Raindogblue

The Difference

It was 99 degrees today.

The seven degree difference

between today and yesterday

meant I could breathe

without my lungs hurting. 

Instead of sweat surging

from shoulders down to my socks,

the streams started at my shins.

I drank a gallon of water

and didn't feel thirsty. 

The prowler wasn't  overheating 

The number of beefs shrank by half.

I'm not returning home exhausted, 

and tomorrow, on my weekend, 

I can interact with my family

The Heat.

I ache.

I hurt.

I'm tired. 

I can't stay hydrated.

My body, my muscles,

are cramping up.

Yesterday, I spent the day

soaked from shoulders to socks

shagging one domestic beef after another,

my car overheating,

my water bottle constantly empty, 

in 106 degree heat.

I'm so exhausted,

I'm in so much pain,

it's hard to think.

Skull

Today's Lesson

Sarge sent out a message on the box
asking for last minute volunteers
for gang training.

No one stepped up.
I thought about it.
I could spend three hours learning
or shag calls 
in a hundred and six degree heat.

I took the training.

Self-Preservation

It's hot. Everyday
this week will be
over a hundred degrees.
Cocooned in the air 
conditioning of the car,
I sit and wait for calls.

It's not sloth, 
wearing a vest, wool pants,
and 30 pounds of gear,
it's self-preservation

and common sense.

Three is Better than Seven

I snagged a drunk

joyriding on a picker

on the East Village's driving range.

He's a keeper with a want for DUII.

I tried to book him,

but the jail nurses

won't take him.

He refused to answer their questions,

so I had to drag him to the ER

across town to clear him medically.

It's my Friday,

an hour before

the end of shift.

A hospital run

is always an endeavor.

I call ahead.

A room's waiting for me. 

The custody is grinning.

He's loving the attention.

He's try for a rise.

The nurses see him

within five minutes of his arrival.

The doc's there in ten.

I'm back at jail in an hour

with the hospital clearance.

I still have the paper,

but at least I'm off by three

and not seven.

Jackpipe

A jackpipe is person who doesn't play well with others: anatomically speaking, an asshole. 

Fire truck

Ingenuity

It's 92 degrees.

I shag a call

at the Catholic Charities

housing complex.

The building's halls 

are air conditioned.

The rooms are not.

Every tenant has their

front door open

with a box fan blowing

cold air from the hallway

into their apartments.

 

Jawjacking

Talking to waste time when there's work to be done.

Usage:

7David1and 7David3 had calls holding on the box, but they were busy jawjacking in the contact office.