A hell of a deal
I met a guy
who said that
whenever he took
one of those
“career aptitude” tests,
he always got the same result:
he should work in sales
or the clergy.
He was good at
reassuring people,
he said.
Good at convincing them.
I think of him
whenever the doorbell rings,
another set of believers
brimming with
pamphlets and tracts.
These people
aren’t selling
rain gutter covers
or magazine subscriptions
but something
much less tangible,
something I can’t afford
even on
their best
instalment plan.
Let it soak
You scrub
at the frying pan.
Burnt bits of egg
are glued to the
stainless steel.
The hot water tap
bleeds lukewarm
and your back aches
and the day outside
is already dead.
Stop.
A little soap,
a little water,
a little time.
Let it soak.
By morning,
one quick swipe
of the sponge
will get the job done.
Funny
how much easier
things are
once you stop
trying so hard.
Moth
She finds
a dead moth
in the carton of
dry pasta
like the
dusty brown prize
at the bottom
of the world’s worst
box of cereal.
Customer Service
You stand and wait
with the phone
jammed up to your ear,
bending cartilage,
crushing blood vessels.
The hold music
is as awful as expected,
made worse by
intermittent static
that fills the hollow
in your skull.
The music stops,
and you hear several clicks.
You think it’s your chance now,
but then the recording
starts in:
Please stay on the line
for the next available representative.
The music
starts again.
You don’t hang up.
After a few decades,
you start to get used to it.
You don’t even
remember
what it is
you’re calling about.Bio: Matt Galletta lives in upstate New York. A book of poetry, The Ship is Sinking, is available at Epic Rites Press. Find out more at: http://www.mattgalletta.com/
