Waste Not

The leftovers were sitting there;
With just a little heating,
They’d make a perfect dinner,
One that I had planned on eating.

But there was just a tad too much
And yet out of the question
Was saving it, for by tomorrow
There’d be indigestion.

And so I nuked it all and ate;
My plate had several fills,
Which is the reason why I feel
Stuffed right up to the gills.

I could’ve thrown the extra out
But what I eat is based
Upon that old mentality
That food you shouldn’t waste.

So now I’m bursting at the seams
From everything I’ve tasted;
At least I’ll sleep content to know
No single crumb was wasted!

Fireworks on TV

Saw the fireworks on TV
Exploding o'er the city;
The river and the bridges
Made the scene look extra-pretty.

Yet it was not at all the same
As watching it outside,
When every boom that thunders
Makes the crowd electrified.

The television played some songs
With patriotic flair,
Renditions so pathetic
It was hard for us to bear.

I guess I can't complain too much - 
At least I saw the show,
But seeing it in person
Is the better way to go.

The Scientist

A different breed of human
Is the scientist, it seems,
For things beyond my ken
Compose the basis of his dreams.

While average people think about
Activities mundane,
The scientist may delve inside
The pathways of the brain.

In language I can't understand
The research gets explored;
Discoveries that knock his socks off
Leave the layman bored.

I'm grateful to the scientist
Whose pinpoint laser scope
Produces end results without which
We'd relinquish hope.

At the Podium

A speaker at a podium
Looks out upon a sea
Of faces, listening or not
To varying degree.

Some lecturers go on and on
And haven't got a clue
The audience is tuning out,
As folks are wont to do.

The power point display clicks by
With charts and lots of graphs;
It sure would be improved with just
Some repartee or laughs.

Of course, some people at the mike
Have really got the knack,
Possessing all the magnetism
Other speakers lack.

As someone in the conference crowd
It's always such a shock
When those presenting ramble on,
Despite the ticking clock.

It matters not how smart you are
Or what you might believe;
When lecturers drone on and on,
The crowd can't wait to leave.

Chandelier

My parents had a chandelier
When I was growing up,
Above the table in the room
Where company would sup.

Its crystal doodads dangled down
And sparkled in the light,
Creating quite a festive mood
When it was lit at night.

But cleaning it was quite a chore
And had to be entrusted
To someone up on tiptoe,
On a stepstool, to be dusted.

Plus once a year or so, I guess,
Each droplet got a bath,
Which adds to lots of hours of work
If you just do the math.

I always found that chandelier
Too gaudy for my taste,
A little bit pretentious
For the home where it was based.

Yet when I'm at a venue
With a glitzy chandelier,
I envision my old dining room,
My mem'ry crystal clear.

The Camera

The camera doesn’t lie, they say,
But it sure gives one pause
For there, upon the screen, are glaring
All a person’s flaws.

The saggy skin, the double chin,
The wrinkles, moles and dots;
A close-up lays it bare and man,
You might just want to plotz!*

I see why folks get camera shy –
It’s not that they’re aloof;
They know they’re not young anymore,
But hate to see the proof!

*faint, explode

A Downside of Adulthood

Whatever you discover,
It’s the grown-up thing to share it
And when others flaunt their joy in it,
You have to grin and bear it.

For there really is no reason
To keep secret what you’ve found
When some other folks can benefit
From how you’ve worked the ground.

Still, there might be some resentment –
Just a tiny little twinge –
When you hear of their enjoyment
While you’re stuck out on the fringe.

It’s a downside of adulthood
That to sulk’s not in good taste.
Suck it up, for generosity
Rarely is misplaced.