Thursday, May 14, 2015

poem: The Benefits of Drinking With Your Neighbors



It's a good idea to listen to old Irishmen
this alcoholic who managed a rooming house
was liquid mnemonic tales
talking in a chair
had the net effect of a powder blue Cadillac
owned two conservative suits
one pair of Bostonians
one ash tray
nothing out of place
he had pecuniary skill in drinking with rich old ladies
 
a pastoral stint in the hoosegow
a practical stint in Korea
hearing memory always gets heard in stints
etherised
 into a guy talking
etherised
into listening
it took that year in a rooming house
to benefit permanently
all the temperance in the world can't fix a crack in the Milky Way



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