Facing North

I've lost my schoolgirl smile
used it up on men
with grabby hands
that wiped it from my face

I am no longer soft
the bricks I kneel on
my bed of nails
have made me hard

I have forgotten how
to be sweet
the flower that was me
reeks of vinegar

I used to be warm,
now hug a cold stone
my eyes have turned icicle blue
and I'm always
facing north

---

War Story

Jack was in Nam for 2 years
but saw no action
except that time in Saigon
when some gook threw a bottle bomb
into the window
of an American bar
where he was drinking

you could buy American cigarettes
everywhere and all the boo
you wanted to blow
but Tide and toothpaste
had to be bought black market

if you were lucky enough to have detergent
it could be traded
for some of the finest pot around
maybe even Thai sticks

the best sex
was at the massage parlor
those black haired beauties
oiled ya up
and jerked ya off
but never kissed
anyway
most of them had gingivitis
were thin like children
no pubic hair
smooth arm pits too
Jack said
it was like fucking
your little sister

---

     Julie is a wage slave holed up in Ohio, and writes poems on company time. Some of which can be found on the web and in small inconsequential print zines. She is working on a chapbook to be sold at Border's, in the parking lot, out of the trunk of her car.