The Boardwalk by Ed Galing

THE BOARDWALK

In those days we went
To the beach by train,
We would disembark
And walk the boards
Smellin’ the sea breezes,
Admiring the way the
Swelling waves hit the shore,
And curled away in
Rhythmic motion.

We were young
And we would get to the
Sand and open our umbrella
Shedding our outer
Clothes.

We had our bathing suits on
Ready for the dip
In the ocean.
We laughed a lot
In those days
I remember
Admiring the way
We both looked
For young flesh is so beautiful.
I flexed my muscles
And grinned as she snapped away
We got sunburned
We ate our hotdogs on the boardwalk
Made love in secret under a blanket.
We soaked in the juices
And loved ourselves,
And to hell with tomorrow.

--Ed Galing

Confessions of a White Hat by Ed Galing

Confessions of a White Hat by Ed Galing ( Alternating Currentc/o Propaganda Press POBOX 398058 Cambridge, Mass. 02139) propaganda.x.press@gmail.com $5

I speak to 91 year old Hatboro, PA. poet Ed Galing on a regular basis, and I am amazed that despite his advanced years his mind is still sharp, and he continues to regale the small press with his prolific output of poetry and prose.I am also glad that a local press: Propaganda Press, headed by Leah Angstman, has published a new chap from Ed. Ed has written extensively about his days as a boy on the streets of the Lower East Side of NYC, his stint as an occupation soldier during World War ll, and life in Amercia as a Jew, family man, and the many roles he has played in the expanse of his lifetime. His latest book "Confessions of a White Hat" deals with his time as a naval reservist in the post World War 11 Cold War era. In characteristic Galing style he gives the reader the taste and texture of the Navy-life as he knew it. Here Galing describes the milieu,and the sensibility of his place and time:


The Begining


we are a motley
crew
as motley as
you could ever wish
for; fresh out of
other branches
of the service,
after world war
two,
the Reserves
wave a silver
platter before
our eyes;
ex marines
soldiers
coast guard
Waves
we all clamber
on board,
not willing to
forget the
military yet;
the cold war
is still on;
unrest in other
parts of the
world.
Russian Bear,
i had to be nuts
but six months
after i get out
of the Army
i am now a
member of the
Naval Air
on Active Duty
at an air station
four miles from
home,
and the fat is in
the fire once
again.

Just Because by Ed Galing

everyone who wants his
name to be known
should write
his or her own obituary.

do not wait
for others to write
about you,
this is not a
good idea.

they will
not do
your name
justice.

no one knows "you"
better than yourself,
so while you are alive
sit down
and begin to
write your own obit.

make it a good one.
put in all the
wonderful details
that made you what
you are.

omit disasters,
do not mention pitfalls,
dwell only on your accomplishments,
how beloved you
were while alive,
and all the good
things you did.

send it to your newspaper
omit the date of your death

fill that in much later.

--Ed Galing

A PROMISE

BREAKING NEWS: Sam Pierstorff, the editor of the Quercus Review, will be reprinting my Ed Galing article previously in Rattle Magazine "Ed Galing: A Poet of the Greatest Generation" in the May issue. The issue will be a tribute to this 90 year old small press legend....









A PROMISE

i have an
obligation
to perform
as a Jew,
i have a solemn
duty,
not to forget
the past,
no matter how old
i become.

my heart as
always
yearns for
the homeland
for a place of our own
we Jewish people
so long without one,
I shall not
forget where i
come from,
the tenement house
on the lower east side
where the early
jews first settled
down in this new land


all of those memories
lodged in my brain
like a newsreel of the past
and i can still see
the ship, and those
who stood on the top deck,
watching as they
approached the statue
of liberty and freedom.

In my ninetieth year
in my mind
i have just been born.

BURLESQUE by ED Galing

BURLESQUE

I alway sat in the
front row
with the bald-headed guys.
I was eighteen years old,
and all i wanted
to do was see a naked
girl in the flesh.
it only cost about
a buck or so to sit
downstairs,
there was a blacony
for fifty cents,
but you couldn't see
anything looking down
on the stage.
the orchestra was loud,
the drums with the
boom, boom, boom
the trumpets so loud
it broke your eardrums.
the curtain came up
and after a half hearted
chorus number,
the strip teaser came out.
we all hollered, take it
off, take it off,
the stripper pranced up
and down the stage,
bit by bit she peeled
off her clothes until
the G string.
she would wiggle her
ass, give a wink and
dissappear behind the
curtain.
then i went to the
men's room to take a
pee.

PHYLACTERIES by Ed Galing

The phylacteries on
my forehead (small box)
were like a hot iron
the little Black Box
in the center of my forehead,
as if to brand me, once
and forever,
as a son, my father
wanted me to follow
in his footsteps
and the thongs on my left arm
wrapped around,
wrapped so tight,
as I recited the
"Shema" with
my father-
I at
thirteen felt like a
convict in irons,
and felt like I
was condemned
because God
could punish me
and I would die!
My father was Orthodox.
He wrapped himself
daily in ritual ceremony--
His proper shawl and mine
the mark of Cain
I wanted
none of it.

Diner Blues by Ed Galing

DINER BLUES

used to be
i would go to
this diner
not far from
my house
and have a
lunch or breakfast
and my wife
would be sitting
across from me
and it felt
good
just like it
should be when
you got some
buddy with you
to enjoy life
like it should be,
but just when you
get to know what
its all about,
its over
kids gone
wife gone
you wonder why
you are still here.

so now i sit alone
and watch the
young couple in
another booth
she smiles
her eyes are gray
i can see them
because i am right
in back of them
and she is facing me
and looking at me...

i feel like crying
i want to make love to her
i drink my coffee
and keep my thoughts
to myself.

