Assimilation
I know a native Southerner
Who's lived too long in New York.
So apostate has he become,
He eats fried chicken with a fork.


At Second and Arch...
The Widow Ross had an upholstery shop
And there she sewed some flags,
Spangled with five-pointed stars
That she made from petticoat rags.

Historians deny she was the first
To make the banner with needled thread.
Despite all the debunking critics, though,
Betsy lives in the American head.

As the Italians say, "If it's not true,
It remains a well-made story,"
Better in fact than Captain Driver's
And the relic called Old Glory.


Brief Winter Storm, Atlanta
In the evening the snow descends.
The streets are hushed.
In the morning, the sun ascends.
The streets are slushed.


Clerihew: Astaire II
Fred Astaire
Epitomized savoir-faire.
Onscreen he never did anything gauche,
Not even with Nina Foch.


Fame
Some poets achieve success in this life.
Others must wait for Posterity's rewards.
Edgar Guest owned a Cadillac.
The rest?  Banged-up Fords.