Eggs & Fur: Morning Routine…
by Robert M. Katzman © January 18, 2013
***
6 am
Cold wet black nose
Resting on my cheek
I don’t need an alarm
Not when you sleep with Lassie
Or in my case, Betsy
***
She wants out
No discussion
I stagger up
Wrap a blanket ’round
My chilly bare skin
Find the door
Then the kitchen door
And she’s gone
***
I slip on my jeans
Open the fridge
Grab the eggs
A clear glass bowl
Break all the eggs
Toss out the shells
The three yellow eyes
Staring up at me
***
Then, knife and fork
Real butter
Shredded Cheddar
A wide flat
Cast iron pan
Fill the stained black teapot
Cold water from the tap
Fire it up on high
***
Fill my liter bottle
Three scoops of rich coffee
The deep aroma
My morning gift to me
Add enough sugar to make me happy
I know how much time I’ve got
To rustle up the eggs
***
I drop a chunk of butter in the pan
Another fire
I wait
It sizzles
Holding up the pan
I waltz the lump of butter
Around the pan’s dry surface
***
Then draw two lines
Up and down
Left to right
An Irish Cross
So pretty, my bubbling darlin’
***
Then I fill in the four spaces
Ready for Cheddar
Sprinkle cheese all around
Like confetti
Sizzling
Melting
Begins to burn
***
I pour in the eggs
All around the pan
Atop the burning cheese
Using a fork
I break the egg whites
Only the egg whites
***
Spread them over every inch of the pan
Whites thin and flat as a crepe
Sprinkle black pepper intensely
Over the unblinking yolks
Then everywhere else
Then the salt, evenly
I wait
***
It all cooks together
Edges beginning to burn
The bulging liquid
Egg yolks boiling
The fiery union of
Cheddar and Eggs
Is complete
I slide the ensemble
Neatly onto a plate
***
I hear the teapot whistle
Always the same damn tune
Then more insistent
Like a railroad crossing whistle
Screaming:
Now you listen to ME!!
***
I turn off all burners
Pour boiling water into the liter
Shake well
Then shake more
Screw on the top, tightly
***
My dog barks
A single demanding bark
I open the door
She rushes in
Impatiently dancing
Her black nails
Typewriting
Clicking, clicking, clicking
On my warm wooden floor
***
Betsy
Like her snarling ancestors
Together with mine
Within a cave
Grabs her crunchy biscuit
From my fingers
No sharp tooth ever grazing my hand
Races to her corner of our kitchen
Her brown eyes darting swiftly
For predators
To a dog
Every room is a jungle
***
She turns around
Three times
On her cushy kitchen dog bed
In her distant brain
Flattening the grass
Curling up like a
Furry apostrophe
A warm bagel
With suspicious eyes
***
I wolf down my eggs
Pour me a tall wide
Torrent of coffee
Into a heavy clay ceramic mug
Inhale the rich brew
From hot mountains in
Madagascar
***
I relax
Betsy snores
Mammals in unison
We share another
Kitchen morning
Together
***
Part II
A Person Doesn’t Have a Dog
A person doesn’t have a dog
The dog has them
Betsy is eleven
Her soft muzzle
All white now
Has trembling trouble
So apprehensive
Trying to jump down
Off of our bed
Needs my help
Getting back up upon it
***
When she wants to do either
She looks back
Questioning me
Her wet brown eyes
Expecting my assistance
Not certain she’ll get it
Tho’ she always gets it
Human enough to
Remember who we are
To each other
Now
***
Our silent communication
Remarkably shorthand
At this point
She cuddles against me
When we sleep
Wife on the East
Dog on the West
Both with the capacity
To bite me
***
Betsy’s
Dependent on me
For a sense of
Security and concern
A wonderful connection
Sympathy and warmth
Between
Two aging mammals
Futures uncertain
Who need each other
************************
Publishing News!
Bob Katzman’s two new true Chicago books are now for sale, from him!
Vol. One: A Savage Heart and Vol. Two: Fighting Words
Gritty, violent, friendship, classic American entrepreneurship love, death, heartbreak and the real dirt about surviving in a completely corrupt major city under the Chicago Machine. More history and about one man’s life than a person may imagine.
Please visit my new website: http://www.dontgoquietlypress.com
If a person doesn’t want to use PayPaI, I also have a PO Box & I ship anywhere in America.
Send me a money order with your return and contact info.
I will get your books to you within ten days.
Here’s complete information on how to buy my books:
Vol 1: A Savage Heart and Vol. 2: Fighting Words
My books weigh almost 2 pounds each, with about 525 pages each and there are a total together of 79 stories and story/poems.
Robert M. Katzman
Don’t Go Quietly Press
PO Box 44287
Racine, Wis. 53404-9998 (262)752-3333, 8AM–7PM
Books cost $29.95 each, plus shipping
For: (1)$3.95; (2)$5.95; (3)$7.95; (4)$8.95 (5)$9.95;(6) $10.95
(7) $11.95; (8) $12.95; (9)$13.95 (10)$15.95 (15)$19.95
Outside of USA: ($99.00) due to the weight of the two large books.
I am also for hire if anyone wants me to read my work and answer questions in the Chicago/Milwaukee area. Schools should call me for quantity discounts for 30 or more books. Also: businesses, bookstores, private organizations or churches and so on.
My Fighting Words Publishing Co. four original books, published between 2004 and 2007 are now out-of-print. I still have some left and will periodically offer them for sale on my new website.