thank you

It’s magic because it’s the first tube of Burt’s Bees I’ve had long enough for the label to fade — and the first tube of Burt’s Bees I’ve neither lost nor laundered within two weeks of purchase.

cling to the doorway
while strangers pass, and you go
largely unnoticed.

This was me a loooong time ago (circa 1979-80), back when the future stretched out in front of me and I couldn’t wait to get there.

I was standing atop the doghouse, wearing my favorite shorts (“favorite” being shorthand for any article of clothing I insisted on wearing every single day, without regard to situational protocol or the item’s state of cleanliness). They were red, though you can’t tell from the photo, and they were emblazoned with the number 32 on the left leg.

I’m not sure why the picture’s in black and white – I remember it in full color, just like it was yesterday.

If only.