You’ve got the five o’clock blues
and a ten spot in your pocket--
There's no place like home
after a little hell on Monday.
(no matter where home is)
Meatloaf and cold potatoes,
callin’ your name out loud,
the paycheck's spent and
the fridgadair’s humming;
Warm
And hollow
And empty.
Happy hour is three days off
Says the sign, the schedule
the Monday morning cue card.
The parking lot's all lit up,
the double doors flap
wide open,
closed
and open again...
and that’s really all you need....
Five o'clock and an open invite;
all we're waiting on is you.
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100 comments:
Swinging through the doors....
it's five o'clock somewhere...
in real time....
In an empty bar
the juke box rattles,
the CDs clink,
clunk
line up in next procession,
scratchy
and top 40,
nothing like at midnight,
smokey and
reminiscent....
In an empty bar
my shadow makes glass house
faces at me
in the Budwieser mirror on the wall,
and
I see
what I
don't want to see...
In an empty bar
the door creaks
double wide
when the sun comes in
I see the world turning
in my psychedelic eyes
I see the lines
like roads running
all around them
I see the sun in my skin
and the rain dripping
from my hair
In the out door from
the storm front warnings
Out the in door
as the last drop finishes
standing on the corner
of Heaven street
and Hell Boulevard
I hail a cab
ignore the smell of whiskey
and sulfuric fumes
"Take me home" I said
The meter is running
and my last lucky dime
is going to have to be
good enough for him
as well as for me.
Hey! You jumped me again! I was finishing up what you didn't want to see...
clink!
The sun also rises
old papa Hemingway said
and the bull charged
to his certain death
to a hail of cheers
The sun also sets
I scribbled it on
a postcard that said
"Love is what you have when
everything else runs out"
I licked the stamp
my tongue glued to the roof
of my mouth
The roof of the world
starts leaking
the sky starts crying
the angels might be pissing
laughs
laughs
laughs
out loud, in silence
The sun may rise and set--
but when you give the word
it sits still long enough
for us to see each other
in the beams filtering in
through the wide open doors
of this hole in the wall
hole in our heart corner bar.
clink!
""Take me home" I said"
and he smiled
toothless and chesired
and spitting tobacco
through
the up and down window
"K, lady" he spat
at my toes in the cold
and I smiled and said
"Thank you"
kneading the last lucky dime
and pondering
"Stones or Grand Funk?"....
The jukebox does me wonders....
Speaking of Stones, I put a picture of them on our sidebar of fame...
And I changed the Led Zep pic, too. I found a sweet pic with Jimmy playing that awesome double neck Gibson that he's known for.
"Why do you always draw holes in their hearts?"
he asked me over wine....
I tried to draw Janice today....that kinda mood....it's not her, but you'll know it when you see her
It's not her at all in lines or eyes or chin or even hair, but soul....
yeah, and heart....
a little piece of my heart
Can't wait to see her.
Clink! Got a shot of Vodka right here. Lemon drops, anyone?
Just one night,
ours,
they let us go,
free,
walls phospherescent
fluorescent
ours....
I colored twister
on the floor with sharpies
and we danced
to fortunes scribbled
there by
strangers
with magic markers
and you wrote thank-yous
on left over napkins
to everyone we
never met
but loved....
for just one night....
Lemon drop shots
a shot in the dark
chin up
and laugh at the sky
lips squenched
like eyes sometimes do
sweet and sour
yin and yang
And for one night only
the rockin' free world
was our dance floor
feet and numbers painted
patterns
of heartbeats
breaks
strings
aches
But we danced each step
laughing at the shadows
cast by the disco ball--
we were both were leading
somehow it all worked out
They're laughing
because they know we can't pay
and we're laughing
and clinking
and
another round goes down
and nobody stops us.....
I'll be mopping in the morning
and you'll be
collecting cans...
But tonight,
we're butterflies,
and the bar understands....
yin and yang
dancing forever
like only they do
The effervescent air
tingled like fingers
on the backs of our
necks
yin and yang
sweet, sour,
sing along to the
night's song
an encore
but we know it's not
the last note
We were both leading
and I followed you
and you followed me
and we all followed down....
and laughed
at the shadows crashing beside us....
not the last they'll see
of the butterfly
the bandits
the warm bodied
drink snatchers
one night soon
we'll strike again
nothing is sacred
but everything is holy
wings flap not quite softly
as the moon settles into
it's midnight groove thang...
