Thanks Partick, Angel, and Andrew; it's terrific to know the snap may've hit
a resonant chord, and to know just where it might've resonated.
The men and women I've known and loved most have the Jurgen tendency---as
well as the K,J and F tendency. Kind of like "penny wise and pound
foolish", it's universal.
Good laugh, Andrew! A thought: Females throw away their partners' stuff
with impunity, but a male wouldn't dare do it with hers. Hmm....
And Angel, you nailed it: Frances loved Jurgen. Her words at his funeral
were a tribute to him; she'd had no need to replace him because he wasn't
"broke" [meaning she'd always been sexually and sensually drawn to him].
Best,
Judy
2009/10/7 andrew burke <[log in to unmask]>
> I understand the man, and I understand the poem. (I save things and my wife
> throws them out - somewhat quickly for my taste.) If I complain, I may be
> next ...
>
> 2009/10/7 Angel Marquez <[log in to unmask]>
>
> > at least she waited it out.
> > stacking and labeling resonated well with the tone of voice the key
> phrase
> > conjured.
> >
> > the red ribbon and bow are killer.
> >
> > On Tue, Oct 6, 2009 at 11:05 AM, Judy Prince
> > <[log in to unmask]>wrote:
> >
> > > HIS BEST SHIRT
> > > Jurgen's spleen rejected waste
> > > the sort that his children and otherwise
> > > frugal wife quietly ordered online
> > >
> > > these substitutions for chronically ill
> > > but working computer towers, keyboards
> > > mouses, printers, cellphones, refrigerators
> > > mattresses, and eyeglasses
> > >
> > > insulted Jurgen who mantra'ed aloud
> > > "If it ain't dead, don't replace it," whilst
> > > Kelsey and Jane and Frances unboxed
> > > sleek grey metal electronic cubes and cords
> > >
> > > and Jurgen refused to sleep on any sheets
> > > younger than his daughters, could be depended
> > > upon for pieces of string
> > > as well as both local newspapers
> > > dating from the day they'd bought their home
> > > all which he carried to Dad's Room in the basement
> > > and gently stacked and labeled
> > >
> > > this living library of his life which his daughters
> > > [to themselves] called Dad's Mausoleum showed
> > > family and friends that which made him proud--
> > > his singular focus, healthy philosophy
> > > gentle triumph, his reassuring insistence
> > > on a conflated pragmatic aesthetic
> > >
> > > Discourageless, K, J and F put a shirt box
> > > beside his plate of birthday cake on 2 October
> > > their candle-blowing puckers especially energetic;
> > > Frances handed him his eyeglasses
> > > held together with paper clips, and he read
> > > their accompanying card assuring him
> > > it'd been 30 years since they'd first
> > > given him this white Oxford cloth button-down shirt
> > > so he could wear it now
> > >
> > > "But I already have white shirts I haven't worn;
> > > therefore we can keep this one for perhaps Christmas
> > > dinner with your cousins," Jurgen smiled with
> > > his happy solution, adding the red ribbon and bow
> > > to his careful collections
> > >
> > > at his funeral in November his wife
> > > remarked to her lover as they appraised
> > > the coffin'ed Jurgen in his splendid new shirt:
> > > "If it ain't broke, don't replace it."
> > >
> > > -------------------------------
> > > jbprince
> > >
> >
>
>
>
> --
> Andrew
>
> 'Beyond City Limits', pub. ICLL @ ECU, available at topnotch indie
> bookshops
> - list at http://hispirits.blogspot.com/
>
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