D o u g l a s P i c c i n n i n i





From After History









Leg Hair


“take a good look at everything”—(at everything)
for half of his body burning
and the other half—
but which half  making
money for college

and scars for years like that.

Two:

two hard extractions and
the material beach worth
of usable blood
to make me safe

“in my dream” (in your dream)
“in my home”  (in your home)

— touch my titanium leg















Lantern 



               freed the knob from turning”
               the door behind you closing”
               and with you hearing”
               the damaged part, holding”

               to imagine a place you go on learning”
               in the possibility of learning”

               so the years returning ”
               so the light coning”

                           down for whatever “feeling” is—to de-story it—I destroy it

               me, like mine,  like the difficult run-on yearning”
               O, yearning, for my own little larder—my deadbright 

               nesting in everything”














Last Night's Party



                 être invendable: glitter falling—

                 new faces
                 new smears
                 new debt

 and the sucking sound too mal à liaise

                 of endangered reign

                 —sans onus

                 magenta living
                 & blue: some paradise of exchange

                 as you hadn’t thought of visiting
                 bored in paranormal meaning:

                 we weren’t together in fiction
                 but buoyed by secrecy—

                 days that iron away
                 as sky plums down: dawn

                 and the powder gone
                 is sad to see us go.