this language is / nothing
my barber said my daughter’s in trouble
except he didn’t cuz when i said
oh gosh, in trouble how? he said no
she’s not in trouble, she is trouble
but actually he said none of this
cuz when i have a haircut my aura says
do not engage me in conversation
so he gazed at my head with sad eyes
& i watched the mirrored clock
/
nothing is where it’s at
hurry-up i said to the delivery guy
who said urry-up nuffin
& it’s been mine ever since
/
my ex said are you seeing anyone?
& i said nah mate, seein anyone nuffin
he said he likes a bit of rough trade
then grinned & asked when i had
become so louche with language
/
king lear said nothing comes of nothing
except he didn’t cuz what he actually
said was nothing will come of nothing
the point is he had never met my barber
& clearly never understood the trouble
yous can get into with a good sharp
cut / & playful freedom of expression