The Reprieve Well half past midnightabout a quarter to threea grey rat nibbleson a stale block of brieHe would prefer a slight smidgenof a fire braised pigeonbut according to his religionhe can only drink peeSo he pissed in a cupand drank it right upand knelt at the altaron one bended kneeHe asked for a pardonbefore […]
Read more "THE REPRIEVE – TIM HILDEBRANDT"Excerpt from the epic poem WHEN I WALK THROUGH THAT DOOR, I AM …Ay Tonal, my despair is the saw-tooth chain that cuts through bone, its growl roars through my heart scattering bone-dust and what was once anger is reduced to a stump, cut down into sizes that fit my heart’s black-iron stove; I kneel […]
Read more "Excerpt from: WHEN I WALK THROUGH THAT DOOR, I AM – JIMMY SANTIAGO BACA"EVERY FIFTEEN MINUTES It seems I am waking up every fifteen minutes. All night like this – I wake up thinking about the job. I look to the window to gauge the time And it always seems to be about 6 A.M. My alarm is set for 6:30. I need to be at work at […]
Read more "EVERY FIFTEEN MINUTES – John Tustin"SHE HID IN THE TREES FROM THE NURSES She stands between the trees and holdsOne hand in the other, still.Now far away the evening foldsAround the siloes and the hill. She sees, slowly, the gardenerReturn to check the gate beforeThe smoke begins to soften the airAnd June bugs try the open door. And through the […]
Read more "SHE HID IN THE TREES FROM THE NURSES – JAMES WRIGHT"MEN’S WORK Somebody has to kill the cow, Somebody has to go down the stairs when there is a noise Somebody has to carry the baby out of the burning building Somebody has to stoke the fire Somebody has to find the Golden Fleece Somebody, when the food runs low, has to go Somebody has […]
Read more "MEN’S WORK – Marc Janssen "Frogs “Grow grass, stone frogs,” written on bathroom walls. Hippie beads, oodles colorful acid pills in dresser draws, no clothes, kaleidoscope condoms, ostentatious sex. No Bibles or Sundays that anyone remembers. Rochdale College, Toronto, Ontario 1972, freedom school, free education. Makes no sense, when you’re high on a song “American Women” blasting eardrums and police […]
Read more "FROGS – Michael Lee Johnson"TRANSFER OF POWER I press my nameplate, flushed and new, hammered onto the door. I sit in his chair, His denim jacket slumped over Sink into his seat. It’s warm like he just got into the desktop drawer as if a naughty student paper-clips, a plastic sleeve, mouth half-open, An antacid tablet releases white dust […]
Read more "4 POEMS – Roxanne Cardona"
Cacti Fur 