my old neighborhood
was once full of taverns
now it's full of vacant lots
and bars with spanish names
I don't begrudge the spanish names at all
I begrudge the fact that nobody in them
knows who I am
------------------------------------
I wrote this bit of gloom while in the middle of my Kauai blog post extravaganza. It didn't seen right to post it in the middle of all that happiness. It's not that I'm unhappy now either, but I'm sitting on top of a mountain, have an internet signal and can't think of a better time to post it...
.
I liked this a lot, Patrick!
ReplyDeleteMan that is great. I love how you can take so few words and just hit us with such emotion.
ReplyDeleteIt's not only your neighbourhood, it feels like the past couple of decades have changed many hometowns beyond our youthful recognation.
ReplyDeletewell-thought and written Pat. have fun on that mountain-top. happy day to you.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! You crazy guy!
ReplyDeleteI always enjoy all of your posts, Patrick, no matter the subject:)
ReplyDeletelove this really great word play brought the vision right to life
ReplyDeleteTell them who you are...a friend of Brian's....heehee!
ReplyDeleteIt's good! Guess that's why they say you can't go home again.
ReplyDeleteThis bit of prose cut through the clutter and nailed it. Marvelous.
ReplyDeleteVery nice Pat. Brought back memories of the last time I went home and toured the streets and seeing all the places gone from when I lived there. Were the 70's that long ago??
ReplyDeleteOh yes, we like change and progress and diversity but a part of us wants to hold on to those nostalgic moments just one more time.
ReplyDeleteNice post Pat.
Is it because you aren't spanish? Maybe you need a new spanish name. How about Guillermo?
ReplyDeleteSo well done and to the point, Patrick! It definitely speaks to that sense of disconnect a good many of us feel on occasion.
ReplyDeleteAnd I love your reflection shot on the previous post...very cool!
This is sad and poignant. Nicely done, Pat.
ReplyDeletexoRobyn
It's a great poem, says much in a few words. I love the vision of you sitting on top of a mountain with a signal.
ReplyDeleteIt's not about your old neighborhood that matters, but about your current hood. Ya know? And I'm sure the current hood loves the current you.
ReplyDeleteThat's it.
Word.
Yo.
ツ my cyber house rules dot com
The eternal joke of life so succinctly put...it passes us by while we wait in vain for a glance...Sad or happy verses choose to expresses themselves whenever they please.
ReplyDeleteI like this. :) Very well done!!
ReplyDeleteHad to laugh. I just got home from four days of camping in our RV. We didn't have an internet signal the entire time, but the river was peaceful and relaxing. I feel the same way about gas stations that you feel about bars. They used to know me and wash my window..for $.27 a gallon!
ReplyDeleteI liked it Patrick:)
ReplyDeleteWish you a nice weekend:)
Berit.
I love your freedom of expression!
ReplyDeletePowerful! Cheers!
ReplyDeleteJ
Bossy Betty - Thanks Betty! Not that I used to be a bar person. Okay, I was...
ReplyDeleteTim - thanks so much Tim! I have to write like that because I have such a short attention span.
Shrinky - You are so right! that is the way of the world, I guess...
Ms Becky - Thanks Becky. I had fun, although it was very hot. Hope you are doing okay!
Ms. A - Hey, I'm just telling it like it is, or like it was...
Nancy - Why thank you Nancy! I really do appreciate that.
becca - Thanks becca! The ashes of an interesting and weird life.
Brian - A man walked into a bar with a cat on his shoulder...
Alex - That is so true! Sad, but true.
Jerry - Thanks so much Jerry! I gotta get it out quickly...
Chuck - Thanks Chuck! Yep! Those darn 70's were a long long time ago.
One Woman's Thoughts - That is true. Change can be good or bad, but either way it's different.
PTM - I usually go by Patricio...
Lynette - Thanks Lynette! Yep, I'm not even saying it was the best of times, but it sure wasn't the worst for me either.
Robyn - thanks Robyn!I'm sure we've all gone through it at least a bit.
Mary - Thanks Mary! Yep, I got ahold of a Verizon hot spot. Hey, what's camping without the internet (and other things)?
Nikki - That's funny! One thing for sure, I appreciate where I live now more than most of the people who live here.
Rek - So true! Many times it passes us by and we aren't even aware of it's passing.
Baby Sister - Thanks so much! I appreciate it.
#1Nana - That was back when a dollar would pay for a night out! We just got back today. Heading back on the fifth again. Even though I had a signal. I only used it for about an hour.
Berit - Thanks so much! I hope you are having a nice weekend also.
Ebie - thanks so much! I really appreciate it!
John - Thanks my friend! Same to you!
I didn't find it too gloomy at all.
ReplyDeleteIt was good stuff.
:)
As long as you've still got the drink in hand
;)
I am sitting in the truck in the rain, outside the public library 5 miles from the cottage. Free internet!! Yeehaw!!! Have a nice day on your mountain.
ReplyDeleteRosemary
Hi Pat, thanks for your recent visit. It's nice to see you getting all around this summer. Good for you! This piece seems to me an important cautionary tale - enjoy the present moment and be grateful if you can. It doesn't last and things never stay the same forever...
ReplyDeleteI relate to the feeling, Pat.. have connection, Post it!
ReplyDeletebe well n happy
Pam
What exactly sparked the gloom, Pat... no longer frequenting bars or no longer being a big fish is a small pond...? :-)
ReplyDeleteAnthony - Thanks Anthony! I don't one in hand nearly as much as I used to.
ReplyDeleteRosemary - Sometimes we have to travel around looking also. My phone tells me if there is a wireless signal nearby.
Stickup Artist - Hey there! We have been on the move quite a bit, that's for sure. We're leaving agin (for the same place) on Tuesday for a week and then turning right around and heading for Arizona and Utah for quick roadie.
Pam - That's true Pam. Sometimes it's getting the connection that hardest.
Francisca - It's more than just that. My mom used to work in most of those bars, in one capacity or another (most legal). So I knew everyone and they knew me. It's not the recognition I wanted, but the feeling of a link to my past. Not that it was good or anything, but a link it was...
It has been said that we can't go home again. The longer I am on this planet the more true I find that to be.
ReplyDelete