Old Age is Not for Sissies by Ed Galing

Old Age is Not for Sissies
By Ed Galing
No ISBN
50 pages at $5 paperback
Peerless Press
3435 Mill Rd.
Hatboro PA 19040

The venerable Poet Laureate of Hatboro PA is still plugging away creating chapbooks, submitting poetry to journals, and grabbing life by the lapels. From the retrospective of nine decades, Galing’s poetry cuts to the heart of life and living. In this chapbook he addresses the vicissitudes of aging and fondly turns the pages of his life with an occasional bit of help from his cartoon friend, Sadie the Psychic. Always, Ed Galing looks at life with humor and acceptance.

“Longevity” commemorates centenarians introduced by Willard Scott on TV. Galing enjoys the show, and wonders if he’ll make it to age 100:

…then my knee starts
to hurt

as I head into the
kitchen for a cup
of coffee and an
aspirin.

In “A Bit of Philosophy” Galing contemplates life, love, happiness, sorrow, and wonders if his poetry makes any kind of impression on anyone. Before poem’s end, he gives himself and his readers a mental shaking:

Hell, it ain’t easy getting old…
it ain’t for sissies…

now stop your sniveling, and wipe your nose!
and eat your farina!

“So, Where are We, Anyway?” is an amazing poem, simple and powerful and typical Galing:

growing old
might grey your hair
and bend your back

but need not erase
a bright smile on your
face

and the gentle fond
remembrance of the days
when your life was full
of sunshine, beaches, parties,
love, laughter and adventures.

growing old
only makes you
stop wasting your days.

I’m always delighted to find a new Ed Galing chapbook in my mailbox. I read his work and hope with each new book, hope some publisher will see the lifetime of grit and joy on every page, as I do. If it were in my power, a publishing contract would be Ed Galing’s Christmas miracle this year.

Review by Laurel Johnson for Midwest Book Review

Central Park and Other Stories

Central Park
And Other Stories
By Ed Galing
No ISBN
53 pages at $5 + s & h
Peerless Press
3435 Mill Road
Hatboro PA
19040
http://edgaling.blogspot.com

Ed Galing's poetry has been featured in many well-known journals and he
has numerous chapbooks to his credit. I've been privileged to review most
of them. This is his first book of prose. These stories first appeared in
Spare Change, a publication out of Cambridge, Mass dedicated to poverty and
homelessness issues. While reading this book my first thought was: Amazing!
His writing style is feisty, honest, touching, and amusing, with an
energetic spirit shining out of every story. Ed Galing knows poverty and
injustice; he remembers a childhood spent in the tenements of New York City
and Philadelphia. Galing sympathizes with the homeless because he
understands that many Americans are one paycheck away from living in a
cardboard box. And so, in his ninth decade of life, Ed Galing, Poet Laureate
of Hatboro PA, compiled this book of fictional short stories that contain
more than a modicum of truth. These are among some of the best short stories
I've read anywhere, by any author, famous or otherwise. I've chosen a random sampling of these fifteen stories for review purposes:

"Central Park" introduces readers to Joe Brown. Joe has no skills with
which to earn real money and his odd jobs don't allow for even the cheapest
of lodging. He looks on the bright side, though, and tells himself sleeping
under the stars in Central Park is akin to camping out.

In "Conversations With Myself" we meet Harry Cohen, age 82. This lonely
widower never had much money but lived frugally and raised two children. He
enjoys discussing politics and books, and pursuing a gentle flirtation with
his lady friend.

35 year old Harry Epstein drives the narrative in "My War With the
Unemployment Office." Abandoned by his parents as a child, he grew up in
foster care. He's knocked around from job to job for years but hopes for
steady work so he can find a decent apartment. He files for unemployment
after his latest lay off. His only hedge against poverty is a $5 bill hidden
in his shoe.

"Once Upon a Neighborhood" is a poignant picture of life back when
almost everyone was poor. But in South Philly neighborhoods, working class
people banded together and even The Mob had a heart. Cops, firemen,
hustlers, and the working poor could forget their troubles for one night
when a young Sinatra entertained at a local nightspot.

Jeff Grimly is riding high with a good job one day, and homeless the
next after losing his business in "The Fall Guy." Jeff learns that honor and
honesty are worth more than money, even to a homeless guy.

Bill Kearney is a 50 year old music teacher at a Settlement House on New
York City's East Side in "East Side Melody." Josh Samuels is his 16 year old
prodigy, living in abject poverty, struggling to avoid joining a gang.
Amidst the dregs of tenement life, Kearney finds gold in a boy whose
untrained musical gift is stunning.

"Diary of a Squatter" shares the life of Jake Summers. Jake lost his
wife, then his home, after getting laid off from his job. He's too proud to
live in shelters so lives in a condemned, boarded up building that used to
be a crack house. His home has no electricity, water, or heat, but the
beauty of this story is how Jake makes an acceptable life out of nothing,
with only a mouse for company and a few candle stubs to read by.

A handful of discriminating, respected poets and publishers have
discovered Ed Galing's work and I've been singing his praises since
reviewing his first book of poetry. After reading Address: Central Park, I'm
doubly impressed with his abilities. Check out Galing's blog, created and
maintained by Doug Holder, to see more of his work. Ed Galing's home made
books are treasures and highly recommended.

Review by Laurel Johnson
Senior Reviewer, Midwest Book Review