Stampede by Colleen Surprise Jones

Exceptional Moments are where the opioid of quality lives.Tethered together by long strings of sadness, daily existencehererequires stimulation to succeed. A portal.There has to be a door to everything that this life isnot.When abstraction is sound I can live,I can breathe. Quaking vinyl scratches through depression.Slashing paint claims my space.What this life is not is a declaration… Made by those whohave lost childlike idealismand try … Continue reading Stampede by Colleen Surprise Jones

An Oft-Told Tale, But What Does It Mean? by Barbara Tramonte

Thank you for submitting to GirdleWe very much appreciate the opportunityto read your work We read your poems with interest,but have decided that they do notmeet our current needs How could I know your current needs?Unless, of course, I am in your inner circleand know the dates of your upcomingdental appointmentsand/or recent traumas We know this is a particularly difficult time toreceive this kind of … Continue reading An Oft-Told Tale, But What Does It Mean? by Barbara Tramonte

Love Me by Barbara Tramonte

Stretch your armsToward me orAgainst me,A goodAnd badPas de deux Tensions flyThis way andthat No softnessNo MamiMaking foodFor us anymoreNo. Let’s figure outHow to use friction There was the beachIn the backseatOf my notebook My dreamsThe organza of thosePantiesPurchased at the drugstore The frillSo stiffLike our pursuit *Previously published in Umbrella Factory Magazine Continue reading Love Me by Barbara Tramonte

My Gay Al Shirt by Mike Wilson

covers me in bright tropical colorseverblooming in soft cotton gardens  uncovers my boundless blue skytempers the UV-riding sunlight to shore comes with rum runners, salt breezesand worshipful waves lapping my feet wherever I wear this shirt, an ocean isand ukuleles strum songs of hope ______________________________________________________________________Mike Wilson is the author of Arranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic, (Rabbit House Press, 2020), political poetry for a post-truth world. … Continue reading My Gay Al Shirt by Mike Wilson

Adele Getting A Degree in English Literature on a Whim As It Correlates to Higher Education Being a Privilege of the Rich

Like working out regularly, as Adele does, getting an education in something you actually enjoy (as opposed to something you’re doing with the “I have to make money after this” mindset) is yet another privilege of the rich. Although it long has been, it seems with each passing year, once “basic” things, such as a implementing a fitness routine and pursuing an education in something … Continue reading Adele Getting A Degree in English Literature on a Whim As It Correlates to Higher Education Being a Privilege of the Rich