I
once a bird flew in a blue moon . shell
shocked she cuts across a lawn towards me and
my Pulsar parked by the curb . balloons tied to the letter box to mark
a party (not yours) . Pluto, I must explain, has left its atom collider
hallway and moved in next door . It will be fun . like living in a ball
pit with just one ball . through the horoscope window I watched it roll .
baby it’s time we got a move on . Subway for feed cover her with my chequered
shirt and she crunches ice berg lettuce while set designers were wolf behind full
stops . . . under the exit sign . it’s late lets go . the port –
spinning tides, through lavender shoots I chart her freckles mascara’d
constellations . when the forest turned away
its Tunguska slapped cheek a butterfly was clipped the dark parts
of its wings . See that ? over there ? it’s a bower bird that hovers in you .
why hide behind fridge magnets, why paint your nails comet tail
blue ? the speedometer hangs a half clock never hung on a wall crammed with seconds
when I floor it . zodiacs zigzag . straight as the crow flies,
phantoming the effects of speed . night clubbing . dove tailed drunk .
rock and roll .
II
hand in hand
across the courtyard .
having a girlfriend is like having a basketful
of lemons, glances, and lavender
curls . the green notes slip through my fingers like fish,
around us the sound of the market crash .
she licks her gums as her toffee apple melts
smiles revealing pebbles and core .
in wall street sit ins against capitalism, all the doors
jammed and her umbrella folded as the dollar falls .
sun flowers grow beach front to breath taking views
and a lettuce crumbles under a farmers blue print .
she lies in my lap while I pick the locks in her hair .
i gets two skips she gets three
and we toffee skate home,
appleless .
III
a blonde bomb shell
found mostly in the rain .
plummeting the clock held still
in a cloud, fuse damp by her dresser . hair
clips, Cosmo magazines, Xanax –
outside hail . I throw clock bombs,
keeping time, over her garden wall . meteors shower
with sheep . galaxies try lip stick
on for size in her mirror faintly . Uruzgan automatic fire
no ones asleep . we hold minute hands
under her electric blanket . I try to hide
my hard on, we shouldn’t be so hard
on ourselves . Jupiter sizzles in a storm drain always
watchful we watch rain through conch shells –
I wonder what makes you tick .
IV
she parked by a lake .
locked the wheel with a chrome
arm and the window with her own . popped
through bubble wrap . sky blacking out
in the windscreen . tiny comets trailed
from her finger tips to the eclipse of her lips .
in Tupperware dreams mermaids said burned clouds
must move away from the bay this Saturday .
it was just a pipe dream (hold your breath Apollo) . a body
wrapped in table cloth, road maps, a summer dress
turns slowly on its axis . alligator clips spark in the rear
views’ tilt where a child catches rolexed fish,
dressing gowns, diamonds from a super nova
in a butterfly net . planets and stars dance
like confetti . Saturn hoola’s its ice hoops while being
a ball . her last thought being that she never
had one . do they play monopoly in heaven ?
V
this week Pluto hangs out with star fish . I hold my palms
against the crystal curve . her future clear working border
security at Sydney Air Port, leafing through x rays of luggage,
confiscating fireworks while I press calderas’ softly down in
snow globes . once in bed we thrashed about and knocked
over a lava lamp . this month we drive we drive we drive . Pluto
will get cosy under a smoke alarm . we will play Uno and your eyes
will turn to me as doubles of a Trouble games dice pop orb looking
back at me like it’s my turn to roll . to roll what ? snow balls and we fight with
them in the attic .
I never want to be standing out in a rattled snow
looking in at you, you looking out at me through :
balloon smoke volcanic avalanche
powdered up days iced strings Perisher Blue .
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