the crinoline in the corner
blinks twice
at the mascara
spinning on the vanity
slowly leaking blood

house cats pirouette down hallways
of marble and steel
ripping their claws out
as to not interfere with their work

******* don’t last forever
they say
two years max
three if you deflate them
every night before you sleep

there’s a lily
in the dining room
who pierced her tongue
with a cufflink
she once wore a crinoline too
you know

her sister works at a diner
from four to close
no scrambled eggs here
she’ll say
it's over easy or nothing
sausage on the side

but the crinoline
is too close to the fireplace
and the cats
don’t know how to love
while the lily
stopped being beautiful
when her sister melted
into the frying pan

a spark punches the crinoline
upside the face
and a ****** cannonballs
towards the toilet
drowning in bliss