...vaporous...

the thickness

of water

in the air

finally your summer

of old returns

and the scintillated brows

glistening off

of all the people

in the park

shimmer

like we knew they would-

this is the air

we are used to

...no bodies...

nobody

awaits

the

call: Nobody

sending

one

in: No body

there

but

a

tone

...there...

prayer go home

we say stay stay

up with us but

pray to go home

divide the road

punish the earnest

reward the servant

take a swing

there prayer boy

there there

...forty ahead...

the woodblock

carved in forty year

fields, their home base,

familial food familiar

with legacy of discarded

wealth, the pursuit

of it, the hotel

torn down

sleeping in what

we have to,

pillowing whatever

we can.

...June 27, 2009...

I love to see

the both of you

smile really

really smile

(for Colin & Carolyn)

...unseen...

what is it about

sinew and muscle

meat and fiber

that makes it

cling the bone

so tight that it cannot

perform its duty?

...cover charge...

here we go go go go

the illuminations in style

the allure of an edge

in the single/double stitch

debate or climate

or the ornamentation

in covering your neck

the delicacy of a chin

the masking of eyes

slight lip snarl

snarl slight smile

tip of the hat

wage of the digger

going to bed

with a good humor

is elemental

in a sleep's soundness

laughing into

a nightscape.

...habits...

Old habits don't die

at all they just itch

underneath the surface

looking for that sensation

all over again. We've

made a habit of oxygen.

You've made a choice

about the molecules.

Our feet both agree.

...upstream...

being able

to swim again

means being able

to dance again 

and again until 

it looks like

I was swimming

not dancing

       again

...abbatoir..

mean errant bull

won't you ride with us

trot away from

the streets though

your urge is to

run through them

into them and reddened

by them

...new and old...

youth is the detractor

at this event and building

                              space out of lack there of

is a surreal art    age is a generator

something that cannot 

be machined into the archways

or coined/carved into familiar styles

any more than the black

gum that becomes black 

cobble along the hallways 

brand new and somehow distant

corridors throughout

a new chapter in this architecture

this young grass 

handsomely groomed paths

glistening windows

here you are not what

we thought you'd be,

    your better and that is

a shame because we shouldn't

have given up

just yet

...recharge...

inked into wavering

lines of blue sky

twining the night's sun

setting through stillness

they forget

that each change

in the shuffle of songs

sets the sun a little

lower lower

than the sky can show

before the orbit

finishes or the battery

loses all of its energy

until the next day

...flat, low-light...

the mild detest

of a priority escape

means that one

can never reach

the ground they

are tip-toeing on;

these four walls

repress any further

vision (or delusion

I estimate)

of truly escaping

and becoming

whole again

with pockets

and book-bindings

fully intact,

wallets and check

sleeves fittingly

available, next

to the fridge door

in the flat, low-light

of the oven-top lid.

...reaction...

the trigger in the clam

shell that shuts it suddenly

the sand granule in the eye

at the beach

the last little bit of popcorn

kernel stuck in the bridgework

the last straw or the wooden

bowl with crack allowing

the soup to stain the table

again and again

You always can react

to the fact that you will 

have to have a reaction

...single seconds...

*

he wanted to know

why he couldn't find

himself a fitting enough

bed realizing it was

actually the blanket

all along

*

he hoped that your eye

gets better and that

his mind finds itself

with that very same

hope of self improvement

*

the first songs of spring

are not bird songs

he said

they are really catchy,

from ice cream trucks,

that repetitious song

*

"Occasional Thoughts"

you can kiss my ass, but

then, I am a gentle man,

so you can kiss anything you

want to      but no marriage

                    ---Robin Blaser (1925-2009)

...weather girl...

I wanna be your local weather

girl tell you the temperature

that the day is running 

and the barometric indicators

in your knees and behind

your eyes;  I want you to be

my local Chinese delivery 

so that I can ask you

for more chili oil and tea

so that I can ask you 

what your family is like

when they sit around

the restaurant, dreaming

about the string bean's recipe;

I want you to be the local

pharmacy's delivery

so you can put me to sleep

later tonight, after we

finish the leftover Chinese,

and the rain has slowed.

