roller boogie

broken hearted & soul sick we decided to get out of the house.  like everyone we have doomscrolled the videos of horror, terror & abject cruelty.  we are outraged.  we are fucking fed up.  poetry is not a salve.  it is not a balm.  like WCW said, it is difficult to get the news from poetry but many men die everyday from lack of what is found there.  remember the reading/writing of poems is to engage the world, as it is, but if only maybe we can, thru language, change it a little for the better.

even so, we got out of the house tonight.  a little exercise was in order.  we picked up l., anna's sister, on the way to the roller-skating rink called, natch, The Rink.  it used to be called King Skate Country when we were wee kids.  but the place looks just the same.  even the bathroom hadn't changed.  tonight was Adult Skate.  anna & l. have their own skates.  but me, i haven't laced up a pair of roller skates in at least 10 years.  i needed to rent mine.

thing is, i managed to stay upright.  i might've been the oldest dude there too.  the music was mostly EDM & hip-hop.  played at a volume where the bass was not heard but felt in the solar plexus.  anna is a natural & looked great on the floor.  the effort to stay upright & skate the oval of the floor was some really freaking work!  my legs still feel like jelly.   

it would've been cool if the house DJ played some tunes that were on the PA when anna & i were regulars at King Skate Country.  like 'another one bites the dust' by queen.  & 'don't go breaking my heart' by elton john & kiki dee.  but the DJ played music for the mostly younger skaters.  & there were more than a few skaters that had moves & grooves that could give the skaters of the roller boogie era some competition.  

anna took a pic & video of me. doing my thing.  again, i hadn't laced up skates since nick was a cub scout many years ago & we had a cub scout event at The Rink.  i surprised myself as i managed to gain a bit more confidence in my skating.  tho i am sure the skaters on the floor probably saw this wobbly old man & made mental notes to steer clear!

there might be a poem in it!  at any rate, here is a pic of me, ready steady poeta, about to get into the groove of an ordinary night in america.

peace & love