Ritualizing
                                     (Fragment)
                               by George Sipos

I take the 71c
from shadyside to oakland
I know I miss the garden
people are no garden
that girl did not wash her hair this morning
her face full of pink pimples
makes me sick
squirrel god does not take the bus
the guy over there poses
he is reading because he wants us to know
he is reading
and he is so busy that the only place left
for him to read is the bus
he probably reads while eating
and he definitely reads on the toilet
he is one huge volume
of his own reading experience
the book
teach yourself salsa in 12 hours

Copyright 2001 by George Tiberiu Sipos.  All rights reserved.

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                             Untitled
                             by Courtney Brooke

Sometimes when i say certain words,
words that contain the sound of "s"
i make a whistling noise
it's another imperfecion
added on to my far from perfect list entitled 'things i wish i didnt have'
it's after the part about my flabby ass and thighs,
embedded between 'dirty rose colored glasses'
and 'eighteen year old dreams'

If you keep reading on,
you might glance over the part that goes something like 'talks in her sleep, bites her nails, and doesn't like to be seen while she eats'
did you catch the part on 'horrible at keeping secrets' right after 'has too many secrets of her own'? yeah, i bet you did.

Oh you are probably wondering where the part on him is?
well he isn't on there
he probably would be though
if he was a possesion that in my reach

And you are probably wondering,
just as i did
where his list is?
i've tried to make one up for him
but its not something i could do

his snoring wouldn't be on my list
his steady breathing puts me to sleep
and his knuckle cracking isn't on there
it's those hands that make me weak

the way he stutters when he's nervous
just shows me that he cares
although he is never stuttering at me
his above normal decibel of speaking to her
makes it easier for me to hear.

but if you ever do read my list in full
and you are so saddened by me you want to do me a favor and throw it out,
please don't,
because if by some chance he is within my grasp,
i want him to fall asleep to the whistle in my speech
to love every inch of obstruction on my darkened frames
and to make a reality of my eighteen year old dreams.


Copyright 2001 by Courtney Brooke. All rights reserved.

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                                         Miz Everest                                                       By Marcus Harvey

Miz Everest has been known to be a man’s greatest joy and his worst defeat

Those who have succeeded in winning her heart have never been closer to heaven

Those who have failed have never been closer to having their dreams crushed so badly

On this journey of love there is no set path, but the destination will have you at the top of the world

She is the epitome of intimidation and temptation

Many have tried, many have failed, few have succeeded, but all have memories that will last for a lifetime

After enduring the coldness, difficult choices of paths to take, and coming to the reality that it is truly harder than you thought, one must question himself

How bad do I want this?

Will I gain as much as I am losing?

I answered both of these questions

And today I stand atop of the world and closer to heaven than ever

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             Depression
               by Aaron Alden Williams

on my spirit's bed of grief,
sadness lays me down.
captured, contained
inside of pain,
i can't see the world around,
or rise up
from the sickening sleep
of my mind,
where all my thoughts lay down.
deep down in my cavernous soul,
I entomb sacred revery.
fragile arms of illusion
curl in and out, delicately.
somewhere rapture rushes along.
but in me are no streams.
my mind sulks, stagnates,
laced and lavished with dreams.
across myriad time,
my tiny, tender designs
connect in crystal dreams...

Copyright 2001 by Aaron Alden Williams.  All rights reserved.