...sun honey...

glad you should bee

little one stump side

jumping funny little bug

when the lights are so bright

the birds know they

are being watched

glaring sun with one wing

lucky to be in flight

a risk in the heat 

of the brightest path

get away with it

away with it

you go weathering

along today

...still audible...

that tearing, ripping

sound is still audible

(no pain is as brutal

as the last gasp of air,

the ending of a life)

shredded red fabric

strewn about the skin

marking and noting

each lost memory

of the whole that once

was our body

...paddle-less life-raft...

the way the storm

came up and out today

without leaving anyone

with a sense of relief

or restoration

that the minor floods

here mean anything

in lieu of the floods 

in the Plains 

and the disasters

of a failed economic

half century, our 'cents'

of worth, failures

to rescue anyone

during any of  our 

major catastrophes

except those who

already had more 

than enough provisions

for themselves,

but squandered it

away as fools always do.

 

...March 27th, 2009...

the bicycle eases 

back down the hill

and the clicking

sound of the chain

means that the air

is getting warmer

and that the clouds

will lift showing

your eyes to all 

quite soon

...back-up...

the bus is back

and it has parked

in my head

hazards on

just like the bus did

two years ago

and didn't get

a ticket

goddamn bus

...thought full guy...

how it happened was

he sounded it out

and flattened it out

on the thin thin white

paper plate like a smooth

soot silting in just 

the right spot 

on the page

this is what he said

became of the words

...mutli-ball...

the pauses and delays

only mean that a signal 

is not sending like it once

was and the receiver

or the router need reset

that little flashing

light in the heart

the things that occupy

the mind    working   

busy     please  wait  

that flash is lost

when the light turns

red and the text

on the other end

goes dead     cold

like the curb

...your dream...

I want to tell you

about this poem 

that he wrote

in the middle of the night

but I forgot

it when he told me

that he was going

to  finish it

when I went to sleep

...heroine...

tight inward film

the movie ties up to the book

lower freight fear

the acceptance of my crash

body lay body

the pressures of attraction

lie lower weight

the dream of being him

steel rail expressway

the days uneven thought

movie flashback scene

what do you fear to feel?

...big budget...

the aims are simple:

create giant not so unrealistic fabrications

elicit not so faux leads and characters

throw in the fears of a nation

and its shared unease

and we have box office

gold (or blue).

Are we up on the market

or down to the last

bomb dropped?

These the minor

details, the less 

than guided aims,

simple or not.

...white Brooklyn streets...

at 1:30 am

Union Ave took on a whole new glow

about it in the lights of the bar

shovel tractor high beams

and the fractals of light coloring

of the white white  

   soft     soft

late winter storm that we embrace

like an old album

or a record of the storms

we used to have in this city

before we changed the path

and its frequency

...pre-cap...

the party I am missing tonight:

the swoon the swindle the mingle the network

the piece the guitar the axe the lights in the bowl

the wine the witches the hipsters the bitches

the wine the women the men the walls

the taut pants the faux spike the red red souls

the instigators the tail chasers the requisite line

the poet the musician the singer's songwriter

the fire escape smoke room the smoke alarm

the mixing the taping the mix-taping 

the photographer the echoes in the green pale hall 

the clinking of recyclables

the hello the goodbye the hellos and goodbyes

the curator the cure the curious 

the end the ending the closure the closing

...pool hall rule...

the way word bird game

up up the upper fame of the deed

done dirt street cheap 

schlepped up up hills

and tossed down down 

societ-ill

sloped and slants

renovation and prospect

who will willingly fill the pool

so that I may swim 

swimmingly in the error

of my repetition ?

