Book club procrastinator

Meeting tomorrow.
Haven’t even opened it.
That’s life on the edge.

Out of wedlock

for S.

Without a ring she’s
uncertain, the baby no
guarantee he’ll stay.

Not in polite company

She talks of threesomes,
abortions, things her mother-
in-law would faint at.

First boyfriend breakup

She didn’t want to
hold his hand, watch him eat bread
sloppily. The end.

Surviving St. Patrick’s Day

for Cathy

Too sick for green beer
she stayed home, watched bad films of
leprechaun horror.

Channel surfing at 3 am

Late night TV a
wonderland of fast money
junkyard of trashed dreams.

Hoarders

Invested with deep
meaning, treasures buried by
trash. Dust, dirt their shroud.

Unemployed Christmas

Can days be merry
and bright? Jobs – like ornaments –
fragile, out of reach.

Ugly photo

She keeps it displayed
to remind herself that once
she didn’t know it

Not among the 6%

“Let’s go to the beach!”
One kid, online, shrugs as the
other keeps texting.

“In a typical week, only 6 percent of children ages nine to thirteen play outside on their own.”
from The Option of Urbanism: Investing in a New American Dream by Christopher B. Leinberger