Gnarly

How quickly buds appear
when the sun returns each year
from it's protracted stay
so far away from here

but as the daylight dims
the creaky moan of weathered limbs
reveals the frigid way
of winter whims.

Quality

Are your goods any good?
Was the well drilled well?
Is that speck within spec?
Isn't tolerance hell?

Production

They're hoping you'll (by
virtue of a missing spine)
mindlessly comply
(forgetting you've a right to question why)
and follow the design
accepting every cheesy line
they're hoping you'll buy.

1%

A hundredth of a million
may not seem like much to some
but to many it would be a precious gift
for each unneeded billion
earned through pampered tedium
there's someone barely making it on shift

If one in a hundred makes a stand
perhaps a change will sweep this land
existence being equalized
for families they've fractionalized.

Nonprofit

They toil for naught
so others gain
from birth they're taught
to gulp disdain
unwillingly caught
in a cycle of pain

this common class
is bred to work
to serve the brass
and never shirk,
the right to pass
their only perk.

Machinations

You can hear that monster wailing
by the river to the south
with smoky tendrils trailing
as they issue from its mouth

the early morning sun's reflected
off its gleaming hide
denied to those protected
as they're taken for a ride

There are no knights or wizards
to slay this chugging beast
which gorges on our gizzards
as we blindly fuel the feast.

Lent

What's it like to build a house
and be the first one in
or drive a car that's so brand new
the wheels have yet to spin?
I wouldn't know, I've never made
a profit off my sin
existing on the hand-me-downs
of those that do and grin
increasing their possessions
when penance should begin.

Virtual Crack

I need another hit
to nail the boss's chin
way too hooked to ever quit
who will really win?

Those that write the code
are calling all the shots
but I don't care how much is owed
my stomach tied in knots.

Kicker

A guy behind a cow
will likely find out how
sopranos hit that note
(once he clears his throat).

Jury Rigged

An eight inch piece of wire
can keep the farm alive
when handy types aspire
to dabble and devise
it's easy to admire
their stubbornness and drive
no circumstance too dire
for those that improvise.

Irrigation

When blessed waters flow
commodities will grow
and sometimes they're let go

remember to conserve
amassing a reserve
to face a coming curve

security's a sham
and will expose your scam
unless you give a damn.

Harvest

Cut too deep
a scar is all you'll reap
your unproductive toils
in a lumpy jagged heap

sow too soon
and you won't have to prune
your estimate of spoils
as arid as a dune.

Grain

It's waving in the wind
on stalks of golden brown
rising up triumphantly,
and prized upon the floor
by those that like to walk
all over it,
sometimes it's but a tick
that tumbles much too fast
within a glassy cell,
and often it gets rubbed
by those that always choose
to go the other way.

Furrows

We were borne
through fields of corn
by tan but tender feet
three young boys
just making noise
and eager to compete

we would run
just for fun
and sometimes we would race
but no one cared
how they fared
for we were in our place

our country home
where fertile loam
and gnarly limbs of wood
could nurture us
without much fuss
we really had it good

till roots were torn
and ties were shorn
and we were forced to move
from innocence
to indigence
an age inducing groove.

Upturn

The sediment is borne
by currency released
when crystal bonds are shorn

as bullion from the east
compels the process on
prosperity's increased

and everyone will don
the vibrant hues that mean
the summer's over yon.