the place was crowded.
the editor told me,
"Franky get some chairs from upstairs,
there are more chairs upstairs."
I brought them down and we opened the beer and
the editor said,
"we're not getting enough advertising,
the boat might go down,"
so they started talking about how to get
advertising.
I kept drinking the beer
and had to piss
and when I got back
the girl next to me said,
"we ought to evacuate the city,
that's what we ought to do."

I said, "I'd rather listen to Joseph Haydn."

she said, "just think of it,
if everybody left the city!"

"they'd only be someplace else
stinking it up," I said.

"I don't think you like
people," she said. pulling her short skirt down
as much as possible.

"just to fuck with," I said.

then I went to the bar next door and
bought 3 more 6 packs of beer.
when I got back they were talking Revolution.
so here I was back in 1935 again,
only I was old and they were young, I was at least
20 years older than anybody in the room,
and I thought, what the hell am I doing
here?

soon the meeting ended
and they went out into the night,
those young ones,
and I picked up the phone, I got
John T.,
"John, you o.k.? I'm low tonight.
suppose I come over and get
drunk?"

"sure, Franky, we'll be waiting."

"Franky," said the editor, "I guess we've got to
put the chairs back
upstairs."

we carried the chairs back upstairs.
the
revolution was
over.

© Frank Silvanski