Here is a poem someone wrote about a random encounter with a friend of min.

[Swede]

My friend Andy,was found dead in his bar on Tuesday. We grew up together and we always stayed in touch. He was rough around the edges but he had a kind heart. Anyway here is the poem.




Bar-T Saloon




there is no longer a highway
at three this January afternoon
snow stops me at a central Saskatchewan town
through blowing white I squint at a fade sign
the Bar-T Saloon on Main Street looks promising
four pick ups angle parked on the street
a row of side windows which always means
Hotel or Used To Be Hotel


his beard is two feet long
his hair even longer
name's Andy
inside of the second finger on his right hand
a brown-yellow stain
from the millions of cigarettes perched there
raised to invisible lips hidden in the black beard

How much for a room? I asked
at the edge of tears
ready to pay anything
Forty dollars plus tax
fine with me as i head for the free standing
ATM,he stops me
I meant twenty-five
Do you want a drink?
he pours white cooking wine
into a beer glass he has shined on his shirt
brings it to me while I grip the pay phone
explain to my sister-in-law
I won't make it to the farm tonight


~~~

he shows me a room in the back
in the corner a pile of five broken TVs
one looks like it's been punched
a strong rural fist
Sorry about that
plenty of clean towels though.
green carpet,orange bedspreads
I keep my Rottweillers out back
Sometimes I let 'em sleep in the hallways here
but I won't tonight cause you're here
somewhere under the beard a chuckle rumbles
turns into a hearty cough
the tattered orange carpet is covered
in black dog hair
the bottom of my door catches the frayed edge
I have to hold it down with my foot
before the door will shut

I unpack walk back to the bar to play
some pool against myself

at four thirty,I ask if the TV in my room
can pick up The Young and the Restless
he turns it on for me in the bar
and Victor Newman is as big as this room
on the screen usually reserved for the NHL
a rough mechanic from the reserve up the highway nurses a Coors Light
he points his beer at the TV
asked me if that young lady is supposed to be kissing
that old man like that
I stop my pool game
I tell him,no she's not
he's her father-in-law
Then what the fuck's she kissin him like that for?
I explain that she's vulnerable
and he's been supportive
the only one in the family who has been.

I call the 8 ball to a corner pocket
the red felt on the table so old it bunches
in front of my fingers as I line up the cue ball
VLT's ding from my left
I make the shot,stop to lean
on one of the tiny round tables
both hands holding my cue
catch the important plot developments
I would otherwise have missed

~~

Andy offers to make me salad and chicken fingers
he need only to fire up the deep fryer in the back
sounds like steak and lobster to me

a paper napkin with a neat knife and fork
an ancient bottle of Thousand Island
set at a round table near the TV
the stuffing is coming out of my chair
he makes me beef noodle Cup-of Soup
fries and freezer burned chicken strips
the news says the historic hotel in Craik
has burned to the ground
Andy places a scratched restaurant bowl before me
in holds four macaroons and two Arrowroots
That's all the sweets I got,he says
tells me he tucked his beard in his shirt
when he was working with the food

~~

at six in the morning I come into the bar
find a pot of tea,two slices of toast
and a glass of orange juice
Andy waits for me,pulls my chair out
refuses to take money for the breakfast
his hug leaves long black hairs on my parka
when I leave I see that while I was finishing my tea
he has brushed off my car with the push broom
that sits outside the tavern door

Andy told me
Highway 6 is the better bet
I leave his hair on my collar

-Kimmy Beach

[redqueen]

1. Sorry for your loss...

and thanks for sharing that... brilliant.

[Swede]

2. My nephew found the poem on the net,after he'd heard of Andy's passing.

My nephew was really fond of Andy.

[Bertha Venation]

3. Swede, I'm sorry you've lost your friend.

This poem paints a wonderful picture of an obviously sweet man.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

4. My condolences, Swede. May Andy rest in peace.

Souunds like a great and gentle man with kind heart and a sweet soul. :hug:

[Swede]

6. Still no details of the cause of death.

Not sure why.

[Kali]

5. nice

condolences




crap something in my eye

[Swede]

7. I just got an update,Andy died of a heart attack.

I was worried it was foul play. He was 50,but he led a hard life.
RIP Andy.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

8. My dear Swede...

This is one beautiful poem! It catches him so vividly...

My deepest condolences to you, and to everyone who loved him.

That which is remembered, lives...


:hug: :hug:

[Swede]

9. The drive home tommorow will be tough,Peg.

No parent should bury their child as the saying goes,his parents are in a mess. I can remember Andy as a skinny,brush cut, little fella. We hit it off right away,I was the big Swede and he was the little Hungarian.