13 

“given the choice between grief and nothing,
I’d take grief”
~William Faulkner

Subtracting the grief,
elation, defeat,
greed, sexual tension
knowledge love lies

Swan diving into
nothing. Cannonball through
a futon, splashes of vacancy
in a pristine mirage.

Spring break. broke
I sleep. alone
Ruminate in the produce section. alone
Gaze through a reflecting lake. alone
My thoughts barely register, like
the jewish jokes scribbled upon ceiling tiles
in invisible ink. A mixture of stale beers pool
atop dried-up vomit cracking upon the floor.

Hiding from self-produced internalized disputes
under the motherly apron of repeat cartoons
on late-nite TV.