Julie

It’s hard riding herd over pressmen:
They’re all such hard-to-second-guess men

But with Julie as leader
They’re softer and sweeter —

She’s turning them all into yes-men

Yes, running the Press isn’t easy
When pressmen have names such as Ghi-Z (1)

And Angelo and Webster —
How sweetly they test her,

And still she can make it seem breezy

With Julie, there’s still more to like:
She manages monteurs named Mike —

That cross between Buddha
And a work-barracuda —

She’s sweet — but with just enough spike

Julie is truly a gem:
Rubied rose atop emerald stem

Such finely cut facets —
The greatest of assets —

We all should have facets like them

Her intellect beams like a light
In her eyes, any shadows grow bright

From the posters she makes
To the photos she takes
From the dinners she throws
To her neat, typed POs
From the type that she sets
To the praises she gets —

She’s pure, clear, and shining delight

Do we respect her? Yes, duly.
Do we adore her? Yea, truly.

She’s MIU’s best —
We’re blissed and we’re blessed —

And deep in our hearts we crown Julie.

(1) The nickname of Rob Anibal, master four-color pressman for many years.