hey, you! got a cigarette?
the woman was barely visible in the night.
     only got one left, i shouted down from my balcony
i'm Valerie, she said.
(i did not reply.)
just got out here from Florida.
left my husband and everything, she kept on going
he's a pro golfer, you know... on the PGA tour and all...
i can't tell you his name.
     why in the hell would you leave him, i asked?
this psychic told me to...
you know, i used to be a model.
(in the darkness, i had to take her word for it.)
but then i got this illness that made me fat,
and then this dog bit my face real bad.
(once again, i had to take her word for it.)
i'm gonna be a famous actress out here in six months.
     is that what the psychic told you?
that's what he told me... but,hey, i could really use a cigarette.
i threw my last cigarette down in the dark.
     hey Valerie, i said, stop by after you become famous.
will do, she said, and i saw the glowing tip of her cigarette
gently bounce down the street.
six months have passed,
and i'm still waiting for Valerie to stop by.