No Time for Spaghetti

By Andrew R. Duckworth

It was pre-pandemic,
Hands still careful,
Hands still creative.
We were prepping dinner
At the in-laws’ residence-
Spaghetti with tomato sauce
Or Vodka sauce, take your choice.

Fresh noodles from Central Market.
Put them in the water,
But they’re fresh,
Not too long.
Distractions abound,
Turn away from the water
For what seems like a second,
And there’s the rub;
A second is never a second,
Like a minute is never a minute.
There’s the water, filled
With fresh goop,
What were once noodles,
Resembling more of a John Carpenter
Horror creature than food.
Back to the market we go.