the benefits of not being married

there's some simplicity in not
being married.

having waffles at nine o'clock
in your under wear
sitting in front of the tv.

lathering on the butter and syrup.
eggs and bacon, go for it.
put a rib roast in the oven
before you go to bed
and set the timer.

you can even leave the butter
out all night, if you so desire,
you can leave
the dishes in the sink, or even
on the table.

all sticky. leave as many books
as you like all over the house.
open to where you last read them.

the bathroom is all yours.
wet towels on the floor.
so what.

why bother setting all the clocks
in the house back
when they'll spring forward in six
months anyway. leave em.
who cares what time it is.
look out the window.
it's day, or it's night.

you can throw your dirty clothes down
the steps. who cares.
leave your shoes all over the place,
no one's around to complain
about how they keep tripping over them.

it's okay.
the tv is all yours. watch what
you want.

your jailer is no longer around.
maybe pulp fiction one more time,
or the big Lebowski. another binge
on Netflix. it's been weeks since
your watched Bad Santa
or the Shawshank redemption.

she used to like cartoons.
or the catholic channel.
Disney movies, the hallmark channel,
the kind of stuff
she used to watch with her kid
or her parents
in an effort to show them how
wonderful she was. ha.

mindless for the most
part, though painful in a painless
sort of way.

I know though that this fun, this
freedom will end one day.
i'll meet someone new, fall
in love again and the party will be
over. this freedom will be
extinguished like blowing out
a candle.

i'll be scraping ice off their
car windows, or be at the grocery
store asking them
what kind of seafood they want
for dinner tonight and if
they want kale or spinach,
as sides.

oh well, need to enjoy it
while I can with a cold coke
and a bag of waffle chips by
my side.