This waiting room is painted of pain,
featuring faces with mouths down-turned,
impatience taking up these empty seats,
of family members already lost,
we feel like the least loved
in the mighty grasps of almighty fate's
crushing hands,
we feel like the last patients
to be visited during the night shifts,
by nurses and doctors,
the times of day when the most dust
is swept back to the humble soil
by an unseen, yet not-so-invisible bashing broom.
the old fan - barely hanging -
is closing in full circle,
a whole life lived.
dull curtains, some unhooked and five minutes to falling,
alongside the walls' stripes
designed with a print of doctors' usual words,
"I'm so sorry for your loss."  

If life truly begins at forty,
then hers ended at the starting line.
this would be a misplaced and mixed metaphor
if it weren't for olympics silently running in the background on the tv
reminds me of my mute cries, surprised eyes bulging, gaping mouths with no sound.

It ought to be a preventative measure; just a routine operation
a possibly cancerous lump.
I am flipping aimlessly through these magazine pages,
each catching a tear-drop for the dog-ears
(whoever reads them next will turn the pages over better).
Some puzzled maze pieces fall out of a box,
my baby cousin tries to gather the cardboard paper of a family tree picture,
but the least important twigs are lost, and the last friendly branch found missing.
The many portraits that make up the landscape go away from time to time.
It was just a little, smallish lump.
these news are hard to swallow.
my eyes are peeling onions.
my throat is winter-hands dry.
mum says she saw her the most alive
a few odd minutes before time clocked aunt out.
Grandma's sister blames herself for suggesting, advising, and in retrospect putting "pressure".
neutral colours ***** the Scrubs' floors,
hypothermia lurking in the corridors,
but the coke from the vending machine is medicine lukewarm.

It was a game of musical chairs,
But when the seven trumpets sounded,
the stools remained still, they stood facing eastward in hexagonal formation.
An angel ascended, the remnants were six shadows now.
With a plot twist, it's less players each round.
Who dies first wins, I've tossed too much soil on dust, my hands are *****.
We wash our hands clean with this paraffin.
Open-casket, the last sight took my breath away - the whitened clay still one,
but with the breath of life taken away, by the One, who giveth and taketh.

It's also winter our hearts,
dips of grief, dabs of black clothing, grim-reaper the thief, we still loath him.
another weekend
another sad-a-day
another funeral.
And his life was a summary,
too brief a breath, as the contraction is.
No sympathy to bother saying
"I am".
Public or private hospitals, dark clouds gather above all.

Twenty-twelve was a scar,
for four years now we are still scooping our scabs, from the bottomless pits,
that fell from ever-fresh wounds picked at a tad too prematurely,
so very early.
Some of the things we will take to our graves
will take us to our graves, as we exhume our pre-mourning selves.
And hurt still drops in drips,
red-bottomed-sticky feet from the blood-washed tiles,
the pain and the paint in permanent.
Some matters you can only think about
when you are half-awake and half-asleep, because these nightmares
are too real to be dreams.

uThixo Ovayo unoNobantu, nabantu bakhe bonke ngamaxesha onke.

~ by New-Black-SoUl #NBS

On the brink of war, within our own borders,
Among our neighbors and brothers.
Interesting how we think of them as brothers, neighbors,
And how we are willing to go to war.

A compromise to end it? Willing.
Naive.

California may have become a free state,
Migrations to the gold mines and the economic
Boom improved the economy and diversity.
But war still came.
New Mexico and Utah were able to decide for themselves,
People rushed to sway the decision, it was even.
Fair.
But still, war came.
Texas got their money, and we drew new borders with more land.
A line was drawn, metaphorically and nationally.
But still, war came.
The south got back their fugitive slaves from the north,
The work force resumed, and a reward for the slave was paid to the holders.
Everyone seemed to win,
But still, war came.

This is one of Barry Hodges' most inspired memories.

