Brunch

Get up!  Get up!

It’s time to brunch

Get dressed so we’re not late

That scrumptious meal ‘tween breakfast and lunch

Every Sunday it’s a date

Hurry up!  Hurry up!

Pull yourself out of bed

Too much partying the night before

Not to worry ‘cause you’re about to be fed

If we can get you out the door

Sign up!  Sign up!

It’s a two-hour wait

At Clinton Street Baking or Prune

No time to waste; it’s already late

Lines grow longer after noon

Order up!  Order up!

Organic eggs served sundry ways

Are you craving sweet or savory?

Stuffed challah bread or rich Hollandaise

Biscuits dripping in delicious gravy

Drink up!  Drink up!

Bloody Marys all around

Garnished with olives stacked on a stick

Be careful as the first sip goes down

It’s a cocktail with a kick

Eat up!  Eat up!

Binging is so easy to do

Leave not one morsel on your plate

Excuse me, I need to visit the loo

Sick from this gluttonous state

~kfu

Shred

Drip-drop
Tick-tock

Ass to grass
Don’t stop!

Jumping jack
Box hop

Face flushed

Squat 'n' pop

Feeling faint

Take a sip

Swish-swoosh
Clink-clank

Deep breath

Let it out

Tighten, tone

Body ripped

~kfu

Cranberry Isles Couriers

Mail boats come

Back and forth they carry

Not just letters

But people they ferry

Across frigid waters

Back and forth all day long

Work starting at dusk
Not ending ‘til dawn

~kfu

Alphabet City Summer

Scorching summer heat

            beats down

producing rolling pearls of

                                             salty dew

    on sun kissed skin

            speckled brown and hot

asphalt reflects

            watery mirages

                                                refreshing

imaginary pools

                             of sweat

                                                   soak

light summer dresses

            clinging to damp skin

like cheese

     on an Artichoke pizza pie

                                                melting

in this urban oven

~kfu

Good-Byes

With his smile and wink good-bye

My eyes spill streams of salty dew;

Fair flesh streaks black

The hours are so few.

Thoughts jumbled and words mumbled

Our strides quick on Alphabet Street;

Fingers lock binding hand in hand

I stumble, knees weak.

And horns holler and sirens scream

As we hustle on our way;

Past brunching tables and cupcake carts

Oh how I want him to stay.

And horns holler and sirens scream

But not a word escapes my lips;

For a farewell with such uncertainty

Strains my heart until it rips.

With his smile and wink good-bye

I watch him descend into catacombs out of view;

Warm tears burst forth like summer rain showers

Oh how the hours and days flew.

~kfu

Silent Heart

I lie with you on sandy shores

Together but still oceans apart;

Our bare feet submerged in warm mounds of sand

I stifle my tormented heart.

As our bodies bask in that bright, shiny sun

Thoughts linger through cool mists of ocean air;

Will you wait for me I wonder longingly

But these words spoken I would not dare.

And hours pass and waves crash

Your heart hitting my ear like a beating drum;

Children scamper by with buckets of sand

Off to a new adventure they run.

And hours pass and waves crash

My insides silently screaming;

The calm, warm smile spread across your face

Knows not what my aching heart is pleading.

I lie with you on sandy shores

Together but still oceans apart;

Hoping the day will come soon

When I no longer silence my heart.

~kfu

Rain

Wash away the pain

that ebbs and flows inside me.

Pummel down on the hurt

that refuses to go.

Cleanse the sadness

that infects and binds me.

So that when you pass,

I will again bloom and grow.

~kfu

Bed Invasion

Itchy, scratchy, pesky mites

Raiding Gotham overnight

Clinging tight to clothes and sheets

Leave old furniture in the street

‘Cause these itty-bitty biting bugs

Hide deep down in fabric and rugs

Waiting for nighttime feeding to begin

When they suck life from warm-blooded skin

~kfu

The Seductress

I lie in bed, my body naked and flushed. The open window providing no relief from the sweltering summer heat. My mind empties, allowing the sounds from the street below to invade my consciousness. The blaring of incessant horns and impatient sirens assault my senses, putting my nerves on end. I toss and turn trying to escape the city’s clutch, but I’m only drawn further into its mania as a quarrel erupts between lovers. Their malign and scolding words echoing off building walls, entering my chamber, my sanctuary that no longer feels sacred, but dirty, covered with the smut and grime of the city. Dirty like the bum sleeping on the steps of Penn Station who reeks of inexpensive ale and self-defecation. Dirty like the cheap whore on the corner of Eleventh Avenue and Forty-Second Street who sells her soul to fulfill the carnal addiction of a stranger. Dirty like the dilapidated drug dens in Alphabet City that crawl with roach and vermin infestations.

