cant remembernow what he was readingbut he pulled it back away from his face

                                                                                                 Hey doll

Got a dictionary around

from the bedroom

                    On the shelf over the liquor cabinet.

the cabinet was plied on it a twelve bottle wine rack plied  hard liquor bottles sitting on end her three favourite liqueurs on an handsome ornate silver tray with an assortment of stópkis to sip from

 

Find it?

taking it from the shelf

                          Yes  Thank you

You’re welcome.

                    I’m going to take a shower before I log-in for work.

she was working remote

he was visiting

she offered to share her bed to save him a hotel room    No he corrected her  Motel

he returned to the upholstered chair side table black coffee clipboard leaning against the leg of the table

setting the dictionary in his lap he fingered through it to find parathesis

                                                                            he knew parenthesis

For cryinoutloud he said to her dog  Theyre the same

leaning over the dictionary nesting on his lap hed keep it there knew hed read another word that would catch him off guard Wha the hell does tha mean  had closed it grabbed his clipboard took a red BIC pen from behind his ear  wrote

        parathesis   beneath it  parenthesis

then sigh

then ( sigh )

( pulling teeth here )

                       remembered

Gunter Grass

The Flounder

               where he originally read of Awa the Earth Goddess her three breasts

he was a boy when he first discovered it a used paperback turned sideways on top of hardbound Grass books he couldnt afford a hardboundwords were what mattered then

Awa set him on a quest

                          obviously women had only two breasts

so his managed his conundrum by finding women with breasts large enough that three common breasts would be equaled by her two

                               O R  generously  wha a guy

a woman who like he enjoyed Irish whisky  Redbreast neat

    it was a kick fulfilling his conundrum

“. . . Goddess of triune font.” 

    

0920,  Tuesday,  20  5. 25

1057,  Wednesday,  28  5. 25

Jesus man  lookin hangdog dobber down  Whasup

Job I applied for. Received a text from them, we regret to inform you . .

. . Horseshit  whos we

                        Ought to be I  Ought to be the one responsible anif we then all their names provided sadists we  wee wee wee all the way home  squealin like pigs

There is that.

Yah

And then there’s the fact it’s a good thing I happen to be a masochist of the first order.

First order  Whastha

I fall on my sword without having been asked.

tweaked himturned his head like a startled bird

                                                  managed  Marcus Antonius

    Who?

Mark Antony

vacant expression could scribble all over that whiteboard

Cleopatra

               Really

A awfullyhot Elizabeth Taylor  Nineteensixtythree

No idea.

OhKahRist  definitely a masochist of the first order

                                                       Catholick to boot  Be aware ending in L  I  C  K

chuckled

Good We have humour

still chuckling

              A lapsed licker.

Yatook tha in stride

Toldya.  I’m a masochist through and through.

    Same old story

We thinkin’ alike?

Mother

Yeah.

        We regret to inform you. My Maw. Wouldn’t have been no we. Wouldn’t have used regret.

Might have signed it in her evening red lickstick when she went out with your Dad

She’d have signed it, sealed it with a kiss.

                                              Yes. Her red lipstick.

0846,  Tuesday,  20  5. 25

0950,  Wednesday,  28  5. 25

Cleopatra  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zR-uJUsCYyc

he texted his daughter  :  :  Would you recommend an edible as an analgesic for my iffy back?

she was at work

hed linger

            yet

while lingering he playedas he does with words that intriguedincited him

                                                                                  yesterday  opaque

saw opium in it opiumopaque

                                Been there

Done that

did it as often as he could

then his supplier got popped

                              pulled up to his placesimultaneously with SWAT

neverever ever ever let a fuckin soul tell ya life aintbout timing

                                                                 yanked the seatback lever it collapsed

no one would know he was in the car unless they came right up to it and looked down

    cracked a window

                        took a nap

when he woke

                a marvelous mustard ketsupstreaked dusk descending

    opium  a hard black buhbye

                                        it had been a good run

 

today

        juggling analgesic

    analgesic

analgesic

analGee Sic

             Fetch boy   Go

anof course analGolly Ill sic Ill fetch   Ill do whaever the fuck ya like

                                                                         freshscrubbed  bathed

not a No Go Zone

                   theres nothing on a lovers body thats taboo

if taboo

         an awfully shit lover a kind of person who expects more than theyll give

spit in their eye

move along

as cops say  Nothing to see here. Move it along.

