I was here

In the beginning, there was his accent.
It fogged up my glass
Like a steaming shower
In a room with no air.
It reminded me of Eli
And the sound of hands
Against ribcage
The wonder and the wit.
Jackie Mason
And Ozzy Osbourne
In a teenage boy's body.
He reminded me of all of that
For a little while
But some illusions disintegrate faster than others.
Even bubble gum falls apart if you chew it for too long.
There are some things you just can't keep.
Silly me
Here I thought I found a way
Despite the apathy
the lactose intolerance
the homeless intolerance
the smooth ride
the sore knuckle

Instead it was just like that closet
Filled with over-priced concert t-shirts
And not nearly enough time to wear them
Short-sheeted
Trying to tell us
“I was here”.