Copyright © Mark Wasserman, 2002 All Rights Reserved.CATCH OF THE DAY
Leaving my apartment you head down Columbus Avenue
Paws pulling pavement at your own puma pace,
Green eyes off-gassing a quiet danger.Your fishnets snag the attention of men:
Their eye sockets strain, bulge, disgorge the orbs
Altogether. They land on the street and roll after you.By the time you reach the bus stop, your fishnets
Already wriggle with a decent day's haul:
Pale blues, rheumy grays, bloodshot brownsAll bugging from the openings in your fishnets.
But nothing slows you down, my viscous valentine
As you glide toward a seat in the back of the busAnxious to get home to your room where you'll empty
Your catch onto the dresser, tossing the dullest ones
Out of your window and keeping the prettiestWhich you stay up all night piercing
With a needle and stringing onto a necklace
You wear only for yourself and your loyal looking glass.