poem of the day 09.10.09

kleptomaniac
-for ally malinenko and daniel vernola

this pint glass
tight in my pocket
that extra
pitcher of beer
underneath my shirt
the street sign that i stole
the coaster
that held our beers
resting in my back pocket
and the no smoking sign
from the bar
this isn’t stealing
to steal
any fool can do that
no, this is just a different way
of remembering
a sort of commemoration
of the nights
we run wild
in the city
while the safe sit in parks
nursing air
and the jaded and dead
cramp themselves
in living rooms
gazing at the television
telling each other
how bored they are by
mimicking the laugh track
of a sitcom
or catching up
on the next great drama
while we set matchsticks
on fire in small candles
feast like romans
in illuminated diners
and wonder
why the rest of the world
has yet to catch up
to our genius
our blessed angel madness
yet knowing we never needed
any of them at all
in the first place.