Caucasian woman, early 20s, with Louise Brooks haircut, wearing black and grey shirt 'n' skirt and patent leather ankle boots. She takes the podium...
From "Valhalla" by Alex Grigorescu, winner of the 2008 Hart House Poetry Prize
so i tell him about childhood:
the lesbians with crewcuts and converse
mounting each other for piggybacks to the corner store.
my eye on a dodgy ginger girl who swung
between all thighs, indiscriminately;
playground kneeslap boys whispered
that her freckles spanned her, like a pox
[but jesus, connect the dots]
and how they must have whimpered while
she bobbed for
[adam's apples].
He sits at the edge of the podium, his friend occupying the chair beside him. He keeps his head low, his expression thoughtful, as photographers dart in and out of view. He'll appear in many of the shots. He raises his hand to his forehead, rubbing his brow, and another flash fills the foreground. He begins to paint his own picture, one in which he realizes these chairs were meant for speakers, and his discarded plate of naked chicken skewers dries out at the delicate ankles of this evening's winner.
2 comments:
i just got here by googling the hart house review. i was at the launch on wednesday and i remember seeing this. it's great to see it written up.
and as an aside, this whole project is awesome. i'll take notes sometimes of what i see people reading on the subway, but with nothing like your dedication. and i'll tell myself to look up what they're reading, to see if they're worth reading, but i never do.
I'm glad you stumbled by, Fathima. And I appreciate your comments. I love this project. It makes me happy to know it's reaching an audience!
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