Joe Balaz


ON TIME



In da main library 
in wun city 

dat wants to tout itself 
as wun major metropolis

in business, culture, and art,

wun visual aesthetic
is kine of pathetic.


Four round display clocks

situated in da  Science 
and Technology Department

give da impression

dat da goal of being
wun apex entity

is not working out on time.


All da clocks
are not even functioning

and are frozen in place.


To add even moa emphasis
to da absurdity

every one is stopped
at different times.


Looks like da red tape

dat some big boss
stretched out

has been severed
in several places

and segments

are floating around 
aimlessly.


Screwed up 
is wun undahstatement

and da ovahall 
presentation of it

is da epitome of hilarity.


It’s moa like 
wun embarrassment

to da staff

in da Science 
and Technology Department

who have made requests
dat da clocks be fixed

on several occasions
ovah time.


Maybe da higher ups
need to take wun timeout

and paste all da pieces
of red tape back togettah again

so dey can address
da situation

and be on time
like da rest of da world.



STEALING FROM HIMSELF



He walks in wit wun limp

into da learned institution
wheah knowledge is stored

wearing wun leg support.


If you wuz really harsh
wit your assessment of him

you would say
dat it’s wun perfect front

to divert attention

from his sneaky plans
and course of action.


He takes wun elevator
up to da fourth floor

wheah all da foreign films
are stored
 
foa da public to borrow 
and view foa free.


Trying to be unnoticed
he goes through his routine

and slides removed disks
from DVD casings

into wun 
specially sewn pocket

on da inside of his coat.


Eidah 
he’s wun adept thief

or he’s just 
wun natural born kleptomaniac.


He’s very good 
at wat he does

until he gets snagged.


Da department staff
catches on to him

and dey have cut him breaks

by not blackballing him
from da place.


One day dough                    

he had to limp in
to inquire why                        

he had to pay
wun substantial bill

for items not returned.            


He suddenly stopped
ripping off stuff

aftah he had to pay money
foa his sticky fingahs.


It looks like
 
dat cured him
from his thieving impulses

cause da buggah
 
nevah show up
in da building foa awhile

until he eventually 
does again.


He enacts 
da same procedure.


I guess 
he’s wun semi-klepto—

Da kine people 
dat no can help it

and yet

who are periodically able 
to be cognizant enough

to regret it
wen dey are caught.


Poor guy

is actually  
stealing from himself

some of his dignity
bit by bit.


Weadah he has
his faculties or he’s sane

it’s probably not wun issue
wit his self-esteem

or his outlook
in da grand survival game

of getting wat you can
wen you can swipe it.

Joe Balaz is a poet and artist, and he writes in Hawaiian Islands Pidgin (Hawai’i Creole English) and American English. He is the author of Pidgin Eye, a book of poetry. Balaz presently lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

 
 

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