Best Refrigerators Poems
Ambling thro' the museum today an object caught my eye,
Inviting me to pause and reminisce about a time gone by.
'Twas an old oaken icebox standing there on display.
That ancient relic served as the family refrigerator in its day.
I recollected that we had one like it when I was a tyke,
Growing up on the Hoosier farm on fabled Farmer's Pike.
It cooled the milk and cream and butter that Mom made,
To spread on fresh-baked bread with a tad of marmalade!
What a refreshing sight on a sweltering summer's day,
To see the iceman's truck slowly meandering our way,
Along Farmer's Pike, crystal-clear ice stacked on the truck,
And anticipating a sliver of ice to chomp on and suck!
Mom put a card in the window to show the amount of ice required.
The iceman took note of this and delivered the ice desired.
He'd carry a hundred-pound block of ice on his burly back,
As nonchalantly as if toting feathers in a gunny sack!
Iceboxes served their purpose and in museums they now repose.
Once in awhile you'll find them at flea-markets and antique shows.
Fancy refrigerators now cool the grub and make the ice.
The iceman's logo I yet recall, "Iceman's Ice Is Twice As Nice!"
Robert L. Hinshaw, CMSgt, USAF, Retired
(© All Rights Reserved)
On August 29, 2005, the "Rain and Rain and more Rains came", destroying everything we had worked a lifetime for. My home that we had just finished building, one year ago, all our furniture, keepsakes, irreplaceable cherished photos along with all our cars except the one we were driving.
The only thing remaining was our boat, "Akula" who suffered a football size hole just above her waterline. I remain grateful that her batteries were charged well enough to continue to bail her out for two consecutive weeks. These rains came in the wrath of a lady named, "Katrina." "Akula" means shark and it would take a shark to make it through this.
I remember I did not cry like others in my neighborhood. I felt it was just a home which could be rebuilt. I also know it did not completely destroy Akula or I would have cried. There's something about a man's boat that befits both sexes and that something is called "Real Love."
Aboard 'Akula" along with the Red Cross, we managed to feed the neighbors for weeks on end. You don't need to know about the multitude of snakes that were inside my house hiding in closets waiting to strike or the wild hogs that were blown in, eating from the plentiful tossed out refrigerators.
All you need to know is that the people were not lazy The only reason they did not leave is because all of us have heard "Cry Wolf" so many times that when a Hurricane threatens it's just an excuse for a red Solo cup party. Simply put: If anyone had known they would die they would not have stayed.
A few weeks later with communication restored we learned that two of our friends drowned, one in Bay St Louis, MS and the other in Biloxi. I didn't cry. Feelings are neither right nor wrong, they just are....
Francine's Rain - contest
5/25/13
blueberries are not an option
oversize strawberries, maybe.
16 pack
of pop-tarts
the workers look worried
or weary
worn down by the woman who taps on her wrist-watch
with her forefinger
her painted mask forms a frown
her eyebrows are more aggressive
flashing lights
spilled onto the glossy floor tiles
the shelves are soaked in strange
i am invisible
avoiding intentional eye-contact
content to be
a casual observer
unnoticed by an acquaintance
out of context
unaccustomed to our bodies without barriers
beside the cereal boxes i wonder
if i look different behind bullet-proof glass
fat-free or chocolate 2%
there is no middle-ground
but i prefer the color blue to brown
so the choice is made easier
by arbitrary affections
this is where college students
collect the contents of their refrigerators
this is where bananas
are available after midnight
on a thursday
or is it friday?
all i can say is that it doesn’t matter much
in this fluorescent fantasy land
everything is affordable
especially time
because wages are waning
and the hunger will never cease.
oh hello-
my name is frigidair and I am
a (retro) refrigerator
for food
I have been in this apartment
since 1950
a nice kitchen but I cannot move
so not sure about
the rest
I am tall as a person
and a bit fat
a lovely creamy white
with drawers
(and an egg compartment)
and of course a freezer
I am restored a restoration
not quit an antique yet
but feeling my age
my father was general electric
and mother was pink
my sister was turquoise
free standing happily I hum
all day
and all night and sometimes I
clunk
I look crooked but that's the floor
I seem to be going
downhill
inside me are good things
like meat and poultry ice cream
milk eggs vegetables juice
fruit
please be careful with my door
oh some of my shelves are lopsided
(well that's old age)
and lets not talk about the cracks
but I still work
and some say I am quite appealing
I've aged well in this heritage building
or at least that is what
I heard (and the word vintage)
did I tell you they restored me
to be frost free
(they put me to sleep for that)
the girl likes that about me
I like it when she caresses me
with a wet damp clothe
she is quite proud
of me
and I like this room big and roomy
and the window
looks out on a lovely garden
that's so nice
and the little things the girl has
on counters so pretty (she is)
she always puts some flowers
by the sink for me oh how sweet
its really a good life for a refrigerator
although not sure how much time
I have left
(no regrets) and to all refrigerators
let me say keep cool and plugged in
__________________________
September 10, 2015
Free Verse Personification
For the contest, A Tribute To Major Appliances
Honorable Mention
(A List Poem)
Top Shelves:
in kitchen cabinets,
linen closets,
refrigerators,
bookcases,
and storage lockers.
