comfort food

creamy polenta, mashed potatoes, spaghetti & meatballs, mac and cheese sizzling from the oven, hot chocolaty brownies, a hershey bar with almonds - waxy in my mouth, new jersey blueberries with sugar on top - cool and in a bowl, sharing the big spoon with dad, on the couch, in summer.

ole's waffle shop, alameda 2005

something about
going back
the old; the familiar.
here
blue haired ladies replaced with younger blondes
who bring plates
of eggs and bacon, of meatloaf,
the brown gravy not alone
on the plate
like him, alone,
near the clock, also separate from it’s companion
Laughing Sally
they all remember her, Laughing Sally,
from Playland at the Beach, when times were different,
when they dressed up for a day of shopping, womanly gloves, manly hats;
when they dressed for anything, and life seemed more glamorous
than this one
the clock pulled out of its world
into this one
and like him, out of place
at the end of the yellow plastic counter
wondering
why is someone
photographing him
as he eats
comfort.