The Five O’clock Blues – Ode to the Office Worker
Deadlines, Timelines, Die Lines
Waiting in Line, killing time
Texting, typing, printing, sorting
Another line, more lost time
Tie too tight, shirt not right
Ate too much for lunch, that’s my hunch
After five and I’m still stuck in this chair
There’s a solution, out there, somewhere
Contracts, Proposals, Presentations
Keyboard sluggish, adding frustration
Fingers moving at the speed of light
Hope to leave before its night
In box still full, not very cool
Neck getting sore, work a chore
All I can do is think about the door
Coffee at night, what a fright
Foot a tapping, won’t catch me napping
A job’s a job today, times are tough that way
Extra hours with no extra pay
At least I have a place to go
My job hasn’t been exported to Mexico
Back aching from my creaking chair
I’d complain to someone, but no one cares
Production, Reduction, Outsourcing
Accounting, Shipping, and Purchasing
Unemployment weighs so heavily
So here I sit until I’m seventy
Mouse finger sore, computer work a chore
Twisted phone cord my only reward
Staple and sign on the dotted line
No time to read, no time to whine
Making money for the man
Avoiding being an also ran
Looking above for something divine
What task at hand can I combine?
Kid’s at home hardly see my face
All I can think of is the database
Work, work, work, in everyplace
My existence has become the marketplace
Gotta relax but I’m too wound up
Should have skipped that last hot cup
Drive time traffic fortunately thinned
Catch some speed, just like the wind
Darkness looms like a coming storm
My life’s all work since I’ve conformed
Not alone in my nightly plight
I sneak a glance off to my right
The cars go by with other lonely souls
Other people enslaved to their payrolls
Accountants looking for loopholes
Statisticians working the daily polls
While CEO’s keep setting goals
Keeping us trapped within our holes
Shut my mouth and know my role
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Oh my gosh! Do I ever remember those work days with the same thoughts you write about, Ralph. Marvelous! Well done! Now hang in there – before you know it retirement will be calling you, for time goes by fast. Love this poem.
Isn’t that what it is all about! All of us wishing to hit the lottery and quit it all before life is over! lol
You captured the feelings of an office worker very well, Ralph. The title is perfect too. Great work.
Ah, the working man’s plight, a sad lament indeed. Lost we can become in false Gods and here you have nailed it Ralph, for the blood we let, is it worth it in the end? Great word usage and beautifully expressed my friend.
Most creative poetry and so very true. When you work for someone and not yourself it is always pure drudgery. Your poem reminded me that when I worked in NYC I was a marine insurance agent. One time a great big hurricane hit and there I was dragging about a ton of files (the days before PC) home to work on over the weekend.
Thanks for so many great comments – I enjoyed writing this as much as you enjoyed reading it. The concept of speed and “not enough time” has always been an interesting approach for writing – it truly captures the reader and makes them part of the whirlwind ride.