postcard from las vegas

by markk

Posted to Action Poetry on 2001-11-05 13:34:00

i don’t look like a slot machine
but on the streets of las vegas
a homeless man beseeches me
hands out, as if he could utter
the right words & three cherries
bingo pop up on my forehead,
coins clanging from my mouth
into his palms like a deliverance
gift. i toss him a few quarters,
not exactly a big fat jackpot,
i’m a one- or two-armed bandit
in the shadows of neon blowing
volcanos, pyramids, chariots,
the new york skyline, paris, vast
indoor malls with blue skies & wisps
of clouds all built on other people’s
lost cash. homeless man sleeps
as lights flash play play play all
you can eat buffet show strippers
24 hours in the city that never sleeps
soundtrack bink bink electronic bink



(markk is madtolive@hotmail.com & www.deepcleveland.com)