Gypsy rebel
Never level
****!
And then, she’s gone
Yet still remains
Her spirit
In almost every song

Sometimes I forget
The difference between
The slip in a fortune cookie
And poetry

As the son of a son of a sailor
I went out on the sea for adventure
Expanding their view of the captain and crew
Like a man just released from indenture

As a dreamer of dreams and a travelin' man
I have chalked up many a mile
Read dozens of books about heroes and crooks
And I've learned much from both of their styles

Son of a son, son of a son, son of a son of a sailor
Son of a gun; load the last ton
One step ahead of the jailer

Now away in the near future, southeast of disorder
You can shake the hand of the mango man
As he greets you at the border

And the lady she hails from Trinidad
Island of the spices
Salt for your meat and cinnamon sweet
And the *** is for all your good vices

Haul the sheet in as we ride on the wind that our
Forefathers harnessed before us
Hear the bells ring as the tight rigging sings
It's a son of a gun of a chorus

Where it all ends I can't fathom, my friends
If I knew, I might toss out my anchor
So I'll cruise along always searchin' for songs
Not a lawyer, a thief or a banker

But a son of a son, son of a son, son of a son of a sailor
Son of a gun, load the last ton
One step ahead of the jailer
I'm just a son of a son, son of a son, son of a son of a sailor
The sea's in my veins, my tradition remains
I'm just glad I don't live in a trailer

I don't breathe for you
My heart beats for myself
But my brain takes you in
Like oxygen
Clean and fresh
In a breeze
Oxygen wind
For my brain
Thank you
Very
Please

I’m sorry, mister
But it don’t be
Like that for me
You and I cannot be
And I shouldn’t have to feel sorry
But you have tried so earnestly
And I perceive you tenderly
Mostly

Slowly she dances away
But she’ll sway back
Any song
Any day
He says

Walt Disney’s favorite character was Goofy
I don’t know why I find that so poetic
Maybe I’m just doofy
Poor Mickey must have suffered so
Pasting on that smile
Fronting the whole band
And yet the boss was favoring
That *******
Cow/dog/man

He has blocked me
Probably permanently
I deserved it, too
The awkward part is
I keep talking to him
And it will continually be
Something he never knew

I read the five minute poem
In two minutes
Flat
Not sure what to take from that
Maybe I missed something
Over again
This is how a five minute poem
Turns into ten

You have invaded my life
Your presence is in every song I hear
I seem to feel you everywhere
A commercial on tv
Reminds me of you and me
You're in the exciting
And in the mundane
You're in me
Like wet in rain
And I'm not sure
I'll ever be the same

Poetry
Silence
And so loud
Screams of joy and agony
Even whispers too
Living loud
Imaginarily
Poetry can do

He bangs
To the beat
Of the non conformed
Unabashedly
Off kilter
Wobbly
Left or right  
He turns the middle of a sunny day
Deep into a night
I want to share some of his journey
Company along the way
In and out
We come about
Then out
And around again

I cannot describe the small feeling
Terrified, uncomfortable
When a beloved elderly person’s
Handwriting
Starts to shake
It is particularly painful
Watching them
Watch it happen

I was an optimistic child
I watched Gilligan’s Island
Every time
Thinking they were going to finally make it off that island
This time

As a pessimistic adult
I wonder why they would want to

You asked a question
But it wasn’t really a question
It was a trick
You had the answer, already
And you only asked me
To make sure I agree
Or to see if maybe
I’d sell out, and simply
Pretend I could be
What you want from me
Boy did you see

He conquered her mind
It was the friendliest invasion
In the history of mankind
Chemical warfare
With the natural drugs
Kindness, patience, and love
Intoxication
Via kisses and hugs

Ironic
The ones that trend
Never feel like
The best I’ve penned
Maybe mediocrity
Is what makes things
So trendy

He does not want my attention
Avoids it, actually
He don’t come around no more
So he doesn’t have to see
Me
I must completely remove myself
To set that man free
Beautiful human being
I am gone from thee
You are free

When I am near you
I am lonely in a crowd
Complaining is not allowed
An insult, to you
When I’m not happy
Your esteem is attached
To my mentality
And this is how it came to be
That you only know
The pretend me

Looks like it will take a miracle
And all I can see
Is its possibility
I’m not sure what that says about me
Or maybe it says more about what I see
Possibility
I don’t feel like it’s selfish of me
To include you
Permissionlessly
When I set my eye
On impossibilities
I have decided
Your place in my life
Is a possibility
And until I hear differently
That is where you will be

“I know. It's all wrong. By rights we shouldn't even be here. But we are. It's like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger they were. And sometimes you didn't want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened?
But in the end, it's only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something. Even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back only they didn't. Because they were holding on to something."

FRODO: "What are we holding on to, Sam?"
SAM: "That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it's worth fighting for."

