somethin' to nothin' 

An older black cat
Stopped me on the street the
Other
Day in a city courtyard
And told me, 
While pulling the saddle close to,
That he was a traveling entertainer .. 

He played the 
Harmonica .. lost his piece and
Just arrived
To
Town on the train.

He was looking for some coin
To get his travels further down the road
Or
Was his 
Visit really down to a 
Cold,
Stout pint.

"I have nothin' but my keys, pal,"
I told him.

From there,
He grimaced as I walked on.

"Hey, you have a cigarette?"
he asks me.

"Ever had an Italian cigarette?"
I ask him.

"No. Nothin' but a Mexican one,"
he tells me.

"Here friend. Now you're going
to have a stick from the old country,"
I reply.

As I handed it over,
I saluted a good day
For his stay and eve.

He rolled the cigarette between his fingers and
Just
Looked at me as I walked away ..

Walking right into
A
Big white woman
Wanting some more coin
From the benevolent spring of capitalism
In
A
Stale building.

"I have nothin',"
I told her
As
I kept walkin'
Thinkin'
About
Plenty
Of

Somethin'.