we awoke to five machine guns
staring at us
all were american made
therein a comfort
another american in a foreign land
we were naked
Sally from the Alley and i
wanted to ask us a few questions
i made my way to my pants
promising God, if you would
get me out of this one
i will never touch another drop
as she arose
five machine guns followed her
half-naked across the room
quickly i slipped my grip on the rum
two swallows down
Paul's epistle to Timothy
a little wine for thy stomach's sake
and you frequent ailments
such as my hangover
on the other bed lay
Tennyson, Kerouac, Yeats, Dickinson
playing deaf and dumb
along with a quarter pound of smoke
i will give you five to one
they take the smoke
and leave the poets alone
they did

well gentlemen says i
none spoke english
i will give you five to one
i will get out of this
God pities drunks and idiots
i did after hours of questioning
a refresher course on mexican law
and the realization come morning
the reason for all of this
i would be burying another friend
because of alcohol
just when you have life figured
it slaps the smile away


         Fergus Falls   96