a hot bath in the middle of the day

tumbler full of Jameson

eyes closed

watched the show on the back of his eyelids

a word show

Maude

Eve

M E

 

got on his knees

lathered his ass crotch chest armpits

laid down

agitate his body parts

frothed the water

went dull with soap film

pulled the plug

motioned the water with his hands counterclockwise

stood

toweled off

dried his right foot firststepped

dried his left lifted his foot to the basin counter completely dried his foot and leg and ass

stood

placed his right foot on the counter

completely dried it leg ass

motherfucker was spickanspan

dressed in sweats he had placed on the toilet

stepped in front of the mirror

fogged

combed his hair out

combed it straight back

could see streaks of himself

Howbout tha

Boutwha

Combed straight back

                         Vice  Vice    Miami Vice  Don Johnson stole your look sans the silk suits

Jah

Gelled your hair

Motherfucker

Jahya did

Motherfucker

                Jah I did

Had forgotten

No ya didnt

Had stuffed it in the deep recesses

                                       We had to reconfigure several closets

The shit you got in there

                           The shit freefloating

Man

 

Fuck  I did gell my hair

Yadid

1627,  Sunday,  1  2. 26

Maude  hadnt met one     fingers crossed

Eve  hadnt met one  wouldnt date one  figured theres an Adam thrashing himself looking for her  

                                                                                                              sexual duplicity

ME

       M  E

 

then cutthroat

                   he thought they were playing pool

 

How old are your grandchildren?

cast a thought

                     I don know

You must have a guess.

You take your shot  I believe one shoudnt guess their grandchildrens ages

                                                                                       How old are they

I do not know

I remember their birthdays

                              Not their birthyears

Is anyone as old or older or younger than the dictates on a calendar once a year

    I don know

You

he reeled off their seven names their ages

                                                        watched the feathers ruffle at his throat  pride

Rote

    Rote?

Mechanical

                Damn near religious

Howbout you

he missed the shot he took wasnt good at cut shots

hedve bet cold hard cash

                        What about me?

Your eight grandchildren

My eight grandchildren.

Hes stalling Rote

Rote?  asked Rote

Biblical   Cub Scouts Oath

                               On my honor I will do my best/To do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law;/To help other people at all times;/To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.

    Talk about indoctrination

Hell guess at the ages of his grandchildren

                                                  I wont

 

   they redefined the game of cutthroat pool

1500,  Sunday,  1  2. 26 

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2026/jan/26/the-bed-trick-by-izabella-scott-review-a-bizarre-story-of-sexual-duplicity

Its called moxie

                     Ya got it or ya don

buddyboy

              I think I’ve got it.

Thinly

his head twitched like a birdhe blinked like a bird

                                             Thinly?

What do you mean by that?

Heard of cutting drugs

I’ve heard of it.

Tha

    That.  That explains nothing.

Oh but it does

    Are you insulting me?

No

     Callin a spade a spade

A spade?

Jah

 

I think I have . . chutzpah.

Wha strawed crate ya pluck tha from

                                           Really

Goin Yiddish

Will you give me that?

    No

No?

      Why no?

Think

        Ya think

Ya know

Ya believe

Think doesnt enter into the equation

                                       An Gawd knows howya love equations  Graphs  Venns  Bubble maps Brain maps   Pushin my buttons

Believe

    Im not convinced

Worse

I know you

 

I do not flatter

You need to find someone wholl flatter you

    Think

             Thas the thin shimmer of oil on the surface of water

No depth

Nothing to sound

 

   Too harsh

1430,  Saturday,  31  1. 26

1445,  Sunday,  1  2. 26

there was a lot he didnt like about her exboyfriend

he was terribly grateful for him that they didnt run into each other

hed have pounded him rather than shake his hand

                                                             she deserved better

    she deserved him

he treated her the way she should have beenought to have been treated

it pained his heart the emotional abuse she suffered

                                                           the things it cost her

    for instance an negligible

      waxing            

 

If he liked it so much why didnt he pay for it

He said it was up to me because it was part of my personal toiletr . .

. . He wax

No.

Part of your obligation to the relationship

    I don’t know . . . maybe.

You understand in our relationship  if thaswha youd like to doI like artful bushes Ill cover thalaughed

    Might suppose thas not coverin tha

she laughed

              You’re too funny.

