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In Leonard's Market

the cash register
total says $6.66
and the guy's wife
is freaking out,
says, "Buy some
thing else. Get
another pack of
cigarettes, gum,
anything."
"What are you
talking about?"
"666. That's
the Devil's number."
"That's a load of
crap, Geraldine.
Come on."
"You can't do this.
It's bad luck.
Worse than bad
luck."
"I never knew
this about you.
Look. I've got
exact change,
six dollars and
sixty-six cents
Come on. We're
holding up the line.
People are waiting."
She looks stricken.
Terrified. I could
see it was the end
of something but
I didn't know what.

 

Ellen Burstyn
     after Paddy Kilrain

"She's a maniac-a maniac
and she's dancing like she
never did before----"

Dnacing the Samba
The Mambo
The Mirimba
The Assassination Tango

Ballroom Dancing
Dancers Without Partners
Dancing in the Streets
The Locomotion

Step Dancing
Fox Trotting
Waltzing Mathilda
Slow Dancing
The Stroll

"Ellen Burstyn, how could you
play that roll?"

Wired on high test speed
and no sleep, cutting holes
in the rug, dancing to a jagged
music of the spheres, a string quartet
raising lumps in your skin,
tumors new music is formed
from, plosive as the game show
host's imploring of new victims
on stage, "Come on Down!"
and join a ghost play version
of Life no one survives, least of all,
you, stuck in the final phases of
a lost requiem for dreams.

Ellen Burstyn, none of us
will ever be the same.

 

Long Distance Driving

A wind so cold, skin froze
when touched, peeled in
layers after pushing cars
from snow banks, ruts,
flesh adherence to metal an
epiphany of pain, even
medicated with high grade
weed, second wind inducing
black beauty speed trips for
long distance driving white
outs after dark along Rte 69,
destinations west of nowhere,
we wandered all over the road,
only guard rails and low stone
abutments keeping us from
going over the edge.

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