...loft...

even the greatest intention

is defeated by the longing

and despair of  being

the only one in the room

even when you are near

...forget the power...

the word I saw today too many times

power on and off on the tv   on the green

board we discussed it in class and I had

not seen the word on the tv

til afterward when I got home

the word followed me

then went into the tv before

I started to dream of the power

being yanked off by the electrician

in my nightmare   he tells me not

to go forward and not to pass the power

onto the next fortune teller

or gas god of the sulphur springs 

that re-emerge in the power sweat

dreams of mountains and hot hot

waters the way              the muscle releases

safety in that power 

we return to the core of the lecture

then the tv turns it off for all of them 

like the power cord being tripped over

and ripped out of the socket

...a loved letter...

dear valentine

______________

______________

______________

dear dearly deserted

______________

______________

______________

dear lost value

______________

______________

______________

dear dear you

______________

______________

______________

Love, as/is Always,

______________

...medium matter...

how to:

frame the words:

in the body:

of your image:

is it:

glass on mating:

on turned phrase:

on photograph:

these laws:

needn't be set:

just suggested:

black and white:

my letters:

in black:

...the height of the ceiling...

the height of the ceiling

matches the height

of the sensation 

that we are both

winding toward 

that we are both

afraid of achieving

hands in the air

the height of the ceiling

...about facing...

another intriguing reconnection

in harmony with this idea

of reconciliation and proclamation

of singleness and multi-syllabic 

conversations with the self

(remember her? remember

the library window? remember

that awful, mean town?)

In all occurrences there exists

a definitive truth of that experience

and that time does take its

toll but no more so than

the words we used to use

before we knew how to use

words properly and not

as the weapons of inarticulate

youth, swords of misuse

...knee-jerk hysterics...

its true about the ice

that you can't see how and exactly

when it becomes that slippery

slide that bumps you into the sides

of streets and students      slates between

the cities and the songs

we used to sing in crowded

arenas with hand-knit scarves

and grandma's hats, perhaps

her sunglasses, more likely

her joy in watching someone

bust ass on the slippery

ice on a northern Queens

still frozen night.

She told me she once danced

at the Roseland Ballroom

when it was still this, a ballroom.

I told her I danced there

too but not like she did

and that I was wearing

grandpa's scarf. And that

I fell and busted up my knee.

(She chuckled)

(I said that I meant to do that)

...winter's shell...

tell me

what you are

wearing

so I may 

gauge how cold 

we both are

...found phrase...

I had lost this phrase

for nearly eight years

until today's words

help guide them back

through ensuing tears:

I am American.

...44...

the history of this day

starts the realization

and activation 

that begins 

tomorrow

...rearview...

in the red mini

you took off like a laser

then slowed down 

to a smile before 

you shot off again

and out of my

field of view

the weather 

wasn't conducive 

to our conversation

nor were the traffic

lights on our side

the window

fog didn't help that 

   either

...soft focus...

in the angle 

you present  the wall

is just out

of reach

and we lean

against our new satin

finish         running

our hands over it's silken surface

the angle

I choose to present

         eyeing 

each stroke

and each extension

the corners 

you try to fill

with the metal edge

of your trowel

the curves you create

                           and I witness

...transformer...

the long pause

between each breath

is the day turning

to night and the thought

that keeps us there

...dance song...

if you fight with me

I'll tell you a story

about the last one

who fought me 

knocked me down

and come undone

...eye for a life...

you speak of the rules of engagement:

suicide bombings, IEDs, civilian casualties, etc.

What about this rule? If I throw a rock

at you, you may throw a rock back at me.

Please. I welcome it. You may get an eye

for an eye. A few teeth.  Nose broken symbolism.

But, if I throw a rock, and you launch a full

aerial assault and ground invasion,

laser guided devices and tanks

versus primitive bottle rockets and roman candles,

what is my rock to do?  What shall

I aim for? You have left me one target

and that is anything that exists on the other side

of the border, anything, that my rock may

inflict damage upon, that it may reach, blindly. 

And this is a history of violence, something learned,

this is a last ditch chance to keep my home

and my family safe. Please. Engage me. 

Talk to me. Do not simply take away

what little I have and what was once

taken from you. This must be acknowledged.

Neither of us can be victors, here.

...upper respiratory...

when the neti-pot

won't break through

you know the infection

is solidified and staying

longer than it is welcome

(get going would ya?)

...new year's girl...

first, the little bus was a hinder

then, the little boy who wouldn't dance

we both shared a few flashes

the bulbs blew brights and green

a light shared, a deep inhale

and the exhale close to the ear

speaks over the speakers

directly to the space where

one forgets to ask the right

questions and do the right

research so that the night

extends itself past what

the clock imagines for us

(where did you go, Jennifer from Dallas?)

