(Arielle's parts are in plain text with Michael F Gill's parts bolded.) # Hey so I’ve been thinking About that text you sent me 6 weeks ago I’m sorry I just couldn’t think of anything to say You’re right It was a good first date but you stalked my mom on Instagram and Facebook and MySpace?? And I…I just don’t see this going anywhere # Hey so I've been thinking, and thinking, and thinking, and thinking, and I've been thinking so much about the idea of us that it has overwhelmed any reality that could exist. I don't think this is going to work. I'm sorry, my heart will always be the b-side to my mind. # Hey so I’ve been thinking Between the dishes and the laundry I don’t do, the breakfast/lunch/having better sex/ and dinner you make you just don’t seem to fit anywhere. # Hey so I've been doing a lot of thinking. Do you know that Basquiat quote, Art is how we decorate space, music is how we decorate time. Well…I think dating is how we decorate despair. We're both older now, and it seems being single has become a fundamental part of our identity. I think our best chance to change that narrative is to go our separate ways. I wish you well. # Hey so I’ve been thinking, At some point we really did love each other, you used to trip back into my bed every season Fall into me If you could just get over that I slept with that stripper It’d be fine But you can’t # Hey I've been doing a lot of thinking. To re-work a quote by Franz Kafka, love is the axe that breaks the sea that's frozen inside us...and we both have the wrong kind of axe. Good luck to you. Bye now. # Hey so I’ve been thinking You’re cool/really But Also weird I really don’t care about how many Robins there have been (5) and why Batman is the manifestation of capitalism & no the Divine Comedy isn’t a fanfiction Please stop saying that I was just trying to fuck you # Hey so I've been thinking about us, and I don't think it's a good fit. But here's a limerick to cheer you up: There once was a walrus without socks who did some investing in stocks his decisions were shrewd thus improving his mood so he ordered a scotch on the rocks Best of luck to you in the future. # Hey so I’ve been thinking about us/I mean you/I mean your What I mean is ever since you started attending that college fiction workshop The space between poet and writer is your superiority complex And the space between me and you is fiction # Hey, so I've been thinking, W.B. Yeats said, “Life is a long preparation for something that never happens,” and seeing that we've both been experiencing a serious amount of life lately, it doesn't seem like this is going to happen between us. I'm sorry. # Hey so I’ve been thinking The flowers on my counter keep dying It feels like they need constant attention Water Food Water Food Sunlight That is the hardest part You keep bringing me flowers # Hey, so I've been thinking, you're the type of person at the party who says, "I got you a fruit basket — it's filled with tomatoes," or, "I brought sandwiches for everyone — they're all hot dogs." So what I'm saying is that technically this should work between us, but it just doesn't feel right. # Hey so I’ve been thinking There’s a toothpick in my mouth And that toothpick is you Pressing into my palate Uncomfortable You never let me say anything You are always too much to be enough # Hey, so I've been doing a lot of thinking. I always hold out hope that this could be it, this could be the dream. And one day I would be known for loving you, and you would be known for loving me. Perhaps that's an unreasonable request for a third date, but once you've felt it once, it's hard to settle for something less. Do you understand? # Hey so I’ve been thinking that I worship Aphrodite at your feet & I find home in your hands If you were Sisyphus I would beg to be your boulder the pressure between your shoulder blades The cracks in your palms But I’m not looking for anything serious # Hey so I've been thinking. I have this poem in the voice of a plain donut…the first line is Why do I exist? Every other donut seems prettier, sweeter, and tastier. