drizzle of polka dotsnot dapple colored but tricklinga polish polka as they blithely dropyet why such merrimentin fallingto their death-their tiny time much better spentjoyfully dancing, not mourning wetlytearyuntil they hit the groundso hard and dryto splash and die Read More in Poetry
Never quiet, the graves back home,Mom prodding Pop in their bed, “You’re snoring!”Grandma exclaiming to Grandpa for the millionth time,“Smoking that pipe will kill you someday,” and Great-grandpa in Czech-laced exasperation remindingbullheaded Great-grandma to “Talk American!”Ear protection is desirable, given Cousin Benny’sraunchy jokes, Uncle Emmanuel’s swearing aboutsome poker hand dealt him, and garrulousUncle Henry’s bending... Continue Reading →
Dragged here by my friend,I see nothing poetic. I hear nothing poetic.Just crack and zing and boom.Crack and zing and boom.In the booth next to us,a big guy shoots an AK-47.In my hands, I hold a rifle.I sit atop a stool. The same thumbthat rests on the stocksupports the shaft of a pencil. The same... Continue Reading →
When you finally buy limes and seltzerfor your gin.When evening air still ripples, coolas a silk scarf against your neck.When you smile, hearing the first slap of flip flops on cement.When no one can keep up with nature,when mosquitos invade the airbefore anyone expects them.When the first hummingbird dive-bombs with his tiny spear. Read More... Continue Reading →
“…thrown on a treadmill of unease, hour after hour of tossing and turninguntil I was weeping for rest.”Derek Jarman in MODERN NATURECountless grays smother the night.I slip into anxious dream, slip halfway out, teeter,grudgingly open a book, aimingat distraction. The green lamp is angledto a pool of boiled yellow.I ignore time or try, dismiss the... Continue Reading →
“This historic heirloom was carried from Georgia to Oklahoma by members of the Cherokee Nation who were banished from their homelands by the U. S. government in the late 1830s. A sleek black bean when dried, Cherokee Trail of Tears can also be eaten fresh.” – Seed packetI buy them online, from strangerswhose faces I... Continue Reading →
I.We suppress the collective realization thatwe’re all fools, some of us raging &some only somewhat so, but foolsnonetheless. Yet, we trust in the competence& excellence of random strangers.the mechanics weren’t sleep-deprived &hungover when performing the maintenancecheck for our flight. There were no loosebolts & nuts pocketed with aworld-weary shrug & half-hearted:eh, should be fine.II.That teenager... Continue Reading →
After the poem "Noon" by Louise GlückThey're older — elderly, really,but still before dying:that space of knowing imminent departureprior to evaporation.The small house breathes inthe couple's scent of soapand attic —early summer cool enough in the Ohio Valleythat the window units stay dormant.These two lead me to think all old matrimonieslive out beneficent, minimal lives... Continue Reading →
The blond tabby dartsacross boiling asphalt, hustlesits haunches right at the end before the curb & the whiteCadillac swallows it whole.Could I have closedmy eyes, contributed some cosmicnudge, sent a jolt into its hustle justa little more. Could I have bentthe rules of physics and ribbon the road aroundthe car. In this suburban jungle death loungesas though appeased,coils of... Continue Reading →
Watch a man in a hot dog eating contest:He soaks the bun in water and bringsit soggy to his mouth. Small quick bitesof the pink naked dog. Just last month, the skinnyCalifornia kid ate 76 hot dogs in 12 minutes.He also holds the records in waffles,chicken wings, Krystal hamburgers anddeep-fried asparagus. Deep fried! Asparagus!Last night,... Continue Reading →
