Hard of Hearing

I know that I’m not perfect, just go and ask me wife.
At times she’s kind of said - I’m the bane of her life,
but on her better days she wouldn’t trade me for a thing,
and sometimes she has even thanked me for the ring.

Sometimes I overlook a mite and pile clothes on the floor;
leave a beer can in the lounge room or forget to shut a draw.
The toilet seat might be left up; grease in the bathroom sink,
and of course I cop a barrage - “Don’t you ever bloody think!”

I put up a slight defence I s’pose to save me on the skids,
I reminded her I’m not as bad as either of our kids,
but remarks like that cause suffering; the vote goes three to one,
so I had to do some crawling for the damage that I done.

The crawling that I had to do is behind their Mother’s back,
but once again a big mistake saw her leading an attack.
In a request for gaining brownie points I should have chose a cat, 
but the kids insist they wanted me - to buy them a pet rat.

We snuck this rat into the shed and they both named it Brad,
but our female ‘Sergeant Major’ went completely bloody mad.
She really stuck the boots in; especially into me …
making promise of a firing squad if neglect soon came to be.

But both the kids then promised to satisfy their Mother’s rage,
that Brad will be looked after; well fed in the cleanest cage.
They pampered Brad for two months - treated like a king,
then the novelty wore off - Mum was doing everything.

So at the dinner table Mum declared she’d had enough.
Maintaining to our children that it has got too tough.
He’s too much work for one and because that one is me,
he’s going to have to leave and the kids did half agree.

Then Mother added furthermore, “I’m sick of his daily mess,
and right now I note he’s eating, and drinking to excess.”
Me eldest boy then quietly spoke, by adding “Mum you’re right, 
if he didn’t eat and drink so much, he could stay is that right?” 

Mum responded firmly, “Correct, he could stay for evermore,
if he had used better manners and cleaned his mess off the floor,
now go to the shed and grab the cage, and in the car put Brad …”
“Brad!” Me youngest ‘fella’ bawled - “We thought you said Dad.”
Copyright © | Year Posted 2022

