I met one zombie,
two lemmings,
three sheep,
four parrots,
five sold out souls,
six walking dead corpses,
seven lobotomized head cases,
eight cult members,
nine federal bureaucrats,
and ten frothing-at-the-mouth propagandists
on my way to the park
where I was heading
as a way to escape
from the madness of the world
for just a little while,
when all of a sudden
I developed the uncontrollable urge
to guzzle a pint
of red,
fluoridated Kool-Aid
with a serving
of artificial dye
on the side
to take the edge off.
After that, it was all
smiley, happy faces
every step of the way
as far as my eyes could see.