Poem: Chillin' in the Afternoon (in California)

Chillin’ in the afternoon

I lean back and

Forget the clock’s rhythmic ticking,

Ticking away the minutes

And hours of lonely

Vigils on a lover’s island outpost.

The swift summer breeze

Caresses my hair and

Protests the stillness of palm leaves,

Rouses wind chimes from sleep

And sings in the

Hollow of my snow-cold bottle.

Losing myself in history books

And Cuban cigars

Whose smoke dances is my delight.

I pay no mind to outside worries

While the weather’s mild

In my Californio tropical paradise.

They say summer don’t last forever,

But neither do draughts,

And each passing hour of the clock

I ignore is one moment closer

To action,

Charging bulls,

Ringing bells,

Salty tears,

Laughter and wine,

And then my heavy heart
Is free to fly

In search of El Dorado.

* * *

Tropical island graphic from the game 0 A.D. and used via CC BY-SA 3.0 license. San Juan Capistrano image by "Lordkinbote" and used via CC BY-SA 2.0 license. Both images obtained from Wikimedia Commons