                                                    they dont want you to see what theyre up to

very coppish

    everyoneanyone deserves better ground ought to be level

one shouldnt submitseek to level it but hold that as a bar a required minimum standard

                                                                                             Ja  At a minimum

its not being picky

No  Not at all

242preferred,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

1526,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

Stones  (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MSSxnv1_J2g

thas offal

Oh no you’re not.  yanked his head back any harder he risked an internal decapitation

Ja I am

Yatryin’ to make me barf?

No

It’s a dog treat.

Wha We better than dogs

I am.

So full of yourself

No.

     AnI’m, as you well know, a vegetarianJesus.

Good point good point  There is tha

And then there’s, it’s a dog treat.

Yacant look beyond tha

No.

Its packaged by All the Best

For dogs.

Freeze-dried raw chicken hearts

                                    I eat giblets every time I make chicken for dinner

They’re cooked.

For all intent and purposes

                              Methinks freeze-dried is comparable to cooking

In the day before your conversion you ate jerky

    Dried meat

he hated to give him that  but he couldnt deny it

                                                         There’s that. 

There is

               

the cellophane bag crinkled

buddy retched

                                 Hmm hmm     Ohmy  Tasty

    Im going to tell your daughter your eatin’ her dog’s treats.

She wont be surprised

                          You do recall were heading over to the Polish deli so I can buy some headcheese

    Fuck.

Offal huh

1406,  SeattleSunday,  18  5. 25

1338,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

Is homelessness one step up from death

                                           I cant think of a net stretched beneath tha highwire act

Act  Im being facetious

    You don’t have homelessness at home?

Not to speak of A few too rural

                                 The homeless accompanyinfakers gravitate to cities south

Bigger populations

Sidewalks

    Sidewalks?

Yakiddin me First sidewalk I hit leavin home walkin south is four blocks off

Your homeless inundate the concrete  nest in underpasses overpasses

                                                                           Sometimes remind me of unattractive Matryoshkas

Arya sure theyre not

Jesus Papa.  Harsh.

My sympathies

                 I hear it in your voice when the subject arises when we talk on the phone

There are considerably more since you moved here

Ohmy. Considerably. nodded  grim   Yes.

One step up from death

Greenbelts, alleyways, RVs, encampments.

                                               A lot.  Not that officials can put their finger on it.

So youd agree  One step

I could agree.

    Land of the Free Home of the Brave kiddo

1130,  SeattleSunday,  18  5. 25

1158,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/king-county-setting-records-for-homeless-deaths-is-becoming-awfully-routine/

Papa, coffee this morning? Uncle?  she asked from the kitchen

they sat in the livingroom across from each other separated by an Oriental carpet on a hardwood floor he in an upholstered chair Uncle on a loveseat

                                            Don want to put you out babe

No thanks, kiddo, I don’t drink coffee. said Uncle

It’s no trouble. that was her to a T  nothing if she thought to do it was trouble 

                                                                       I’ve an idea.

Cacaopronounced ca-cow. Wouldya consider a cup of cacao? 

cup of cacao captured his imagination

Uncles face was inquisitive  though noncommittal

Cocoa

No. Similar. More nutritious less processed.

    Yes please  Ill have a cup

I use a French press.

I’ll have a cup too, please.

This wont be a Jekyll an Hyde will it

a little laugh percolated from the kitchen

                                           What?  I don’t know who or what that is, are.

No he was ridiculous  Ive failed you as a father

As an uncle your father failed you.

her laughter escalated

                               Niice.

When finished I usually tap it with an organic vanilla creamer. Interested?

When in Rome do as the Romans do  Please

Yes. I’ll second that.

                      looking from the loveseat at him What have we gotten ourselves into?

Nothing we cant handle

 

    they sipped warm  creeamy

                                    if a Robert Louis Stevenson potion  all Jekyll giggles when prior to sipping he heldup his cup and posed  Na Zdrowie

Na Zdrowie! they chimed clinking the lips of their cups

1130,  SeattleSunday,  18  5. 25

1045,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

eek

she didnt press itcould have  was   tempted

                                                 figuredhowever  she put her foot in it

 

figured initiative and common sense factor ICk factor was more than the woman could tolerate

    despite her having to tolerate her

to no one  I coud go a step more

Coud you

there they were  they were conspicuously quiet earlier

                                                           I coud

Were all ears  We dug your ICk factor

                                         Sounds like whaya got is along the same lines We promise not to peeknot to go through your drawers

But you do

    We do

Though since you rolled out ICk factordidnt keep it to yourself  we thought you might

