NEEDLING

My car’s on its last leg
the exhaust pipe barely two inches from the road ...

Was driving home
from my folks
after lunch today
when I get a call from my sister.

She says, “is there anything
dragging on the road when you drive?”

Her girlfriend is two cars behind me
and she was wondering?

I say thanks, I’ll stop
on the shoulder
and check it over.

When I pull over
K. drives by me and ways hello.
I wave back.

I get out of my car.
It’s all good and not good.
It’s as it’s been now for a few weeks.
Which is not good,
because it could all go to hell
any time.
Which is good
because it hasn’t really gotten any worst
in at least two or three weeks.

My exhaust pipe has been dropping
little by little
the last few weeks
or months, I don’t know
and I’ve been ignoring it
for financial reasons
among other reasons
like laziness
lack of time
drunkenness
lack of time
denial of the world as it stands around me ...

Working double shifts
every other day.
Got to be at the store in the morning
to open up shop
first thing mañana!

Wednesday I close on my first house!

I’m so broke it’s not even funny.

I owe money left and right,
but what the fuck!
that’s the way
and I’m happy about it all.

(Before buying a house
I bought a brand new laptop
and went to Paris
on holiday for one week ...

can't complain.)