"Save the last dance for me"
a bottled cliche'
a midnight promise....
to the
"so nice to meet you's"
and the
"can I have your number?s"
but not us,
in the no parking zone
the "pick-up only" place
laughing at
the songs behind us....
dancing in the littered streets....
laughing at the wind...
clunking quarters in make-believe
Pssst....things have been cuckoo lately,
your world,
mine,
the world around us, but just so you know.....
I've missed partyin'
Me too, my friend. I felt bad whenever I saw one of your poems sitting there, hanging in the air... I felt bad, but I knew we'd get back to it soon.
I missed this, too.
"A bottled cliche'"
That's what I missed. Your talent for invention right on the spot.
This place has been a chalkboard, a seawall, wet concrete for me...a place to scribble in the sand....it's been wonderful....and I've never felt alone here
even when the
bar was empty,
because the doors are always open....
and the lights are always on.....
Peace~love, my friend,
my Taxi's waitin'......
You have a great night.
Talk to you soon.
silhouettes lined up
in a quiet circle
facing in
seyonce style
every one dark
and reserved
and concentrating
on levitation
(lift the beer and cheer)
or
lovitation
(check the cell...Damn she didn't call)
or whatever gets them through
the hour.....
the waiting game
the crying game
two for ones.....
one for twos
the shadows
silhouettes
and the dancing candles
swaying everything
with their pinpoint light
and their heat
Negligible,
but enough to burn
everything to cinders
Like the fire in our hearts
like the intense glow
of this circle...
the cellphone rings,
but suddenly
it doesn't matter
(not that much, not too much)
The night holds a mystery
but nothing so deep
as the riddle
that our hearts beat
as everything begins to rise...
I'm scooched over, the waitress just brought you a mic. I'm sure you are armed with mighty michelob, anyway.
Me? I have a shot right here. Lemon drop... oh yeah...
Ha!
And I left my phone
on the floorboard
of the car
ringing
and beeping
and talking out loud
to the vinyl walls
and his voice,
there,
echoing out loud
to
the empty cigarette packs
and
poems scribbled at redlights
on the back of deposit slips
wanna dance?
I'll take a lemon drop
and chase it
with
a
smile
I'll take a lemon drop
and call it sunshine
in the dark
I'll take a lemon drop
and we'll
laugh
and promise to plant a tree
and squeeze it fresh
ice cold
citrus
soul
I'll take a lemon drop
and light another
cigarette.....
are you ready to dance?
We hold the night to the fire
and the fire caresses
everything dear with its
lick of warmth
but nothing burns
nothing hurts--
we are in an angels hands
Everyone up,
everyone stirs
stretches
sways with the light
we dance as the sun
begins its procession
everything is just right
for once
for all
"I'm ready to dance"
but are they ready?
Does it matter if they are
or not?
Another lemon drop
and it's time for a reckoning
another lemon drop
and we'll be flying
to the zenith of the night
Another lemon drop
and everything will be
bathed
in pastel shades of love
one more for the night
and we'll dance
no matter what
They moved
just a little
to the left
and a little to the stage
and some left the field
all together
because we were laughing
and elbowing
our way
to the sun,
the lemon drop disco light
cast on only us,
and we were
for just a moment
Tina Turner
and
Willie Nelson gone wild....
laughing and clinking
and spinning
in a never
ending
circle
Clink!
If we had been watching
we would have seen
them
one by one
and two by two
and two for one
scooching
back
sitting down in the shadows
sipping
drinks
warmed by waiting....
we would have seen them watching....
Their faces were long
like lines on the street
Their face dropped
ran like wax
They need another round
to pull it all together
We could use another round
but then
we're busy
swishing the ethers
and the lights around
in our tornado wake
everything was perfect
but the music
could still be
a little louder
And he said he
had writers block
whispered it into my hair
into the quiet
and I smiled
because I knew he didn't
and when I
wasn't looking
he'd order another lemon drop
and scribble
on the countertops....
And tomorrow,
when it's five o'clock somewhere,
he'd find the words,
and remember....
"To all the girls I ever loved before"
I raised the glass
and you raised a pinch
of a laugh
"Silly poet..."
You shake your head
and I see what you mean
Willie is telling old tales
Tina just wants to write
a new one in footsteps
in front of the sound stage
"What's love got to do with it?"
They're eyes are
tethered to the dancefloor
to the flashing
checkerboarded neon
past flickering on and off....
and it's ok,
they're fine,
they're happy and
two sheets to cheap cheers
when
our laughing
quiet
and private
and "we're sure no one can hear",
reminds them
they're alone....
