I'm going to read a bunch of poems from a manuscript
that I have ready to go.
It's called Shiner, and the first poem
is "Shiner," which is--
I think-- in your program.
"Shiner."
"I wake up growling apples and dirt, naked
and stretched under a barn sky.
I cannot recall how I hurt my right eye.
Arch of vessels gone grape under the lid.
An army of red ants, a cast of shadows.
Good God.
My eye has gone weak.
Simply put, I walked into an opening door.
The world is constantly changing shape.
It's very dangerous.
Two desert tortoises duke it out on Arizona soil.
By morning, one is always left belly-up to boil.
Now you roll around with a rock and see what kind of bruise
you can muster.
Dolefulness, caprice, regret, trauma.
My bicycle has two seats, get on."