Utter abhorrence.

Overcome with disgust, I cover my exposed skin, shielding it from the sins of the city. But, my flesh cries out to the temptress, freeing itself from the suffocating bondage of the blankets, unmasking its desire to mingle with the night life, revealing its yearning for the scandal and forbidden excitement contained on this enchanted island. So, I surrender myself to her mystifying madness like a tormented slave surrendering to her master. I surrender to her beauty, her charm, her exotic pleasures and promises of freedom. I surrender to all of her seductive whispers, and, suddenly, my mind is at ease. The cacophony outside my window no longer resembles a clamor of confusion, but the hum of life, pulsing through her veins, carrying on her spirit. And, with this revelation, she lets me sleep.

Sweet serenity.

~ kfu

Little Invaders

(A haiku collection)

Scurry on the ground

Little, gray mouse invading

My warm home for food.

_

Dirty, cooing birds

Fluttering upon the sill

Ruin morning sleep.

_

Vermin run along

Rusty iron train tracks

In a game of chase.

~kfu

The Kiss

Always kiss with the passion of a last embrace,

one final sweet taste of the ecstasy

that you want between you and me

because when your eyes flicker open to reality,

you'll know it can never truly be.

~kfu

Morning Rush

Air gusting.

Wind whistles up the concrete steps of the Essex Street Station, alerting commuters to the approaching train.

Pace quickening.

Feet scamper faster down the narrow, congested passageway, nipping at the heels of dawdlers ahead.

Cards swiping.

Turnstiles halt momentum, blocking progression forward to the converging masses.

Metal spinning.

Bodies bound toward the tracks like coils springing out of a clockpunk creation.

Bells chiming.

Arms reach out to wedge open sliding steel slabs for one last straggling straphanger.

Doors shutting.

Shapes slump back onto the yellow, rubber platform edge, hands rest on jutted hips in frustration.

Train vanishing.

Curses spew like venom shot out at fading red taillights disappearing into an abyss of serpentine catacombs.

Watch flashing 8:46 a.m.

~kfu

Manhattan, My Muse

Outside the city buzzes full of life and intoxication

Inside the heart freezes, empty with numbness and isolation

Bright, shining, streetlights dazzle and entice millions to stimulation

Vacantly dull orbs swell and pour forth painful realizations

On her shores there is promise to fulfill every whimsical desire

But only through enduring loneliness and denial

In order to conquer the city that never sleeps

One must be unyielding, callused, and never weak

Seize opportunities that appear at every subway stop and street corner

Shed the doubt that dwells deep within every bone cavity and muscle fiber

Dance with the frantic flurry of strangers fighting forth to their final destinations

Brush off the chips imparting weight and trepidation

This wonderland beats and weathers the meek like a skillful master

Rewarding unwavering persistence, commitment, and strength of character

Hear her tempest sirens singing to the dwellers of this concrete isle

Mounting confidence and determination igniting into a blazing fire

Embody her for she is what inspires

A muse both loathed and admired.

~kfu

Rain Falls On Manhattan

I sit, perched on a green leather couch in Future Tan

Waiting for a friend to get her New York tan

Looking out at the circus that is Forty-Second Street / Times Square

Through a water-streaked window resembling a tear-stained face

Droplets pound the pavement, disturbing dirt and grime

Frantic people rush from buildings under cover of the New York Times

A man without an umbrella or raincoat tries to hail a cab

They rush past, fast, furious, never slowing, never stopping

It’s 6:20 p.m.

Street vendors scurry to close collapsible carts carrying soggy pretzels and hot dog buns

Don’t Walk signals rapidly flash bright red for danger

A man sprints across the street, dodging murky swamps of muddled rain

A careless few wander off the curb, waiting, oblivious to their mistake

A cab flies by, splashing dingy water on Armani suits

The assaulted recoil, cursing and screaming inaudible screams

Onlookers point, snickering and laughing inaudible laughs

The man without an umbrella or raincoat stands soaked, still trying to hail a cab

They continue to rush past, barely breaking as they cut the corner curbs

It’s 6:30 p.m.

My friend exits her tropical paradise, flushed and confused

The activity below us unfolding like a scene in a Broadway show

Together we watch the sky close its eyes and weep on Manhattan

~kfu

A Lass Through the Looking Glass

Stare into this looking glass

Where images morph

As the sands do pass

Down the narrow passage of curving glass

Shifting along a bottomless sea

Of turbulent water

Filled with depth and mystery

Where you will uncover me

Where you will discover me

Finally

~kfu 

Ferrell

I am stardust illuminating an abyss of darkness.