Refuse

Object: Hurricane Sandy

Body of Water: New Dorp beach

Exiting my home after the storm,
after a night of uneasy dreams
I came to see a world of horror

Ceilings caved in, houses obliterated
nature took its course
throttling us by the neck
a veritable assault

My friends were nowhere to be seen
 no life on the streets.
Rushing water and sea debris were all that could
be accounted for.

A mewling kitten cries from beneath the sewer grate
baby's rattle lolling in the river
I turn my back on this misery
and return back inside.

Copper fades

Object: Dolphin fountain

Body of Water: Staten Island Midland beach

Toothy grins with with white to match the sky
mocking those who think they tell the truth, but lie.

These copper clowns, these brown fools
year after year of corrosion makes them look like jewels

But Jewelry is far from the case with these creatures.
Whose smiles bely their lack of notable features

Constructed for a vapid populace
whose opinion of art is rather tenuous.

So the clowns of the sea stand day after day
No one giving them notice, as they are hit with the ocean's spray.

Cranio della spiaggia

Object: Skull

Body of Water: Wolfe's Pond Park

"What's this?" I say, walking down the beach
Something has caught my eye.
Small and white
It looks dead

I walk over to the visage
Peering down the sand I see it
A peculiar thing
A skull

"I wonder who you were in a past life?"
White and brown speckle the sky
twisting and turning into the air
studying my find

The eyes betray a sad visage
slight concaves around its eyes
"A cry for help?"
Small in scale but large in emotion

I put it down, imagining what horrible fate befell it
Hunger? Sickness? A predator?
I couldn't answer the question
Away I walked, without giving the beast a second thought.

L' retour

Object: Staten Island Ferry

Body of Water: New York Harbor

Flashes of blue and orange fill up my visage.
An old friend has come back to me.
A partner who abetted a unsullied duty.
A duty for business.

Old girl you're never reliable
Its been ten minutes past the hour
your quarry is getting restless
shuffling of feet and racuous noise are in the air

I hear your call, you have arrived.
To provide us wayward travelers
A voyage for opportunity
or leisurely pleausure

Its nary a serene trip
waves rock you side to side.
Sometimes you are delayed
but you are never unreliable in your duty.

Your duty to your fellow man
a man who is always in transit
to get a food on his table
or clothes for his babes.

let us hope my lady that you do not fail us.
in your final hours of duty
I know I can always count on you.
My orange and blue beauty.

The Long Walk

Object: Boardwalk

Body of water: Midland Beach Staten Island

The sun's glare fills my eyes

defensively covering them, I shudder at the burning sensation

until I decide to open them again

light colors grow fuller, detail comes in, I can see again!

The boardwalk stretches to the horizon

clearly defined paths turn fuzzy as they get closer to the Verrazano

a literal passageway to another world

I cruise along the boardwalk, ice cream cone in hand

slowly nibbling on it to sate my thirsty pallet

oozing in the heat I feel vannila sliding down my hand

quickly wiping away to avoid unwanted looks

New York harbor, a veritable dumping ground for sewage

looks almost pristine in these dog days of summer

Green turns to blue turning back to green with a glimmer of silver

Smells of festering fish wafts into my nose

crossing by the fishing stand, where nature's quarry goes to die

flayed on the docks, a look of defeat is seen amongst the fish

Hooting and hollering amongst the guineas at their catch

I bear towards the end of the walk

Teal towers stand astride 20 feet away

Looking above at these steel giants

giving passage to travelers to and from the city

The Dinghy

Object: Dinghy

Body of Water: Gateway Harbor

The Dinghy swayed from side to side
cascading small waves within its wake
nary a soul spoke within it
awaiting the voyage to be found.

Rowing towards the central harbor
the fisherman enjoyed a pleasant view
townhouse after townhouse dotting coast
as if they were bidding him adieu

The water was greener today
alage churning the surface.
a sixpack cover gliding aside
much to the fisherman's chagrin

Rowing farther and farther, there was little to be seen
aside from the pastoral coast.
with every wondrous site
another piece of refuse raised its ugly head.

Sighing, defeated he was
the fisherman rowed back home
until a gull landed on his deck
a fish untouched by man in its mouth

The Catch

Object: Fishing rod

Body of Water: Gateway National Park

Hark the call of the wild
Is it not something mild?
Not at all says I, readying the lure
Dawn breaks on the marina.


I fasten my rod in on my belt
That way I won't be dealt
with the thrashing and violence that will soon follow
of the infinite struggle
Man vs sea on a smaller scale.

My peers dot the docks
A mish mash of baseball caps, sunglasses and tube-socks
A light murmur rises from the crowd
All of them belying their own catches of the day.

A twist and an arch I let my cast fly
Glimmers of the hook shining in the cereulean sky.
"plop" goes the hook with a pink bait
sinking under the indigo water

Minutes pass, not a tug to be had
with a sigh I feel not one bit mad
I pop open my drink, a light beer
Morning slowly turns to noon

Hours pass, still no catch
Surely my foe has not turned down a match
A battle of wills, both human and primal
Even after one bite, my prey will be even more difficult to snatch
Is it worth the burn of the sun and parched throat.

As my thoughts wander, something pulls.
Pulling stronger and stronger out of my idyllic lulls
A Catch! A Catch of the day!
I reel him to the best of my abilities
A 10 minute struggle that feels like hours

At last I caught him, what a sight to see
A 5 foot bass, how could it be
None of my friends have caught such a fiend.
The fish writhes all along the deck as hold til the death rattle finally comes to a close

My day is made, I've had my catch
All in a day's work, it seemed 'natch
My prize in my cooler, we drive away
Grinning in my car from ear to ear.

Slide

Object: Slide

Body of water: Gateway National Park

(Discovery)

The car pulls up towards the curb.
A small boy hops out most perturbed
a swarth of grass, water and plastic
arises from the sandy dune that has been marked
that is the playground in the park


Little boy little boy, what do you see?
Is it the green and brown slide staring back at me
With its worls and warped construct
Graffiti dotting the movable blocks
Strangers milling around by the docks.

Little boy little boy, don't be afraid.
Its just a slide covered by shade.
Go for a slide down there is nothing to fear
We are all having fun along the pier.

Away Away the little boy slides
Down the arch he flies
Nothing to fear but the coming sand
Off he flies out unto the feet of a man
A man who does everything and anything he can

Hours pass, twilight is here
Little little boy come near
Its time to go home, time to sleep
Your father needs you to come back home
To tuck you in bed and read for you a tome.

In the car he goes, they drive away.
As wave after wave, hits the dock with a parting spray.