  'Twas morning time in times of yore and I, bold Barry Hodges, stood outside my store, my giant vegetables on display for all to see, when lo and behold! a luxurious limousine drew up, and from the back there emerged a gorgeous form of voluptuous statuesque feminity.
  "My God!" I cried, it is that beauteous lady from *La Dolce Vita, the wondrous Anita - and I gazed with joyous on her divine body, imagining it sprawled lasciviously in my bed, legs open as wide as a major road junction on the M1 motorway.
  "Excuse me", said she in that Italo-Swedish voice guaranteed to make any man wet himself copiously, "But I am a-lookink for a shop a-called 6B, and yet all I can-a-see is a Barry Hodges' the Master Geengrocer's, complete with a giant cucumber or two, which I 'av to say remind me of somet'ing tasty."
"Dearest lady, said I, you have come to the right place: 6B is the trading name of my sister enterprise: Barry Bodgers' Boil Bursting Beauty Bureau which is located upstairs, Barry Bodgers at your service, my dearest, most delightful Fru Ekberg."
"Shhhhhhhhh! I am een deesguise, not even dear Federico knows I am-a-here." And thus, assuring her of my utmost discretion, and forming a bond by saying that I too, the famous Geordie seducer, Barry Hodges, had indulged in a slight nomenclatural change in order to separate the two sides of my business interests, and in order to do a spot of money laundering on the side.  "But," I enquired, "How is it that you have need of the rather specialised medical services we offer, you who are so radiant and bella-bella?" She lowered her eyes seductively and promised to reveal her terrible secret.

As I ushered her up the stairs to the studio, my eyes on her ****-cheeks wiggling like two delectable beach ***** in a sack, she told me the sad tale of the immense boil which kept recurring on the middle of her back and which no amount of corrective surgery could fix.
"Aha!" I exclaimed, "Only Barry Bodgers, the world's greatest boil-sucker, can effect the cure for which you long, and I shall operate on you personally, not entrusting such a task to even the best of my boil-bursting minions." I added to myself, "Also I want to give you a good old bonking while we're at at."

Once we attained the privacy of my consulting room, I instructed her to strip off utterly so I might examine her, and I can tell you, dear reader, that her **** **** was a joy to behold. I too divested myself of my clobber, knowing that boil-******* can get a bit messy at the best of times. Jesus wept!, but the mighty boil betwixt her graceful shoulders revealed when de-plastered was a true horror, with a yellow tip as big as a Grade One Belgian Turnip. I explained that I would **** it out whilst I rogered her from the rear and that, when she felt her ****** on the way, she should scream out to that effect and I would then bite the core of the boil right out in a blaze of mutual ******* glory, before applying a dose of my exclusive Boil Preventative Cream, namely a handful of our conjoined love-juices extracted from her gaping ***** by hand a few seconds earlier.
"Yes! Yes! Yes!" screamed the Swedish bombshell and with a mighty **** like an industrial Dyson FX334 on full power, I slurped and  razor-bit the boil, bursting it asunder, smothering my eager face in blood and putrid pus, thereby causing me to blow my *** as ne'er before. The green core of the boil emerged from its fleshly cavity with a deafening plop as we came together like a nuclear blast d'amour.

O, but only then, as my seminal outpourings soaked my jim-jams, did I awaken to discover yet another nocturnal emission. And, not unexpectedly, dear Nurse Nellie, having heard my cry of ecstasy, rushed in to my bedroom, head-shaking and tut-tutting as usual, as she knelt down and licked my tum-tum dry.
"Yum, yum" she murmured in her dulcet Northumbrian tones, "Ah've looked after three generation o' Hodges laddies, and I kin tell ye, your *****'s the tastiest of them all, ye bonnie wee man."
"Better than Grandad Charlie's?"
"Why aye, mon, yours is well creamier."

He’s a complete double negative
Sensitive and competitive
“This thing” seems imperative
And when I’m all preventative
and have discourses that are argumentative
He is, to me, like a sedative.

