"All right,"

he said with a weary sigh,
already aware of what the
tiresome mob in front of him
was going to moan to him about.
"what is it this time?"
A spokeswoman, braver than
the rest, edged forward
in jittery hesitation.
"Could you just give us
a hint,
a sign,
a clue,
anything at all,
even an albatross
(if need be)
to let us know
what you had
in mind?"
He laughed at her
earnest gestures,
and then said
in casual irritation,
"How the hell
would I know?"