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Drinks@the Last Cafe Chapter 5

Gears and clock image for Drinks@the Last Cafe

V

They grew bolder as the leaders
lost brothers, toes, teeth,
no job was too awful,
that was the legend, right?
they quizzed the Drummer  
weren’t they the stuff of old legends?
Billy the Kid, Dillinger, the Okay Corral.
The Drummer didn’t have the heart
or balls
to explain the sacrifices legends require   
 
It was easier to find notebooks and pens
than cans
he tossed her the last fruit pie
the remaining Dr. Pepper
 
She clutched a new notebook to her chest
the wind turbine over the Last Stop Saloon
thrummed in the sky
come, charge for free, invited the owner
although there is little to say  
 
The older woman offered a cupcake 
too fat, the girl automatically announced
recognizing the object
as a no in the magazines
 
Ah, the woman bit into the cupcake. with relish
just so you know, here  
along the edges of the world
we all eat dessert first
 
Wasted hills, an early apocalypse
stranding survivors: rocks, dried creeks
chunks of asphalt road haphazardly
fitted together like a jigsaw puzzle
no one cared to finish
because the final picture wasn’t very compelling
not with the trains instead
 
Sam squinted against the savage sky
blue washed out to faded denim
I think it always looked like this
 
In a breath the land shifted
train rails blew
scattering Goblins like rubber toys.
Sam pushed the girl behind him, tense.
 
Survivors muttered and gathered fruit and baskets determinedly marched west
 
With a whoop imitating old films
the terror gang roared in
throwing more hard explosions into the crowd  
the girl and Sam hid
with the dust and chaos
down, down, Sam hissed  
 
The Drummer recognized the top hat
Turned away and gestured
over there — gold shavings! lumps of coal!  
 
Hey, a brother cut off a goblin head
yanked off a necklace
did you hear the one about the people on the boat?
what about the boat?
they sailed for three hours
ship wreaked
never got off
the point? The Drummer asked  
legends always had a point.
 
don’t get on a boat. 
he laughed and twirled the necklace
un-cut stones glittered in the setting sun  
 
Who would buy?
the Drummer shrugged
absently cut off a Goblin hand
 
Bring out Your Dead
Bring out Your Dead
no grocery carts for these Goblins.
 
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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