Month: May 2013

Atlantic Crossing

~ kjgilhooly ~ Leave a comment

Waves crashing around me.
It’s the water in the pool.
Maybe this isn’t that bad a storm.

In olden times,
Knots on a rope measured speed.
Meat was salted for preservation.
Sailors wore earrings to pay for  funerals.

It’s different these days.
They have refrigerators
If you forgot an earring,
Check the sale at the gift shop.
The Captain still uses knots, though.

Jimmy Buffett looked at the sea
When he turned forty.
He was a pirate, two hundred years too late.
So are all the bankers and dentists
That go to his concerts.
Actually, they’re just getting drunk.

I am not a pirate, unfortunately.
I am not even a sailor.
I’m just along for the ride,
And waiting for a margarita.
Wrong Jimmy Buffett song.

Conditions Deteriorating

~ kjgilhooly ~ Leave a comment

Out in the Atlantic,
Rocking with the waves.
Wind is gaining strength.
Time to leave the balcony.

Bit harder to walk around,
As we weave from side to side.
Like sailors of yore,
Hold on somewhere.

I’ve never been in gale-force winds.
Think it’s time to hunker down,
Hoping it will pass.
At least it’s not raining any more.

Now, a truly frightening issue.
With the wind and waves,
The WiFi connection is questionable.
A storm at sea is one thing.
No Facebook is a crisis.

The Crossing

~ kjgilhooly ~ Leave a comment

A long time ago,
My grandfather left Ireland.
He traveled to London,
And then, to America.

It was time to leave his home
For a better home somewhere else.
Joining crowds of immigrants
In a melting pot abroad.

I should thank my grandfather
For deciding to leave Ireland.
If he had not made that choice,
I would be an Irish farmer today,
Except my parents would never have met.

Now, I retrace his route
On board the Norwegian Breakaway.
We sailed from London for New York.
Seven days at sea to the New World.

I don’t think he was in a mini-suite.
He may not have had 24-hour room service.
However, other than that,
We’re historically accurate.

Welcome to America, Grandpa.