For H.C.
This guy down at the paddle tennis courts
Is both smart and likable—not always
An easy mix. An ad-man, he contorts
Truth for a living, spews those noxious brays
That sting innocents on ev’ry part.
Neither nets, repellent, nor solitude
Shelter us from his strident, piercing art.
Nonetheless, he’s a witty, welcome dude.
Here’s why: though rich from making victims feel
They gotta have the nonsense he promotes,
Those self same “gottas” never make him reel,
Never sail across his synaptic moat.
The secret of his own serenity?
“‘Gotta’ is life’s profoundest enemy.”
(7/29/10)