America may run on Dunkin, but I prefer a kindness/ caffeine blend.

So, this probably isn’t news to you, but I am an amazing source to boost morale in the office. The things I’m mostly known for are the fridge poems, listening to people vent, being quirky and participating in any variety of shenanigan. Our IT department had a rough couple of weeks lately, something about something breaking or something, and my CIO brought me coffee twice this week! He also sent me a very sweet email, thanking me for all I do and am.  I also had lunch with K-Dawg and a friend from IT this week. It was so much fun catching-up with my escaped buddy, and my meal was paid for! It was nice.

Ever since Joie and I did that Renga (shared poem) for a fridge piece, I’ve been flirting with the idea of doing an office-wide group poem. I finally did it! I sent an email about it last Friday, asking interested parties to let me know. I explained how a Renga is formatted and nullified any excuses people may have. I was like “It doesn’t even have to rhyme, so if you can count, you can write!” (This made me think of Cannibal the Musical.)

If you can talk, you can sing!

Anyways, by Monday I wrote a stanza and started forwarding the poem-in-the-making to each person on the list. On Wednesday, I wrote this acrostic reminder, using part of it to further advertize my morale-boosting, literacy-building exercise:

Remember my friends to
Embrace going green, and bring
Miss Ashley your magazines!
In addition to this,
Needn’t I say, if you want to
Do the group fridge poem, shoot an
E-mail my way!
REMEMBER!

As the week progressed, the poem got better and better. I added a closing stanza and here is the end product:

Renga – An ancient, Japanese form or poetry that means “linked poem.” It is created with a pair or group of writers taking turns writing the two-stanza pattern. The first stanza is three lines and seventeen syllables. The second stanza is a couplet with seven syllables in each line.

Fridge Renga: Professionalism meets Poeticism

Like the varied vastness
of our earth
the fridge is filled with many things

Prentice holds the key of truth
Mystery meat is nevermore.

Prentice told me I had to do this
Guess what
I never liked Twinkies

The clock strikes two, food no more
Can the Greek yogurt survive

Carrots, Hummus and Fruit
Once Prentice announces the time
They are gone

Grunge and guck and more gross stuff
Can’t be found under her watch

I do not like the dirt inside me
So Prentice cleans me
Clean I am

Food was never meant to be
Wearing more than what we choose

Love cakes, cup cakes
Are no exceptions
All will have the same destiny

Oh divine pepperoni,
May we find a place to dwell

Lettuce be friends cucumber
And dill; we can agree to
Love to chill

And as the fridge is emptied
The trash can in turn is filled