...equal...

you are either

in or out

there is no between

or betwixt

no kinda or sorta

no maybe or baby

you are either

in or out

those are the rules

...rain through...

still beating droplet

left untouched

unsounded by echo

left disturbed

in the natural

aqueous state

...new era...

we all need

the family discount

even if we haven't

been familial

in years

...shorts...

shorts show

short on money

pockets

that are empty

when cutoffs

slice deep like wounds

empty sockets

worn joints

seams holding together

only to keep your

junk about you

from losing that too

symbols of slump

economic downturn

we never inherit

full pants

always just short

...ninety-two at midnight...

of oppression

this thick warm blanket

of heat bricking

on us like a house

hot and moist

a deadly sadist sees

the heat in waves

the street

curls and cracks

the roofs are no use

the night is nothing

but dark and heavy

ninety two at midnight

is just not right

...two years ago today...

the back of the menu

had the names of all

of the night's acquaintances

but not yours, and that

is the only one I needed

...sans cloud...

sans cloud

sun mood

in flight

movie moody

stuffed stubborn

like butt-born pigs

them pregnant trees

sun move

move star

across the pie

the entire pie

...no other truth...

when the harmonium

plays we can hear history

as a clear signal

not the cluttered mess

we find in the books

we read or follow

as truth

there is no other truth

than music

...held court...

on the grass

the ball skids

a little

and the kids

slip up drinking

cup along

the painted lines

to be fair

it was a sprinkle

little bits

of rain

...city ocean...

to shake things we had not

shaken in years and not

stirring but shaking

like the waves collapse

or the beat of the drum's

kickback, echo, location

on shore

...auto-erotic...

in all repairs

aiding the band

still bleeding

leaking oil

breaking down

needing a tow

to the next gig

still managing

to crash into

the same garage

each and every night

...backlash...

the kill mission leaves

no words from the target

in that silence

the fear begins to rise

and the backlash

across the skin

is the true test

of the choice we made

...stop...

we can stop

fighting now

right?

...finale...

was it a firestorm

or a sniper rifle

a siege or a candied

apple with razor

was it quick and unexpected

or was it long and tortuous

as so many want it to be

if there is any truth in all of this

the world can't be a better place

but we will devise a new plan

to go ahead and try anyway

...shorter days...

if the children

knew that the days

will become shorter

and harder then

they wouldn't be so

quick to say that they

wish they were older.

...sun...

DeLaughter sang

"Hey, it's the sun

and it makes me shine."

on a day

like today,

but in Texas.

...fence...

when the dog

barks at nothing

it becomes something

material out of fabrication

ghosts in the walls

she knows something

about history

growls at the clink

of the fence

certain that there

is something up

in the corner

of the ceiling

...dog-like..

we sleep low

like lap-dogs

or land-ladies

into our heads

dreaming details

of distant stints

in different states

in Virginias and valleys

treasured, York city-tall,

Jersey back-yards

both the newer

breed and blood-line

but by the time

we are asleep

we've forgotten

where we were

...back into the grass...

back at my side

you lie next to the couch

needing nothing more

than the warmth of a body

close to you and the pressure

of a motionless hand resting

fully on your soft blonde shoulder

while the flashes from the television

go unnoticed in your sleep

and you dream of being home

out of the city

back into the grass

...fracture...

the unimaginable torque

it takes to fracture the bone

only imaginable

when the calf of the creature

one sees as alpha

once round and tomato-

shaped, but solid as rock,

spirals and splits

with one unknowing step

across the fractured ice

over the fractured concrete