Dreams


If I ever write a book about gratitude
I may include a picture
of the dawn massaging my face

as my dreams begin to dissipate
and I breathe my morning sigh of relief
that I’m not still stranded 
inside a garage
searching frantically for my car

already late 
for that final exam
(having cut every one of my calculus classes) 

and somehow involved in a crime.

The photo might show
some mixed feelings
as my arms no longer work as wings

and I’m not doing whatever it was
that caused this erection
which I could have used last night

but just annoys me now
as I stumble barefoot into the bathroom

thankful for simple pleasures
like a toilet that stays in one place.





To My Vodka Martini


I never liked you “dirty”.
In the kitchen light
you look sparkling clear
with your three cubes of ice,
two large olives,
and that hint of dry vermouth
I know is in there somewhere.

You never pretended to be
anything other
than what you are.

Watching you disappear
slowly down the drain
out of my life
I want to thank you
for your terrible honesty

and for tasting
so
damn
good.

___________________________________________________________________

Author's Note: A senryu is a poem, structurally similar to haiku, that highlights the foibles of human nature, usually in a humorous or satiric way.  In modern times, the difference between haiku and senryu is sometimes blurred.  Some of the following poems might be considered haiku as well.  

Ten Senryu



first date
I ask if the dragonflies
are mating


white shirt
a stain survives
two marriages


workplace art
maybe I could paint 
after all


manager’s lounge
nobody can fix
the coffee maker


working from home
a fly buzzing
doing nothing


pissing quarters
into the urinal
at the toll booth


grey sky
the solar farm
gets a day off


her car and mine
joined by jumper cables…
sparks flying
                                  -Prune Juice 2012


tiny café -
even in the men’s room
the toilet seat down
                       -Prune Juice 2012


third marriage
I switch
from  briefs to boxers
                            -Prune Juice 2013




©2014 Kenneth Slaughter