But everything is of course relative.

A place newly freed from the grips of its mother
Struggles with the rules that keep the mezzanine from
Crashing down.

1) The official and ever-wanted right to speak one's mind
In a way only they can do. Religion, politics,
Every matter ever opinionated.

2) If a man entered your home and threatened
Every loved one that lived there, would you want to be helpless?
Defenseless? Or would you **** or maim to protect
Your family? A gun, a knife, and the right to do so?

3) Many people would be honored to house a soldier.
Simple as that, but what if they didnt?
Money is tight, there is no room? And they are sick of giving up
Their own beds and food for a soldier fighting for
Something they do not agree with?
Preventative measures are needed.

4) Nothing to hide, but constantly searched.
Is privacy really that unimportant?
No; it is important.

5) A crime, a trial; it should be obvious.
The same crime twice? Impossible.
Self incrimination? Non existent.

6) The right to know what you've been accused of,
To have a quick trial with an attorney and witnesses at your defense.
Imagine having no clue, and suddenly having a gun to your head?

7) A crime done by you or another,
And a jury to help the decision, but not step in the
Judge's place. Simple discussions of which laws applied and not
No longer took place.
Sed lex, dura lex.

8) The banishment of cruel and unusual punishment,
Outrageous fees payed for bail, pain inflicted in strange ways.
The morality of punishment made into law.

9) A common arrangement that an individuals rights,
Not written in the constitution, are secure and valid.
Yet, for some odd reason, it had to be added to prevent
Violation of these rights.

10) Finally, the abilities of each individual state
To decide and enforce for its own people.
The individuality each separate place craves and
Wants as a child wants his own decisions to be made.

There she goes, with a young heart in a ****** world. She’s so young and she could be so gullible. Love sounds like a dream but feels like trickery to her heart. To have power over her young heart, that would be the dream for the ****** in the ****** world. She’s so young, it would be so easy to lie to her. She’s so young, it would be so easy to take advantage of her. She’s so young, it would be so easy to manipulate her.

She feels every time she is lied to, taken advantage of, and manipulated, and she knows what’s happened to her. She doesn’t want to say anything about it, because she knows only the ****** would do such a thing. The ****** weren’t always the ******, and she could be one of them any day, and she knows.

At some point, however, she feels the need to say something as a preventative measure. She has a young heart and so many of the ****** want to **** it. The ****** world doesn’t feel safe to her. She wants all the ****** in the ****** world to stay away from her until they are no longer the ******. However, she is scared that everyone in the ****** world, including her, is the ******. She is scared that there will be no one left in her refuge once all the ****** are gone. She has to risk her fear because she believes her heart is young and she wants to keep it that way.

This
Anxiety is like boiling snakes in my stomach
Milky frothing water and peeling
(my)
Skin
(off speckled moles, preventative measure)
(I do not have cancer)
(At least not skin)
I'm blindly probing my skin for
(not lymphoma, no)
Any semblance of
(not breast cancer, no)
Caring
Is not for me
(I care too much)

the two amigos
standing through constant ****
since 2011
fell asleep
i on the couch
he in the armchair
trying to ward off
the oncoming
despair

Roller Coaster
Sparrow
Paper Bag
Picture
Diver
Market
Elephant

Roller Coaster: This won't be the typical mention of a roller coaster, about the ups and downs. But rather the fear I felt on the line for the ride and the reassurance I was handed by my companion and how I wish to feel that safety in words again.

Sparrow: I carried a baby bird to healing 4 years ago with a broken wing. But today I was asked for help with another and I could not have cared any less. I don't know if that's because I've "come to my senses" or just lost hope in flight.

Paper Bag: sound of ripping paper in half pause This is what I really heard when you told me you're doing well, without me.

Picture: I never did know what I'd find to do with this picture of a house, that I found in a house, that used to be my house... I'll just use it to say "house", because "home" is a word I don't know what to do with.

