I arrived too early.
As always, I stayed too late.
Call it the character flaw we share,
the reason I’m keen for you.
I can never say when,
no need to ask why.
Again, a similarity.
The only remedy swivels
in pillars of sand,
lingering mugs.
Chalk it up to experience:
the Sinatra at 3 a.m.
last call
crook of arms
whores hit doors...
Meet me same time tomorrow...
Nicole Cartwright Denison lives on a trout farm and teaches in the mountains of western North Carolina. Work has appeared in The Flask Review, Blue Fifth Review, Siren, Stirring, The Pedestal Magazine, wicked alice and others. Her chapbook, Recovering the Body, is forthcoming from dancing girl press in December 2007. She also serves as an editorial assitant for Lily. You can find her on the web and driving through the mountains.