Montauk # 29

Autumn morning
Again
Ditch Plains
Off-shore easterly
Surfers riding a chest-high swell
Seagulls skating the crest
A bright sun
No sunglasses
Squint
Richie Boy thinking
Work or surf___
A fishing boat chugging to harbor
At least twenty aged surf bums
On the break___
We
On the beach
Richie Boy
A friend for almost fifty years
On a bench
Rubbing his knee
Surveying the ocean___
1993
Bingin Beach
Bali
A forever left
Forever overhead
Too big for me
No matter
I go out
On a borrowed board
A potato chip___
A big set coming in
Paddle
Over the first wave
Paddle
Over the second wave
Richie and me over
My arms al dente noddles
The third wave
Richie makes to the lip
Look back
His face horror
Then the wave buries me in a washing machine
There is no up or down
No richie
No Bali
Only the head over heels tumble
Over the coral reef___
Under a long time
Thirty seconds
Forty
Pop to the surface
Grab a breath buried again
Longer
At the mercy
Of Lord Baruna
The Balinese God of the Sea
I don't pray
I'm an atheist
Also
I'm too busy drowning
Gulp Glug Glup___
Spit up on the sand
Blowing out ocean
My beach boy
Relieved
I back from the dead
Reincarnated once more
Into this body
It wasn't the first time
Nor the last
No more surfing that day
Time to spit out ocean
And drink beers into the night
With Richie
The massage girls
On the Bingin Cliff
Sampai Jumpa___
Time elastic
Snap forward to October 2024
Ditch Plains
Montauk
Richie
Rubs his knees
Yesterday morning
A good hour in the line-up
Pushing it hard__
Now rubbing his knees
No surf today
We look at each other
We work-bound
But
Just not yet
Thank you for life Lord Baruna
Terima kasih banyak___

Tubas In Space

I always thought that there would be no tubas in Space. Too big, too heavy, use too much oxygen, but on a Star Trek episode some crew member played one in the holo deck. I googled 'tuba star trek' and discovered the Star Trek Voyager theme featured a tuna. Google search also revealed that no tuba has left the planet.

Fort Greene Park # 11

A simple water fountain At the top of the lawn A sip of water from the Catskills Many miles to the north Up the Hudson___

A gentle October evening Children run on the grass Play tag An ancient game Always new ti the very young___ Dogs on leashes Squirrels munch on acorn Fallen into the season's first pile of leaves From a yellow leafed tree Grackels flit from branch to branch Most humans on a phone Talking Texting Blind to the wonders of Fort Greene Park___ Sad their blindness Detached from thos oasis of nature Unable to appreciate our existence ___ But not everyone is lost An old man complimented my straw cowboy hat Bought in Montana Thirty years ago traveling with Ms. Virginia I see her in Chico Hot Springs Laughing on a horse Gone From this Now but with me in eternity Her laugh Her smile Her love With me even now In Fort Greene Park As the sun sets behind the Polytech Fire engines racing to a blaze On Myrtle Avenue Raindrops from above From yellow grey clouds With leaves falling from the trees Oh such joy To have nowhere to go Except to quench my thirst At the fountain

Montauk # 28

Montauk # 28 Gray autumn dawn 61 No longer summer No sun No clothes Step in the shower A warm spray A warmer hose Wind weaves Through the weathered slats This is life Hobo beach bum life Soap and water Clean Then cleaner The ocean on the breeze This is where I am I In the early dawn Everyone asleep Clouds overhead Shut off the water Feet on concrete A damp towel Nothing really dry This close to the sea This is all I need For now

Paris - Dawn - Ile st.Rue Ile St. Louie - 1984

Thinking about Sharon Mitchell
Tied to the wooden rafters
On Rue Ile St. Louis 1984---
Dawn creeping over the Paris rooftops
You__naked
You__legs apart
You__your back red from the belt
You__your thighs quivering with each strike
You__moaning
You___ panties in your mouth
You___ ass arching back begging for my cock
Me__Leather engineer boots
Leather Gloves
A long dark green German leather coat
I free thee
You---collapse onto your knees
Hands tied tight
Behind your back
A slave___
Licking my engineer boots
Pret a tout
With dawn Crawling over the Paris rooftops

The you is Sharon Mitchell

A fellow sexual adventurer.

We are cousins sort of.

Montauk # 27

An Autumn Afternoon
Sitting on a bench
A simple pleasure
Watching seagulls
Not gliding
No wind
Wings beating
Away from the Atlantic
Montauk Lake bound
Free
As am I
An old hippie hobo
Lost on the wind___

According to the Easthampton Star between the Shinnecock Inlet and Montauk Point, there's a chance to see the Bonaparte's gull, Iceland gull, glaucous gull, lesser black-backed gull, and even black-headed gull. I only spot the herring gull, which dine on fluke and sea bass, but also shellfish and smaller birds. When the whales are breaching in their fishing herds, the gulls peck at the whales, fearlessly snacking on the large sea mammals. They gather in groups, very protective of their space. I always approach them at an angle, yet they are aware of mt presence. Clever are the gulls. Also monogamous.

"As I watched the seagulls, I thought, That's the road to take; find the absolute rhythm and follow it with absolute trust." - Nikos Kazantzakis

Morning Train East New York

Nobody gets on the 4:26 train to Jamaica at East New York. Three people of color got off. Next stop Jamaica, where I'll catch the 4:48 to Montauk.