white water rafting

while i was
white water rafting
to work
the other day
on account of
another hurricane
swamping
the area with a
deluge of rain
and winds
and downed power
lines, i paddled
over to my local
coffee shop. it
was still open,
sandbags out front
and a team of
green aproned
baristas hand pumping
water away from
the doors. thankfully
they have their
own generator,
so it's business
as usual. i set
anchor, tied
up my raft
then went in. they
were quite
happy to see me
and helped to
wipe down my
bright yellow
l.l. bean windbreaker
slash raincoat
with bar mops.
jimmy behind
the counter was
already working
on my usual grande
non-fat skim extra
hot vanilla latte
with a sprinkle
of chocolate
and an extra shot
of espresso. i bought
a cinammon scone too
and one of those
nice pre-packaged
healthy salads that
i see skinny people
eating all the time,
i was already
hungry and knew
that i'd need the calories
with all of this
rowing i'd be doing.
after hugging everyone
goodbye, i climbed back
aboard my raft
with coffee in hand
and set sail towards
the city. there were
cows on rooftops,
and little
dashchunds and poodles
swimming beside me
as i tossed
them pieces of my
scone. traffic was
easy peasy, no
lights, no stop
signs, no gridlock.
the usual back up
at the bridge was
gone too, pffft, what
bridge? tomorrow
i'm thinking of bringing
my fishing rod along
to maybe catch a
few fresh trout for
dinner. oh, and
a dry pair of
shoes too, maybe i'll
get a pair of those
nice duck shoes if
the mall is open.