poem of the day 01.11.16

in the seconds before impact

i was dreaming something

i was wondering what i did to my knee

and glad that today wasn’t a jogging day

i was shivering in the bed

having left the windows open

in a world that’s sixty degrees one day

and thirty degrees the next

i was thinking of my rumbling stomach

i was wishing the coffee had already been made

i was thinking of indian food

and this norwegian film my wife and i had just seen

i was taking a piss

and trying not to wake the cat

though deaf and blind she can still sense light

so i was walking in the dark

scratching my ass

looking out the kitchen window into black brooklyn

cursing the guy playing bass out my window

while his car idled

i was wondering why in a world full of cell phones

people still felt it incumbent upon themselves to honk

i was looking at the trees blowing in the breeze

and thinking about going to spain this year

i checked the calendar

and couldn’t believe how old i’d turn in 2016

i thought maybe i’d check the weather

and some film times

avoid the news of demagogues running for president

i crept into the living room for the ipad

i heard that cat stirring and i did not breath

i booted the machine

and hoped it still worked

saw my shaggy reflection in its gray apple light

i thought maybe i needed a haircut

then i saw the cover of an online newspaper

it told me david bowie had died

and i knew the day had gone to shit before the sunrise.