that practically
everyone
in this town
smokes Camels...
I get a red 99 from a 67ish
man in the smokers’ corral
at Asti,, he says I have
cool style
people freak out
when I put on the
white cowboy boots
his friend said
WE’RE TALKING
ABOUT THE
TWILIGHT ZONE
yeah buddy
I say back then
find another merely
10% smoked Merit
on the pavement
I'll disinfect it
in the sun I
reassure them
67ish was wearing
a polo and the crispiest
white vans with tall socks
I have ever seen
you look like you just
stepped off a yacht
I tell him and
he seems pleased
I walk slow
along the levee
stopping to sit on
the bumpy ground
for a bit because
I am still
unemployed
-Salad sounds good. Do you
think you'll be her by 7 pm?
texts Grandma
a frayed black tarp
billows up revealing
a blue Harley on
the back of a truck
-Not quite
-Taking it real slow
-Sitting by the river
it's so pretty
the Merit is harsh
and bitter
-really?
-Yes ma'am
-You sound like a woman who
want to escape
I send the shrug
then peace dove
emojis
I stop at Blinken's
cottage on my dad's
property to pick some
tomatoes
he says just the person
I wanted to see! Cos
I found this for you--
and hands me a newspaper
clipping of an article
called "The Follow Up"
about job interviews
I suggest we split
a beer and ask for
just a baby sized glass
we poke around
the half bolted
raised beds as the
sun starts to set
