Watching black and white flicks
From nineteen thirty four
With overacting stars and
Rinky-tinky scores;
Heroines with painted lips
To make them twice their size
And everyone with black liner
Smeared around their eyes.

Those were the big old movies
After school in the afternoon.
There were even snappy teasers
That told us ‘coming soon”
But television was free to us
And movie shows expensive
So, my backlog memories became
Inclusive and extensive.

I still can name most of the stars
And even say the name of the flick
And name some supporting actors
And I can do it super quick.
Because that was the entertainment
In a family with no movie budget.
If a movie came on I hadn't seen,
You can be sure I would watch it.

Later TV went to color shows
And it truly made my life great.
I’d see a favorite was coming on
Like Wizard of Oz, I couldn’t wait
To see it in color! Well, at least
Once Judy and the house landed.
It was enchantment for sure
No matter how heavy handed.

But for a decade or more, I watched
And was perfectly content to see
And not have a clue about their hair
Or color that their eyes  might be.
For happy in a black and white world
Pleased the young, unspoiled me.
After all, those fabulous stars
Were there for greedy young me!

Oh, my god! Barbra is in town.
My family bought me tickets
And it knocked me on the ground.
I laughed and cried, my eyes went wide
I called my friends, and again I cried.
I’ve tried for years, but never had the dough
This time the dream came true, I get to go.

I know I’m acting like a kid, I don’t care
She’s coming here and I will be there.
I’ll buy a shirt and a program if they sell
I have money saved, so what the hell?
I’m going to be sitting in the same place
With her and that famous voice and face.
It’s not like she’ll be singing just to me,
But that won’t shut me up, just wait and see.

Barbra is coming to town!
No, I’m not messing around
Trust me when I say, it’s true.
She’s coming to sing to you
But, to me too, I can’t believe it!
And I can’t wait to sit and see it.

I know I’ll scream and holler like a loon
The moment she walks out, and it’s soon,
I won’t swoon, but I’ll probably cry again.
I’m sure there will be many other men
Who also find themselves tearing up too.
At her concerts, it’s a thing some of us do.
Unashamed, in front of everybody
We, laugh and clap our hands ******.
Laughing and hugging all around
Because Barbra Streisand is in town!

So, just pretend it’s a championship game
And all of us fans got dressed up and came
To root and holler for our favorite team
But well be applauding the ruling queen,
The star of stage and screen, and pop.
She’s the best and we’ll never stop.
For some of us, it’s a lifelong dream,
We don’t care how silly we may seem.
I doesn’t matter how old we all are
For decades she’s been the greatest star.

Barbra is coming to town!
No, I’m not messing around
Trust me when I say, it’s true.
She’s coming to sing to you
But, to me too, I can’t believe it!
And I can’t wait to sit and see it.

You don’t need gift wrap
Tape or any fancy bows
It’s sometimes intangible
That’s just how it goes.
You can’t put in under the tree
Or hide it up in the closet
But the person you give it to
Will surely know they got it.

A gift can be hello and love
And sometimes goodbye
It can mean we’ll meet again
It speaks of the reasons why.
A gift is a token of one soul
To another, closing gaps.
A gift is a message of care
And maybe of hope, perhaps.

Some gifts can be lined up
On shelves for all to see
And others are invisible
But taken just as seriously
As a jewel you can hold on to
And feel it there in your hand.
Sometimes it’s a treasure
Only you can understand.

Come dream with me
Of a wonderful tomorrow
Where heartache and sorrow
Never come to stay.
Let’s make memories
And let’s make them come true
Through the efforts of we two
Then celebrate every day.

Come try with me.
We can make things better
If we work hard together
And fix whatever is wrong.
If we believe it
I know we can do it
There is no hill we can’t climb
If we just continue to remind
Each other as we go along.

We can reach for the highest goals
From the strongest part of our souls
Never have a moment’s doubt.
Take the chance with me
That even against strong opposition
We are truly in the best position
To face the problems and work it out.

Come dream with me.
Picture what we want to happen
And I know all the doors will open
And let us walk right on through.
Come walk with me.

