"You've been talking a lot of shit."
"There's a lot of shit to talk."
"Are you hurting?"
"I'm hurting."
"Are you happy?"
"Nah."
"Are you happy for them?"
"Begrudgingly."
"Carry on."
"Does it get better?"
"Only if you let it."
"You're welcome for the overtime."
"I'm salaried, but thanks."
Artificial sweeteners
antiperspirants' aluminum
arsenic in apple seeds
asbestos everywhere
living next to power lines
secondhand smoke
firsthand smoke
not enough sunlight
too much sunlight
the hole in the ozone layer
mixing bleach and ammonia
carbon monoxide
mercury in old thermostats
yellow 5 food dye
most things (but only in California)
will kill you eventually
though nothing will do it faster
harder, and with less remorse
than the dopamine deprivation
when there's nobody left
to love
you.
Cut so deeply
by another one
you've loved
you slice open
the parcel
sent to her
old address
slightly aroused
by the sweet revenge
of a federal offense
when it hits you:
A sheet of
bubble wrap
a flattened
cardboard box
and return labels
in duplicate
in case there is
a mistake
when you realize
you've made one.
