Dennis Walikainen lives in Michigan, apparently with the Communications Services department of Michigan Tech. He can be reached at dkwalika@ mtu.edu.






Nineties Guy (too late)

Rush laughs that manly guffaw (slightly forced)
And sucks a big Don Diego.
I've got an Explorer,
But his Expedition is bigger.
I've got a shotgun,
But I've never pulled the trigger.
Somebody get me a cheeseburger!
A guy showed me his brand-new IBM PC, back in 1979,
And you'd have thought it was a sportscar
Or a newborn, for Christ's sake.
I wasn't envious.
I felt sorry for the bastard.
I'd rather have a harpsichord,
Or a hammer dulcimer like I heard on Mackinac Island in the mid-eighties.
Or even that little rubber drum pad you begin with.
First rhythm method I never learned.
(It was only sixth grade.)
Kissing came later in the basement of a home-under-construction.
We got chased out by some lunatic in a pickup truck.
He smelled like cigars.
Safe at home in mom's arms.
Blessed Detroit.
Blessed 1966.
Or was it 69?


Dennis Walikainen




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