ruthless compassion

Okay, okay.

So, one of my favorite poems of all time is William Carlos Williams' This Is Just to Say:

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

And I therefore, of course, adore I Will Alarm Islamic Owls, the brilliant parody by Francis Heaney, the title of which is an anagram of Williams's name:

I will be alarming
the Islamic owls
that are in
the barn

and which
you warned me
are very jittery
and susceptible to loud noises

Forgive me
they see so well in the dark
so feathery
and so dedicated to Allah

And, so, naturally, I'm delighted by today's addition to this category:
THIS IS JUST TO SAY
THAT I'M TIRED
OF SHARING AN
APARTMENT WITH
WILLIAM CARLOS WILLIAMS.

Thanks to qwrrty for the pointer.

This conversation has me smiling:

I was waiting for my slice of pizza to be heated up at my local Italian eatery, and there wasn't anyone else in line, so the pizza guy started chatting me up.

PG: How're you doing, my love?
me: Oh, I'm okay, how 'bout you?
PG: You know, it's okay.
PG: Hey, I like your hairdo!
me: Oh, thanks!
PG: I've gotta do mine up like that sometime. [lifts hat to show very normal hairstyle and color]
me: You should! It's funny to me how many people tell me they wish they could put a wild color in their hair. If you wish you could, just do it!
PG: Yeah, you know, black guys don't really do that.
me: I guess that's true! Black women do, though, a lot! I get a lot of comments from black women.
PG: You do it up! I'd look like Dennis Rodman, though. Freak!
me: You could do just a little shot of color!
PG: [laughing]
PG: You know, you oughta do braids next!
me: I did those a couple of years ago, actually! I got extensions and the whole thing.
PG: No way! You do it all! You're really fun. You must be the best to go out with. [hands me my pizza]

I just applied for a job that has my name all over it!

Okay, not literally, but as close as could be without them specifically writing a job FOR ME.