after my work out
i pick up my car at 2pm today
a new tire and an oil change
and to indulge myself i’ll
drive to harris teeter and
use a harris teeter coupon i
have for a huge savings on a
pint of Ben and Jerry’s
ice cream
on the way back to my car
parked near duck donuts
i’ll stop in duck donuts
and buy two of their
incomparably delicious
plain doughnuts baked
while i wait
ice cream and donuts
a treat for an old man
who doesn’t give a damn
about what some would
consider unhealthy food
and maybe occasionally
eating ice cream and
donuts are my only vices
and good for my soul
there are far worse things
i could be doing
like wasting the rest of
my waning years
whether a few or twenty
mindlessly watching
meaningless tv shows all day
on a mind numbing tv screen
or drinking myself to death
in some musty old bar
babbling about nonsensical things
with other drunken old men
barely able to think or speak
nearly incapacitated from
loneliness and too much alcohol
or being driven crazy
living with the wrong woman
who seemed like the right
woman when we first met when
she was on her best behavior
sometimes being alone is better
than being with someone with whom
you are miserable and lonely with
i end this rambling poem thinking
about the ice cream and the donuts
the way i once thought of meeting
a woman for a date
admittedly a poor comparison
to the wonders and charms
of a woman
but it works for me
bob boyd
