“I couldn’t think of taking
anything that was whole.”

rejoice, in fact,
over the quiet self-complacence of the toaster.

I get on
the racket bus,
and see one empty seat

“He picked up
a bee!”
is what

If they pay well I tell them “Bene stat
Stop in again the next time you feel horny
In this whorehouse where we hold our state.”

All night rooting, Hamlet squeezed loose,
a secret pinkness under the wall,
your pet piglet

I

He said goodbye for the last time in a cafe in
Saint-Paul-de-Vence, over a glass of Chablis.
She lingered over cheese and fruit before requesting

—one finger chiromantic exercise—

It sums our vital force and our will.
Cowards had theirs sliced and in Sparta

On a wooden platform in the center of the room
The young dancer stood, her naked feet in position:
The man would rather gaze at her white feet forever
Than ever hold them in his hands, paying her well

This morning there was another one
Looking used but not worn out
Beside the road
What do they mean