I wrote a poem inspired by the current heatwave… The why, the what, the wanton way Pietro trained Tracey! She—pale, wispy, wayward, lost along the sunbeaten path. Her limping gait raises Blitzkrieg sheets of bleached fine-grained sand. Pietro drives her advancing passage Into scenic Death Valley dehydration Without mercy or thought. The brain boils atContinue reading “The Harmful Hazards of Heat”
Author Archives: Hank Kirton
The Eupeptic Sex of Maria Lynn Fuego
Maria awoke with a McDonald’s breakfast on her mind but it never materialized in her belly, instead dining on stale Doritos and a warm can of Mountain Dew. Maria had slept in her car again last night. Joel had relapsed and succumbed to his demons, embarking on a scary drinking binge that forced Maria outContinue reading “The Eupeptic Sex of Maria Lynn Fuego”
The Nothingness Stood Revealed
Albert Einstein waited patiently in line at the bank. It was crowded today. The bank was always busy on Thursdays. People with their paychecks. The mood at the bank was usually good on Thursdays. Tellers and customers alike laughed and chatted in a relaxed manner. People were at ease with each other, it seemed. EinsteinContinue reading “The Nothingness Stood Revealed”
Jimmy, Pummeled
Jimmy sat on his dad’s collapsing, threadbare futon, watching some stupid dancing shit on the TV. He felt restless. He wanted to fight someone. He wanted to get smashed in the face and battered to within an inch of his life. It was an odd urge, he realized, but he insisted that he was notContinue reading “Jimmy, Pummeled”
The Constant Swallow of Time
Haggis finally realized he was engaging in head-injury behavior and returned the platypus Beanie Baby to the bar before it got damaged. It was a squishy purple thing and Ray the bartender was overprotective about it. Imagine, a 47-year-old man fretting over a silly plush-thing manufactured for children by children. According to Haggis, Ray’s obsessionContinue reading “The Constant Swallow of Time”
A Guide to Fishing for Freshwater Eels: Strategies & Techniques
Hal lived a simple life. He lived in his mother’s garage and grew food in a garden and angled for game in the brackish, man-made estuary on Holland Street. He loved to fish. He had to fish. You could usually find him standing on the old, crumbling cobblestone dams with his reel, waiting for theContinue reading “A Guide to Fishing for Freshwater Eels: Strategies & Techniques”
Manny’s Cancer
Manny was sure his cancer was related to the microwave oven at the Blue Ox Steakhouse. He’d worked in front of it for almost ten years. It had been manufactured in the early 80s and he stood with his unprotected head right next to it from 1994 to 2004. There was a pinhole in theContinue reading “Manny’s Cancer”
Fear of the Fuchsia
There is a husband. And a wife. Above them a mild sky. Pretty music plays nearby. “Nice violins,” the husband says to his wife who doesn’t respond. She is kneeling on the freshly-cropped lawn, ripping weeds out of a round flowerbed. The smell of wild onions permeates the air. The garden is bordered by redContinue reading “Fear of the Fuchsia”
Dead in a Dump Somewhere
Eddie Yettian was dead, maybe. You could never tell with that guy. He was always getting lost, going missing. Living on the existential precipice, as it were. He didn’t feel alive unless he was on the precarious edge of death. He always came back, though. Bedraggled, quieted, neutered or haunted, but back. And he alwaysContinue reading “Dead in a Dump Somewhere”
The Total Package
She was straightforward and told me I had “zero charisma.” She didn’t mince words. She insisted—with venomous emphasis—that I was boring and had nothing of value to offer. She compared me to a dead mime and because she refused to explain the analogy, I had no rebuttal. She pulled no punches, my Lois. Really gaveContinue reading “The Total Package”
Crumbling Asphalt 