...about face...

backwards

you unravel

may I so

reverse in

me to talk

...limited available...

iwishyouthis

apleasanttime

withyourloves

andlikingsevencloser

thaneverbefore

inthemetaembrace

wecallfamiliar

withthefamilial

andthefaces

inthecircles

weexchangeover

timeindifferent

radiifromourself

atthecenter

ofthisversion

ofthestory

...a warming red...

inched in bit

by bit a little

sitting and sipping

whispering little

magics into ears

and buds     

tongues and tastings

infused in 

and of fruits 

of this ground

this earth

this earthy

first sip and this 

aromatic/erotic dance

simple yet torrid

unbruised yet handled

...soft shot...

the photo is missing

and the image wants

and demands for a chance

to be viewed: the disappointment

is only technological,

the skin is still soft

and tastes of salt, stress

and use: the myth realized

in the kiss that makes

the wound heal:

we will try as long as we remain wounded 

...Sadie in the Snow...

this magic white 

ball is always in play

and as I cup my hands

and smooth it out

you come to me

smiling                 breath freezing

                       into little clouds

at the tips of your whiskers

looking for where 

the white ball went 

and realizing it landed 

all over the place

 

...(social) security...

a closet for a grand

and a half

or room with a half

of a shelf?

(these aren't

the dilemmas

of the security

deposit, but

the security

of the depositor)

...major adjustment...

the decompression

of the spine 

is the alleviation

of the pressures

we compound

in each footprint

we leave behind

we need to live

supine

...family ministry...

Harold Camping 

I swear to god

is the scariest thing

on the television

...going to sleep is harder these days....

going to sleep

is harder these days

thinking of the things

flying around my head

trying to swat

at them like dogs

dreaming that 

they are running

circling around me

...distance party...

the guise of youth

is no longer the shirt

she wears or the way 

she holds her hair up

it is the fact that she

acts out of place

on purpose to get

someone to help

her find another

lost venue 

or forgotten show

one she went 

to in her twenties

when she swooned 

around the room

chatting up all 

players and shakers

looking for a different

song from each one

...lost and found pt. III...

things I've lost this year:

my home

my dog

my grandma

my self

my love

*

(revisitations

aren't grievances

they are attempts

at recounting

the images

the heart holds 

closest when

it is cold outside)

*

blindly go for the picture

record the song

write the words

ask why 

you do it and wonder

why you did that

why you

caused the closest

things to explode

*

if this is remittance 

then let this be remittance

for all these children

I have taken on

*

I want to be molybdenum

and all will add me

for fortitude

*

good 

by(e)

31

*

...marked man...

all of this

nonsense has got to end

and what better time

than during the declaration

that this new one

will be indeed new

and that the words

will find their ways

into new ears 

before new eyes

and firmly solidify

themselves onto the page

that gets turned

by several hands

...Tip of the Day #3...

Take shorter feet.

Make longer friends.

...no classes...

these classes simply

did not exist years

ago: remedial

at this level

meant high school

and if you could 

not put a sentence

together they

didn't let you in

at all 

...little illuminescent...

from Hoboken

the fog over the city

sits like a grey water

foam cutting off

the tops of scrapers

and cornices of churches

while we sit here 

and wonder what happens

to clouds when they

reach too low 

to allow light 

to be direct

but diffused

...ol skhul...

in this class

we were strengthened

by spirits,

long deep breathes

and pursuant of life

because it had no

causes against us yet

(In the picture,

everybody is in their old

new bodies freshly grinning

faces)

...upon this (white/wish)...

smallest leaf/biggest pile

sitting on the suburban

street waiting to be swept

away into the next pile

on the corner of Main

and not as main

(at this time tomorrow

the leaf, with all of its

hopeful joy and energy

will be disintegrating

into the winter 

like the white flash)

we wish the stars

good night and feed them

with our startled conversations

                         all the fiery little 

lights remember

is                      the leaf flew

up and up and up

until it joined them

in that same 

                         white flash 

                         we wish

at the sight of

...rumi wanted...

