Saturday in CinCity

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ahhhhhh, it's so heavenly to be away from sick people. To not be spat upon and have to wrestle a quite muscular 29 year-old simply to change the dressings on his not insignificant road rash obtained from a motorcycle collision. Without a helmet. But, with alcohol.

There are a few lovely things going on this weekend, but I think there might be people at these events and I'm tired of seeing people. I wish someone would invent 3-D glasses for that.


Dharma
by Billy Collins

The way the dog trots out the front door
every morning
without a hat or an umbrella,
without any money
or the keys to her dog house
never fails to fill the saucer of my heart
with milky admiration.

Who provides a finer example
of a life without encumbrance—
Thoreau in his curtainless hut
with a single plate, a single spoon?
Ghandi with his staff and his holy diapers?

Off she goes into the material world
with nothing but her brown coat
and her modest blue collar,
following only her wet nose,
the twin portals of her steady breathing,
followed only by the plume of her tail.

If only she did not shove the cat aside
every morning
and eat all his food
what a model of self-containment she would be,
what a paragon of earthly detachment.
If only she were not so eager
for a rub behind the ears,
so acrobatic in her welcomes,
if only I were not her god.

Comments

  1. KathleenJune 5, 2010 at 9:07 AM

    I've heard the possibilty of a catheter can settle down such a patient, and if 2 who've scuffled end up together, stereo foleys (sp?) work miracles. Can u confirm : ^ > ? LOVE LOVE LOVE the poem. Surely Billy knows what god spelled backwards is.

    ReplyDelete
  2. smartzJune 5, 2010 at 10:02 AM

    As always, love your blog.

    ReplyDelete
  3. English RiderJune 5, 2010 at 10:32 AM

    I sympathize with your people allergies. They seem worse from afar and can put you off doing many things. Hold your nose and jump, it could be fun. (Says she, having decided not to go to the flea market this morning for the same reason).

    ReplyDelete
  4. RudeeJune 5, 2010 at 12:49 PM

    The last 3 words in paragraph one explain it all. Let him clean his own road rash. You have to appreciate the Darwin Awards all the more.

    Go ahead honey, stay away from the lot of them and heal your soul. Perhaps a little time with Boxers will fix everything.

    ReplyDelete
  5. AnonymousJune 5, 2010 at 1:07 PM

    Dogs have always been preferable to humans.....smiles.

    ReplyDelete
  6. SharonJune 6, 2010 at 7:24 AM

    "The more I know people the better I like my dog." My all time favorite bumper sticker.

    ReplyDelete
  7. UnknownJune 6, 2010 at 11:18 AM

    Thanks for the comments and suggestions!! (Kathleen, for the record, he had a condom catheter, but enjoy the way your mind works!) My reward for staying away from crowds and keeping my misanthropy to myself was my car breaking down on I-75 North and waiting 40 minutes for a tow truck, though there was a police officer who waited in his car behind me. Good times.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Annie CoeJune 6, 2010 at 12:40 PM

    Wonderful poem! I know how you feel, I am a hermit and often, very often love to go days without a person, but never without my dog and cats :-). xoxo

    ReplyDelete

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Hey, thanks for your thoughts and your time:>)

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