Chicagoetry: Pindaric Ode to Everett McKinley Dirksen

PINDARIC ODE TO EVERETT McKINLEY DIRKSEN

My man: you make Chicago proud.
Nobody, dude, and I mean NOBODY, remembers who you are.

I fucking do:
Horse-trading, WITH CIVILITY,

with LBJ over bourbon,
trading judges for votes.

You're in The Right Stuff,
for Christ's fucking sake!

Newsbabes gather every day
at your building. I eat

my heart out.
You'd be proud of

Paul Meinecke,
I sincerely believe.

Everybody remembers Paul
Simon, thinking he wrote "Me and Julio

Down by the Schoolyard."
Maybe today, fucking MAYBE,

somebody will Google
you. Praise GOD!

-

J. J. Tindall is the Beachwood's poet-in-residence. He can reached at jjtindall@yahoo.com. Chicagoetry is an exclusive Beachwood collection-in-progress.