16

I’m so over it
I was writing this poem
when my then-boyfriend, Useless,
got arrested at a Gulf War protest
in 1991

Steel-toe boots
to the skull
Steel-toe boots
dive off the stage
Steel-toe boots
to the bottom of the fairly slimy pool

You’re so high you’re looking for
the helmet you already have on
your head, visor down
& won’t let me borrow
your books

I wore men’s suits I thrifted
on the east side
with long red hair & lipstick
I’d wear that now too
if no one else did

So over it
So over it
So overcoming it
Upchucking around the globe again
in a malaise of pallid & vicious repetition
Boots to the head
Boots on the ground
What boots go best with this
motheaten suit?