Category: Auburn

phrenological head

the way your forehead protrudes
        signals a predilection for sweet tea and guns
while the shallow curve at the back of your skull
        indicates a tendency toward gluttony
above your left ear are two bumps usually associated
        with the enjoyment of rough sex
however the pronounced guilt bump on your front temple
        somewhat mitigates this fetish
there’s an unusual peak at the top of your head
        often found in the criminally insane
though the way your browline juts is more commonly seen
        in the devoutly religious
the circumference of your skull at the level of your eyes
        suggests a below-average intelligence
which, when coupled with the oval shape of your head
        almost certainly means a sharp deterioration of the faculties
however, we feel in view of your current position
        this can be dealt with in a most discreet manner
all in all, nothing to be worried about
        this concludes our examination, Your Holiness

30 May 2013
Auburn AL

packing

if I could think of a way
to get you to stay
I would do it
into the suitcase go
your clothes, gifts for
family and friends
underwear, toiletries
books to read on the plane
then you come over to me
lay your hand on my chest
I feel your lips on mine
as the tips of your fingers
slide through my skin
past my ribs
to retrieve one more item
you’re taking with you

29 May 2013
Auburn AL

sunset and red ants

we are trying
from the contents
of two days
to extrapolate
an entire life
we eat bagels
and Mexican food
look at paintings
watch the sun set
while the ants bite us
all the while imagining
thousands of days
just like this

28 May 2013
Auburn AL

the someday bus

someday
I intend to buy
a VW bus
so I can
travel the country
collecting the pieces
of my heart
from all the people
I’ve given them to
I’m curious whether
with a little tape
and glue and care
I can rebuild
a working organ
or whether my heart
only works
because I’ve given
so much of it away

27 May 2013
Auburn, AL

/ / /

The photo is of my pal Avery with his own “someday bus.”

bird years

“I’m on low blood sugar don’t make men birds into years”
she said and I still don’t know what that meant
or how we’re supposed to count the passage of time
all I know is that I can hear them singing in the trees
telling stories that go back generations
I try to write down their songs but it’s no use
before I can finish one line they’re on to the next
a long song lost in the translation
funny how things end when you thought they wouldn’t

26 May 2013
Auburn AL

recorded

obsessed
with documenting
every moment
we miss
the moments
themselves

25 May 2013
Auburn AL

what’s around

cheap Chinese food
glass of ice water
empty bottle of Vanilla Coke
empty can of regular Coke
nori komi furikake
mala beads
two glass rings from Tibet
58 cents
keys
seven rocks, all painted
two books of poetry
box of Kleenex
six CDs
two sets of headphones
plastic grocery bag
expensive sunglasses
four used tissues
postcard
but not you

24 May 2013
Auburn AL

sunset everywhere

all over the world
everyone is looking
into the sky
trying to read meaning
in the shapes of clouds

I’m in the backyard
looking up at the sky
glad that no matter
what I decide next
there are many more
decisions to follow

you

you poured yourself onto me
like long lines of poetry
spilling down my skin

you’ve seeped into me
soaking into my blood
flowing through my veins

your tears, your laughter
the smell and the feel of you
running to the tips of my fingers

filling up the empty spaces
surging into all the hidden places
I never even show myself

16 May 2013
Auburn, AL