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Drinks@the Last Cafe Chapter 3

Drinks @ the Last Cafe
III
 
They couldn’t avoid the dead   
caught in the blast,
caught in the fall out,
caught out.
 
Some lay in circular patterns  
feet to feet, a ragged cartwheel
organized pre-blast
decorated by serene expressions
of finally being right
 
It was God,
one guardian of such dead intoned
your God killed them?  The girl asked.
No, no, he impatiently waved his hand
munched a meat sandwich
No. They are with God
How do you know?
I sent them there.
 
 
 
50 miles per hour  
Sam gloated stroking the dusty hood
seven days of walking
in one hour, think of that
but there was no fuel, tires melting in the sun
 
Don’t you see?
@ The Final Lounge
the woman of a certain age crowed
every wrinkle – gone!
her red stretched skin blasted smooth
I can’t stop looking at my face.
 
The center of the highway curved
over the bare horizon
shelters looked like casinos:
Seven Feathers & A Squaw
 
Still standing on stage
The Drummer bragged –
women loved me
he rolled his head, black hair flying
this was a lame gig, small audience
big blast – I was in the basement don’t ask
 
You make music like I saw on screens
the girl finally spoke, dazzled
the drummer smiled
we can’t stay, Sam insisted
 
Deep in their bunkers, the Easterners
kidnapped writers willing or not
wrote for food – the Letter Men
 
DO NOT GO WEST
survivors trudged over the oily soil
heard nothing, the arrays were down
packs of RVs, beached land whales
 
yes, chortled the old man,
back in the yesterday
we needed a big cart for all the food
we had cars the size of trucks
refrigerators the size of cars
 
The girl offered two forever Twinkies  
for his story:
people like us, the old man remembered
stranded on an island
season after season
the professor tried to build a boat
the cabin boy struggled to help
he made the others laugh – the boy
a pretty movie star
 
Sam considered the girl’s notes  
I don’t think that’s a legend
she finished writing with a flourish 
it is now
 
Everyone moved slowly @ the Rapid City Diner
the bar tender wiped the countertop
leaving streaks of damp that failed
to dematerialize in the heavy air
in these stories, there is never a girl
 
I know, Sam accepted the home brew
appreciation heightened by deprivation
I thought it would be more sincere
with the girl
beer foamed over the mug
Sam wiped his mouth and laughed
 
the RV residents tried to walk
but instead fell and littered
the rutted prairie trails
Bring Out Your Dead
she whispered
 
They wintered in airplanes
a season Sam named  
for sky so fierce that she called it
the Time of Abandoned Gods
 
The Travel Gods
the Train Gods
the Desert Gods
 
They weren’t alone in the planes 
a big woman with wild hair in row16
asked about the girl  
daughter?
a rescue
old enough, the woman was confident  
Sam looked at the sky instead of the wild hair
I will not tempt her gods  
He and the woman disappeared into the lavatory
The  ground version of high mile club   
 
He called himself the Drummer  
his name from his first terror gang
what were the choices?
boys wilding in the center of the country,
taking on anything that moved –
Goblins; they made the best story
the enemy like the corporation
 
The Drummer posted their rush and cry
their exploits were not followed
the Corporation never bothered to delete
 
The Mother God,
the girl explained
her shadow made from the long light of spring 
has to stay, must care,
she is the mother
 
 
The girl’s logic, impeccable;
the beer, helpful  
desperate men nodded
offering drink and attention
 
The Mother God will protect you.
like a foster mom. 
one man concluded  
yes, she agreed, not knowing what that meant
she and Sam were safe for another night.
 
By reasonable deduction
the remaining gods were angry gods
she promised to discover why   
 
A trained roared by
passenger Goblins
called out, smug, we ride!
 
He always stuffed her backpack first  
Twinkies, cans of chips, Ding Dongs
notebooks took up too much room.
leave them?
no, leave the cans
protect the stories
 

Happy National Poetry Month!

 
This is one of eight chapters of Drinks @ the Last Cafe.
 
You can get a complimentary copy of the entire poem by leaving a helpful review for my new book, Deep Trouble
 
Notify me when you’ve posted the review – cbramkamp (at) gmail (dot) com and I will send you the ebook version along with my sincere thanks.
 
Thank you!

CatharineBramkamp

Catharine Bramkamp is a successful writing coach and author. She has published over 300 newspaper and magazine articles in publications like Modern Maturity (AARP), SF Chronicle and Santa Rosa Magazine. She was a contributor to two Chicken Soup Books and has published anthologies of her work, non-fiction works and novels. Her work has also appeared in a number of poetry and fiction anthologies. She has experimented with the self-publishing world since 2001. She has published and self-published seven books through companies like Author House, author assist companies like 3L Publishing and through traditional publishers like Write Life. Her poetry collection, Ammonia Sunrise, will be released in August 2011 by Finishing Line Press and her mystery novel, In Good Faith will be released by Write Life in 2011. Catharine holds a BA in English from UCSB and a MA in English from Sonoma State University. She is a 25 year member of California Writer’s Club. She is an adjunct professor for the University of Phoenix. She works with authors of both fiction and non-fiction to make their dream of producing a book come true. For more information on that, visit her at www.YourBookStartsHere.com Catharine has lived in Sonoma County for 25 years and considers wine a food group. She is married to an adorable and very patient man who complains he’s never featured in any of her books. Her grown children who are featured in a few of her books have fled the county.

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