Amtrak
Work Ethic and I
are at a crowded Penn Station
standing in front of the Big Board,
waiting for our track to flash.
A few move up
-- Boston, Trenton --
but the crowd doesn't move.
They are all waiting
for our train and it's late.
W.E. kills the time
by pretending he's an alien
taking reconnaissance notes.
They are upright with pink epidermis, one head, and two legs.
Left appendages pull fairly large black boxes on wheels
and the right pushes small black boxes to what looks like an ear.
Only a very few have had these tails removed and almost all talk to themselves.
Finally -- Washington: track 15
and the bustle starts to the escalator.
We rush a bit to stand and wait,
but now we are focused,
we all know where we're going.
I lose W.E. in the crowd
and think about his scribble.
All seem motivated by some God-like force to flee at the same time, but move poorly as a unit like a funnel full of roaches.
I'm not worried,
he gets lost quite often
but always resurfaces.
He's fun to hang with
and doesn't drink much.
He travels light
and takes good notes.
