Threads

It happened six seconds from now on a Monday
The three thousandth year of our Lord
Upon a sunny spring day in May
One million and one possibilities flowed
Not any one more likely than another
All just threads waiting to be pulled
Hung from the loom of the infinite mother

The man running in the field
A woman turning a pot
A child of uncertain sex as of yet
Dreaming within the womb of another

These and three billion more
All with an uncertain six seconds of grace
Until whatever it might be happens to them all
A preserved moment frozen in place

But it always happens six seconds from now doesn't it
With all the uncertainty that that brings
The dangling options of eternity
A tantalizing spaghetti forest of strings

Reflection of Deception

Every time my mirror lies to me

I swing a mighty hammer to smash it

When it shows my stripes

Or tells me my age

Claims I'm not bright

It always feeds my rage

But warhammer blows

Turn into baby taps

Like a plastic rattle trembling

After I stay up past my nap

Everything is diminished

When reflected in my mirrors eyes

At times it seems like water

Or it could just be the tears it makes me cry

Mighty is weak

Large becomes small

Pretty becomes hideous

Reversing pretty much anything at all

And before you suggest the obvious

And tell me to try tapping lightly

Which clearly would smash it to pieces

Ripping it softly from the wall

Nope

That doesn't work either

When I try outsmarting it

All I can hear is laughter

As if its just having a ball

Mirror mirror this

Mirror mirror that

Here there and everywhere

All a fucking funhouse

An inescapable siren call

Magical Daily Affirmation Mirror

"You are beautiful
Just as you were meant to be
Accept yourself and be free"

Daily affirmations like this and many others
Poured forth in an unending stream
In all the different languages
A cacophony to make one scream

"My goodness how intelligent you are
Your word power is great
And must be used with wisdom and care"

Sometimes the affirmations seem to be reaching
Like the time I got a compliment on my mullet
Though it only lasted minutes before the golden hair grew back
It was typical of what the mirror tries shoving down my gullet

"Your reflection in me is but a shade of who you are
Your greatness cannot be quantified by any visual means"

See what I mean?

I picked up this Daily Affirmation Mirror on QVC
It was seven-fifty with free shipping
And I would have thought that the batteries would have run out
But it's gone at fifty affirmations a day for twelve years now without skipping

"My goodness your breath is sweet today
It smells of prairie flowers"

God but I can't stand this thing
And it seems magically stuck to my wall
Remaining in place regardless of the force that I bring
I even tried to break it with the anguished toss of a bowling ball

"The shape of your nose if perfect
I love the way that it lightly turns up at the tip"

None of this would be so bad if I could get away
But I'm stuck in a ten story tower with nary a door nor stair
Oh but I think I hear something outside!
"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, please let down your hair"

"That gown you have on is most lovely
It seems even better than the one you had yesterday
The purple brings out your eyes......"

Oh do shut up Magic Daily Affirmation Mirror
I think this might be my ticket out of here!

Towing The Banner

You are the banner that silently speaks for me

Fluttering overhead raggedly

Threads held together by the words

Promises made and oaths broken

Some overly used political slogans

God hates this

Jesus loves that

Crosses wrapped in flags

Or the Pope in his pointy white hat

Will you marry me?

Oh and I'm so very sorry for that 

A spirit on the wing

A distraction in the sky

If you have a message you need out there

It doesn't even need a real reason why

Just call Banner Air Service 

Where have cash and words: will fly

Orange Cone Army

Do not go where the orange cones grow
With their fear and their stay out attitude
I tried it once and have regretted it since
Frightening myself and my passenger with a thump and a startle

They guard the road in all their flickering splendor
Orange yellow lights blinking at unmatching intervals
Not impressing me with their nonconformity
If it were me I'd stop and adjust their timers

Sometimes if nobody is looking
One will jump out into the middle of a lane
Just to keep drivers on their toes
Flickering dead center and being vain

If you see it too late you'll squish it for sure
Tossing it into the roadside ditch
Where it lies forgotten, collapsed, and scuffed
Until someone in an orange vest picks it up

Setting it up to taunt me once again

Space Sonnet

"I dream of a galaxy where your eyes are the stars
And the universe worships the night"

Which is where things go from romantic to horrifying
For as the words passed my lips
So it was
With billions and billions of eyes looking down on me

Unimpressed blue eyes
Blinking in disdain
Wishing for some way to punish me for awakening them

Somewhere far off was a screaming tearing sound
And I imagined the universe trying to form a mouth
Filled with impossible spikes for teeth
With which to rend my existence for all eternity in its maw

All for the love of thee
And comparing your eyes to stars
Oh what a foolish suitor am I
To steal my sonnet from a bad Star Trek script

So You Want To Fly?

So you want to fly?

First we learn to walk
By walking over to the stockroom
Fetching loads of parts
Carrying buckets of cleaner
Scrubbing dirty aircraft till they gleam
All of the things get to the plane with your feet

So you want to fly?

First we learn to lube
With the green standard grease
That comes in the black standard tube
Lock on with a nipple fitting
Or precisely meter it in with a needle
From body  joints to wheel bearings
All the moving things need their lube

So you want to fly?

First we learn to torque
Whether precision bolts or common screws
Everything has to be the right amount of tight
With shank length and proper nuts
Holding everything together for a safe flight
All the fasteners need to be torqued

So you want to fly?

First we learn to work the metal
On the shears and the bench
To the english wheel for some compound curves
Smoothing the airflow
Easing the aerodynamic urge
Fastening it all together with rivets
An art unto themselves
To learn the manufactured and working end
Shit from shinola
All metal must bend

So you want to fly?

First we learn to chase the sparks
With voltmeters and jumper wires
Dizzying schematics no walk in the park
Inspecting wiring bundles as thick as your arm
There's a break in the wire somewhere
Only five hundred feet more to check
All the avionics must be learned

So you want to fly?

Maybe now you are ready to step into the flight mechanic's shoes
You've gathered your knowledge
You might just know what to do
So keep maintenance control on speed dial
And may the gods watch over you
For you haven't really been tested yet
And by tested I mean by the best of times
Though at the time they feel as bad as it can get
All your seat miles must be earned