stupid ode

Ode to a New England Vacation

(Or But Why)


But why? When the water’s warm
Just a few degrees latitude south
Sure the Council on Aging doesn’t
Appreciate one’s 20’s and 30’s
But that doesn’t mean we can’t put
At least one good nightclub on the
Gulf side of Florida.
And when you go to the lake in
Maine, I say, But why?
You pretend like it’s fun
To splash and bump to ski and fall
Into glaciers and ice burgs
Competing with caribou and grizzlies
For frozen trout. But why?
Who wants to be a minimalist
But the nautical décor in every summer cottage
From Arcadia to Newport makes me
Want to go into the shell drying business.
Lucrative, yes. But why?
Over the Appalachians and over those Rockies
There’s another place, but it’s a secret.
The lake water there is welcoming and clean
Even your puppy will learn to swim I swear!
The oceans are warm and you can get
A tattoo, a bodypiercing, AND authentic Italian food
A few blocks away with the sea still in your ears. Ahhh.
I wonder why anyone would vacation away from the
Alta y baja costas del California.
What is a vacation anyway and should we go every week?
To the Cape, to the Vineyard, to Rockport?
I like Boston but from my air-conditioned aloneness,
Jaci begs me the question, but why?