                                                                                          we decided not to toss the place

Not to

No

     We decided to remainmaintain our anticipation

Carly

In the day  Attractive

Yes

But we digress

Which were exceptional at it

Yes  Were anxious

                    Wha

E  K   Y exponential

A new factor

Yah EKy factor

Which woud be

You don wanna guess

OhHellno

              Balls in your court

Im a little proud

Humble you

Lil ol humble me

                   But on occasion I don mind bustin my buttons

Bust away

Experience an knowledge

                             I gotem in spades over tha cunt

You do

I do

    We dig it

I do too

Holdin as backup

Unlikely

         My thirty will bring in the ten or more  Im comfortable  Ansaved time doin it only once

EKy factor

            Clever factors boss

Please

         Don call me tha

Our apologies

Accepted

0859,  Monday,  19  5. 25

1246,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

Carly Simon  Anticipation  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BELWbkyOVPQ

Kantner/Jefferson Starship  Hijack  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H57IyHNq-_8

icky

Boss  Youve no idea

                       I can do my job unsaid An yours because I possess the ick factorwhas tha you may wonder

                                            You wonder

    I’ll bite. she hadnt the teeth   

Spelled I  C  the k is actually an exponent

                                                 You know exponent

In math, yes.

Fine  Then think of the k exponentially

                                          Indicating the number of times the base the I an C  is multiplied by itself

You’re not making any sense.

Actually

            A lot of sense 

Cleanse for a moment your consideration  unstick your brain of the numbered math equation 

Rather  Drop in letters

I  C  to the k

    Canya do tha

I can.

       I see. I follow you.

Great boss

            Now thaya can see I C to the k you need only understand that the I means Initiative of which I have loads an C as Common sense

Exponent k can be square cubed or more

The ick factor replete

    Follow

                                                                                                                                    

You insist I have no initiative

You told me to send out ten inquiries

You had to know from the getgo tha wed be fortunate if we received half of them back given they were unsolicitedbut  you need a minimum of ten applicants

Hence

        Rather than failing by fifty percent or more I sent thirty improving our chances being efficient a go the gate  than having to return again to send out another ten

Ten

     Your habitual increment  Woudntya say

Initiative

Common sense

Ive the ick factor Anthas wha you want to complain about unsaid Bitch about   Boss   Definitely   Shes the bitch about

clearing her throattrying to intimidate

                                 When I tell you to do something . . you do exactly as I say.

Lets bet if we get your ten applicants from my thirty issues Ill put money where my mouth is

You’re insubordinat . .

. . An churlish 

                 Im a churlish kind of girl

An Im right  Im correct

 

Wanna bet

              Then once an for all we can quit this  wha I call   nonsense

0859,  Monday,  19  5. 25

0922,  Tuesday,  27  5. 25

he was grateful he overheard itwas tempted to pinch himself   however  his hearing was sharpcould heard a dog whistle

               a oncegirlfriend at his declaration laughed  Makes sense. You’re a dog.

Youah  complainin

Check your hearingsound like I was . . . or grateful?

    Grateful

Yeah.

          A dog that came bearing a bone . wouldn’t fetch . . but otherwise did what I asked, did exactly what I wanted.

Everything you wanted

In a heartbeat.

We have tha goin for us

Yes we do.

    if she wasnt killed in a car crash . . .

                                                no matter  was unfortunate water under the bridge

 

it wasnt often buddy was berated by anyone other him fuckinpriceless when buddys son did

buddy mentioned  fever dream

                                 son asked  Feeble dream?

Ive not known you to ever share . . a worthwhile dream.

I can’t remember one.

Dad?

    What?

Would you care to relate, since it’s yours?

 

he looked uncomfortableperturbed

                              Having and remembering are two different things . . but I woke and remember thinking . . . that was a fever dream.

    Were you ill?

No.

You weren’t ill?

No.

    Then how is it a fever dream . you can’t remember . you . yet . . describe a fever dream?

Because.

                 That’s what it was.

son muttered Fuck.

he said Yasaid it

                     I contend with this once a weekevery ten days

Hes intriguinkinda of like  draggin a drowning man to a lifesaver  pullin him to safetythe shallows where he can find his feet stand on his own

I’m standing right here.

didnt turn his heads to look at him Anyare welcome

 

It was . .

. . son cut him short  at the knees  A feeble dream.   Unless you have particulars.

Sunday afternoon,  25  5. 25

521 preferred,  Monday – Memorial Day,  26  5. 25

Mama Cass  Dream A Little Dream For Me  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZZ0PZRYin2s