The plate umpire removes his mask with a flourish
in the third inning of a double header,
a grocery list including overripe plums
mingles with the lint in his right front pocket.
He will not forget the plums this time
and he will be home in time to watch Bowling for Dollars
with his ex-wife's purring cats.
He will soon be among the missing.
The players, seeing this, scratch their shaved heads,
and leave the field in a cloud of dust
and a hearty Hi Ho Silver Away on their way to a taproom.
The field will be overrun by dandelions.
The taproom razed.
A misplaced modifier plucking a banjo on a two-wheeler
heading out of town is profiled by a black-and-white.
The accoutrements from It's a Wonderful Life
enter stage left and float balloon-like
above a metropolis's exposed underbelly.
They follow the well-worn path of least resistance
on their way to the Best One Trick Pony Awards
for whatever year it happens to be.
Overripe plums huddle in a crisper
while outside a croquet match heats up.
Someone or something cameos a house
in multiple listings. The bulging dumpster holds
the breaking news.
A garage sale for kitchen appliances
that were taken on a wild payment plan ride to hell
spills out into the street.
Library books spring up, annoyed and overdue.
All of it sounds too good to be anything but.
Of course the sun will rise on cue
the paper will lay spread-eagled at the end of the drive
and the rain will roll off our tongues
on those nights when we take the time to listen.