Diver: You are a cliff diver.
You take that leap of faith.
Your safety fails you.
Your back up fails you.

Really close your eyes.
Grasp the horror.
The betrayal.
The eventual impact of landing.


Thanks, mom.

Market: Remember when we had to wash our hands after every trip to the super market to avoid germs? What did we do to avoid what really infected us? What did you teach me to keep this sickness from creeping into my chest and eating me alive from the inside out? No preventative measures were taken against the most terminal illness that I could have picked up in any market, in any lifetime. So this is me, begging for a cure, and for the medicine I seem to have missed too many doses of.

Elephant: So... How's that for an elephant in the room?

What was thought to be a small island ear to the Bermuda Archipelagos in the North Atlantic Ocean, discovered a hundred, or so, years ago. it's now been found to be, a uniquely rare species of a giant frog.
Resulting in a summit of all the world's scientists, and leaders, fearful that this frog may hop, or leap. and such is it's size, and weight, could cause a giant super Tsunami, that could flood the entirety of the globe.
Therefore, should they put into place, preventative measures, such as culling it. with this in mind, the French delegation immediately offered to dispose of the frog's legs.
It was decided to approach the problem by visiting the site, where the frog was sat, so a large cruise ship embarked on a small voyage to visit the site, so as to decide how best to deal with the situation, and the fate of the frog, that the press were now calling 'Frog Island'.
Meanwhile, the frog, which was just awakening after a long hibernation, opened it's enormous eyes, saw what it thought was a large fish floating nearby, and without waiting, it's massive tongue shot out, and swallowed the cruise ship whole. the stomach of the frog, was happy to digest the actual ship, but immediately disposed of it's contents, all wrapped up in spawn, and delivered out of it's rear end, shocked, but alive, and soon rescued.
Subsequently, there was an uncertainty, as to how to destroy the frog. If it were bombed, it may still cause a Tsunami, if it were poisoned, he impact could cause catastrophic environmental damage, and poison the world's oceans further. Another idea was proffered, perhaps they could try to somehow pin it down to the ocean floor, but the scientists couldn't reach any agreement, as they had no way of knowing how strong the frog may be, and besides, maybe it was so big, it couldn't move, even if it wanted to. No-one could even guess at it's origin, and felt sure it was some kind of anomaly, of some as yet unknown species, as the largest known frog until now, had been the Goliath frog, measuring up to just over 12". They took some comfort by the fact that there were no indications, it had ever moved.
It's mouth was at sea level, and initially, it's diet seemed to consist of a variety of sea life, and assumed that the frog had eaten the ship by mistake. At it's rear, they soon discovered remains of all kinds of fish, including Whale bones, along with flotsam and plastics, and other debris. Further investigations, unveiled remains of ships, and aircraft, this puzzled scientists at first, but at least explained that the cruise ship hadn't been the first mistake, if mistake it was?
Meanwhile, conspiracy theorists, and the like, around the globe, went into overdrive, and started now to believe that the frog was the cause of all the mysteries that had ever occurred in the area known as The Bermuda Triangle, further investigation, helped along with satellite images revealed, that indeed, there may an element of truth to it all, as some of the missing ships, and planes from a period of over 100 years, were discovered by the rear end of the frog.
Although this seemingly solved one mystery, the bigger mystery, and potential global threat, was the frog, and another worrying thought, was did it have the potential to reproduce. If that were a possibility, was there another 'frog island' somewhere, lurking in the oceans, somewhere on this planet?
Various instruments were landed on the 'island', using similar technology as used in missions to the moon, to carefully find samples, that may give some clues as to how to deal with the situation. It was soon discovered, that the frog was in fact at least 2,000 years old. Furthermore, there was some kind of undersea volcanic activity, originating from the frog itself, somehow connected to it's digestive system, and burning stomach acids. Further baffling, and worrying scientists, as any interference could cause dangers to the structure of the planet itself, and it was still unknown to where it's feet were, so further investigations were urgently needed, as time was of the essence.
Meanwhile, the frog simply stayed where it was, aware of all the hive of activity around, and upon it, and remembered a joke it had once heard "good morning mister frog, how deep is the water today?" "kneedeep kneedeep!" said the frog. The giant frog was so amused by this, it let out an enormous belch.
Meanwhile, a nearby ancient under water volcano erupted, sending a tsunami across the ocean directly towards the frog, and arrived just as the frog had belched, in the process drowned the frog instantly.
An island, not so far away, a pair of giant eyes opened....
by Jemia