The distance between what boys actually mean
And what we girls hear in our minds
We hear “I love you”
When he says “I love you,”
But he means “I like you just fine.”  
He says “I’ll be there,”
We hear “I’ll be there,”
But he means “I’ll come around sometime.”
He says “we have a bright future,”
We hear “we have a bright future”
He means “let’s take it a day at a time”.
The distance between what he meant
And I heard
Is so far apart that it is absurd
No harm and no foul
Lesson learned

I threw everything I had at you
Over and over
Relentlessly too
Ringing and ringing
You answer no call
I was playing catch
While you played dodgeball
I could think of it as a downfall
But really, I’ve lost nothing at all
You’ve lost nothing too
So the game is a tie
I thought we could win
But that’s maybe a lie
I told myself so I could almost see
Some ridiculous fantasy
You and me
Not meant to be
And maybe someday
I’ll be willing to see
And I’ll become
Some
Obscure footnote in your history
Apparently
What it was always meant to be

Wake up, Boo
I wanna tickle your brain
Tease it and please it
Til you feel insane
And give in to
The madness
With gentle refrain
Bliss can be true
If you let the madness
Encompass you
What other option
When only a dream will do

Guys who wear a certain type of sunglasses
Turn me off
It’s a very specific type
But there seems to be no redemption
Because he’ll always be
The guy in THOSE
Sunglasses
It’s not his fault
And it’s not fair
A sunglass style
Makes me beware
But association
Can’t help but compare

It is like looking for small roaches in full
Ashtrays
Your hands are gonne get *****
But it will probably be worth it
And the stain washes off
Easily
With soap and water

Road rage
While on foot
Everywhere
Crust and soot
Clogging pores and pipes
Wailing yips of
The woefully over-hyped
Many who walked in the dark
Manage now to see
And understand the destruction
Of their complacency
I suppose, one day
We shall see
What becomes of those
Who made this come to be

I am a troll
This I know
Digging for buried gems
Sometimes it takes finessing
Sometimes it's confrontation
But there's usually a gem in there
Upon some contemplation
I bug some people
Really much
Lots of troll-hating
But digging for some hidden gems
Should not be a sin

The wild eagle
Is seducing me
I hear his call
It might even be a loud moan
The wild eagle is calling me home
While he continues to roam

My juice for you has been sapped
Until you replenish the fruit
My tolerance not nearly tapped
But you better show up in a suit

I came at you
Naked and barefaced
And though you pretended not to see
I need to believe
You thought I was lovely
Maybe I’m done
Probably not
I’m doing it currently
It might always be
I share with you parts of me
Naked and barefaced
As I can be
You do not want to see
A bigger ****** for you
Than it is for me
You missing out on all that happy
Preemptively disgraced
Because you don’t want anyone else to see
You naked and barefaced

Some people get upset
When you say
“ENOUGH!  
I’ll no longer endure your abuse!”
You have completely offended them
When you refuse to submit to their
Selfish use
Guilt trips and gossip
And so many complaints
Pretending everything is
Something it ain’t
It takes strength to refuse
And energy to walk away
But if you take the first step
The trek turns to stroll
And it gets more pleasant
Every day

I ain’t gonna be dramatic
I’m fine without you
I’m not dying
And I still smile
(A lot)
I need nothing from you
But I see what you can bring
And yearning stings
Just like need do

Boy, the way Glenn Miller played
songs that made the hit parade
Guys like me we had it made
Those were the days
Didn't need no welfare state
ev'rybody pulled his weight
gee our old LaSalle ran great
Those were the days
And you knew who you were then
girls were girls and men were men
Mister we could use a man like Herbert Hoover again
People seemed to be content
fifty dollars paid the rent
freaks were in a circus tent
Those were the days
Take a little Sunday spin
go to watch the Dodgers win
Have yourself a dandy day
that cost you under a fin
Hair was short and skirts were long
Kate Smith really sold a song
I don't know just what went wrong
those were the days

I am woefully unprepared for his charm
His undeniable masculinity
Surely got the better of me
When combined with his
Humility
And his ability
To be so in touch with his femininity
So naturally and comfortably
Such a rare and precious being
Who somehow doesn’t see
That he is out of my league
He insists we are equally
Lucky
To my face
And then tells his friends
He is luckier than me
Whichever one is luckier
Seems to be the main thing
Upon which we cannot agree

Sunny days when the breeze is kind
Gifts
We get used to
And sometimes forget to say
Thank you

Lonely while surrounded
Sometimes
Wishing for the match
Rhythm to my rhyme
Desperation
Maybe
But not enough to settle for just
Anybody
There’s a certain
Specifically
Beat to me
The rhythm
Maybe only he can see
Whoever he is
To dance with me

Disabuse yourself of the notion
She needs saving
You guys get that stuck in your mind
She is not a damsel in distress
She is a bored badd *****
She’s the one a
Who’s a gonna
Save you
You silly fool

