Author Information
The Consumer Part 3
He does not use a Mr. Coffee
But an ordinary kettle on the fire
No coffee-mate but milk, rich
With cream and grain sugar
Not with cubes
His sandwich for his daily hungry lunch
Is always home-made
And he washes it down
Not with a martini
Which spoils good victuals, sire
But pure Adam?s ale which
Is mixed with humorous banter
Not from tubes
Of TV, radio or highfalutin crunch
But of a past escapade
On his last trip to town.
His wife does the laundry
Some by hand so dampened
With soft or rain water
The clothes are neatly pressed
And although they may be old
They are very clean
Without wrinkles or static
And she never worries about the cling
He works in a factory
The workers never know what happened
To his ring around the collar
And many have confessed
To ill stories being told
About his seamed jeans
And though he may be a bit erratic
At work, he always goes home smiling.
He saves not for a vacation
But to buy his wife
A shoe due a year ago
Or his teenage daughter
Her first party dress
Or a toy for his four year old son
His last of five cheerful children
So tired from left-overs
Now showing signs of vexation
But being the pet of his life
Allowing him to be so
Unlike his loving mother
Showing signs of stress
He's from his father's mold
Whom it's just a matter of when
He'll be ready for covers.
Getting on with skin so corrugated
He is contented to go now
At least he has earned and gained
The respect of his generation
The love and warmth here
Will follow him forever
In the passing to the great beyond
Leaving a long pleasant memory
Always religious, staid and dedicated
He?d say to him at his pow-wow
How he never feigned
They?ll tell of his reputation
How he faced them without fear
For though poor; he was clever
He was steadfastly honest, never abscond
Or indulged in any skullduggery.
With anti-pollution to clean the air
The government declared war
On the automobile industry
Who said ok, but we will dump
It on the consumer, likewise
Then they say energy is short, conserve
And now we have nuclear power
With another fatal accident
Like Harrisburg, we?ll be in the atmosphere
Luckily we wouldn?t have any scar
And any more scientific technology
The pinch at the gas pump
Recently was no surprise
When hydro said we have to reserve
Of electricity, no refund for the consumer
But hounded foe his last bent cent
Then came Science International
With kilometers instead of miles
Good-bye Fahrenheit, welcome Celsius
Hi! How are your kilopastels?
What?s your stats in centimeters?
Wow! It sounds ridiculous
But the decision has been made
By a few misfits
With little benefit to us all
God knows what?s next in their files
Creating so much confusion and fuss
Like rhetoric old bells
Now gas cost more in litres
Which is ludicrous
We need a gov?t. of a different shade
Before we all lose our wits
