1000 ORANGES

 It seems appropriate this poem begin…and end…with a knock knock joke.

Knock Knock…Who’s there…

Orange…Orange who?

I wonder what answer this question will evoke…

This is the story of an artist…who had a problem…a problem he wanted to solve…

and although I can’t be certain, because I wasn’t there initially, I hear alcohol was involved.

The problem: how to circumvent the bureaucracy, the red tape and all those committees…and surreptitiously (that means in secret) bring more art into our city.

So one night he and an artist friend…while attempting to stay out of sight

took paint and brushes in their hands…and in the dead of night

quietly and in secret they crept…taking pains to keep their silhouettes small…

then crawled up to a building and painted one orange upon its wall.

Knock Knock…Who’s there…

Orange…Orange who?

(as you can see we decided about half-way through

The knock knock joke we started with…should show up in the middle too).

They decided to keep it quiet…in case anyone protested…

knowing they were both too pretty to go to jail…if they ever were arrested.

No…they never got arrested…in fact people of Dunedin were so enthralled

more and more of them wanted this artist to paint oranges upon their walls.

This artist stepped out of the shadows when people offered to pay him for his prints…and with paint and brushes in hand…he’s been painting oranges ever since.

We wonder, Steve, did you have any idea…how your artistic prank would grow…

when you painted in the dead of night…over 1000 oranges ago?

And now, finally, the answer to the knock knock joke…(I know you’re all relieved)

Knock Knock…Who’s there…

Orange…Orange who? 

Orange you glad Dunedin has an artist as talented as Steve.