When I ran into your arms,
After four months of being apart,
I felt something new.
There was a new electricity,
Some sort of eccentricity,
Drawing me forth to your scent
And ******* my soul to your being.
I saw you again the next day,
But only a mutual glimpse in passing
Deepened our connection,
Tightened the puppeteer string between our hands.
I saw you again the next night,
At our first lone dinner,
Full of awkward laughter and true smiles,
Ending with ****** tension thick enough to slice
With the blades I keep in a little purple box in my sock drawer.
You told me you wanted to cut that tension,
Tear our preventative electrical wire to shreds
So you could reach my lips.
But then you left.
Five days of me without you,
Me determining ways I could destroy our barrier,
Thinking up the different speeds I could run into your arms,
You mingling the crowds in a far away place,
Feeling the lips of another girl.
And you had the audacity to tell me,
To be proud of your endeavors in lust,
Not thinking twice about your words to me.
I don’t forget words.
Especially yours.

If you think that your passwords are   Un-hackable, change them anyway...

In a recent study it is shown that women are 80% more likely than men to use the word "password" as their password. This gives hackers a #1 target. Along with "password" other easy combinations follow "1234" "4321" "123456" etc...

So what do we do to prevent pervs from getting our credit card password and buying all the stuff off of any perverted website...
Think about your password really hard, write down what it is on a private file "in/out of the computer", never ever have the same password for anything.

What is our government doing to make sure that they don't get hacked?
The governments preventative measures to insure that there is no "cyber terrorism" they have hackers hired to literally hack the U.S. Government. Then if they get through (which happens a lot) the government then immediately fixes it.

The way the government is insuring and enforcing security in the country is failing, due to the amount of "supposed" and "legally" obtained land around the world, the more they collect the less smaller the number of people you have to protect the area. The amount of money going into the country itself is much less than what is invested into international military involvement. Why spend so much?
Because Americans have a lot of pride, they think that the world owes it to them because their so rich. Yet the U.S. Has a debt of $19.3 trillion dollars.

Every year the US government spends $598.49 billion dollars, why? Since the US loves to put its big shiny boot into everyone's *****, a lot of people start disliking them, so the US ready to **** it's pants builds up a military that makes them look tougher.

When I was a child
I would walk into the forest,
and wonder how so many things
could remain untouched
and unsullied by humanitys
outstretched hands.
"They must want to."
I'd think,
but there must be strong magic here
to pervert those tendencies.
I didn't feel it then,
or maybe didn't understand
what I was feeling.

When I was a young man
I would walk into the forest
and wonder how ancient
the universe was,
thinking,
"It must be a wise and thoughtful entity, that preserves such places."
Some great magnitism that holds
these places together.
And maybe magnitism
is some sort of preventative magic,
or last resort contigency,
when things grow too desperate,
or too important to lose.

When I was an adult
I would walk into the forest
and wonder why
I didn't come here more often.
The poison of modern humanity
had settled deep in my vessel,
unwilling or unable to reverse
the natural course of the pathogen of time.
Alarmed, I sat thinking,
"Maybe the magic here now works against me."

When I was an old man
I would walk into the forest
and wonder how many more times
I could come back here,
before the void reclaimed
the energy spent on my creation.
It was a simple price
we all paid
for the time
we've borrowed.
And all at once,
I didn't have to wonder
why the magic hadn't faltered
on its duty in preserving
these ancient woodlands.
Because I knew then,
that I too
would soon become
part of this magic.

