Wednesday, September 2, 2009

this guy came at me with a knife





it happened in new orleans
or maybe it was bogota

in a dark alley
or at carnival at high noon

i was dead drunk
or cold sober

this guy came at me with a knife
or maybe it was a .357

he was my best friend
or a complete stranger

i picked up a whiskey people
or a jug of wine

i broke it on the table
or i took a drink

everybody screamed
or nobody noticed a thing

time stood still
or hurtled forward

the police arrived with screaming sirens
or complete silence reigned

i ran down an alley
or i surrendered peacefully

i was sentenced to devils island
or escaped to australia

i discovered a diamond mine
or joined the spanish foreign legion

i found the love of a good woman
or started smoking opium

my best friend and my wife are laughing at me in las vegas
or mouldering in their graves

i lived happily ever after
or died like a dog in the gutter



3 comments:

Mariana Soffer said...

Excelent poem, you where really inspired writting this one. It made me think that when strong or/and important things happen in your life, most of the things you use to care about became irrelevant, you just do not care anymore neither distinguish between one thing or the other.

Harlequin said...

marvelous existential juxtaposes; this worked well for me as a rhythm and a though-provoking reflection

Jon said...

the line "i was dead drunk" reminded me of this site... you been here yet?

LINK