everyone who passes through the house of James
plays a part in their second story story
Nick is not of the kitchen
but he’s ghosting there
and he tries
he tries with words
he tries with dance
he tries so hard we barely see him!
James is thirsty!
and that’s the other story...
He's drying *******
on an old gas cooker
when ‘Phelie blows in
on a colleague
o’ Koz Bar leaves
hi poising cat-ready
on a brown couch
on a couch
that remembers no shape
though she tries
she tries to make an impression
on our blurred nerves too
beginning with alrigh'
which is hi too but with feeling
this hi assumes we know
drama gril and da Richmond crew
And I try to say
I mean I am trying to say
the couch remembers no shape
I have no memory
of drama teachers or michelle
yelling again darling with feeling this time
then she tells
me what a lonely time
it has been since the…addiction -
michelle poising there
upon the word
like a Lepidopterist’s pin
on au-then-tic-i-ty -
isn’t it enough that I said it?
now that it’s a dead thing
it spreads its terrible wings
and 'Phelie double drops
her second story hello hello
we lean into a kiss hello
her lips are not dry
though she smokes her mouth un-wet
she tries to say hello
by laughing at
I've given up not-smoking
and we talk
and kiss a fresh hello
undress hello
touch hello
leading to a breathless hello hello hello
and now I am saying,
*again darling with feeling this time
Meeting 'Phelie' at a house party. One interesting girl. Not her name of course. I chose an abbreviation of Ophelia because I love the line in Hamlet 'unaware of her own distress' and this kind of summed her up.