Paying The Rent

Paying The Rent
---------------
(from Boston Rediscovered)

I'm paying the rent
for a bit of time
on Stuart and Tremont

I once ate roast beef
here
with horseradish
and sharp cheddar,
waiting behind
rope lines
and driven appetites
prodded by theatrics,
strip shows
and cheap cinematic screens
obscured by cigarettes
and gay boys miffed
by my desire
to actually see a film ...

It's a diorama
of my personal history,
somehow
infused
with airwaves
once announcing
body counts
and psychedelic sentiments
more brilliant than
supernova incandescence...

The Age of Aquarious
seems to have come
and gone
without the slightest whimper
of regret
or innocence--

It's all gone now,
that sharp thread
of raw curiosity
and unbridled
animosity...

The smokey screen
of the Stuart theater
now serves
Big Macs, Egg McMuffins and
Filet-O-Fish sandwiches
to the faces
of Chinatown...

and I now sit
with an Italian combo
and a cinnamon roll
to the sounds of
business chatter,
employee evaluations
and investment strategies...

Hair is no longer banned
in Boston

... it's been styled
for power

josjr (2012 0124)