A Memory in a Box

a coffee cup
a bowl with some dried up old rice
paint, red and green
a big graffiti canvas that says,
"yard sale - free abortions"
receipts and bills all crunched into balls
lysol, jergens natural glow tan lotion
get color on your skin--no sunlight required
dvds: unrated caligula, south park, every
movie by werner herzog, lots of pictures
from the 80s
back in the 40s they called movies 'pictures'
now movies are thieves
sleeping cat on the dirty futon
a carpet made of stains, dirt, and puke
picture on the wall of a friend
who is still alive but pretty much dead
boxes and bags of memories
lonely, hungry and scared
peeling walls full of edible lead potato chips
an air-conditioner running 24-hours
a day that cools nothing but its own coils
curtains from the dollar store
unnatural colors hinting of halloween
christmas lights, holes in the walls,
the roaches don't even come in here
three locks on the door with a
man-sized opening I kicked out of it when I
accidentally locked the keys inside
and me, shirtless in my designer lobster shorts
purchased on credit for which I have
no money nor inclination to pay

i'd jerk off,
but what would be the point?