the spread

the modern house is laid out
in a sensible design pattern
for example the entry
fronts the kitchen
where food preparation is a pleasure
on imported italian benches
designer stove and cupboards
the dishwasher is active but is silent

while adjoining is a dining room
round table and four chairs
for cozy little gatherings
or family meals taken in the evening
between children’s shows and news time
on the tv in the corner

it’s pleasant
snug and nice

there is a lounge room
with a space for entertainment
a nook to make a library
and excellent separation
of the ensuite and master bedroom
from the number two and three neat bedrooms
the laundry and a bathroom

it all fits together well
ideal for the modern family
not too large for them
no no

~

I rattle around this house
in the middle of suburbia
it’s a long way from my office
in a spare bedroom
through the kitchen
past the lounge and to my bedroom

I leave the television on up there
so I can hear the sound of something
other than my echo and the clatter
of my fingers pounding at the keyboard
the quiet can disconcert me
but not even the neighbours can hear me
when I shout to hear my voice sound out
the fence-line is designed to maximise my privacy

the spare room is kept at ready
for a visit from somebody
I don’t know who or when or why
but if they come I know it will be ready

the dining room is a storage space
the table is surrounded almost covered up
in papers from this job or that
and the kitchen bench
holds a week of mail and three local papers
it’s almost always bills and the papers
get redirected to the garbage can

I do the dishes once a while
it’s hard to justify the dishwasher and I am loath
to wash by hand
I don’t dirty them too often I don’t cook
except the electric fry-pan
on top of the fancy griller of the stove
to fry an egg
from time to time

it’s a good job that I like my space uncluttered
I have always traveled lightly on possessions
and I have an acreage of house now to myself
like an indoor farmer I can roam
the paddocks of my own open range
yee ha yee ha

I better go check the boundaries

---

© Frank Prem, 2003

29/12/17