Walla Walla

Monday after dinner. Stayed home from work today and went to the doctor. I have a sinus infection for which the good doctor Kalonaros perscribed antibiotics and cortisone pills to reduce swelling so I can breath. Feeling lousy and jumpy, suddenly don't have a grip on the future, just know something has to change so that the kids and I are not perpetually in survival mode. Better paying job is the first thing on the agenda, but where and doing what? Saw a job in Walla Walla, Washington believe it or not. Job sounds great, writing on healthcare topics. Looked up Walla Walla, and watched people go in and out of a cafe on a web cam. Looked up poetry in Walla Walla, and there seems to be a thriving poetry scene. There are two colleges in Walla Walla, which would explain cultural bent of the very pretty town. And house rentals are significantly cheaper than here on Long Island. Walla Walla is fun to type and say. I wonder how far Johanna in Albany, Oregon is from, well, Walla Walla. Here is a poem from a Walla Walla poet:

WELCOME TO WALLA WALLA

by Charles Potts

Welcome to Walla Walla,
Tiny Republican enclave
In the desert,
Reluctantly giving it up,
Lot by lot,
To a consortium of
Italians, who had it first,
And Hispanics, who’ll get it next.

So what am I doing here?
Free Berkeley radical
Lunch bucket liberal
Capitalist poet
Marxist real estate broker
Overweight Hippy without a hot tub
In the brutal summertime.