Armadillo Sonata

Goodbye to the poetry of Beethoven!

The dog jartles, looking
At me like I just
Went after the mailman.

I’m a wasp in a nest of dirt
I’m the armadillo in your garden

Armadillo armistice
Armadillo armband

An armada of armadillos
Carried an armoire away.
I crossed my arms when
Neil Armstrong landed
By mistake in Armenia.

I clean my clothes in the sun.
I sharpen my nails on rusted wire.
I am a dangerous animal,
A vociferous vole.  And
I am here to assure you

If, like me, you have
Lost your mind,
It can’t have gotten far.

Ezra Ain’t Easy

1
     I could’ve gone
to see Pound while he was
still in the hospital.
But my mother-in-law hates him
     and it would’ve killed her.
So I just let
           the crazyman be;
     him & Fords,
     Jags, Land Rovers, etc.
2
One of the
           must-read poets
     said he couldn’t write
           with stubble on his chin;
     called for
           a holiday for writing.
In other words,
     a good time
     to swear off coffee,
     not to get too gassed.
3
                        Ezra Brooks
bourbon you say you
           were drinking.
But why then
     do I smell lime
     on your breath—
I am not a teetotaller,
     not a prohibitionist. I know
     there is no cuba libre 
for whiskey,
     none for fascists
the world around.