-Kevin James

My Comments On A Thesis Titled:

Capitalism *****! Cold War Starts Up Again! Nuclear War Looms! (See Note #1 below)
By Wolf Larsen on March 27th, 2014, 6:32 pm

Hi Wolf,
It is very pertinent that you have posted this thesis in "In the Trenches" section of the AT forum and it seems that you have also raised some valid points about what has been or is going on in the world these days. A lot of people will perceive the current world situation as a foregoing fulfillment of Bible prophesy no doubt and there is a religious program on TV called "Tomorrows World" that raves on about such things and what is or will be taking place. While I am a little more condescending towards your views expressed here than in the Poetry section with the The Rats and Cockroaches Will Inherit The Earth (See Note #2 below) piece submitted on the same date I am much more optimistic about what is happening in the world. Though as a matter of caution or fact I have to say that your views given in the above piece (the one posted in this section) need to be treated with respect and deserve some credit in the way you have presented the whole argument in this thesis. There is no doubt that things are reaching boiling point and that sooner or later something is likely to happen which may depict a "worst case scenario" in the future but what if we, the one's who are seeing the impending catastrophe about to unfold, take preventative measures and not allow it to happen. I will quote here one of my couplets in support of what I have just said:

Simple Observation #128
To reverse the trend, where possible, of an adverse condition or situation
one must take certain specific opposite measures with due consideration.

We have all been reminded in the past due to what has been handed down to us in the form of Scripture or Bible Prophesy, fictional tales and other "end time stories" that when we (as individuals or humanity as a whole) don't do the right thing a bad thing follows and this is universally known. This has been going on for thousands of years since the dawn of mankind and civilization but as far as the present time goes it has reached exponential proportions due to the ever increasing global population with consideration of all the new technology being invented and produced along with nuclear weapons that could if unleashed decimate the whole planet. The other matter I wish to point out here is that if we don't stop or try to reverse the trend of things moving towards our own doomsday or self destruction as a whole then the forces of nature will get to us in the meantime. This has been happening lately with ever increasing frequency since the industrial revolution started almost 200 years ago due to our plundering of natural resources and the resulting in mass polluting of the environment and the air we breathe. We have in fact been upsetting the natural balance and harmony of nature on the planet, which is really a living entity still evolving just as we are, and because of this it is reacting in ways that are manifesting such as cyclones, earthquakes and other natural disasters let alone all the so called climate changes that are slowly but surely taking place as well.

We have a huge battle on our hands that is taking place on two fronts:
the first being outer dealing with our own progress involving technological advancement which isn't a bad thing provided we do the right thing by nature and the environment and this is not really happening as it should and could be,
the second being inner dealing with our own stupidity and ignorance in the form of pride,(including anger and jealousy) greed and lust for power. I hereby quote one of my quatrains in support of what has just been stated:

Quatrain #93
With all of the technology that's around these days
have we not in fact become enslaved by its ways?
It should be used towards the immediate benefit of all mankind
eliminating poverty, hunger, disease and to enlighten the mind.


I also agree with most if not all of the things that Miss Take (Doreen) has mentioned in her comments under this topic as well.

Regards
George K.

We exchange phrases in the dark
Like playmates turned confidants
That needed a necessary spark
To release a subtle vulnerability

While my own heart goes crazy with this longing, festering desire
Unsightly circumstances that are shallow and pedantic
Helpless to the careful method
In which your soft voice enraptures me

If I paid attention
Suspended my voice of reason
I'd end up searching for a branch to connect us that bears no fruit
For attraction is aloof
And ever fleeting

And it's been years since we met
With nothing in between
No lover's dreams connecting us
All that comes from me on impulse
Is lust
As you lay enveloped in young covers
And I in forgotten rust

