The Road Well Trampled

One trail unmistakable in a bright green wood

And happily I ambled along in the footsteps of the many

Who trod the path well worn and true

Saving me the trouble of picking my way

Through bramble and thistle or thickets or worse

The trail was clearly the most advantageous

For the view of the lake and the mountains beyond

No obstacles blocked egress or hindered progress

This trail was perfect in every way

Clearly the right choice for an enjoyable hike

There was no flora or fauna anywhere

To indicate that possibly a better experience could be had

By disturbing the untouched areas of the park

And even if something off the path should interest me

I could always return to see it some other day

I tell this with a felicific smile

Right here and now, no need to delay

One trail unmistakable in the wood and I

Walked comfortably along it

And it made for an appreciable constant

The Cube Root of Infinity

Water, water everywhere...but god forbid you should drink it from the hose...

The sea is a beauty without the need for explanation

It's just there and it's just beautiful

It doesn't wilt under cross-examination

The sea cannot be judged

There is no need for rationalization

It's powerful, awe-inspiring, and forever

It's life, it's death, it's stimulation

The sea washes the world with it's sweep

Plankton, coral, aquatic craniate or cetacean

All thrive in the shallow and the deep

Every shade of blue and green in it's coloration

Turquoise in the Med, cerulean in the Baltic

At night the moon can cast illumination

That makes the sea glow with a pale yellow green

And under the waves the darker depths defy classification

The sea can lap at the shore with a caress

The sea can crash on the shore with determination

It's the sea and it's beautiful

Weeds In The Garden

Tom Long, Chris Bakunas (fka Long), Kathy Long & her daughter Brittany Martin

My family isn't close, not all of us 

I've read about families that faced tragedy or misfortune

Banding together, sharing their strength with one another

That's not us though, we are not of that ilk

Tragedy and misfortune pushed us apart

It really is quite a shame

We have very little in common, my brothers and sisters and I

We don't like the same music or read the same books

If pressed, I guess I could come up with a few commonalities

None of us liked growing up poor

But as a consequence, we're all fairly thrifty

Several of us have traveled extensively

I think that must be a delayed reaction

To feeling trapped in that abysmal pit of a neighborhood we got stuck in

After Dad left Mom for the second of his four wives

Or was it five? I can never seem to get that straight

His Dad, my paternal Grandfather Arthur, he had three wives

And his Dad, Great-Grandfather William, he had three as well.

My paternal Grandmother Agnes, she was the rebel, only married the once
That I know of
Grandfather's mother, Great-Grandmother Martha, she had three husbands  

Those spouse counts are all subject to revision - up

Mom's side of the family, they all stuck it out with each other

Maybe they didn't like the idea of having to break in someone new

Still, the paternal family tree looks like a kelp forest

being ripped apart by the currents

I've been married twice myself

The first time for almost 23 months

The second time, well, that was never much of a marriage

Not only did I not ever live with the woman

I never even lived in the same state with her

Yeah, that's a story right there

So, my family, we're not close, not like I think families should be

It really is quite a shame

Might be a good thing though, with all the half-siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles

Postage for Christmas cards alone would probably bankrupt me

The Conversation Turned

Chris Bakunas & Rick Thibodeau hoist a few in 2009

She nodded her head as I spoke feigning interest in my opinion of a movie
Twisting her hair with an index finger
The shirt she wore looked like silk but I'm sure it was polyester
She told me she named her cat Schrodinger

With a sardonic grin she explained how she found him in a box and thought it was fitting
And lamented about her friends not getting the joke
I asked if those friends waxed poetic about quantum mechanics
Her blank stare told me I shouldn't have spoke

The ritual had become routine, it was such a bore
There was only so much we could possibly have to say
Tomorrow seemed so far away

She asked Joey for another drink as I stared out at the skating rink
Curious if I could still handle being on the ice
I noticed a snag in her nylons and wondered what she got them caught on
As she played with an electronic device

It had been a long day, really, an excruciatingly  long day
But I yearned more for conversation than I did for sleep
I couldn't be alone with my thoughts right then
And I didn't want to bother my friends
I didn't want to be a bother to my friends

So I retained my seat at the bar and listened to her talk about an ugly scar
A boyfriend gave her as a parting gift
And like her I nodded my head as I listened to what she said 
I stared at her lips as my mind began to drift

The ritual had become routine, it was such a bore
There was only so much we could possibly have to say
Tomorrow seemed so far away

Those Days, Edited*

Scott Foreman, Rob Tidmore, Mike Meyers, Chris Long (nka Bakunas), Terry (nka Tellis) Capell

Everyone had ambition

Though no-one took the time to listen

We all thought we had a million years and ten

Hair thinned and fell out
shaky confidence turned to doubt
Suddenly it became work to meet up with friends

Addictions, marriages, mortgages, disparages
Miles away lapsed into months then years apart
Somebody we all knew or possibly was a relation to
Would tell of victory's, defeats, and broken hearts

Have you heard such and such do you keep in touch
Thought you'd know about the kids, jail, divorce
Maybe you'd go fishing and would start reminiscing
Tell yourself it's time to go directly to the source

Writing a check on Thursday you remembered it's a birthday
And you can't believe it's been that long a time
You don't feel that age and then look in a mirror
To try to gauge
Whether it's the light that's causing all those lines

It would be good next vacation
To stop with the procrastination
Pay a visit to the old neighborhood

What if they lost the house to the recession
Or worse, to the ex-spouse
You wonder if they would think you understood

You heard about some hardship but regarded it as gossip
Would it have hurt to have offered assistance
Remembering them tough as leather
Riding out the worst of weather

You think you had to maintain your distance
From those windows that open upon all the 
Changes you've undergone
Wind and rain blow in and stir up the room

Like a pathetic vitriolic offer of water to a shaking alcoholic
The last thing you need is to try to exhume
A life that has passed even if it seemed 
To be gone too fast
Every train eventually reaches its final destination






*This was edited on 01/04/2014. I was never happy with the original. The original was, it was just, I don't know...cumbersome. I didn't edit much - added two words, omitted two words, and broke up the stanza structure.