6 poems [8/9]

Waco the the Sea | Split Decision | Streetlight | Tacos | Purple | As Good as It Gets

Waco to the Sea

Six 10MG Adderall pills

Those little blue angels

Take me into the night

Then, through to the light

Wide-eyed over the harsh country. 

Sunset in the Pecos,

Sunrise in Indio

Over Coachella Hills

Day break yellows

  the Golden State. 

Home again. 

Like a bullet, West on I-10

    15 hours straight

     through the Indian ghosts

Adder-rolling through windmills

         And casinos

Across the barren beauty of our

United Mexican States

Once stolen from Spain

But first from the Comanche, 

The Huaco, The Navajo, 

Pueblo, Morongo, 

Apache 

Now nothing remains

But turquoise on chains 

It’s all spectres 

in fetters

From Waco to the Sea. 

A blood soaked history

I think,

Just to me

As I’m grinding my teeth

From amphetamine

I keep my pedal to the floor 

and my head  in the sand

A white ostrich racing

Towards the edge of this land. 

Split Decision

I made threats

Then I left

When I was healthy 

and she was sick

I was out of love

Then Covid hit

And I got sick

I relapsed hard

The liquor store

Then raging fits

Angry, loud blackouts

Muddy shits

There’s “maybe if that”

Or “what about this?”

But I was the nudge,

The push and the shove

towards the big descent.

Maybe I’d be happier 

Had I been braver

Had I filed the paperwork first

But I didn’t. 

She wore that honor

Now wears a new smile.

And, I know I shouldn’t be,

But I’m happy for her

And the kids. 

And their new stepdad. 

Fuck it. 

Why not. 

It’s gotta be better,

Later than never,

That we retreat to our

Separate corners forever. 

Streetlight

Streetlights light up

the night

For the black market to

take its bite

Alit is the stage presenting the play

Where grown up boys

nod and say

Whatchu need, 

got that powder,

you ’ight?

Tacos

Gather round folks!

It’s taco Tuesday.

Every American’s 

fav-o-rite week-ly holiday!

Beef all ground up

Crunchy Corn shells 

Lettuce and cheese,

Served from a Bell.

Unlike any taco

Found down In Mexico

These aren’t those tacos

¡Son los tacos de gringos!

Purple

Above the horizon 

while the sun puts itself down

grows the color of Caesar

rimming the clouds.

Red mixed with blue

a royal color pair

God mixes hot and cool

He makes lavender air.

A beautiful hue,

It colors flowers violet

But, it also fills bruises

the color of violence

It comes up in sunsets

and on her eyelids.

Have you no shame?

Come on, Purple!

Pick a lane!

It’s all the same

Whether it’s colors or people

or places or things

We’re all good, bad and ugly

We’re all yin and yang

As Good as it gets

This is as good as it gets

There’s no way to make it not suck

It’s all Sisyphus with the rock. 

Pushing

Pushing

Pushing

Never not pushing

To the top, 

Then, begin again

With no reprieve

The backside of the hill?

A fantasy.

There is no purpose

There are no saviors

The rock is all you got

And if you don’t like it?

Just take a slip

And let it crush you

It’s all you can do

Other than laugh.