I lay here on my cowardly spine
Tracing lines through memories
Attempting to control the feelings overwhelming me
I'm Lovecraft's outsider
Who fell off the face of the earth once looking upon his reflection
My clever deception that forever keeps me second guessing

Here comes another confession
As we lay discussing seemingly ethereal dreams
You tell me surreptitiously
About your hatred for concession stands
And breach this tension
That broke my mind's sinful schemes

You're such a good friend
Lying in bed and taking the time
To engage in a real discussion
All the while I'm fighting to control how my face is blushing

I'm definitely attracted but I wouldn't hold that sentiment
So I sit with a preventative
Dose of rationale designed to corral all these untethered caprices

It's like a fascist demands to make a statement
While a whimsical, dying romantic sates himself in a debate
I don't ever ask questions to get the answers I'm looking for
When all it takes is a turn of phrase
Or an upturned twitch in cheek
Which leaks so much more than mere words can say

I appreciate you for the jovial tune your voice gives away
It brings me forward from self-deprecation and the drama Towards honesty

I value your pleasant enthusiasm while the lights are off
That dissipates my impure thoughts
It puts me in a righteous place
Until the break of dawn when we can see our faces
And once again adorn our individual reliefs

You've confided in me more than what others get to see
Life has been rough and even though I'm lingering
Longing for your touch
Your careful words mean so much
And truly I think it's enough

“Do you like it like this? Do you like it like that?
Just tell me which way you like it”
Thank you, J.T.

Jim Croce sang it, too.
“No, it doesn't have to be that way.”

Remember the Blow Monkeys?

Jackson Browne
Quoted, saying, “You have to take the trouble,
To try not to be misunderstood.”

Words spoken in the thick
Post-mortem.
Not ever remembered prior to.

Neurons wired to align to emotion
With the perfect elixir of chemical responses
Lining up

Wake up to choosing sensibly
Utilize hidden wisdom
As preventative care leaps to the front of the line.

I used to love the scars.
I used to love them, and they would comfort me when I was sad.
Now they are only a reason to stop, a preventative measure, something to convince myself to find another way to feel better, but it's not easy.
I used to love the way they looked on my skin,
now I cannot stand them being there. They are unwelcome.
I wish they would leave my skin forever, and I swear I'd never make another. I swear, I would never press that blade to my innocent skin again. I swear, I swear, I swear,
I would find another way to make the sadness leave.

*5.26.13

Many think that the poor have it easy.
Well, let’s see if they really do....
Ah, they must if you carefully consider
What they do NOT have to go though.
 
They DON'T have huge investment dilemmas,
Such as "Is my portfolio complete?"
Or "Will I maintain my financial status?
It's hard keeping up with the elite!"
 
The poor aren’t faced with countless decisions
That make their daily lives so insane:
“Which car should I drive—the Mercedes or Lexus?”
“Armani or Gucci?” “Which pill for pain?"
 
The poor do not have thousands of options
For health care, so for them it’s a breeze.
"Why do they need preventative medicine?
Emergency care should put them at ease."
 
Taking care of a mansion is tough,
So the rich always have a reason to grouse.
"The poor have it easy with just an apartment,
Or if they’re lucky, a ramshackle house."
 
The rich, having to juggle their money,
Are in a quandary, so to speak.
"The poor can live simply, for they get to live
From paycheck to paycheck, from week to week."
 
It’s hard to organize fancy dinners;
To get the best caterers, you have to pull strings.
"It's so much easier for the poor:
On food stamps can’t they still live like kings?"
 
Hiding millions of dollars is a challenge;
The Cayman Islands are so far away.
"For those don’t have the money to hide,
Life’s less hassle for them, you might say."
 
Tax loopholes are also a headache;
It’s hard to determine which ones work best.
"Those with no money don’t have to worry
Because they lack the funds to invest."
 
Just ask the poor: if they had a choice,
Would they be willing to make a switch,
And give up the easy life of the poor
For the complex, difficult life of the rich?

- by Bob B