Hep Cats On New York City Morning – 11th day of National Poetry Month
New York City Morning
It was grey that day
on Broadway and Dey,
greyer still beneath the scaffolding,
where a guy stood not even half-holding
a cat, that sat
upon his head.
It was not a Seussian feline,
(you know, the Cat-in-the-Hat kind),
but a cat worn as a hat, rather like
a stovepipe (without
the Lincoln hype) and
with fur, of course,
and purr (I assume)
and a tail instead
of a brim.
Honestly,
the guy didn’t hold on to it at all–
though the cat was two feet tall,
when seated–which he was
because
there was really no room
for him to stand
on the guy’s head.
The guy did stead-
y the cat, shifting shoulders and weight
in a levered stand-still gait,
a no-step dance of balancing.
But it looked precarious–
hidden claws nefarious–
also heavy–given the
size of the cat hat.
I looked, but kept moving up Broadway,
heading, as I do that time of day
to my subway stop,
not stopping to talk to the guy,
or to his cat either, this being,
after all, New York City.
This is my poem for the 11th day of National Poetry Month. (It was inspired by all the New York City poems posted lately by Claudia Schoenfeld and Brian Miller of dVerse Poets Pub. And also by the guy on Broadway with the cat on his head. Unfortunately, my battery was dead so I did not get a photo.)
Explore posts in the same categories: New York City, poetry, UncategorizedTags: manicddaily, New York City poem, NYC guy with cat on his head, poem about cat worn as hat, reverse Dr. Seuss
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ManicDDaily 
April 11, 2012 at 10:32 pm
so very cool…i remember you mentioned this guy with the cat in one of your comments…ha…this is one of the things i fell in love with in NYC…you just see the coolest and most unusual people…i def. have to come back…sigh
April 11, 2012 at 10:40 pm
Yes, my comment made me think of writing it, and all your poems and Brian’s. k.
April 12, 2012 at 3:39 am
New York sound great for a holiday. I do not think I would be mentally in sync with the cat hat aspects of it. My life is already surreal enough:)
April 12, 2012 at 6:06 am
Well you wouldn’t would you – stop and talk to the cat or the guy, I mean. It is enough that you saw them. Brilliant!
April 12, 2012 at 7:35 am
really cool capture of the guy…i so would have talked to him…smiles….there is a guy here that balances all kinds of stuff on his head…bottles balls what ever he can get his hands on…i will have to suggest a cat…
April 12, 2012 at 7:42 am
Ha, well, I”m always running late! You know, my camera battery was dead, but it turns out that there are a lot of pictures of the guy online; just about any google images search of guy with cat on head. (Maybe you have to add New York City.) k.
April 12, 2012 at 9:02 am
I absolutely adore this! I am a cat fan (have three) and naturally that would influence my experience, but I love the structure of the poem and the way you paint the picture. Thank you! I really need this today!
I know you’ve visited my ancestry blog, but my poetry can be found here poetikat-km.blogspot.com (although, you might want to ignore the latest offering as it was a throw-away.)
Have a great day! Kat
April 12, 2012 at 8:57 pm
This reminds me of a guy I saw in Mexico City–he had a dog with a cat on its back, and a mouse on the cat, all walking calmly down a jam-packed street,no doubt to a panhandling gig. I was rube enough to gawk, but the city dwellers continued on by without a glance. Enjoyed this–esp the tippy enjambment in the balancing stanza.
April 13, 2012 at 12:59 am
I’ve seen guys with mice on hat brims, but your trio sound pretty wild. K.
April 13, 2012 at 2:38 pm
This is way kewl !! NYC’s got it all!!