Mayan Sacrifice by Bradley Mason Hamlin

the
cool thing
about
living
in

2012

is that
we
made it

past the rumors
and metaphors
of 1984

over & beyond
the
space age
dream
of Moon Base Alpha
in 1999

or Arthur C. Clarke’s
2001 monolithic
nowhere zone
where apes rage
against
twinkling stars

we’re not flying around
in cars
like the Jetsons

not yet,
but there’s time
and that’s the
good part

it’s not
the end of the world
but just
the dawning
of a new era

me and you
you and me

the sun always rising
never forgetting
to set
and popping up again
with cornflakes
and cartoons

and
all the aggressive aliens
on Earth
or in Heaven
can just fuck off

we don’t have
time
for their bullshit

as long as
human (or inhuman) politicians
still argue

about

women’s rights
gay privileges
and all the goddamned
liberties
that should be
common sense

instead of …

freedom,
and what the hell
are we
going to do
to make the world
a better place
for everyone …

with less government
and without
raising taxes

I think we
still
have

work to do.

white lightning by Bradley Mason Hamlin

the
thing of it is
it
should be
as pure as you
can
make it
like
chet baker’s voice
singing
or making
trumpet moan
or
a bowl of chili beans
with the exact
correct
amount of spice
the
thing of it is
you
have
just this one chance
this life
to
make an impression
to say
just the right thing
to
touch her
perfectly
one
more
time.

Too Sleepy to Sleep
So Typing
Like Puppet Of Lonesome Madman
Playing
With Busted Strings by Bradley Mason Hamlin

6 am
eyes open pop
to hour of owl
waking
with jazz in head
piano, Monk …
old navy habit
to wake up
unless sedated
no matter time zone
country
or how late you stay up
6 am
and looking out early
morning window
thinking about
the naked woman
while moon breathes cold telepathy
easy
out there
over birds
burning in branches
she stirs
curves and blonde
and dreaming
and me drinking warm beer
from night before
and awake always
like those mornings
sitting and waiting on cold
steel deck
staring at black ocean
all that life
dark and lonely and raw
and me time traveling
here
now
fingertips buzzing
and trying not to think
about
the job
and how much it costs
to keep a good blonde
in red wine
and pearls.