I love so much that you make me laugh.

I love your laughterlike music your smile your dimples  you

her elbows were on the table her hands up

                                                she brought her long fingers up to the tip of her nose he loved her nose

Did you just say  you  love  me

    he grinned

                     Might suppose tha covered tha

I love you

1104,  Sunday  1  2. 26

There yare  he often wondered what its voice would sound like if it spoke

                                                                                        Havent seenya in a bit

liknowleum revealed Mort the gangly kid red turtleneck sweater covering his mouth who appeared in Bazooka Joe cartoons wrappedround pink Bazooka Bubble Gum

                                                                    an as a blown bubble stretches  is effaced

Mort morphed into a young ugly-as-ever Alfred E Newman  grinning like a monkey

                                                                                           his grin enlarging

consumedobliterated his visage 

the roiling ceased

pale tan fissuresquefractured flooring again

he enjoyed that liknowleum treated him but he couldnt help but wonder who  if either  would take umbrage at being merged   Mort  or  Alfred

                                         both pretty goonie

1100,  Sunday,  1  2. 26

Guess Who  Laughing  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D634us2eQxM

Don shake your head

Sorry.  I’m sorry. It’s just never occurred to me.

Really doubt splashed over it

Yes.   Really.

                 What was the word?

he smiled at her

                   Faience    F  A  I  E  N  C  E faience  Sounds pretty looks pretty

To you.

To me

         I often find myself reading a book see a word heel  Stops me dead in my tracks

Faience did.

It did

          It was the string of vowels  Then of course how the word comes out of your mouth  Faience

What does it mean?

Ah tinglazed earthenware  a glasslike ceramic

That sounds beautiful.

Examples of it are

                     The ancient examples more so I read faience in regards to vessels made in Fourteenth Century B C E gifts shared between Egyptian kings an other kingdoms

Fantastic

    There is a word, I think, I like.

Please 

         Lemme heard

Plangent.

P  L  A  N  G  E  N  T

Yes.

Adjective  Wha does it mean

A loud reverberating sound.

                          The toll of a bell.

I like tha  Thank you

                            Appears you do have a word you fancy  Though   Plangent is not pretty  Its handsome

Handsome.      Handsome.

                                   Yes. I’d have to agree.

Look at you

Yah.  Look at me.

1430,  Saturday,  31  1. 26

1107,  Sunday,  1  2. 26

Hold on

              Where were you

To be honest I can’t say where I was. I was little. I don’t remember.

In the states

Yeah.

         Somewhere in America.

I don’t remember where.

Is it possible they were something else

No.

You cant remember where you sawem but you can remember they were parakeets

Yeah.

 

Parakeets

              Like youd buy in a pet store

Yeah.

         A flock of parakeets.

    From an escaped pair

Youre talkin Adam an Eve shit  Inbreeding

                                               Cains wife was his sister Awan they had four sons Enoch Olad Lizpha Fosal two daughters Citha Maac  From the Book of Jubilees not a more perfect name that was excised from the Bible

he chuckled

You laugh?

nodded

What about?   

    A fuck of parakeetsby the way  its called a pandemonium

A pandemonium

Wha a riot

             Anya cant remember wha state you sawem in

No.  But they were parakeets

A pandemonium

1443,  Saturday,  31  1. 26

1020,  Sunday  1  2. 26

Ohplease  Get off it

What?  I feel bad.

Because theyre working

They’re working, I’m not, I’m sitting back having coffee with you and she’s toiling awa . .

. . Doin wha she does

    Yes.

             Yes.

Jah

So you could sit there and watch someone workyou wouldn’t help?

Sit an watch

                   Shes forty miles away

How is tha sitting an watching

                                 She performing in your minds eye   I don get it

    Youre feeling guilty

I suppose I am.

Unbelievable

I don’t think it is so hard to believe.

    Lemme say this about tha pay attention  put your coffee cup down

he set it down gingerly

Thank you

Why thank you?

I didnt want ya spillin it on yourself

                                            Ya listenin

Get on with it.

I feel sorry thaya have to work to make a living

                                                             You made one  Youre retired

Bullshit bout feelin bad

                        My  Gawd

Pitiful

300preferred,  Saturday,  31  1. 26

0939,  Sunday,  1  2. 26