a gentleman

a retarded man
offered me his place on the
A train today. "Miss!"

he whoops as i board.
"Miss! Right here!" so excited,
he leaps from his seat.

"Or should I say Mom?!"
he takes my arm, and weaves us
through an upset crowd.

for several stops
we talk about baseball, football,
and coney island.

or rather, he talks,
as i know nothing of these.
soon the train slows and

he gathers his things,
a collection of plastic
bags, books and sundries.

"Boy or girl?" he asks,
his face alive with joy and
interest. "A girl."

"Oh, girls are the best!"
he calls over a frowning
woman as he leaves.

mother and daughter

today my mother
and i go to the doctor,
hoping to hear the

baby's heartbeat, or
maybe catch a glimpse of the
curve of a nose, or

the crook of a knee.
i am, after all, doing
what she did once, and

times, boy have they changed.
"with you, they used a tape to
measure my belly.

that was it !" i nod.
she squeezes my hand, eager.
the doctor walks in.

she is distant and
distracted. talking idly
about traffic, she

motions that i lie back,
and then absently unfurls
her measuring tape.

last night's dream

julia roberts
and i team up to reveal
that tom brokaw

is an alien;
sad, grizzly culmination
in biosphere 2.

between the folds

some people fail to
recognize that movie monsters
look like vaginas.

these assholes need to
see either more movies or
more cunt. likely both.

lunch with a friend

'don't forget to hold
his head,' she says. she is nervous.
maybe i am, too.

eaten

it's a warm morning
on this first of june, the type
that make folks complain

because they forget
how hot july can be. the
new mosquito bite

on my ankle BEGS
my nails to rake across it,
but i plumb refuse.

instead i make little
X's on it, and treasure
the too brief relief.

GORGE-ous.

2 chili cheese dogs
for dinner. there are some sins
that can't be un-did.