Capillary Action

Not every laugh is a belly laugh. There are chuckles and giggles as well as guffaws. But one thing is certain in this troubled world: Laughter beats the pants off gloom and doom. As poet David Hedges, a master rib-tickler, informs the reader in his title poem, "Gravity is for the grave."

In the late 1940s, Hedges spent Saturday afternoons in the confines of the Blue Mouse Theatre, soaking up the slapstick antics of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, and Harold Lloyd and the ribald banter of W.C. Fields and Mae West.

He and brother Joe staged backyard theatricals.

He went on to edit his college humor magazine and pen a humor column for a small daily newspaper. No wonder he turned to light verse when at last he kissed off regular paychecks and started doing his own thing.

Capillary Action is the payoff for years of toiling in the vineyards. It wasn't until after he'd collected titles for the Acknowledgements page that he realized how productive he'd been.

There is something here for everyone. Chuckles and giggles, to be sure, and maybe even a guffaw or two. Dive in and see what tickles your funny bone.