Me and my buddy are up and at it early today, some kind of
excitement about the holiday hustle and bustle, with genuine carols
being sung in perfect harmony off in the distance. The lights of the
city are glowing brightly just before sunrise and there was some
hope in the air of a great meal this evening downtown. Should be a
fine day under gray skies. Sposed to snow later in the day, a white
Christmas in the forecast and alwaysways seems to uplift the spirit
this time of year. For most folks anyway.

It's Christmas Eve, and pretty much like any morning in the city,
bleak and cold, temperatures hovering around freezing and frigid. No
telling what the day will bring, never do these days. Just gonna see
what fate has in store and row with the holiday flow. The coffees
hot and the fire is warm, Hands feel good wrapped around this Java,
the aroma alone would have enough caffeine in it to wake up any self
respecting former service man away from home. I'm in no damn hurry
to be out scurrying the streets in the maddening Christmas throng.
I'll just read yesterdays news and make my way into Bean Town and
see what's shaking. Do some window shopping, you know, the normal
thing to do around Christmas.

Says here in the paper that there were two more brothers killed in
Baghdad at a checkpoint. Just doing their job and whammo, some rag
head blows himself up taking these two boys with him to make a
statement. Some freaking statement all right, Merry Christmas Momma!

Blackhawk down, Mid air collision of some sort, claims more lives,
Car bombings, explosions and death in Israel. Some girl is missing
presumed dead, and bunch of young ones half starved to death
searching through garbage cans for something to eat, And by looking
at their momma and daddy's guts they aint missed a meal. Shit!

The Government is talking about spending eighty-billion bucks to
rebuild what we just blew up over in Iraq. I mean, their talking
about billions of dollars as though it was cheap as chicken soup.
Man what I and half of the poor sumbitches round here wouldn't give
for just a hundred bucks to call our own. I don't understand the
finances of war or the logic of breaking it to fix it. Some call it
high finance strategy on Capitol Hill. I call it a giant cluster
fuck and a waste of money. We got folks starving in the streets of
America and we can't feed our own, let alone build safe places for
them to stay. Makes one want to love the Bureaucrats to death
Literally. I don't see anywhere in this paper where they bulldozed
down a city building yesterday cause there were squatters living in
it trying to keep out of the elements. Old men, some women and
children cast out into the mean streets so some slumlord could make
a quick killing on a real estate deal. Where's the justice?

This is a joke; some movie star is donating a few million to save
the habitat of bullfrogs in the rain forest of East Dip-wad
Argentina. Another movie geek is funding another grand sum of money
to help out starving actors. What a freaking humanitarian. wonder if
he would do it without the publicity? Here's another, two smart
assed rich kids who have had a golden spoon shoved up their ass all
their lives are living on a farm somewhere in Podunk USA. Making a
living off making fun of honest hard working folks who farm for a
living. And, we the people are enjoying this immensely. Beats the
shit outta me! I guess I just don't have a sense of humor left,
specially when it comes to spoiled, over privileged, rich, snot
nosed, arrogant twats berating the underrated hard working Farmers
of this country.

Damn, it's starting to snow,

It's gonna make it rough getting into Boston now. White Christmas is
falling fast and hard upon us. Guess I'll just curl up and grab a
few winks and wait the storm out. Christmas Day will get here soon
enough and well, my funds are limited anyway. Tired of bumping into
the crowds and getting those "you poor bastard" stares and
derogatory comments. Best just settle in for one more cold assed
December day.

But first before I do I've gotta go shopping for a new home. I hear
they just unpacked a lot of freight down by the pier, might be some
choice cardboard boxes to choose from. Maybe even a wooden crate or
two to keep the home fires burning. All I need now is some Chestnuts
and my holiday will be complete.

Here's hoping

Merry Christmas Bro...

©12.23/03
Richard Preston