the rat

overnight rain has collected
into the murky San Antonio River,
the river walk still asleep
fascinated, I watch a fat brown rat
scurry to devour
a half-eaten Jack-in-the-Box burger
teeth shine
like aluminum trash cans
in dawn sunlight
accidentally, he slides down his rat ass
into the drainage ditch
slipping hope,
in the year of the rat

the cat

under a downtown San Antonio bridge
plenty of bony tabby cats
curl up legs for scraps
on this unseasonably cold Saturday,
bums hurry to grab
Meals on Wheels sandwiches
leaning back on bird-crapped walls
fat cats in Washington don’t care
huddled, pigeon-holed by a capitalistic system
today the lame duck Prez said
the economy is slowing down
but, there’s no slowing down that sandwich line

the hat

Big window sign
at the Salvation Army
says, “$1 Hats”,
outside the thrift store,
off Alamo Street
a shopping cart
runs into on-coming traffic
trucker caps, baseball hats
go flying everywhere
new Mercedes almost hit,
one hat reads,
“Mo’ money, Mo’ Problems”

– Rafael Andrade Garza © March 12, 2008