Postmodern Valentine Day*

Happy Valentine Day
She said
Handing him a card
While turning to the dishwasher.

Within the card
Was a line or two
Of verse
Written by an hourly
Hallmark employee
With a latte
A barley muffin
And a journalism degree
From a state university.

He gave her
A grocery store rose
And a cheap card
With a line or two
Of contrived verse
With a stupid cat
On the card's cover.
Then he reached for the remote.

Contemporary Romance
It appears
Is a concept
Best viewed at a distance
Through an unfocused lens
At a minimum of time
And a maximum of tolerance.


*Yeah...I'm a bit jaundiced.