\nShootout at Depression Gulch
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

The clock hesitates. The black blind draws down.
\nIf you feel like you\u2019re sinking, you are<\/em> sinking.<\/p>\n

When the furnace clicked on, I ran
\nto the vent like a mouse to the trap.<\/p>\n

The gray sky so thick, so thick, so\u2026.
\nRemember when they used to care what you thought?<\/p>\n

Snow in them thar clouds, Buckaroo! Best be
\nrounding up the varmints for the ice ball competition!<\/p>\n

You can survive at 55. Degrees, years, but not test scores.
\nDroopy with a chance of more droops.<\/p>\n

Hot breath. Oh, on your cheek, whispering your name.
\nThe parts to a furnace are petulant in their numerousness.<\/p>\n

Which reminds me of a tumor I once knew. A car starts\u2014
\nor does it?\u2014on the street outside. A grimace is as good<\/p>\n

as a smile to a blind midget. I am a mental midget
\nfor the love of Pete, Riley, and all the others, God included.<\/p>\n

God, the big furnace in the sky, clicked off long ago,
\nyet we are bent at the vents. Call it prayer or faith.<\/p>\n

I keep saying half-life
\nwhen I mean half-light.
\n <\/strong><\/p>\n

* * *<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

Last Meals<\/strong><\/p>\n

My mother\u2019s down to three meals
\nshe can cook. Blind, she measures
\nwith her fingers. Spills wash over
\nthe counter, leavings of a bitter tide.<\/p>\n

My father, allowed nothing green, must
\nhave meat. Their dueling pills rattle off
\nsticky tile. Chicken tonight, dry breasts over rice.
\nMilk for their bones, dropped morsels for mice.<\/p>\n

Home to visit, what can I do against the wiry
\nwill to carry on? I recite with them remembered
\ngrace. I clear the dishes, that\u2019s allowed.
\nTV and audio books muffle them into sleep\u2014<\/p>\n

on his couch, in her chair\u2014and I am talking
\nto nothing but air. I eat the salt meant to be sugar.
\n
\n* * *<\/strong><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hitchhiker\u2019s Guide to Hitchhiking
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Stones are like snowflakes
\nGod forgot to melt
\nand therefore became chips
\noff the old block.<\/p>\n

Even God\u2019s driveway
\nis cracked and weedy.
\nSarcasm is not the currency
\nof need.<\/p>\n

Sometimes wishful thinking
\nis just fishful winking.
\nThe thumb is not an effective
\nweapon of choice<\/p>\n

except in eyeball instances.
\nImprovisation and candy
\nare both underrated as tools
\nfor opening jammed intentions.<\/p>\n

A hammer is as good as a fishhook
\nto a blind prophet. A bird in the hand
\nis a useful snack opportunity. Dogs
\nonly go so far, then they stop<\/p>\n

to sniff the hands of time. Time does not
\nstand still, though it does imitate
\nslow-moving mammals and mimes.
\nWhen the wind blows you backward<\/p>\n

it is really blowing you forward.
\nTell everyone you can play the guitar\u2014
\nbe daring like that. Pretend your name
\nis Sage. Travel light, but don\u2019t forget<\/p>\n

your nail clippers and underwear
\nportfolio. Don\u2019t leave the elephant
\nin the room. Memorize facts about
\nthe moon and six permanent addresses.<\/p>\n

Put a penny in your shoes and a quarter
\nup your ass. Keep the penny for your thoughts
\nbut lose the quarter. Keep your nose clean
\nand ants in your pants.<\/p>\n

Always put your best foot in your mouth.
\nInvent hobo songs and sing them loudly
\nwhen you must sing. Sing when you
\nwant to cry. Wear your vice versa vest.<\/p>\n

Always say Thanks for the ride<\/em>
\nand tip your hat. Always wear a hat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Shootout at Depression Gulch The clock hesitates. The black blind draws down. If you feel like you\u2019re sinking, you are sinking. When the furnace clicked on, I ran to the vent like a mouse to the trap. The gray sky so thick, so thick, so\u2026. Remember when they used to care what you thought? Snow […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2630","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-poetry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2630","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2630"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2630\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2682,"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2630\/revisions\/2682"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2630"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2630"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/ducts.sundresspublications.com\/content\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2630"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}