Five Ways Around

1. afterbirth

missiles paraded on trucks
from vintage footage
on a TV back channel

most of the past is like that

a homage to its demise

dead from creation

2. old couches

I worry about the meaning of love
because nothing feels tragic

3. main street

insanity is a rational response
in certain circumstances

I watched a wild rabbit
darting through the streets
between cars and trucks

I briefly thought about crashing
headlong into a parked semi truck
on the way to grocery store

once there I gathered everything
on my list and silently
went to check out

I thought about what
my purchases meant
while staring at the floor

I was given change then left
forgetting the first item
on my list

4. errant thoughts

there is nothing apolitical
about the size of a penis
or how it looks on video

whether you like it or not

we pay for road construction
collectively for the common good

it costs the same to send mail
to New York and Nevada

and martians on the cover of tabloids again

5. ennui

if I told you what I wanted
there would be nothing left to want

(touch me

there...)

I'm no older than I seem
when sleeping

rivers can flow backwards
during great storms

and every song sounds the same
in an elevator