carpe diem my ass

chairman mao once advised  
the comrades to be
happy in their work 
but that's hard to do
when your work has begun 
to suck shit through
a paper straw & you 
feel useless as tits
on a boar hog

i once loved my job  
greeted each day with
amazement at what i would 
accomplish that day
but somewhere along the 
line it became repetitive 
bullshit  the same cops & 
robbers  the same stale 
politicians spouting the 
same self-serving jive
the same meaningless 
meetings with petty 
complaints ego trip posing 
& delusions of grandeur

i resent it now until 
the resentment shines like a
patina on fine old wood 
it burns off me 
it glows like an aura 
& it's visible to 
everyone & especially  
my boss he's near to 
firing my ass  i can 
read it on his face 
but i'm past the point 
of caring  even if at my 
age finding a new rice 
bowl will be difficult 
at best

the market isn't clamoring 
for aging reporters 
falling apart under years 
of abuse & four pack a day 
smoke habits  a volume of 
whiskey drank that the 
last great flood 
couldn't match  
organs ravaged by 
every sort of illicit 
chemical known & a few 
that were not

let's face it-  
work sucks  
there's no nobility in
being a mule whether 
lugging the load 
physically or mentally  
dancing to the tune 
of the rich man's 
whistle living by 
the hands of his clock 
is no substitute for 
whatever life was 
supposed to be about
that illusive thing 
most of us can't name

i think somewhere along 
the way things changed 
from me seizing the day 
to the day seizing me 
and the fucker has me 
in a grip now that 
lasts 24-7 without fail
the mojo waves sometimes 
bat my brain & guide me
toward the bedside table 
with its roaring salvation
the maggie express to 
starlight & beyond hooting 
on the glory train with 
no destination & no timetable
no ticket to ride required  
no need for explanations
no pretenses no melodies  
nothing but the hum
of long gone dandies in ether  
ripples of a million
encounters surfing the 
endless void
work & all goes with it 
fading like thunder
across some distant hills 
rattling the walls of 
eternity