an old man lost on technology (poem)
Saturday, Sept. 21, 2002
i chatted to one of bry's real life friends one time and he was clueless as to how to chat, he was TYPING LIKE THIS AND DIDN'T FOR THE LIFE OF HIM UNDERSTAND THAT HE WAS YELLING AT ME... i wrote this....because OF THAT! That guy's been homeless, tonight Bry told me he's gotten on his feet and got a computer again and COULD I PLEASE BE KIND TO HIM AND CHAT???? so anyways, I was reminded....mostly it reminds me of my 79 yr old grandfather back in PA....In his life it's always 12:00
Flashing without end
Confusion creates his footsteps
And besides the VCR
What the hell is a cyber friend?
Hes gotten so itchy or is that just
Him rubbing his confused head
His answers lead to questions
And there he is stuck in dread
How did life move ahead of him?
Used to be that he ruled the world
Or is that just one sad memory
All his intelligence is now unfurled
The toaster talks back to poor Jack
And his car insists he wear his seatbelt
His calculator has no batteries in the back
In the shade his math skills always melt
His typewriter rusted in the shed
Was much easier on the hands
Than a pc eating all the money
Hes so willingly stood and fed
And now he just can't understand
No closer to being hip
Hes square
Hes wondering where he
Lost his keys
Push this silly button and
Theyll beep from anywhere
He has it because the salesmen
Said "this is what you need!"
The whole damn world isn't
About anything better
It's simply about man's GREED
The television used to be a marvel
In simple black and white
Now to find something to watch
He flips and flips with callused finger
MTV, sex, and violence
Fuck!
He was happier with Cronkite
And now that he's retired
And doesn't have a boss
He wonders what happened to peace
The onslaught of technology
Certainly has a giant cost
Today Jack had a yard sale
There were no antiques on his lawn
No yellow pages of newspaper
Nothing with a musty smell
It was held right after a perfect dawn
The latest and the greatest and
Everything was shiny brand-new
Black and silver svelte and glistening
In the summer sun his collection
Was making its grandest debut
And yes there he was amazingly
Behind his childhood 5 cent stand
Selling lemonade like mom used to make
A sign behind him "Take Everything from ME!"
Jack finally understood...
Shhhhh he said...c'mere and listen to me
"Life is not about what you own
It's all about learning to be FREE"
-PoeticaL
