Day 143

Today's words:

Cocktail
Fax
Hardware
Cuff
Lead
Legs

I set down my cocktail
And walked over to the fax
Machine; another flyer from the hardware
Store had just come in. I tugged at my shirt cuff
And sighed.  This can lead
Nowhere good.  Time to stretch my legs.

The legs
On the cocktail
Waitress were long and shapely. Was she trying to lead
Me on? The fax
Machine spewed out another ad. I rolled up the cuff
Of my trousers and prepared to bicycle to the hardware

Store. I judge a neighborhood by its hardware
Stores. Once gentrification sets in they're gone as fast as two legs
Can carry them.  Sometimes I'd really like to handcuff
These developers, but mostly I'll just have another cocktail.
I'm thinking of getting rid of my fax
Machine; all I ever get is ads.  E-mail has lead

To its obsolescence, just a Home Depot has lead
To the death of many local hardware
Stores. So no more fax.
Trying to attract the attention of the girl with the legs
To bring me another cocktail
And turning down my cuff.

I once got a silver cuff
Bracelet as a gift, but the relationship didn't lead
Anywhere and I sold it. Ah, here's a fresh cocktail -
After that I'm off to the hardware
Store, with the memory of her legs
In my mind. I'll take the fax

Flyer with me, just to ask them why they still fax.
Just an off-the-cuff
Remark might get them thinking. The owner was old, with short legs.
I know his store had once been in the lead
In the hardware
Business but that was long ago. I'll buy him a cocktail

And we can talk about fax machines and how they lead
Nowhere. I'll tug my cuff and ask about hardware,
While thinking of her legs and sipping my cocktail.