Here we are
Bored with eachother
Frankly, I couldn't care less
About your day
And how it was a mess
I know you couldn't care less
About mine
Either
Because you never ask
You want to know things
Like where your boots are
Or what time is supper
But not where I learned
How to cook it
We got a tree full with fruits of
Conversations
Yet neither cares to shook it
Overripe fruit
Rotting on the limb
We sit here now
Our light has dimmed
No need for tears
Or blames or angryness
But frankly, however it goes down
It has to go down
Because I can't care any less

Well, I'm packin up my game and I'ma head out west
Where real women come equipped wit' scripts and fake *******
Find a nest in the hills, chill like flynt
Buy an old drop-top, find a spot to ****
Then I'ma Kid Rock-it up and down ya' block
With a bottle of scotch and watch lotsa crotch
Buy a yacht with a flag sayin' "Chillin' the most"
Then rock that ***** up and down the coast
Give a toast to the sun
Drink with the stars
Get thrown in the mix
And get tossed outta bars
Zip to Tijuana
I wanna roam
Find Motown, tell them fools to come back home
Start an escort service for all the right reasons
And set up shop at the top of four seasons
Kid Rock, and I'm the Real Mccoy
And I'm headed out west, sucker because I want to be a
Cowboy, baby
(With the top let back and the sunshine shinin')
Cowboy, baby
(West Coast Chillin' with the Boone's wine) I want to be a cowboy, baby
(Ridin' at night 'cause I sleep all day) cowboy, baby
(I can smell a pig from a mile away)
I bet you'll hear my whistle blowin' when my train rolls in
It goes, like dust in the wind
(****** ****, ****** freak, ****** out of my mind)
I once was lost, but now I'm just blind
Palm trees and ****, scabbed knees and rice
Get a map to the stars, find Heidi Fleiss
And if the price is right then I'm gonna make my bid, boy
And let Californi-A know why they call me
Cowboy, baby
(With the top let back and the sunshine shinin')
Cowboy, baby
(West Coast Chillin' with the Boone's Wine) I want to be a cowboy, baby
(Ridin' at night 'cause I sleep all day) cowboy, baby
(I can smell a pig from a mile away)
Yeah, Kid Rock, you can call me Tex
Rollin' sunset women with a bottle of Beck's
Seen a slimmy in a 'Vette, rolled down my glass
And said, "Yeah, this fits right in yo'"
No kiddin', gun slingin', spurs hittin' the floor
Call me hoss, I'm the boss, with the sauce, and the horse
No remorse for the sheriff, in his eye I ain't right
I'ma paint his town red, then paint his wife white
Cause chaos, rock like Amadeus
Find west-coast ***** for my Detroit playas
Mack like mayors, ball like Lakers
They told us to leave but bet they can't make us
Why they want to pick on me?
Lock me up and snort away my key
I ain't G, I'm just a regular failure
I ain't straight outta Compton, I'm straight out the trailer
Cuss like a sailor, drink like a ****
My only words of wisdom are (radio edit)
I'm flickin' my Bic up and down that coast and
Keep on truckin' 'til I fall in the ocean
with the top let back and the sunshine shinin'
(Cowboy) spend all my time at Hollywood and Vine
(Cowboy) ridin' at night 'cause I sleep all day
(Cowboy) I can smell a pig from a mile away
(Cowboy) with the top let back and the sunshine shinin'
(Cowboy) with the top let back and the sunshine shinin'
(Cowboy) Hollywood and Vine-in'

Do some trees
I wonder
Get overcome
And choked out
By the leaves
They shed
In windless
Forests?

No choice
Fleeing
No voice
Or destination
Just heading out
Somewhere
As quietly as possible
Leaving behind
All that was possible
To find a new story
While taking the old one with
Uncertainty is better
Than steady decline
It's best to get off before the drop

If I disappeared
Who would it matter to?
Surely not you  
Brought it hard as I could
I thought I did real good
It’s an acceptable failure
For me
At least
The way I see

Rest is so much better after a busy day.

I am like the letter Z
Jazzy to say
Zing. Dazzle, and zesty
Fun to have on the tongue
Occasionally
But it’s easy
To get too much of me
Which obviously
You see

Fake friends are worse than enemies
They love you so much in the
Fairweather breeze
Frigid winds always come
Eventually
And that's when
You figure out
Who's the fake friend

I get by on a technicality
Occasionally
But isn’t that the mark of writing
Creatively?
Especially in poetry

The ignored feel resentment
When you get attention
A catch-22 of life
When you receive love
So comes the hate
To tarnish your good times
With strife

I spill my guts out
In case you don’t see
You might only get
A stomachache from me
I give you madd props
For risking it
….that fall from the tops .
                                           .
                                           .
                                           .
                                           .
                                           .
                                           .
Maybe you see
All that worthwhile in me

My expectations
Do not overstep your abilities
They stretch
I expect you like to stretch