tuxedo land
1.
in tuxedo land you would not even be
an olive in a martini
despite whatever honesty
gathered in your pit
though its oil might become
a child's first anointment
somewhere far away, but
that's an appointment with silence
never kept, not
in tuxedo land
2.
a toast for a grandmother
brighter than the limes
in their well fashioned cocktails
which is not
a joke between dishes
nor a need for sarcasm,
just a toast
a waiter's shuffle, a card trick
evening gloves, alligator shoes
caviar, pearls, chinese fans, and silk
accents, cigars, moustaches, and
the occasional word of french
pardon?
3.
wait nevermind the silence, pass
some candlelight if you could
would you be so kind?
4.
in tuxedo land they rule
by faux pas
beneath years of chandeliers
and public foreplay
like soft sultans
of mysterious handshakes
these vampires of hype
these pilots of a nightlife of black and white
these penguins of cold damnation
whose wrath is more real than your life
they pass silverware around
for generations, always seated
5.
mademoiselle, would care to dance?
6.
in the manner of a crystal decanter
she waltzes with his signature
in love with the dollhouse names for everything
-tangos
as mangoes are sliced
promising the butterflies wardrobes twice
three times
and a coffee
but no, she thinks (contemplating an olive like a suicide)
tonight I much prefer the silence:
a grandmother's silence.