By R. L. Keller
It was one of those
thankfully rare days in Santa Barbara where the rain was coming down so hard
that the drainage systems around the Nelson Institute of Marine Research were
only marginally able to keep up. The
blond’s drive in from his condo had been bad enough. He’d barely been able to keep the SUV, even
with its all-wheel drive, on the road without hydroplaning into a ditch. Now he faced a parking lot almost an inch
deep in standing water, with almost that much more coming down every
minute. He parked, took a deep breath,
grabbed his briefcase, and made a mad dash up the steps leading to NIMR’s Admin
building. He heard a whistle through the
deluge but ignored it until he was inside the front doors. From there he watched his CO – and best
friend – make the same “Dash For Dry” that he had.
Once inside, as the brunet
gave himself a shake, he grinned at Chip.
“I think I should have worn my swimsuit this morning, and changed once I
got here,” Lee said, looking down as his decidedly soggy appearance.
“I think I should have
stayed in bed,” Chip muttered back. He
glared out the closed doors into the continuing deluge. “I think I need a drink.”
“It’s only 0725 hours,” Lee
admonished him.
“Your point?” Chip turned the glare on his friend. With another chuckle from Lee and a frown
from Chip, the pair headed for their respective offices.
But even Chip’s third cup
of coffee couldn’t trigger his brain to ignore the rotten picture out his
office windows and focus on the reports in front of him on his desk. Instead, he found himself grabbing a blank
notepad and doodling grumpily.
Soggy, Soggy Day (to the
tune of Starry, Starry Night, with very sincere apologies to Don McLean)
Soggy, soggy day
Paint your window dark
and wet
Look out on a winter set
With heavy clouds that
mask a bright blue sky
Clouds on top of clouds
Drench the shrubs and
sagebrush hills
Coupled with the winter
chills
Together work to
scramble normal thoughts
Now I understand
Why my mind is so
depressed
Why my psyche so
distressed
My friends all think I’m
weird.
They would not listen
They ignore my whines
I think I need some
wine.
Soggy, soggy day
Flowers drooping from
the weight
Traffic slowdowns made
me late
My eyes reflect how
strong my headache pounds
Paperwork abounds
But it’s hard to
concentrate
I don’t know if I can
make
Myself complete the
necessary work
Now I understand
Why my mind is so
depressed
Why my psyche so
distressed
My friends all think I’m
weird
They would not listen
They ignore my whines
I think I need some
wine.
For it’s said that
sunshine
Lightens every soul
And when there’s only
rain and fog and
Nothing else to think
about
My brain dissolves into
a murky mire
I should have realized
before
That my bed was where I
Should have stayed this
morning. Too late now.
Soggy, soggy day
My brain is empty of all
thought
Because of soaking shoes
and socks
From walking through the
NIMR parking lot.
I’ll never get them dry
In time for meetings I
can’t miss
Oh, wouldn’t it be such
bliss
To simply crawl back
into my warm bed.
Now I think I know
What it is that I must
do
First I need to find dry
socks and shoes
Then get my six in gear
They will not listen
To my dumb complaints
They’re just as wet as
me!
Chip polished off his fifth cup of coffee and looked down at what he’d written, suddenly bursting out laughing at himself. “Chip, old boy, you’d better hide this where Lee can NEVER find it,” he continued to chuckle. “You’ll never hear the end of it.” He took his ramblings, stuffed them in his very bottom drawer, and reached for the stack of reports.