's beautiful!

and yet so sad at the same time. because i can feel it all.

jen said...

the pizza woman, priceless.

nice!

Anonymous said...

ah, the essence:

"i think of all that i have not done
and will never do
the hours wasted, the days torn"

Is it time to buy yourself a porsche, go to night clubs, party like its 1999 and pretend you're 21 again? No. Ever wonder why we don't accomplish everything we want to? it's because we're too busy accomplishing stuff we actually want to accomplish. (like racing, traveling abroad and rotten kitty stuff.)

You've done more than you give credit for! Maybe an iphone would help you do more...i donno. ask Ipoc. she can garmin the answers...

Lilly Bella said...

sometimes the to don't list is much more rewarding than the to do list

marscat said...

dingo -- a moment of angst at a boring meeting...no iPhone for this gal. i would lose it in a second

lilly: i'm a afraid of my to don't list

Eclectchick said...

Beautiful ennui . . . What are ennui and angst combined? Is there a word for that?

marscat said...

chick: job

Eclectchick said...

Blarg. True!