New Stuff, you know you want it Options

[PalePhoenix]

I've heard enough bitching about trying to "excuse" earlier work by dating it. Trust me, I've dated enough things that needed excusing...but not this. I'll put whatever I'm currently producing here, and to hell with anyone who feels compelled to judge things by something as narrow as chronology...

Get your weekend thump-thump on.

[PalePhoenix]

Sabotage

So she could say I told you so
she put the gun into her pussy
and pushed it deep-
pulled the trigger-
and gave birth to one last
revelation as the twenty-two cooled off.

So he could say I told you so
he strung himself up from the fan
and pictured something else
entirely, as he swung by the TV.

So she could say the no one cared
she locked herself away for days,
stopped answering her machine-
until she could convince herself
that no one was really coming.

So he could say that no one cared
he got drunk every night for months
and had sex with ugly strangers
who paid for the cab ride home.

So she could say she had no hope
she stopped working at the mall-
just quit her noon to eight
in favor of old romances
on cable--and ordered in
every food that made her puke.

So he could say he had no hope
he insulted all his friends,
dropped out of classes in the city,
and drove his car nowhere
until it ran out of gas.

So she could say that nothing mattered
she sold her photos to a magazine
that can't be sold in stores.

So he could say that nothing mattered
he called in sick for life
at the art supply store downtown
where he spent all his time
smoking and stealing watercolors
for an unambitious portfolio.

She she could say the world mistreated her
she dated impotent men
and lied to her therapist.

So he could say the world mistreated him
he cheated on his taxes
and told his parents he was gay.

When they broke up, each said
I told you so.
You were never right for me.
I can't stand your abuse.
It's killing me.

They each saw something different
then, their eyes reopened
to the world that told them so.

Worthless without love for self
they could not see
the world from whence
their pain did come

until pain was all they had.

[Xaotrix]

So she could say I told you so
she put the gun into her pussy
and pushed it deep-
pulled the trigger-
and gave birth to one last
revelation as the twenty-two cooled off.

I think this is some powerful imagery, if a bit disgusting. I like the structure of the piece, the way it sort of works backward in telling the story of two lovers. Romeo & Juliet should be the title, I think, but I get the "sabotage" idea just as well.