anxiety

A cockroach fell on its back

from somewhere above

from sometime before

trapped; until it dries, mummifies

stay hydrated, ads say

pestering, glistering

stay hydrated, they say

red, green pesto

traffic lights, pesticides

me catching a ride to

Paris, flight to Berlin

anterograde trains

chugging along the tracks

choo-choo, down with sanity

what time is it when the world

slumbers away its innocence

in the slums of an unnamed city

a city without a name

no one would travel to

as it's not on the maps

off-grid, off-limits, out of reach

these urban landscapes

behemoth blocks of glass and concrete

make me feel how

howl your discrepant songs

hollow inside sometimes

yet full to the brim, bursting

with cheers

one of many veneers

vinegar mien

pallid, rancid; fancied

a life somewhere here

sometime before

or after that moment

which is now.