Alien Abduction

It’s the God’s honest truth.
You can ask my wife, Ruth.
I was abducted.
I flew into space.

I can still barely speak,
And it happened last week.
Up to a spacecraft.
Up in outer space.

I car pooled to my job,
With my dear old friend Rob.
When we saw something
Flash on the roadside.

We both got out to look,
Ended up on a hook,
And a tractor beam
Took us into space.

I felt close to my death,
As I struggled for breath.
I started to pray,
Rob just wet his pants.

The craft was long and wide,
It was shiny inside.
There were aliens
At least three or four.

The boss was a large blob,
Who was poking at Rob.
While a tall female
Kept poking at me.

There was a silver tray,
With bodies on display.
They were the  victims
So, I just played dead.

A woman measured Rob,
Who’s a bit of a slob,
And she handed him 
To one with a knife.

I made myself seem small,
And I’m not really tall.
The boss measured me
And looked very sad.

Said, “He’s eight inches, Bill”
“But I would keep him still.”
Then, I heard Bill say,
“He’s over the side.”

The alien dropped me.
And as I floated free,
I wondered what had
Happened to poor Rob.

I gently floated down.
Finally landed in town.
Then, I didn’t know 
What I should do next.

I went on into work,
But I felt like a jerk.
So I went back home,
And cried in my bed.

So, a lesson hard-won,
To remember, my son.
Don’t always believe 
Everything you see.

While something looks nice,
You must always think twice.
While worms are tasty,
They’re not from the sea.

Breaking News

Crisis.
Crisis.
Really huge crisis.
Human interest.. until someone gets hurt.
Crisis.

I don’t really care.
Most of it doesn’t affect me.
Most of it will be gone tomorrow.
It’s just exhausting.

Can we have some good news?
Can we have some different news?
Actually, can we have some Rocky & Bullwinkle?

Self-Isolation

Bored.
Oh, Lord.
I’m bored.

Working at home.
(Like I was before.)
Let me explain.

In January,
I broke my ankle.
Broke my foot as well.
The doctor asked,
“This was one fall?”

Splint, boot, cast, boot.
My doctor said I should stay off it.
Avoid traveling.

So, I was stuck at home.
My wife said, “At least you work at home.”

Annoyed.
Very annoyed.
But it was my fault.

April,
I can walk!
I’m free at last!
Bad timing.

Everyone said,
“Stay home!”
“Avoid everyone!”
“Work at home!”
“Don’t travel!”

So, it’s pretty much
Like breaking my foot again.
Except I didn’t.

So, I’m annoyed.
And, I’m bored.
Oh, Lord.
I’m bored.

Sailing

We should be on a ship,
Sailing across the sea.
Yet, we’re stuck at home,
Bored as we can be.

The living room’s our Lido Deck,
But there isn’t much to do.
We don’t have any contests,
There isn’t any pool.

Our buffet is open all day long,
It’s called the kitchen here.
There’s not a wide selection,
And bars don’t have any beer.

We can go out on excursions,
Just like on any cruise.
It’s now a bit like gambling,
With just your life to lose.

The back porch is our balcony,
The back yard’s our open sea,
The view just never changes,
We’re docked at Homestead Quay.


Dog Talk

We have a very vocal puppy.
Her name is Katie.
She talks all the time.
(She gets it from her Mom.)

The problem with a vocal puppy,
Is that nobody in the house speaks Dog.
With the exception of the Chihuahua,
And nobody speaks Spanish, either.

Katie howls at the front window.
This means, “Mail’s here.”
Unless, “The yard man is mowing.”
Sometimes, “A leaf blew in the street.”

Katie whimpers by the bed.
(Only in the middle of the night.)
This means, “I must go outside.”
Or, “Daddy’s sleeping in my spot.”
Sometimes, “Can you get me a snack?”

Katie whines in the kitchen.
This means, “Feed me now.”
Perhaps, “I would like some attention.”
Rarely, “My goodness, I am full.”

Katie cries by the back door.
This means, “Potty, please.”
Unless it means, “The neighbors are loud.”
Maybe, “There is noise out front, but this door has a window.”

Katie moans by the bedroom door.
On the outside, “Let me in!”
On the inside, “Let me out!”
That one, we understand.

Progress

Two weeks in a splint.
Don’t touch the ground!
Don’t breathe on it!
It’s a marathon, not a sprint.

Three weeks in a cast.
Don’t touch the ground!
Don’t scratch inside it!
The time will go by fast.

Four weeks in a boot.
Don’t touch the ground!
Don’t get it wet!
You’ve really learned to scoot.

One final week in the boot.
You may walk, if you please.
Please wash it!
You smell of old coot.

Ten weeks later,
It’s just a foot again.
(Still limping a bit.)


Going Viral

Last year, I hoped one of my poems would go viral.
Going viral used to be fun, not a prognosis.
I really can’t use that word any longer.
Now, it means what it was supposed to mean.
Sucks.
Stay home.

Ouch

My whining dogs both had to pee.
So I got up to set them free.
I felt my little foot go snap.
I said a loud and painful “Crap!”

In all the years that I have grown,
I never had a broken bone.
Now, I think that I have four.
It may be that or even more.

We had to skip our Springtime cruise.
Because my foot was full of screws.
To think that one little slip
Made me miss a weeklong trip.

A Couple in Quarantine

So, I’m waiting in the ER tonight.
I got the feeling that something ain’t right.
I’m so scared I have a fever and cough.
I’m hoping drugs can just get me off.

Coughs to the left of me,
Fever to the right.
Here I am stuck in the middle with you.

Well, I’m stuck in the middle with you.
And I’m hoping that it’s not Wuhan flu.
It’s so hard to keep my hands from my face.
And I want to puke all over the place.

Coughs to the left of me,
Fever to the right.
Here I am stuck in the middle with you.

Well, you started out with nothing,
Till you took a cruise ship to Japan.
Now, the doctors all come calling,
Slap you on the back and say,
Breathe.
Breathe.

Trying to make some sense of it all.
My wife shows no symptoms at all.
Is it cool to just pass out on the floor?
‘Cause I don’t that I can take any more.

Coughs to the left of me.
Fever to the right.
Here I am stuck in the middle with flu.

(with deepest apologies to Stealer’s Wheel)