In the Word

After more than a decade of corresponding
& trading poems I finally met the Bad Ass Poet
& his wife when they visited Santa Cruz

We hooked up at a dive called The Alley
on Pacific Ave & together plunged thru the
beer & tequila to “The Poems”

He had a little fun needling me about this
numbskull who had referred to a
magazine I published as “one of the best
journals to come out of New York”
an obvious insult since I am so hardcore West
Coast

After a few more tequilas the Bad Ass Poet
told me that his favorite of all Bukowski’s
books was The Roominghouse Madrigals
“Me too,” I said, “I’ve read that book so
many times it’s held together w/duct tape”

we had a drink to that

& then another

as we were brothers
in the word