Hey Folks...I am getting pretty antsy here

and I need to get out of Jersey by the end

of the year. If you know anyone in Lower Manhattan

or Brooklyn (Bay Ridge up to Williamsburg)

looking for a roommate or know of any 

reasonably affordable places for me to 

live/share/squat, please let me know. 

Take care. My unlimited love to y'all.

reiter76@gmail.com

...frost contact...

that the chill in the air

has lifted off of chests

but it immobilizes 

our fears and control centers

for the ice in the lungs

can't become fluid

or we'll die and to avoid

that       we must

       breathe deep

and keep breathing

...cuts...

sorry 

never cuts it

but that 

is what

I mean

...living eyes forever...

the faces are less real

than the flesh they pretend

to recreate   

her stroke

is one that feels small

and inarticulate

yet finishes

fully expressive

like the texture     

  her cheeks

always sallow

or just the people

she chooses to recreate

and the fame they tow

or the power of the subject

  they propel toward creation

...delivery confirmation...

surprise or no surprise

the act was with the heart's

purest intent and the brain's

ever swirling commotion

when thoughts of you

dance like petals

floating into the wind

of this November chill

...dissipating pixels reforming...

eyes from afar

are still eyes 

that can penetrate

distance like spaceships 

and astromen

and visions of technology

that brings space

to its tender knees

evaporating distance

sky and time

like water 

on a hot radiator

...veteran's dilemma...

thank you grandpa

for serving me (us) proudly

and for taking me (us) into

your arms, defending

me (us) from true threats

and real terror

you (we) would be 

ashamed of this 

campaign we (us?) wage

today    you would

say that it's not like 

(us) or (me)

...arch of history...

a great orator is only 

as great as the truths

he is able to uphold

a great man is only

as great as the dedication

he shows to his fellow man

a great leader is only

as great as the history he creates

and the arch that continues

VOTE IT UP!

VOTE OBAMA! NO, SERIOUSLY! VOTE FOR HIM! PLEASE! EVEN IF YOU ARE STIIIILLLL ON THE FENCE...SAY FUCK IT AND GO FOR IT! YOU'LL FEEL A WHOLE LOT BETTER THAN YOU DO NOW!!! 

(fingers crossed) (no voter fraud no voter fraud no voter fraud no voter fraud no voter fraud)

...the left behind...

the pillow smells of you

and I'll have to

take that into

breath and thought tonight     

while you sleep 

unheld and 

unsound

...decade out of synch...

what is ten years

when the wait has 

been internalized 

for so long,

it's miraculous

and all of the insights

become lucid

photographs 

of times when

we couldn't have

conceived the idea

of ebbing and flowing

together

a bit here 

a bit then

altogether synched

...lost breath...

can the running take your body 

to its precipice      or will there 

be room to go       higher and to breathe

                                deeper? Here

at sea level            the air is thicker

but the challenge is to not get

caught up in what the lungs

                                are doing        rather

embrace what the heart is

...bubbles in the soda pop...

is the Oil City

air chill giving

you your 

breath back

or is it the sound

of the voice

through the waves

of air that return

you to your 

city center

and the warmth

of hands placed 

in warmer places

that require

us to breathe deeply

...pumpkin...

the orange shape of your thrill

collapsed in a pumpkin chair

you lounge with a granola bar grin

while mumbling and chewing

just enough to keep your teeth

from chattering, wind

teasing and tossing

hairs across your tiny face

tickling at the senses

you use and the smile

you unleash 

...lover...

why must I

throw myself

at music 

the way 

I do

(her hair

the note

being played)

...problem...

the problem

with distance

is that it is distant

(cold is something

you feel, not measure)

both become

the problem

...palace aid...

too much meat

in the sand which

stole away my lips

crinkling eye lids

made mouth unmoist

and dried withstand

rock face cliff view

of the GW

...circling counter-clockwise...

when you circle

clockwise, I circle

counter and traverse

in and out

of your circle.

Eventually,

your path

encircles me

and I can not

fit through the gaps

in your stride

to make it back

out         counter-clockwise

...wedding presents...

in this ball

room we destroy

the past

and destroy

the future.

