navigating a conversation
is circumnavigating a globe
a lexical darkness invokes
an expected step in the stairs
that was never there to begin with
seemingly constructed soundly
its revolving linguistic doors
halt and close shut precisely
when an attempted entrance is made
an impossibly difficult rhythm to gauge
except it seems as though everyone else can
alien colloquialisms loom
as familiar judgements rise
surrounding clapperboards echo
as larynx follows suit
interests watered down
manufactured in plastic casing
arbitrary convoluted theorems
of etiquette and mind
as clear as matte black
and as legible as handwriting in transit
as pleasant as disease
yet as necessary as water

brush your hair
comb the edge
get rid of your blemishes
upkeep things
organize
nyquil for the idle hands
know you're wrong
don't say so
arguments are a lost cause
snapback hat
novelty
time for the collection fee
walmart brand
can of worms
guilty for the selfish hearse
you're alright?
yeah, i am
throw it in a garbage can
cellophane
selling pain
dip head in the ocean plain
saline eyes
retina sees
iridescence in the trees
shutter flash
phosphenes lie
LED painted sky
thumb moves past
impulse read
why don't you stay in bed?
travel blogs
saved to note
corkboard creaks, tilted down
birdcage closed
food poured in
aluminum paper thin
fields of wheat
eyelash closed
only at the tip of your nose
dusk rolls in
pavement hides
suburbs in your alveoli
inhale once
exhale twice
chew on tepid freezer ice

orange tinted bottle
poses on its shelf
tick
tick
tick
autoplay
auto isolation
tick
tick
tick
dulce de psyche
locked in cylindrical plastic
across a carpeted sea
tick
tick
tick
existential
educational
static rooted legs
cowering elastic comforter
tick
tick
tick
cranial jolts crest
water not drunk
and it will remain
needs dip
jewel hovering over head shifts to crimson
"go here"
X
"go here"
X
the great salt lake
was formed in a bed bound state
notification reminds
yet opportune remains deceased
an eleven pm google doc
tick
tick
tick
next stop
early morning

all employees must wash hands
before returning to work
pressure builds up
before launching the cork
listen very closely to
the chirp of a sparrow
lasers can't measure all of
the thin and narrow
sit on a windowsill
fly to a different side
i ran past the traffic
ignoring all of the lights
desktop monitor flashes
in a macroscopic view
a pendulum swings
starting anew
a car's headlights shine
reflecting on the walls
i picked up the phone
to voicemail bound calls
i'd like to walk today
to get some extra steps in
the cracks in the pavement remind me
that i never asked the question
nor did i receive an answer
for the only thing i got
was a generic business card
in an empty parking lot

i wish i were a louse
so i could crawl about
and land on someone's scalp
rodion, exterminate me now
for such a time as this
take a final bow
before ceasing to exist
remove knowledge from within
a minimum wage job
blow on a dandelion
and turn down the volume ****
can the blinds be closed again?
from when i was a child
existence didn't seem so thin
the sauce is only mild
maybe i am mistaken
for i am still young
but will i feel the same
when the photo album's hung?
the opposite of a hobby
is a clean ceramic plate
the milk of human kindness
has gone past its expiration date
hand moves past the hour
writing within its margin
chronos will laugh
as i fertilize the garden
speaking to an empty sky
full of nitrogen and O2
if you really were here
couldn't i know, too?
mephistopheles knows
how long it's really been
spray insecticide in the air
an addition to the compost bin
don't mistake my words
for self deprecation
i simply wish that i
was unaware of termination

teacher erases
marker mistake
expo stains
still left behind
a tinge of red
under the blue

3 dollar kalimba
from the thrift store
only eight notes
never any more
3 dollar kalimba
plays a little tune
got it as a gift
of plastic hewn
3 dollar kalimba
heart shaped acrylic
lets the light through
of nothing in specific
3 dollar kalimba
that doesn't reverberate
too small a structure
to support sound ornate
3 dollar kalimba
with some added stickers
one of a rainbow
the other a faded picture
3 dollar kalimba
the eighth note is flat
but its melodies continue
in despite of that fact
3 dollar kalimba
how i love you so
your metal teeth ring
from high to low
3 dollar kalimba
forget what time it is
when i hear your sound
don't care what your price is

our love
is like no other
fly, my butterfly
kafka can't see
who we're meant to be
an extraordinary beauty
fails to be seen
when the mirror's fogged
by government ids
your name is sublime
not the noise they shout
for it is simply air
and rings false every time
your silhouette and your voice
have never been a conscious choice
but to ever deter
the watercolor within
is to shake a can
that never opens
so go, dance in the rain
rewrite history's pain
you are my pride and joy
melting different metals
creates a wonderful alloy.

i love being outside
because i forget
what is inside
even just being
outside of a freeway
is much more freeing
than indoors' lack of leeway
the ground beneath my feet
textured with imperfectness
makes me okay to meet
a theoretical highness
live oaks are ironic
because of their name
they aren't really chronic
and i'm just the same
a grackle cries out
atop a power line
what are you talking about?
this forest isn't mine
a blackberry grows
during winter's reign
despite everything i know
i sink into the rain
a cat pounces upon
a small white rodent
i turn the laptop on
and write a poetic statement
cumulonimbus forms
shocking the ocean
one is forlorn
the other sits again
a bridge is constructed
connecting the valley
a heart is abstracted
another dash to the tally
a language created
means of expression
soil is sated
from decomposition
every beautiful thing
must be transient
it's making my ears ring
terra, stop the embarrassment

waiting in line
to see something interesting
this light of mine
is my bestest thing
waiting in line
to see a new movie
i saw it online
looks pretty groovy
waiting in line
to ride a carousel
the names of every animal
i could never tell
waiting in line
for a celebrity signature
the beginning of that hour
made my heart rupture
waiting in line
to drive and see you
stuck in highway traffic
allows me to take a few
waiting in line
for the next train
the carriage stops within
they all look the same
waiting in line
to get something to eat
hunger moves throughout
and pain through my feet
waiting in line
to wait in another
i've been in here for days
don't want to be a bother
waiting in line
to an elusive pit
everyone lines up
apparently seen as fit
waiting in line
and when i finally leave
the ride is only a minute
a photo taken is left behind
is it really worth it?

and do something
that will be
impactful during
a time filled with glee
an unmade bed
a basket of laundry
messages unread
missing assignments
college applications
half finished projects
acrylic stained station
leave me alone
ctrl + a
del
if i could start
a tabula rasa
maybe i could
have my own wikipedia
but instead i'm now
unable to move
go with the flow
get in the groove
[ERR]:
THERE ARE TOO MANY ACTIONS IN THE QUEUE.
PLEASE TRY AGAIN LATER.
rid me of
the chemical imbalance
behind my eyes
and above my throat
it consistently lies
did you know that
it's freezing without a coat?