7th and Mission

the rivers of headlights
rushing down hills and over bridges
the buzzing of the security door
and the early morning sirens
tv sets and small dogs
the single blade of grass
turning brown in the sun
amid shards of broken glass
an old man lying on the sidewalk
carefully filing his yellow fingernails
he is more at home than i am

...



Geary and Powell

Having discreetly bypassed security, I make my way to the elevator.
The unmarked envelope torn open now, revealing my target: an old and
familiar foe. The elevator opens. I hit 31.

The elevator rises up out of the belly of the building, sliding up the
wall of the tower. Outside the glass, billboards and offices slide
away and San Francisco unfolds beneath me, my eyes darting here and there
until.. aha!

In among the throng of the Union Square, his unmistakable red and white
striped hat.

Target acquired.

...



Harrison and 11th

i am attracted to madness
to rabid rebellion against
countless quotidian cruelties
soulless hourglass seconds
now numbering nine hundred
and ninety nine million

...



Turk and Mason

While I'm trying to bring up the movie listings, a fidgety, unkempt,
and rather suspicious looking character buzzes my door. I assume he's
looking for my agoraphobic neighbor who's got strange visitors at all
hours. But then he buzzes again and asks for Oliver. An hour later, I
find myself crashing a book release party in the Tenderloin and being
introduced to various writers and artists and having people offer me
drinks while asking about my alleged involvement in an unnamed secret
society and the significance of the word "wretched".

...



21st and Bartlett

in copper autumn light
boy in blue lowers his face
to gray concrete
prostrate
to oaken church doors

held between the child
and the man (still shouting)
is the gun
small, black, metal
thrust forward
in cold terror

...



7th and Natoma

With the headphones on, the night slides silently past outside my
window. Dreamt of Pythagoras, woke up in the unfamiliar present.