"CLOGGED DRAINS REVEAL BURIED CREEKS"

Greetings love.

I have to keep it short. This one’s been on my mind to share for a minute now. Me and Cutty have been talking back and forth about the things from our stories that have been coming to pass. SOME PEOPLE THINK SCI-FI ONLY MEANS DYSTOPIA is a warning I put into one of Metropolarity’s zines (officially known as The Journal of Speculative Vision and Critical Liberation Technologies). I wrote this piece Monk’s Dream for a July 4th reading that Cutty, Alex, and I did with Kimya Dawson in 2018, scribbled in pencil in my notebook and transcribed a year later. Like most things I end up writing for performance line-ups, Philadelphia is a prominent character. As Corey Qureshi so graciously pointed out in their Broad Street Review of my short story collection (in which this appears): “Even in consistently unstable futures, bonds are still formable, hope is still present.”

Maybe this will do something for you. Talk soon.

MONK’S DREAM

WHEN THE LIGHTS WON’T COME ONTHE ENDLESS STREAM STOPSTHE FEED ADDICTION—THERE WAS A SOLAR FLARE?YO THE ALEXA JAWN GOT CO-OPTED BY HACKERS AND THEN SELF-DESTRUCTED THE INTERNET!THE SERVER FARMS ARE BURNING!THE BACKUPS ARE FAILING!CASH WON’T EVEN COME OUT THE MACHINES RIGHT NOWEVERYONE’S STARING THEIR NEIGHBORS IN THE FACE LIKE OH SHITI STOPPED WRITING PEOPLE’S PHONE NUMBERS DOWN IN 2012HAH! WELL, HARDLY ANYONE HAS A DAMN LANDLINE PHONE ANYMORE ANYWAYIT’S A THUNDERSTORM COMINGMY ROOF’S GOT A LEAK IN ITDON’T KNOW WHAT TO DO ABOUT DINNER TONIGHT—CHARCOAL BRIQUETTES ALL SOLD OUT AND THE MEAT’S GOING BADSUBWAY NOT RUNNINGWHEELY CREWS AND CONCRETE COWBOYS AND BLACK BIKER CLUBS AND CRASHED CARS EVERYWHEREROADS CLOG FASTWATER PLUGS OPENARTISANAL GOURMET ICE CREAM BBQ MARSHMALLOW BOUTIQUE CHOCOLATES BANANA WHIPS COFFEE BEANSGONE!OWNERS LEFT THE CITY TO CLAIM INSURANCE.FIGHTS IN THE STREET BETWEEN THAT’S NOT YOUR PROPERTY!! GANGS AND KIDS WEARING ‘MAKE AMERICA AN ENDLESS EXPANSE OF OLD GROWTH FORESTS WITH NO CERTAIN BORDERS AGAIN’ SHIRTSSO THE EL’S REALLY NOT RUNNING, HUH?AND ALL OF THE SUDDENPRETZELS EVERYWHEREDUDES SELLING CHAIN STACKS OF THEM FROM GROCERY CARTS LIKE ITS 1993 ON PENNSLANDINGLIKE THE DEPRESSION LIKE NEW YEAR’S DAYAND WITH NOTHING RUNNING (EVERYTHING WITH A CHIP IN IT, MAN!) THE TURKEY VULTURES FROM THE BURBS MAKE IT INTO THE 215 CARRION SCENE, AND THE GRILLMASTERS REJOICECREWS OUT ROCKING GLOWSTICKSCRANK FLASHLIGHTS FRICTION HEADLIGHTS AND NOOOOOOOOPOPOPOLICEPIGS (AN INSULT TO PIGS, LET’S BE REAL)MILITARY NATIONAL GUARDBUT YOU DEFINITELY HEARING GUN SHOTS STILLIT’S BEEN A COUPLE DAYSAND YOUR ALWAYS-WEARING-OUTDOORS-BRANDS SOFT JAWED TRANSPLANT NEIGHBOR LIVING IN A WHOLE 3 STORY VICTORIAN WITH JUST HIS WIFE HAS PUT UP SIGNS ON THE TELEPHONE POLES ANNOUNCING AN OFFLINE THINKPIECE CIRCLE TO WRAP THEIR MINDS AROUND THE CURRENT STATE OF UNPRECEDENTED AFFAIRSWAS IT THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL OR SOME WHOLE OTHER BULLSHIT?WHAT TO KEEP & WHAT TO LEAVE BEHIND.YOU THINK SHIT MIGHT GET CRAZY REAL FAST BUT THAT’S CAUSE OF THE MEDIA, YOU REALIZE. IS IT GONNA BE THE PURGE IF EVERYONE’S JUST MINDING THEIR OWN BUSINESS?SOME PEOPLE ARE PRAYINGSOME PEOPLE ARE RIDINGSOME PEOPLE ARE TREKKING INTO THE WOODSWALKING TRAIN TRACKSSOME PEOPLE ARE IN THE PHARMACIES GETTING THEIR MEDS FOR FREESOME PEOPLE ARE EATING CHIPS AND STOCKPILED TOP RAMENSOME PEOPLE ARE IN DRUM CIRCLES WHILE ROLLER DISCO OLD HEADS AND UP & COMING QUEENS REJOICE TO THE BEATSOME PEOPLE KEEP PLUGGING THEIR PHONE CHARGER IN TO SEE IF ANYTHING COMES OUT YET.NO ONE COMES INTO THE CITY.THE COLONIZE MARS PLANS MUST BE ON PAUSE.DRUMS ARE IN COMPUTERS ARE OUTHOT WATER IS OUTSOME TEEN ENGINEERS BY WEST PHILLY HIGH WHIP TOGETHER THIS JAWN THAT CAN GENERATE PROFOUND ENERGY THROUGH MECHANICAL EXERTION? BY WALKING ON THE JAWNAND NEXT THING THEY’RE GETTING HAM RADIO TRANSMISSIONS LIKE IT’S LIKE THIS ALL OVERA MAGNIFICENT CREW OF LEATHER VEST WEARING NOT-MEN RIDING HORSEBACK START UP ROUNDS THAT PASS YOUR BLOCKONE OF THEM TELLS YOU IN A KIND VOICE TO TELL THEMIF ANY BULLSHIT BEYOND YOU CAN’T HANDLE STARTS GOIN DOWN, GIVE US A SHOUTTHE BACK OF THEIR VESTS ALL SAY ‘SO BE IT SEE TO IT’IT’S BEEN A FEW DAYSTHE POWER’S STILL OUTSIGNAL’S LOST—IT’S A STORM COMINGCLOGGED DRAINS REVEAL BURIED CREEKSRIVERS RUSHINGEVERYONE WHO MOVED HERE OR BEEN LIVING HERE COMPLAINING ABOUT LOUD MUSIC SCARY NEIGHBORS DIRTY STOOPS AND HOW THERE’S A HOMELESS WOMAN ASKING ME FOR MONEY OUTSIDE THE GROCERY STORESTART LEAVINGDISAPPEARINGWE FORGET THE NAME OF THE CITYWE FORGET THE NAME OF THE CITYTHE COLLEGE DORMSTHE CORPORATE CAMPUSESTHE COURTS THOSE CONDOSTOXIC SCHOOLSDETENTION CENTERSPRECINCTS AND PSYCH WARDSARE CRUMBLINGLIKE THEY BEEN EMPTY FOR DECADESLEAVING JUST US

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