(the tech girl

is dynamite)

let her sing

the song

or play that twang

too fast 

like you do

(the tech

swings her

head back

to hear what

I hear)

...for Shay...

dogs stole things I had

like my heart

my mind

my limbs


and my lungs

and I want to let her

have them all

without stealing away


into the dark

I want to give

them to her

willingly


and her to take

them as she would

any touch

one would offer



(R.I.P. Seychelle "Shay")

...oar...

I wanna be your oar

and although it can be

used for going

forward or back

I really want to be used

and taken across

the lake toward the fire

on shore and show

you what kind 

of directions I give

or take

...resurfaced...

back for a swim are you?

we will see you soon then.

Good day. A really good day.

...imperfect from now on...

safe travels my friends

and show that we 

nor they 

are the enemy

and that the perfection

we seek to attain

is just as foolish

as any utopian dream

conjured up 

by the leaders

of our states

...the article spoke in pronouns...

I we the the we

(am able to find)

(are not able to find)

(table dancer dank pit)

(lush loathsome brown tree)

(gamble at the bay)

I we the the we

(will not give cup)

(cannot give up cup)

(former president's pancake)

(fresh flour funneling down)

(stampede at a cricket's chirp)

I we the the we

(am dancing three beats ahead)

(clam closer like clams)

(terrible fever you get away with)

(accent in her hourglass)

(forgot to say good)(bye)

I we the the we

...ear-plugs...

all tomorrow's

parties will come

back to haunt me

in the ghosts 

of an abandon

hotel and the joys 

of the first kiss

and the last song

of the evening

that came as soon

as the early exit

as soon as 

we were loveless

...inimitable fashion...

removing the webs

you opened up these eyes

and moved these old 

bones over deciding

to invent or reinvent

the concepts of heaven

and hell, depth 

and depravity

only to continue

on your stroll

through the yard

...mazel tov...

congrads John & Kim!!!

thank you for making me

a special part of you big day!!!

I love you guys!!!

...helping with the loading...

when we talked 

tonight you asked

me how I like 

my job

and I told 

you my name

as my answer

said it was

clever & convenient

...stupid cupid...

start:

where's my Cass

where's my Cass

sitting in class

here on my ass

where's my Cass

where's my Cass

:finish

...to do list minus the capital...

my morning jacket in philly (watch the wind)

silver jews in brooklyn, manhattan, hoboken (watch the storm)

john's wedding on the hudson (perform the ritual)

doug at kutsher's (so f'ing wierd)

mbv finally (in the borscht belt?)

doug at terminal 5 (bring a sweater)

gas money? (hmmm...)

...go get 'em big guy...

Let's cut down 

on the Challah 

big guy...

I'll curb the ale...

and we'll both work

on the coughing...

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

...extracting wisdom...

this is because of:

melon and scooter pies

blankets full of stems, sticks

and politics

I cover your back 

with mine

you signal to fix

eyes on the still

of the smile

(after words

form their digression)

...humming...

his goal of echo

was achieved 

even though the sound

stuck in the crowd

and never returned

back from the 

red brick wall.

...deviant power...

reception ladies phone lines

crossed lines like stormed over

lamplights and powerpolls

(as briefly as the sky opens

up it closes, sleeping on the soft

side of the pillow)

the dreams are now clever

as they fuck with you

when you think about the eyes

being opened before

they reach 

the state

...accidental sail...

busted up

the charts

(the winds fill it up)

(the waster begins wander)

crafted out for rent

shorter sea side

than the charted

course we had set

but we will get there

none-the-less

(sway left)

(stray left)

...not a poem, a complaint...

Last night, at around 2am,

August 5th,

I had five great quatrains

sitting on my screen,

not intended to be a blog or anything,

more intended for a crafted poem

and they were really good             you know,

when you push the chair back from 

the desk and go "How the fuck did I do that?"

and then 

I hit something. 

And then I lost it.

And then I searched for it for the next hour.

And I could not find it. And now, I am really

pissed about this. You would be too if you 

saw them. 

(needed to get that out there...)