Excerpt

too much glass around, i walk
down the glass hallway
from here to Queens

stern faced beaten bodied woman
in coat ensemble
reasonably asks for assistance.

Asking everyone, she has no personal relationships.
Being asked, dough face obligation woman
relates personally.
She pocket digs and waits,
fearing weakness judged.

I'm busy in the glass hallway
but I know what's going on.

Woman A (we'll call her Marthe)
is frozen - will she not take
her offering?

Woman B (we'll say - Jill)
looks at nothing; pennies sweaty.
Marthe condemns us to the rat lords or
we are the rat lords

I continue.

I don't like waking up under glass
or eating it
or cleaning under my nails with it
I hate to wear my glass overcoat
I hate walking down the glass hallway

Ater Marthe and Jill and the four hundred twenty four people I noticed at the exact moment I noticed them,

I stop seeing familiar faces.
My feet hurt and it's a long way to Queens.

I used to have a lot of friends
but they all put on their map pants
and walked down the map hallway and
I don't know what to do with that.