POTD: 11.08.08

[he’s stopped counting the days since arriving in new york city]

he’s stopped counting the days since arriving in new york city,
freely declares an affinity for women in gasmasks, in way off-
broadway productions, failures in at least three previous careers.
outside the teachers’ lounge and talk of diy same-sex weddings,
there are giant comics, draping the ill-fated humor in the first
president and presidential firsts. someone tell him the promises
will stick—his first marriage was a campaign and he just
wasn’t ambitious enough. no time to prep (eat dumplings),
no time to search for the right november birthday cake,
he substitutes one candle for each student he refers to as son
or sweetie or dear or lovely. yesterday he was writing
countdown poems. today he’s collecting letters,
primary source documents that begin, “Dear Barack,”
and end in several exclamation points.