It ain’t like ahm a teacher ner nuthin.
Ahm jess a regular person, nothin spayshul
Ah ain’t no docterr of rocket science
Ahm jess a working guy, and kinda playful.
Ah half tah admit, ah do get things wrong
And sometahms ah can make a big mess
But ah do have minny, minny good points
And ahm a rilly good person, irregardless.

But things like writin’ readin’ and
Readin’ writin’ and sech lack that stuff
Ah stopped carin’ ‘bout at twelve
‘Cause ah found it more than kinda tuff.
Ah mean, it ain’t lack ah ain’t never
Gunna need to know reedickaluss stuff lie cat.
Ahm jess gunna graduate and then
Ah’ll go to work with Dad and drahve a bobcat.

Ain’t nobuddy needs algebra for that
Er fer workin’ at the factory line ever day either.
And it sher ain’t like ahm a teacher ner nuthin.
Ahm jess a regular person, nothin spayshul
Ah ain’t no docterr of rocket science
Ahm jess a working guy, and kinda playful.
Ah half tah admit, ah do get things wrong
And sometahms ah can make a big mess
But ah do have minny, minny good points
And ahm a rilly good person, irregardless.

But things like writin’ readin’ and
Grammer and other sech borin’ stuff
Ah stopped carin’ ‘bout at twelve
‘Cause ah found it more than kinda tuff.
Ah mean, it ain’t lack ah ain’t never
Gunna need to know reedickaluss stuff lie cat.
Ahm jess gunna graduate and then
Ah’ll go to work with Dad and drahve a bobcat.

Ain’t nobuddy needs algebra for that
Er fer workin’ on a factory line ever day either.
Ah sherr don’t need it to work digging
Er runnin’ sewer lahns er plummin’ pipes neither.
So, folks can jess give up on tryin’
To turn me into some kinda egghead scholar.
After all, it was good enough for my dad
To go to work, and work hard to earn a dollar.

Looking up, seeing you again
It makes me feel so tired.
Here you are to ruin another day
How can I ever be inspired?
Now every time I see you makes me wish I was blind.
Because you stimulate no peace of mind.

You make me feel
You make me feel
You make me feel
Like a ****** old woman!

Years ago, you and I ran aground
Wiping out on love's breakers
I tried to fix things, tried to wake you up
But all pleas fell on deaf ears.
Sometimes a couple can turn into a joke
Impossible to fix something so badly broke.

You make me feel
You make me feel
You make me feel
Like a ****** old woman!

They claim to be Christians
But ignore the teachings of Jesus.
They say they are compassionate
But only say it to tease us.
They voted for Republicans
And let them steal what they want.
They stand behind Donald Trump
No matter the sins he flaunts.

They throw away the national rights
As if they are their own to give.
I swear some of my friends and family
Are too **** dumb to even live.
I am always surprised that they
Have not dumbed themselves to death
Because they don’t seem to have the brains
To figure how to take their next breath.

It’s easy to see my friends like that
And even easier to know em.
Just go back and re-read the title
And the words of this poem.

Yes, some are my family members, too,
And I saw what made them that way.
I couldn’t reason with them back then
And have no better luck even today.
It seems that some people are angry
That they weren’t born pretty and rich
So, they look at other people who have
And regularly call them a *******.

They never learned to enjoy what they have
Instead of ******* about what others got.
They see someone they were trained to hate
And they immediately get dangerously hot.
The problem is that these are the people
That turn into online haters and trolls
And sadly, every one of them shows up
And votes hatred and bigotry at the polls.

It’s easy to see my friends like that
And even easier to know em.
Just go back and re-read the title
And the words of this poem.

So, for that reason, if no other motivation
The rest of us need to get out and vote
Otherwise all of us will drop below the waves
From all being in the same sinking boat.
There is plenty of propaganda out there
A lot of us hidden under fake, paid names
That it doesn’t matter because in D.C.
Both of the parties are the very same.

Yes, its is said often, but if that were true,
Would the GOP spend so many billions
Making **** sure their reign never ends?
Because regardless of the claims made
Making America great doesn’t not depend
On taking money from the poor citizens
And giving it to the rich people in the end.

It’s easy to see my friends like that
And even easier to know em.
Just go back and re-read the title
And the words of this poem.