pie in the sky

the evil

ones, the terrorists of the world,

seem

to never take a day off,

always planning

some nefarious deed

to scare the pee

out of us.

a bomb,

a plane to hijack.

random attacks on innocent

victims.

what strange lives

they must lead.

all that hatred 

boiling within them.

never realizing that

with each

act of terror

the world despises

them even more

than the day before.

and

all that for the promise

of 72 virgins

in the sky.

oh my.

apparently, we're different

women,

of course, are more

auditory,

more turned on by

the written word or

a voice whispering

in their ear,

whereas

men need just a slight

breeze

to lift the hem

of a summer skirt

to fill them

with desire.

that laminated look

i haven't seen

my friend Jimmy in a few months

and then

he calls and wants

to go out

and have a drink somewhere,

maybe lunch.

i hardly recognize him

when he shows up.

his eyebrows are higher,

his wrinkles pulled

back behind his ears.

his lips seem fuller,

rounder.

even his nose looks different

somehow,

straighter, narrower.

there are no

bags under his eyes.

what the hell i say to him,

when he arrives.

still limping

because of his bad knees.

i smile but don't mention

any of the plastic

surgeries he's had, i just

shake his hand

and say

long time no see, 

so how are you Frankenstein?

decisions on October first

the temperature

has dropped

into the 50's, so of course

i start looking

for apple fritter loaf

cake recipes.

but i need a loaf

pan

and most of the ingredients,

so i put the bike

ride off

for a while.

will it be with raisins

or nuts,

important decisions

have to be made.

some time off

you tie your white flag

to a stick

and hold it up

over the bloody

trench so that the enemy

can see

you've given up,

at least for now.

you need a day off.

maybe two.

you need

some time away from 

this war

that can't be won,

can't be lost.

you need some R and R

away from

it all.

maybe an island somewhere.

a cold drink

in hand,

the blue water touching

your feet,

your chair in the sand.