City Poems

City Poems is a short collection of poems about my first two/three years living in the city after moving from a rural suburban area.

Snarl

you left me back on
jawline river

and there
it hurts the most

oh liar liar
freak desire
I waltzed across
your bones

your cheeks
are tide and sand
you swell you
cannibal you eat
your kids

I cooked for you
my heart my ribs

mister mister
kiss her kiss her
skin dunes
sands I know

oh mister mister
jawline river
hurts, it hurts
so slow

i love you when you scare me and

when you watch
the city at 2am

but the lights don’t reach you

and when you smile

dappled by
sunshine and
coffee stains and

when you can’t care about me
when you don't care about
me i'm not

a person
i'm the
doll you

shh don't
please

and

you’re staring
but the lights can’t teach you
a god damn thing

and i love you
when

you hate me
for loving you

for breathing

for change

your own
self and

and

sad sad sad

mid winter red leaves

we chat like
kitchen counter spills

making cold tea lakes
and climbing
the trellis on sundays

you called me and
we ate the spring frost

and

if my lungs
had speech

they’d say
shut up

please

let me breathe

TELEGRAMS

I CAN SEE THAT YOU HAVE QUESTIONS STOP I KNOW STOP TELL ME STOP I CAN’T STOP STOP LET ME STOP LOOK IT’S LIKE THIS I DON’T STOP NO STOP TELL ME STOP I LOVE STOP BUT I’M A STOP LITTLE STOP FRAG STOP LOOK STOP I KNOW I AM NOT WHAT YOU CHOOSE YOU WANT AMUSEMENT I’M A MUSE

I ATE THE OCTOPUS I ATE THE OCTOPUS I ATE THE OCTOPUS I ATE THE OCTOPUS I ATE THE OCTOPUS I ATE THE OCTOPUS I ATE THE OCTOPUS AND THEN THE OCTOPUS ATE ME

DANIEL TOLD ME STOP COMPLAINING CELLS YOUR TEETH YOUR STINGING INSECT THROAT YOU SWELL OKAY I PROMISE HERE WE GO D YOU’RE LOVELY GO TO HELL

Hello, Mr. Pterodactyl!

[indistinguishable shrieking]

flap flap it’s funny
no it’s not
but yeah it
kind of is

[indistinguishable shrieking]

flap flap it’s fine
no really I mean
fuck you I’m crying in
the laundry room

[indistinguishable shrieking]

flap flap I’m not shaking
again, see, I’m growing
back my graveyard teeth

distinguished scream
I never shriek

Red Shoes

sweet and sour sadness
stir fry madness
glory glory gluttony

pumpkin, easy, poison pie now
her reward was that she died