And it's a mirror
we could drown in,
but we don't....
We twirl
and watch
the trails....
cigarettes and broken hearts...
embers....
dancing
in the
second-set sky
He'd remember that the night
falls softly
but with the speed of light
the words would remind him
of the long slow dance
as the band wound down
with psychedelic "moon shadows"
And the sun winds him back up
to go one more time
the cabbie can wait
his meter's running
ticking minutes and dimes
The words can't wait
they need us and wee need them
and the music has long since
hushed
But that's the band
our voices carried the tune
the rest of the miles through
And his eyes are wise
and olden
blue
and full of it
and hers
are
daring
squaring
laughing
and full of it....
And they
answer each
other in
midnight specials
legacies
and
legs
"The second set sky"
Now that's a wild image.
-------------------
Heck, I can't add to that!
Awesome work...
They're stacking chairs on
tabletops
and sweeping
up the diamonddust
the dreams that died right here,
and
we
skirt right past them
dip slow and
out of their way
they flick the lights off and
on again
"My Mama used to do that"
and we laugh
and ask them
for to-go cups.....
clink!
that's what you get for feeding me lemon drops!
laughter
and
longing
they were just
full of it
And it
is a good thing
"Fill'er up"
they told the bartender
and he laughed
knowing that it wouldn't
be the last
The beginning of wisdom
is knowing that one knows
nothing...
or something like that.
But she knows
and he knows
and the bottle
it spins around
points at them
and the dance floor
one more twirl
and everything
will be just right
hand in hand
day and night
darkness and light
nothing is beyond
their grasp
their eyes
tell stories
that only
the blue haze morning after
will dare to speak out loud
Clink!
Have another!
They play
spin the bottle
russian roulette
and
rock,paper,scissors
slicing
through
the smoke
slow dancing to fast songs....
Because
they're
"full of it"!
And lovin' it....
They play
happy feet on the floor
circles spun a thousand times
around
around
The old men at the waitress
station
remember war stories
and stories of French girls
Japanese girls
German girls
Vietnamese girls
they danced with in ages
past
in nations far away
and a lot like ours
at night
We listen in
but don't let them know
that their stories
will one day
be on the walls
Chinese checkers
with spanish coffee
Mornings
like five o'clock
are always happening
somewhere in the world.
clink! ya on that!
Clink!
You're the bomb!
Ummmm, wanna buy me a beer?
Wow, we have like ten huge solid poems in this set.
It's so good to be back in the flow.
I felt hopeless last week, now I'm brimming with the words...
Got your beer right here.
Lemon drop? ;)
I knew you had it in you,
stewing
brewing
waiting
aging to perfection
It's funny how the subconscious is always practising
The words are always there,
telephone numbers
wadded up
in faded jean pockets
washed
and forgotten
and meant to be
when the time is right...
"Oh let the sun beat down upon my face
Stars to fill my dreams
I am a traveler of time and space
to be where I have been"
---Got Kashmir playing right now.
you got it in you, friend,
it lives....
your words,
your language
is universal
prophetic
meant to be...
people listen
they learn
about themselves
through your
window
You're going to give me a a huge ego maniacal problem!
I'm listening to Ben Harper.....
new to me....
Justacoolcat turned me on to him a while ago....
and he sings like
a bird
at night or in a hurricane, but still
singing....
Sing
Your words
are miracles
in season
in bloom
in living color
that will never
ever
die
Immortality is yours
as long as memory
holds true
words on paper passed
hand to hand
mouth to mouth
mind to heart to mind
forever
is waiting for us
between the lines.
I just switched to Bob Dylan....
ADD.....
but it's true...
your people read the words
and read their lives....
But ok, here's my one complaint!
I love your raw
unedited work
the stuff
they
never see
the words before they're fixed
before they're right
when they just roll off
bounce off
fly off
your mind.....
"Oh father of the four winds
fill my sails
Across the sea of years"
-------------
Ben Harper is good, too. You ever listen to the Pixies? That's a newer band I love. They can sing about the darkest subjects and make them sound all happy and giddy. Very strange, kind of eighties punk. But they're the best at what they do.
And now....
Stevie Ray....
yeah, that's my playlist....
Damn, you can't get better than that....the sky is crying......
I honestly don't think I know who the Pixies are, but I'll google 'em if I can remember to after all these lemon drops!
You can't get better than that mix. Mine is CD three of the led zep boxed set, so I have Trampled Underfoot going right now.
