Happy 2023, and time for a change: three by 3 is now two by 3 ! Any comments can be sent through the reply section on this posting or mbates8@msn.com.
During the final edit of three by 3 print edition I wrote Scruples #20. Its completion in June 2022 coincided with the book’s publication. Many artworks in my collection were bought at auction. The participant in Scruples #21 might be a winner, maybe not.
20.
Tally-ho —as the bugle blares, hounds bay,
we take reckoning in stride…
Somewhere a hungry fox has come to his senses;
the meadow at dawn sweet and damp,
early risers stirring so near he can scent
the way they’re headed, hear them cooing…
With high esteem we gallop over hedgerows,
up and downhill, still ground, rally round a thicket.
He outfoxes us all morning, good sport
until in due course the hunt turns bloody.
21.
Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to our evening session.
On auction’s memorabilia from the estate
of Nosferatu, featuring the coffin he slept in,
a blood stained wardrobe, the wedding band
Nina wore during their intercourse…
All are proven legitimate, each with a COA
confirming title and ownership…
The house also cuts an invoice for every lot,
payable in dollars, pounds, or euros…
Fair warning —we value your patronage
as much as our reputation—buyer’s remorse
gives us a bad name…for good reason
it’s better to pass than bid on a whim.
Love the new #20 and #21. I have never bid at an auction but #21 whets my appetite, and I would also love to get into the head of the participants 🙂