#philly
I AM FROM NORTH PHILLY
FROM SMALL STREETS, VACANT LOTS
AND PEOPLE WHO AREN'T THAT FRIENDLY.
I AM FROM THE WISE FAMILY
WHERE THANKSGIVING IS ALWAYS AT GRANDMAS
AND WATCH OUT FOR MOM ON YOUR BIRTHDAY
I'M FROM MOVIE NIGHTS
THE SCARY ONES THAT MADE YOU JUMP
AND THE SENTIMENTAL ONES THAT MADE YOU CRY
FROM SPANISH FOOD ONE NIGHT AND JAMAICAN THE OTHERS
I'M FROM LOUD MUSIC
AND "CLEAN YOUR ROOM!" SUNDAYS
I AM FROM WRESTLING WITH MOM
AND TRIPPING LITTLE BRO IN THE LIVING ROOM
I AM FROM RELIGIOUS ELDERS
AND GRANDPA BEING IN BED ALL DAY
I AM FROM MAGAZINES ON THE WALL, SHARED BEDS AND DARK CURTAINS
I AM FROM NORTH PHILLY
Apr 23, 2015
Apr 23, 2015 at 9:00 PM UTC
oh
ah
oh
ah
what time is it again?
we've been tangled up from sun up and to sun down and i fear i might be getting too wrapped around your body and soul
Dec 21, 2014
Dec 21, 2014 at 5:45 PM UTC
Bus stop dreads stop me in my tracks because I'm too white to be coming
around here.
My clothes are too ***** and my smile too honest.
I live a life of privilege that has nothing to do with the color of my skin or
the "insufficient funds" in my bank account.
Idle time is the devil's plaything they say,
But the devil has always sent his own to take care of me.
So we just keep on walking, not to be judged by the race based politics of those who have no recognized power over us.
Aug 22, 2016
Aug 22, 2016 at 11:09 PM UTC
Imagine a castle in the middle of a city
It sticks out to say the least
A sentinel of the city
The Kingdom of Fairmount
Steve Buscemi says it is
a prison of:
Silence
Cats
Ghosts
Tourists
Filmmakers
Gangsters
I crane my neck and take one last look
before heading to the Trestle Inn
for a drink and dancers.
Oct 2, 2014
Oct 2, 2014 at 10:02 PM UTC
My darling swells like the rivers of a sunset
Waiting for me
Hiding behind what is seen
Though no surprises seems to escalate
I am washed with bitter poison
Seen then from behind it all
Where she was waiting for me
No excuses left to supersede
Oh she liked to move
Tranced
Arms wailing in the back
And flailing out from behind her
-
Never will anything more
Sit down my soul
For a necessary lesson
On just what it's all about
-
She liked to move
To the commotion of fortune
My darling speaks
Blinding me from
All disconnection
In my ecstatic state
I leave a weary life to be
Behind me
As then we bleed
Color, dimension and new virtue
Into my open hands
Filling the gaps between my dreams
She staggers not
And I look past the world
again
I tremble
Stepping behind what is seen
Where she was waiting for me
I tremble
Stepping behind what is seen
Where she was waiting to free my soul
Oh I see the truth
Clear
Whole hearted in the face of it's elliptical reason
-
She liked to move
To the commotion of fortune
May I live life again
Apr 7, 2014
Apr 7, 2014 at 9:01 PM UTC
It was warm when I arrived in that big city- a suitcase and my purse are the only legacies I had left to my name.
I could start over here.
I could be someone new here.
My driver was a nice man from Delaware- he told me that the city was old and that I was brave for traveling so far alone.
He was a kind man.
He told me the weather was going to change soon.
He knew nothing about me... I don't think I knew anything about me.
We got to this broke down apartment over in West Philadelphia.
I remember thinking... this can't be the right address.
But it was and that was just the beginning to my endless self struggle.
I thought I could start over here.
The weather changed fast- overnight it was freezing and I was struggling to find warm enough clothes.
I remember thinking... how the **** can anyone live here?
I remember thinking ... how the **** am I going to make it here?
I learned a lot about myself that month I spent in the city.
I learned how to take a subway, how to take a bus, who to talk too and who to avoid.
I learned I can survive being alone.
I also learned.... you can't run from yourself.
You can't change as quickly as the weather.
May 11, 2017
May 11, 2017 at 3:37 PM UTC
i walk through cities i don't know
exploring the endless maze of concrete
seeing all the different kinds of people
those who down on their luck,
suits with phones pressed to their ears,
college kids lugging around massive backpacks
i think about all of their stories,
the lives they have led
i want to ask
if they could live their life all over again
would they still be the same
so as i walk through busy streets
full of possibilities and dead ends
i wonder what the city has in store for me
Nov 18, 2015
Nov 18, 2015 at 7:25 PM UTC
Let me destroy you,
I promise it will be fun,
just for a minute.
And for the record,
I don’t want to be the fifth,
in your weird ****
Jan 27, 2019
Jan 27, 2019 at 10:50 AM UTC
Tell me a story,
tell me everything about your days,
the ones that had you laughing into the
never ending, hazy sunsets,
the nights that tore your soul to pieces,
only to leave you void and alone in the
decaying moonlight.
Tell me, please. I would love to just know,
every single idiosyncrasy that
defined your being.
Whisper it shyly if you must,
into the fridgid Winter air that
bites briskly at my cheeks,
in the hollowness that reverberates off
of this desolate city’s streets,
while everyone tucks in early.
Speak slowly, please,
through the melting ice, dripping
onto the pavement while you
help awaken Spring.
Sing a simple song through the
birds rediscovering life,
mutter a word in the commotion
of a typical weekday commute,
plant the seeds of memories,
to bloom in Summer heat
and unnoticeably appear to me.
Dec 26, 2018
Dec 26, 2018 at 7:04 PM UTC
Found herself sitting in LOVE Park
Trying to find her spark.
She put Charm City in her rear view.
Her friends tell her she’s been long overdue.
New tattoo, hair do, and Dior shoes.
If you wanna be brand new you gotta look brand new.
No more reminiscing over mistakes and headaches.
The world is hers to take.
It’s ladies night and they’re hitting the town.
It’s time to act like queens and take their crown.
Smile for the future, middle finger to the past.
She started looking forward to the forecast.
She just came to listen to the band.
The DJ shouted “Get on up and dance.”
Her friends grabbed her by the hand,
And told her **** it, do it for the ‘gram.”
Filtered selfies and a ***** with some cran,
She knew her happiness was in high demand.
Go M.I.A in MIA,
Or catch a flight to LA,
Hit the coast to Monterey,
Her new life is underway.
Can’t wait around to be a wife,
She just wants to find her light.
She just wants to feel alive.
She used to survive, now she wants to thrive.
Take each moment in stride,
Warming up in her sunshine.
So she takes another pic,
Tags her friends real quick,
Put her smile on real thick,
Her old shell is fading,
Her old shell is fading….
Feb 7, 2019
Feb 7, 2019 at 12:36 AM UTC
heavy eyelids,
slurring my words,
lying on the concrete at 5 AM.
lying to my loved ones about
where I've been.
squealing tires take corners too fast,
mixing with aimless sleep-talk,
and the chatter of a police radio
somewhere far.
but nearby.
hands paint my thighs
through emptied pockets,
warm breath on my ears,
a steady rocking motion,
already forgotten.
didn't we put someone on the moon
thirty years ago?
or was it the sun?
tell me I'm okay.
Mar 30
Mar 30, 2026 at 3:01 PM UTC