< my sister won't eat bacon fat on Christmas or any other day >

[rayheinrich]

                 
                               
                               
                            < my sister won't eat bacon fat on Christmas or any other day >
                               
                                i'm looking for Christmas wrapping paper
                                instead of making cornbread
                                so i'm in the garage
                                busy piling some stuff
                                i don't recognize
                                on top of some other stuff
                                i don't recognize
                                but that at least
                                doesn't weigh as much as the first stuff i didn't recognize
                                and suddenly realize
                                that where i thought the paper was
                                was where it was in another garage
                                in another house
                                in another decade
                                but i do see a box
                                that might just be the wrapping paper
                                and i pick up another box
                                to make space to get over to it
                                and i knock over a bottle
                                that has a red and green bow on it
                                and so must be an old Christmas present
                                and it turns out to be sherry
                                and so i put the box of whatever it was
                                i was moving to make space to get to where i was going
                                down
                                thereby taking up the space again
                                and blocking my path again
                                and i take the bottle back to the kitchen
                                and open it
                                and sip it  
                                and it's a little bitter
                                but it will do
                                and i set it down next to the cornmeal
                                the flour
                                the sugar
                                the baking powder
                                the salt
                                the milk
                                the eggs
                                and the olive oil
                                which i'm using
                                instead of bacon fat
                                because my sister won't eat bacon fat
                                and because i used up all the butter
                                making pie crusts this morning
                                and yes i know corn bread doesn't taste as good
                                when you make it with olive oil
                                but you CAN make it with olive oil
                                and that's what i'm going to do
                                because the damn pie crusts wore me out
                                and that's just how it's going to be
                                and i check the oven
                                which has filled the kitchen
                                with the scent of this morning's apple pies
                                and it's Christmas
                                and i tell my sister
                                that i found sherry instead of wrapping paper
                                and soon
                                i promise
                                we'll have cornbread as well

                                                - - -