the hard-pressed holiday dater

all the glitz, glam & gluttony
that comes with this time of year
in our overstuffed, overwhelmed,
neon-light-extravaganza-empire
provoke through the television screen
on the streets, in the restaurants, in the
parks, in the stores, in the warmest of places &
the coldest,
a sense that one must be attached to another
to frolic with the fishes
to be capable of anything close to happiness.

so like clockwork,
desperation piles in &
those who might never have settled for such
ridiculous company,
turn over a new leaf (regardless of whether they are
really sincere to themselves about the whole thing)---
what follows is a series of dates that
hold none of the importance that a relationship which
might of spontaneously ignited
with a growing interest from both individuals
culminating in an explosion of
newness & beauty
which may very well flourish into any number of
positive things---
these dates fulfill their obligations
they help the making of appearances at family functions
they ensure a conversation piece (no matter how dull)
at any number of parties or public gatherings &
quite possibly they might keep said individuals
seemingly warm through the winter months.

but when the new year has rung in all the bells & whistles of
reality,
and after valentine day’s capitalist pounding takes its toll
the side-effects of the holiday dater’s submission to such a
desperate move become apparent &
everything soon crumbles when the spring months begin to
show the face of freshness
riling even the most committed
to look elsewhere for that burst of energy---
soon the december to may is traded in for a
may to
december.