Long Barbershop Poems

In my town
the spiritual warriors conjoined our nature conservancy advocates,
our homeless entertainers
mystics and muses 
incarnated all the green organic dreams 
of the food righteousness brigade,

Eternal EarthDay worshipers
began pilgrimages with gardeners 
and pet-owners 
and parents,
to establish...

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Time for a road trip, my  dad, mom and us three kids all packed into our old station wagon. I guess it wasn't so old but it sure seemed that way at the time....

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Far too many small towns are slowly dying out, how incredibly sad...


On a run we took to see our brand new grandson last July, 
we’d left ourselves some extra time so we could veer off...

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Yukon, Oklahoma was a small rambunctious mining town a hard days ride from Dallas in the days before the car,
Back when genuine doctors were as scarce as honest men - and every other building was...

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In a far off place in a cold cold land there lived a man called Mr. Mack. The place he lived in was called Kirkland Lake. Kirkland Lake was small as cities go, but it...

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...“ ‘There’s this Hitler guy who’s trying to kill
every fallen Jew that happens my way,
you think six million would’ve slaked his thirst,
but he still rants and raves, seeking to slay.

“ ‘And there is this Stalin...

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Cecelia was a new person in town to see
about the rooms for rent with availability.
This woman came to start a car rental company.
It would serve the people within this community.
Cecelia knew Prester was the name...

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A Dragon Squirrel Brigade

Dragon got home from the Army, wanting to be totally, in control.
He wanted to be a Drill Sergeant, to teach the recruits, to be bold.
He gave them all a blankie, and a...

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Welcome to my barber shop,
Owned by the late Puddin' Pop.
That's my dad's picture in the frame:
Let me tell you how he earned his nickname.
Back in the summer of 1984,
My mom bought my sister and me...

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Old Mr. Nicholson
totters across the town square
to the barbershop where
Clive has cut his hair
for the last forty years or so

Not hardly needing
even a trim
but pretending
he has a reason besides
the gossip waiting within

Inside, the shop smells...

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It's not when I'm asleep I dream,
It's the stages in between,
The moment just before waking,
The drifting before repose,
When fleeting seconds which with I gamble,
When the mind is allowed to amble,
Through the childish thoughts & tangents,
Through...

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I was walking no particular direction
One ordinary day
On my regular path
Mulling over my sticks and stones
Charms and dolls
When I saw a familiar door
Fresh painted colors on letters that were  there before
It read “we all...

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Is it any wonder that on a recruit's first day of service he is befuddled?
From day one he's told to do things by the numbers and his brain is muddled!
From the moment he stepped off...

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Mistress Lana thinks she is
my Central Committee guru
sends her greetings to the downtrodden masses
she's downtrod a bit of real estate in her day
ground under her boot heel
investment swindlers and barbershop quartets
at the kaleidoscope factory
perforated by...

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I suppose I'm revealin' my age as I compose this little ditty,
But as I compare costs today with yesteryear I exclaim, "What a pity!"
Gas cost 30 cents per gallon and hamburger was 19 cents a...

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A cluttered barbershop in my old hometown I fondly call to mind,
Was a gathering place to loaf and socialize, a great place to unwind!
Harry, the barber, kept farmers, the local rabble and boys like me,
Looking...

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From each according to his ability
gains little traction in a world
where ability is so obviously diminished
just take an honest look around you
sound bites are no longer protection
against an epidemic of eyes wide shut
presumably a long...

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.

            go ahead
               laugh

      ...

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My earliest recollection was being placed in a Coca Cola cooler in a Barbershop in Virginiatown Ontario. I heard the sound of the Nickle being placed in the coin slot. Then an eager little boy...

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THE BARBERSHOP QUARTET

The barbershop quartet, mustache brushes in hand.
A Capella joviality, with torquing wrists, snapping fingers.
Bristles foaming, silky white and smooth, voices grand.

Dapper in their pinstripe suits, hats — Delmonico brand.
Sweet Adeline, drawn out. ...

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stepping out of the post office, I turned towards sounds of loud
crashing glass and shredding metal. Through the bright summer morning I
can see what just happened, two cars (actually, a guy in a pickup truck...

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The county seat,  a place of humidity and musical beats. 
After many years, I decided to revisit my hometown,
Hoping to walk down memory lanes of warm treats,       ...

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Opulence is not flatulence especially in a house. And onion peel is very useful for persuading a plant to float in a prism. It is often great to watch a pea boat sail past. Rather...

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It was day one in August- I turned eight years old
and visiting my grandparents awhile.
I called them Nonna and Nonno;
with them, I loved to stay.
My Nonna had just finished braiding my long hair;
again I said,...

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I went to visit Elroy, Emma, my nephew and niece
In a town where all residents are missing some teeth
The name of the town is Boondocks or Sticks
I finally arrive and am greeted by my nephew...

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