"Talk about love--
talk about love"
Don't blame me!
I'm a lush
you're a lush
I'm a silly poet
and you're a hippie
and this is our dance floor
bathroom wall
scribble station.
I'm feelin' kinda envious
for a moment.....
I don't have a stereo anymore....
playing off the computer....
but thanks to getting
struck by lightening
twice....
the speakers rock!
You're not a lush
Awesome! I'll have to try that!
Lightning enhaced sound!
-------
"I can't stop talking about love!"
The trucker next to me
in five forty five twilight traffic
was grinnin'
at Led
flying
loud and free
out my smokey
half cracked
driver's window
tonight...
And that's the way it should be...
rockin' on.....
Yeah, the Pixies sing that song
"Here come your man"
or
"Where is my mind?"
rocking on
rocking over
and under
and between
Let the words fly
"No Quarter" is playing now. If you ever see it, get the Zep boxed set. It's a cool mix. Page had everything remastered on it, but didn't really change a thing, just made it clearer.
I think the whole world should
talk about love
everyday
and
remember....
the old 8 track cliche'....
it makes the world go round....
And the Beatles....
"all we need is love".....
"there's no time to lose
i heard her say"
You know it. Man, is this night great or what?
"Nothing you can say that can't be said"
Love is all we need.
Thank you sweet friend, Fridays are for dancing, and it's five oclock somewhere....And we did!
"The snow falls hard and don't you know?
The winds of Thor are blowing cold
They're wearing steel that's bright and true
They carry news that must that must get through
They stay to the path that no one goes"
I love this song.
You taking off for the night?
I'm a lousy housekeeper
because I have cats
and a dog
and rock and roll
and just don't care to clean
up the mess
or the memories
or the meant to be's
and I'm a
lousy bartender
because I clink
to everything
and everywhy and everygonnabe
and so I hope
you don't mind
that I leave you with
syrup lined shotglasses
and amber bottles
dead cowboys lined up in a row
and an ashtray full
of embers
waiting......
to be sifted
sorted
salvaged...
and a song on the jukebox....
waiting to be
played....
"Waterfall"....
I love that song! Jimi H? "Waterfall--nothing can harm me at all...
My worries seem so very small
Oh my waterfall"
And on my way out
I'm gonna scribble on the door
so the people comin' in
will know....
"we rock"....
peace~love~lemon drops, my friend
That poem was perfect, by the way.
You rock. Whenever I sort these out (tonight), that one goes in as a perfect Singleton.
And I'll try not to do to much snipping and primping on the rest.
Peace love and tomorrow, we'll dance again.
"Going to Chicago...
Going down
going down now
Going down
going down now"
When the levee breaks, the flood will be with words and lines and everyone will dance to the tune that we weave.
Night, blue lady.
Clink!
Both in celebration and in wishful thinking.
clink!
Back at you, my friend. Nothing so sacred as when friends share with friends. Glad you dropped by to share the moment.
*tiptoes in*
*tucks herself away in the corner*
*bravo!*
what a wonderful fabulous collaboration!!...it was only a matter of time..
(((singleton & eric)))
I came in last night and didn't see anyone playing! I meant to come back but got involved with other things. I will try again.
It's five o'clock here in Australia. It's ALWAYS five o'clock here in Australia!!!
Princess.....awwwww...I wish we were still at the bar when you came by! We'll have to change the time on our clocks, so it's not just five o'clock somewhere, but five o'clock everywhere!
karoline...whatever are you doin' in a corner, girl? Join us! The night is forever......
and the circle grows. Peace~love beautiful soul.
karma....oh, the double doors were propped open..... the night air sifting in, waiting.....
and the barstool next to us, empty....waiting, too.... Wish you had stopped back by!
David....:) Well now that you said it first, Florida's on the same clock! Clink!
Peace~love our friends and next rounds on the beloved bartender!
And I'm back again.......I always miss you guys! One night I'll catch you and we'll dance and play long into the night.....
Okay, I'm down! I say 2 for 1 margaritas at some outdoor cafe (Singleton lives south so the weather is better than where you and I are, Eric), you two keep up with your metaphoric conversation, I will bring my laptop and type and save to Word until I'm too drunk. Then we will make a power point of it and you two can put it on the web page. Vistas makes awesome power points.
karma....just tipped your barstool over, leaned it up against the bar.....It's yours baby, anytime your ready!
enemy....Margaritas are always two for one in Florida! Let's just hope the bartenders can keep up with us!
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