Poem

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Legros Kelley Avatar
May 2, 2026 at 11:17 PM
Miss you Lindsay. Hope someday that you'll be back with your awesome gift of writing and making us laugh.
Singh Avatar
December 21, 2024 at 10:56 PM
Enjoyed reading the poem.Nice to share.
Agustin Avatar
February 13, 2024 at 1:17 AM
Thanks for sharing this... exposing your thoughts through your unique poetic style. Meanwhile, I greet you with the love of the Lord, expressed by John 3:16 of the Bible, "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Be blessed.
Beaufort Avatar
December 13, 2023 at 4:21 AM
It's funny. I thought dad was actually the one she was talking about. Are we all nuts or what? You make me laugh a lot.
Maverick Avatar
March 10, 2023 at 12:48 PM
G'day Lindsay..' Now don't you go listen'in to All that guff going on down below..' And be For strewths sake, the level headed bloke Your meant to be..' Cripes..That could ruin a Dead-pan man..' Dinkum..! Take it from me Matey.) And btw send any new stuff my way I'll run through it for ya.. ' And would always be Ready to put out anything you're not sure on.' Now I can guess how much better that makes Ya feel cobber ' So I'll sign off on a winning Run; old son..' Hope to see writes soon Though.'
Maverick Avatar
March 10, 2023 at 12:22 PM
G'day Lindsay..' Now don't you go listen'in to All that guff going on down below..' And be For strewths sake, the level headed bloke Your meant to be..' Cripes..That could ruin a Dead-pan man..' Dinkum..! Take it from me Matey.) And btw send any new stuff my way I'll run through it for ya.. ' And would always be Ready to put out anything you're not sure on.' Now I can guess how much better that makes Ya feel cobber ' So I'll sign off on a winning Run; old son..' Hope to see writes soon Though.'
Beaufort Avatar
November 3, 2022 at 5:41 PM
Another wonderful unexpected conclusion--just too funny, sir! Your sense of humor is transforms my ho-hum life for a few minutes...so a big TY sir.
Legros Kelley Avatar
October 23, 2022 at 12:24 AM
Was wanting a funny fix Lindsay, where are you?! Missing you here on the soup! We need your flavor of fun, you add a lot of joy to this poet's site and are really missed!
Edmonds  Avatar
October 6, 2022 at 9:20 AM
Brilliant Lindsay, enjoyed the read and love the ending -:) Belle
Kamoonpuri Avatar
June 25, 2022 at 12:30 AM
Woah wow what a creatively fantastic super cool poem, so entertaining, seems to be written on behalf of your hubby lol. In my house its my hubby who's complaining ans nagging about mess, pets , open drawers etc left by me or kids so its the other way round. Kudos for this one!! The punchline was so funny! Plz also read and comment on my newest poem too.
Kiser Avatar
May 30, 2022 at 2:33 PM
A fun, super write; very enjoyable; love the accent too.
Koplin Avatar
May 20, 2022 at 12:45 PM
That was awesome mate! You kept me on the edge of my seat right to the end. I love the ending.
Marcum Wong Avatar
April 28, 2022 at 2:56 AM
I enjoyed reading this one again my friend. I notice you have not posted any new poems lately. I hope you are well? Blessings xxoo
Flood Avatar
March 15, 2022 at 12:30 PM
Ha ha… very convenient… blame the rat for the mess, but remember… the godawful smell is ALWAYS the dog! Terry
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 5:09 PM
G'day Terry ... it's never the bullseye is it. You're right, glare at the dog; the budgie; a fly on the wall, but never the real target - thank you Terry - Lindsay
Ball Avatar
March 15, 2022 at 2:09 AM
Lindsay you never fail to bring a smile to this tired face. I always feel I'm almost witnessing the whole thing as I read your poems so great is your description. Love it. God Bless and many thanks my friend. JB
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 5:05 PM
Hello Judy ... you have certainly worked me out. I do enjoy writing about our day to day lives, icing them with humour. I'm pleased you had a grin over this poem Judy - Lindsay
Marcum Wong Avatar
March 13, 2022 at 4:32 PM
That is the mindset of kids. Lol. You brought up a good point about mom getting stuck with the clean up after the newness wears off. I sometimes have to nag my granddaughter to clean the cat box she promised would always be clean. I enjoyed this Lindsay. Have a great week. Enjoy the fall colors. Blessings xxoo
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 5:02 PM
Hello Connie ... certainly enjoyed your comment. It appears to be a generational tradition for Mum's to clean up after the family leaves things laying about. Yes Connie, it's getting cooler but not cold enough for the leaf drop yet - thank you Connie - Lindsay
Thirtyseven Avatar
March 12, 2022 at 4:08 AM
Couldn't have said it better, my wife enjoyed hearing it too ;)
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:56 PM
Hello Scott ... I imagine that there would be quite a lot of wives agreeing with the hard of hearing kids over the trail of a messy husband - thank you Scott - Lindsay
Horne Avatar
March 4, 2022 at 7:38 AM
LOL, thanks for a good chuckle!
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:41 PM
Hello Jack ... it was a pleasure. I'm pleased that you had a chuckle with it Jack - Lindsay
Delaney Avatar
February 26, 2022 at 3:45 AM
Love your colloquial humour, Lindsay: It always gives me a touch of home and touches that universal accord we all share. Best, SuZ
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:39 PM
Hello Suzanne ... I guess it does show some of that Aussie humour that we expect at poets breakfasts with the topic of disasters with heaps of humour - thank you Suzanne - Lindsay
Vangaveti Avatar
February 23, 2022 at 5:25 PM
Oh my!! What an ending! Lol. You've cleverly taken us to reach the ending lines with an excitement of what's next! Loved it and I'm still laughing.
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:35 PM
Hello Swetha ... thank you for reading and commenting with a fine positive comment. Nice to read to enjoyed the humour Swetha - Lindsay
Legros Kelley Avatar
February 23, 2022 at 12:55 AM
Lol, oh my goodness, so funny!
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:33 PM
Hello BJ ... yes, it certainly seems a funny family situation. Pleased to read you had a chuckle with this BJ - Lindsay
Dietrich Avatar
February 22, 2022 at 4:12 PM
hahaha. GOOD one, Lindsay.
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:30 PM
Hello Andrea ... pleased you got a giggle over this family situation Andrea - Lindsay
Rodrigues Avatar
February 22, 2022 at 1:52 PM
LOL…the giggle comes at the end. I bet many a kid thinks mom is talking about dad when it is indeed the pet, she’s had enough of, or incognito. ;)
Laurie Avatar
March 23, 2022 at 4:28 PM
Hello Kim ... there'll be no more naming pets with a name that rhymes with Dad from now on. Pleased you saw the funny side of this one Kim - Lindsay
Canerdy Avatar
February 21, 2022 at 6:23 AM
LOL! Lindsay, you DO know how to tell an entertaining story. This is great. Janice
Laurie Avatar
March 22, 2022 at 11:07 PM
Hello Janice ... I'm pleased to read in your comment that had a giggle over a little family glitch - thank you Janice - Lindsay
Maverick Avatar
February 20, 2022 at 2:37 PM
Hey and g'day mate, I reckon it could be Worse, wait till the battle axe and her pet Roo come for a month.'
Laurie Avatar
March 22, 2022 at 11:00 PM
And g'day to you also Joe. You're right; a kangaroo can be a very nasty opponent that inflicts nasty injuries, especially one trained by the Mother-in-Law - thank you Joe - Lindsay
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