so it's memorial day
which for many is a chance to run to the nearest beach or outdoors resort
or barbecue
but for moi
is a day to stay here in Manhattan while the "normal" folks are away..
i like to stick around during "get away" weekends and split when everyone's here
its all part of my "us and them" way of life
the "us and them" way of life is easy to fall into
get a job that employs you at night
and you may quickly become an "us"
get a job in which you have monday and tuesday off
but work friday and saturday..you're headed right into "us" land
stop washing your hair every day.."us"
wear black leather pants to brunch..."us"
don't go to college right after high-school
and either manage to learn more and rise higher
then the bulk of your high-school peers who went right into college
with no college education at all
or do as i did..wait 12 years and then put yourself thru
and get your BA at the grand old age of 32
or hey 52 if it suits you..
yep....that's an "US" way to educate
don't just agree with the pack because it's the republican thing to do
or the democrat thing to do
but agree or disagree as your heart dictates even if what you say out loud
does not jive with your chosen party, if you have a chosen party
you're a political "US" baby
pick your friends based on who makes your mind think
your heart feel
and your lips smile
not by how they dress, who they know, what they do for a living
or how good they look along your side
"you're hanging with the US's"
fall in love
and just let yourself fall
because it feels right
because you're mentally stimulated
because you're physically stimulated
because he/she makes you laugh
and it has nothing to do with the amount of
money, power, zero body fat, of wash board abs he/she has
yes then, my darling, you are making love in "US" land
i've always been an "US"
some of it was not of my chosing
(honeys if you saw the way our mom dressed us you woulda though we were white trash freaks from hill-billy country, not the kids of over-educated jews on the Jersey shore)
but much of it was of my own doing
like dieing my hair pink in high school
chosing to embrace punk rock in a part of jersey that only accepted hard rock and disco, then moving to NYC at 16 to join a sea of "US" folks who were marching to their own drum beats
it was I would say rather "US" like to skip cooking school
and intern with a whole bunch of old school male chefs
who hated women in the kitchen
then telling them to "suck my dick"
being an "US" has its draw backs
you never do feel like you really and truly fit into any group
that can be lonely late at night or between the hours of 9 and 5 on weekdays
you'll probably never truly understand things
like an IRA account
or pension fund
and honey's nobody will ever introduce you to their mother
without at least a few words of explanation
"no mom really..she's a huge success...seriously...she only dresses like a homeless person...honest..she owns her own home...yeah..its just the grunge thing you know.."
but if my life depended on it
i dont think i could ever be a "THEM"
and honeys that's not to say
you can't be an "US" if you're stuck in a 9 to 5 job
you gotta do what you gotta do
to be an "US" all you really have to do
is be yourself, be in your own skin,
follow your own rules
and dance to your own inner beat
once you do all that
you can't be a "THEM"
even if you want to
because "THEMS" march together
one long streak of yellow neck ties, throw over the shoulder
and perfect little cocktail dresses with matching clutch purses
no, no no
my dear
i am an "US"
here today on Memorial day
i stay in Manhattan
and will most likely sunbath
on a park bench
in Thompkins Square Park
listening to the waves
of pigeons, pit bulls and skateboarders
but that doesnt mean
no that certainly doesnt mean
that i would not have gone to the beach
if anyone had ^%$#@^&&* invited me!!!
damn it!