Hooks;
on garage pegboards,
porch ceilings,
and in clothes closets.
Tree limbs:
for hanging;
bird-feeders,
tire swings,
and wind chimes.
The spot on the wall
where pictures & paintings
need to be hung.
Grandchildren,
or almost anyone,
who wants a hug.
If you’re like me--
top out at five-three—
everything – simply everything
seems too high up.
.
The life of our gallantries
Risky is my everyday devotion
Serving for the nation
Chanting my military incantation
Sacrifice my life and image to my nation
Sparking to burn for others
To Safeguard mothers and fathers
Fighting for sisters and brothers
Forgetting like we don't have closer's
You spend time with child and wife
I spend mine with my gun and knife
Your hustle for a colourful life
I struggle for your safety life
Many died in this world of infantry
While some died in line of duty
Stored in refrigerators of mutuary
My name constantly bear fallen military
All those are not dearly and scary
Remembering those days of mockery
I shout to ease boredom and loneliness
But you called it cheating and foolishness
It's neither drugs nor ridiculousness
To me it's my way not a craziness
We always remained loyal to order
Following the lead of our commander
I feel proud in camour and even bolder
We are family regardless of who is older
©®Ibrahim's_wisdom
THE CHENNAI FLOODS - FIRST PART
Firstly the rains came calling cool
It instantly brought hope and happiness
For people relished the Celsius dip down
And hoped for reservoirs to fill to lips
But pretty soon the horrific floods followed
As it rained cats and dogs, days on end
As monsoon turned to a tormentor possessed
And led many to many a sleepless night
The inevitable pain came calling chill and fast
As roads and streets were ravaged entirely
And excess water submerged ponds and land
As waterways and drains could pass no more
The serious threat meandered in with a roar
With intense rains adding to the fury and more
Amidst storm, lightning, thunder on crescendo
Emanating from deep depressions in the Bay
Then fear and scare all showed up all night
As water inundated fields and farms alike
And entered into houses and dwelling units
Causing widespread loss to assets and life
The floods slithered in surely winding its way
Uprooting trees and destructing everywhere
Cattle, dogs and pets perished soon, unsung
With hapless people of all ages, in a gloom
The engulfing darkness brought chaos, for
Gloomy conditions only worsened soon
With nothing in sight; except rising waters
Seething snakes and reptiles added blues
Trauma and melancholy, magnified manifold
As waters chill, ran amuck human household
Swirling in; bringing great despair, in Cities too
Nightmare everywhere; yet nowhere to go;
The disaster itself was a Broadway show
As city and residences became a water-show
And in no time all hell had broken loose;
Making waterways of rail and road ways too
The big losses came quick and fast
As households washed off in a gaffe
And apartments and cars submerged
With basements becoming watery graves
Overnight and instantly everything was lost
Furniture, valuables, utensils and garments,
Refrigerators, kitchenware, other gadgets too
Gold, silver, cash and documents; phones too
And then it was the death that reared its head,
As people drowned and went missing cold
Pitch darkness engulfing the misery in whole
People breathed their last; their grief untold
........ Continued in Second Part
To my surprise I did flunk out
Refrigerators now filled with doubt
Food does not fill the void
Now all I do is avoid
Your gaze as my life avoids your clout
"Education is the path from cocky ignorance to miserable uncertainty."
Is Your Refrigerator Running
Late at night while sleeping or in a trance
Contemplating philosophic thoughts about the universe
Children called on the phone and postulated
An age old question about refrigeration
They shouted loud into the receiver
“Is your refrigerator running sir?!”
(I added the word “sir” since they did not… they must have forgot)
I checked my refrigerator quickly and checked its pulse
Looked inside to discover cold, outside was running hot
Somewhere about its lower region it seemed too hot
The children were so wise, so smart, so intelligent
They astutely suggested that I go and catch it
My refrigerator was running wild with fever
I did not want to get or catch what it might have
What if it’s contagious?
