perfect summer day depression blues

the yachts and speedboats are piling up
tax write-offs at the marina
a kayak glides past free
     river cooperates
down by the casino
a self-help gambler's anonymous shingle
flutters in the breeze
     the phone number may be out-of-order
     might not pick you up
     unless you own bootstraps
     & a private economy to ride out
     the big waves
or
you can go barefoot
learn to tread water
like the rest of us

the geese know
how to work the system
even in a crowd & bicycles
     like the sky
          finds perfect blue

--- e b bortz

(published in opednews.com, July 31, 2013)
(published in earth notes and other poems, Least Bittern Books, 2015)