I fell in love with Katonah, New York
when I fell in love with Mrs. CarPeo
The year was 2012
After ten cross-country flights
—with my frequent-flyer miles
soaring to the heavens—
she moved to southern California,
where sunshine works over-time
The year was 2016
Presently, it is 32 degrees fahrenheit
in Katonah where I made plenty friends
at church, at the local coffee house,
at art galleries and Mickey D's
but I can't remember the name
of any one of them except Kevin O'Connell
who was the husband of Mrs. CarPeo's best friend
I only remember his name because
I had a grammar school friend
with the exact same name
Any homeowner in Katonah
with less than two acres
was considered a wetback
I do not miss Katonah for its' desirable lack
of poverty but I do miss the Everlast boxing-bag
on the next door property less than three hundred feet
from Mrs. CarPeo's front door
The first time I saw the bag,
I saw no human beings beyond
the perfectly-manicured four acres
in front of what resembled a king's castle
The heavyweight boxing-bag
was in the lower right-hand corner
of the property and had the living crap
punched out of it a dozen times by me
in the course of time
For half of those encounters, I had
a cheering section because the "King's Castle"
was a funny farm whose residents had names
like Dopey, Doc, Grumpy, Sleepy...
Einie, Meanie, Minie and Mo
They mostly called me Mike Tyson or Evander the Earless
but when I stopped punching the bag,
they called me Tyson Chicken
The funny farm girl I miss the most was Minie (or Mo)
She kissed me on the cheek twice
but please don't ever say anything
about that to Mrs. CarPeo
***
© PAUL OLIVERIO ________________________________________________________________________________________________
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