Saga of the Apartment Dweller

         RENT.Too much. Quiet. Too little. Freedom from serious investment, no name other than home. #htspoetweet

 

The recent tweet, above, inspired the following poem.

Renting 

Smell of others’ ethnic cooking.

Sound of snoring through thin walls

and music not at all my choosing.

Late and early—banging doors.

Windows like a guillotine.

Stairs, too many. Oh, my thighs!

Rent, too much, but less than mortgage.

Quiet, too little.  Still,  it’s home.

Well, it's October and although the topic for the month is "trees" I can't fault our socially conscious Heights-ers for focusing on political themes instead.  This tweet came in and deserves a response.

#htspoetweet So many people are not working but have jobs. US suffers #CongressionalShutdown while elites play games.  

Lament of the Government Worker

Some of us are called to service

working for our nation’s purpose.

Our individual self-worth is

satisfied through social justice. 

Our government was founded

on the rights of opportunity.

Democracy is grounded

on the principle of liberty. 

I ask you now; how free am I

if, as I serve the public realm,

my government declines my pay

while Congress refuses to man the helm?

Tweet me your thoughts #htspoetweet on this or trees or any aspect of life in the Heights. 
Your friendly neighborhood Poet Laureate, Kathleen Cerveny