Luncheonette Pancakes

A year from now
A time left then
Giving you just one more night
Followed by one more day
We would like to live forever
But we can only walk
One foot in front of the other
One heel behind five toes
One sun shining on my life
My life, my life, my life, my life
Is in it
Take a look around
What do you want me to say?
What do you want me to do?
I don't have to mean it
I felt that already
But thanks for asking

i am new york city, by jayne cortez

i am new york city
here is my brain of hot sauce
my tobacco teeth
my mattress of bedbug tongue
legs apart, hand on chin
war on the roof
insults pointed fingers
pushcarts
my contraceptives all look at my pelvis blushing


i am new york city of blood
police and fried pies
i rub my docks red with grenadine
and jelly madness in a flow of tokay
my huge skull of pigeons
my seance of peeping toms
my plaited ovaries excuse me
this is my grime my thigh
of steelspoons and toothpicks
i imitate no one


i am new york city
of the brown spit and soft tomatoes
give me my confetti of flesh
my marquee of false nipples
my sideshow of open beaks
in my nose of soot
in my ox bled eyes
in my ear of Saturday night specials


i eat ha ha hee hee and ho ho
i am new york city
never change never sleep never melt
my shoes are incognito
cadavers grow from my goatee
look i sparkle with shit with wishbones
my nickname is glue-me


take my face of stink bombs
my star spangled banner of hot dogs
take my beer can junta
my reptilian ass of footprints
and approach me through life
approach me through death
approach me through my widow's peak
through my split ends my
asthmatic laugh, approach me
through my wash rag
half ankle, half elbow
massage me with your camphor tears
salute the patina and concrete
of my rat tail wig
face upface downpiss
into the bite of our handshake


i am new york city
my skillet-head friend
my fat-bellied comrade
citizens
break wind with me