Tomorrow I throw my refrigerator away
And buy a lunch box to replace it
One with Batman or Superman on the lid
Refrigerators have become too complicated
I just need a simple box to keep stuff in
I must remember to thank the kids for what they did
Solid Ideas
A solid idea has a myriad of concrete corners
When you step off the curb take one with you and iron boots
It follows you with definable mass and weight
With cold hard facts to anchor
A solid idea is one that is frozen in time chiseled
Like a statue of hard marble it is always there
Asphalt and trees fill in the landscape by the river
Solid ideas sometimes bathe in the sun by the banks
Hold on to railings of the ship if you should sail there
Metallic footwear will not save you
If you float down the stream of consciousness
Or away into the atmosphere
The edges of street blocks are covered in salt
Under a microscope the crystalline structures take shape
Are cube like forms bunched together
A solid idea is one that grips you firm like that
It replaces, displaces water on the brain
I keep my solid ideas locked up
In chains, in basements, in refrigerators
To be taken out on special occasions
Poured over ice to thaw conversations
Extra room for overeating anonymous
Some Americans
Look like refrigerators
No wonder
They have eaten
Everything that is inside
For years
Now they are building refrigerators
With extra rooms
My stomach twists,
Empty.
I'll run to forget the pain,
Busy.
Drinking water helps,
Better.
I go home and shower,
Clean.
My reflection catches my eye,
Fat.
I look away,
Shame.
I flip on the TV.
Bored.
Victoria's Secret ad comes on,
Curious.
Their bodies chiseled into perfection,
Jealous
Tv turned off,
Wishing.
Empty refrigerators will stay,
Almost.
Next workout to burn off more,
Thin.
My stomach wrenches,
Empty.
Rats in the cellar, squirrels in the tree,
things aren't the same as they used to be.
When I left for school with my li'l lunch pail,
I didn't expect a penguin to swallow a whale.
Such an injustice, I've never seen,
a cantaloupe falsely imprisoned a bean.
It's unheeded screams, uncontrolled laughter,
when it's trolls that live happily ever after.
Doors off their hinges, pancakes are stacked,
biscuits are burning, windows are cracked.
Termites in the baseboards, rabbits that fly,
pigs that regularly take to the sky.
Voices that whisper, mad dogs that bite,
winds that go howling and look for a fight.
Wrapped in cellophane, mixed in a blender,
taped up in cardboard and returned to sender.
Rainbows and ravens, kaleidoscope dreams,
leafless branches, gallows lit by moonbeams.
Music boxes, pink ribbons and bows,
tags come on packages; tags come on toes.
Curtains lifted, sick, unsavory scenes,
gear wheels in gear wheels run strange machines.
Dissected, disowned and double-downsized,
unaided, unacknowledged and unrecognized.
Puzzles, conundrums that cannot be solved,
water plus turpentine make witches dissolve.
Pimentos are diced, harsh words are spoken,
nightmares are jumbled; eggshells are broken.
Lost in the doldrums, eyeballs protrude,
walking on blisters, a horse latitude.
Spineless jellyfish, lackeys and flunkies,
silver tongued vultures, branch swinging monkeys.
Experts and pundits, paid authorities,
Kool-Aid in canisters, down on your knees.
Bishops take pawns, the fat lady sings,
fires ablaze on black nights with kings.
Shattered stars, fragmented stones,
shining splinters, bleak, burning bones.
Songs without meaning, songs without words,
sung by unseen phantoms and silent birds.
Refrigerators with pictures nobody knows,
eyes staring back, no answers disclose.
Spiders and spinning bicycle wheels,
buffalos, bandits, and slippery seals.
Electric toothbrushes, electric chairs,
lethal injections, pushed down the stairs.
Pieces on the floor, a sad state of disarray,
the gift you've left me is insanity's bouquet.
You stole my cookies, pilfered my cat,
laughed at me roundly and turned me down flat.
Mice it in the attic go chitter chatter,
have I lost my wits or gone mad as a hatter?
The summer day is so hot
friends stay away.
I can picture them-
like me-
leaning into open refrigerators
and freezers
with frozen chicken,
hamburger,
Minute Maid.
We breathe the air
and fan the coolness
into ourselves.
We are not at all
thinking of wives or children
who try to sleep in the heat.
These moments are only for us,
the stolen coolness for us.
The appliance for food,
the cool air, accidental.
We stay apart
until the sun fades
and then with bottles of beer
begin our exaggerations
each one.
Looking at appliances
(My fridge is on the fritz)
I noticed there are trends to which
Each company commits.
For kitchen items mostly come
In silver stainless steel,
A modern look that to my taste
Does not have much appeal.
I like refrigerators
That are plain and simply white,
Though finding one to fit has been
A disappointing plight.
At last a few have surfaced
Which is cause for some bravado
Yet I’d settle for the stainless
More than gold* or avocado*!
*popular appliance colors in the 1960’s