Leave the Silver City because all the Silver girls gave us bad dreams

London's giving me the 'mean reds'

Truth & Beauty

You may not be aware that our fingers,

when they touch, spark electricity,

heat propagates

Like a secret between friends.

But it is that dirty little secret, love,

That escalates blood pressure,

Hypertension, I swear,

I'd just sit there not sayin' a word

Reliving the reasons why

my clothes are crumpled up

in a foreign closet,

why makeup is scattered across

the floor, why I have a

new set of keys.

I didn't come for the feast

For the festivities

For burning infections,

Fixed convictions in

Wine after breakfast

Siestas in the afternoon.

They are all things good and plenty,

But reasons they are not.

I came for the closeness

That permeates the room

The smell of sweat and coffee beans

cigarette smoke, indicators

Of presence, body not soul

But I'm there, inhaling,

What turns my head in a crowd of strangers.

And when the morning comes and I wake up,

I know I wasn't wrong.

Hypertension, Crackling Ears

...He told me afterwards in terms of absolute value, sex and drugs were equally meaningless to him. Just two different ways to have fun. Which is all well and good, until a girl tries out the same approach.

Checking the Baggage at the Door

Slept in one bed, a second, then
A third. Four beds
I awoke to strange light fixtures
The sound of coffee brewing
No longer aware of the day or
time. Instead, the scent of patchouli
Sweat, rising smoke from the ashtray
This isn't where I should be, could be
Or not. Either way, I awoke to
bright lights, cat fights
between kitties with no claws.
And all the while I thought,
Where, in this confusing whirlwind
Are you?

I'm a confident liar

Don't know what all the troubles are for.

Anytime I

Wish to be a particle on the wind

Blasting through the pipe lines

Lifelines, city scapes,

Each time, forces push me back.

A world unknown hangs before me,

An adventure where I'm unsure

Of what it'll shape me, twist me

Into, it makes it hard to breathe

sometimes (all the time).

All I want is to be a particle on the wind,

But I cannot, no,

Not this time around.

Shotgun Wedding

I went to an open mic today with a poem

Sweating nervously, nervously sweating

I can’t believe how many people are here

Cosmic shifts in my stomach, acid reflux

Settling, unsettling, I find it mildly terrifying

Then I remember what you said to me

During an afternoon of tangled limbs

Breathlessly: “All art requires courage”.

Then I put my head to your chest and listened

Sounds of brittle wind chimes, diving boards

You’re already asleep. The pills you take are strong

So I kiss your cheek and go to sleep, too. I am in love.

I went to an open mic today with a poem

Smiling hopefully, hopefully smiling

I can’t help wonder if I’ve made a mistake

Feeling strange, like cereal or wet toast

Settling, unsettling, I find it mildly disheartening

Then I see you from across the room

Sipping coffee. Black. You’re wearing my jeans.

And suddenly, I know how to begin. I found the words

“Home is wherever I am with you”. I am in love.