Monday, October 18, 2021

Joe Balaz Presents The Egghead Tsunami, Jeffrey Spearfishing, And Opening a Crab Like A Locket

HALF DOZEN DONUTS



I need some donuts.



How can I keep my opinions up

witout my half dozen donuts?


Virtually impossible.


To keep pace

I need wun sugar fix to fix da fix.


Yes, I’m responding

to da latest gossip around town.


Watevah it is

it needs addressing


cause deah’s new stuff

every adah day.


Da tsunami of comments

is ovahloading da ovahload.


From da idiot to da egghead


all kine viewpoints 

are going around


and I going add to everyting too.


Eh, I love to contribute,

cause I stay community oriented.


Wen all da stories circulate


sometimes up is down 

and down is up.


Consequently speaking

dis temporary rant is up too—


Dat is


until I visit da bakery

and finish my half dozen donuts.




SMALL KINE LUAU



If you saw Jeffrey

as wun young teenager wit his spear


at first you would wonder


wat he wuz doing.

He wuz wun tall skinny kid


walking around and looking down 


in all da cracks

of da rock formations


dat lined da beach at Papailoa

between da sand and da sea.


Da single head spear dat he wen use

had wun barb on top


and if he wen nail someting


most likely 

da ting wuzn’t going get away.


Jeffrey wuz searching

foa da many black island crabs


scurrying around


and hiding out

inside da cracks.


If you tink about it

dats not wun easy ting foa do


to catch crabs li’dat.

You figure every once awhile


you would hit someting


and maybe da ting 

would stay on your spear


but if you kept watching Jeffrey


you would notice

dat he wuz scoring moa often den not


wit each thrust among da rocks.


Da fact dat he wuz doing dat

since he wuz five years old


wuz probably da reason 

he wen perfect his special skill.


Jeffrey prided himself

in da payoff.


Wen da family got home

aftah spending da day at da beach


his maddah would take

da small bucket full of crabs


and she would wash ‘um 

in da kitchen sink.


Den wit her thumb


wit each crab 

she would flick open da top


like she wuz opening 

wun locket


foa put some salt inside.


Fast food Hawaiian style

wuz right deah


aftah Jeffrey’s maddah


wen get wun bowl of poi

from da refrigerator.


Just watching her eat

wit full on enjoyment


in da small kine luau


made Jeffrey’s 

crab hunting efforts


all da moa worth it.




luau     Hawaiian feast.


poi       Staple pudding-like food made from taro.





Joe Balaz writes in Hawaiian Islands Pidgin (Hawai’i Creole English)

and American English.  He is the author of Pidgin Eye, a book of poetry.

In July, 2020, Balaz was given the Elliot Cades Award for Literature as an Established Writer.  It is the most prestigious literary award given in

Hawai’i.  Balaz presently lives in Cleveland, Ohio.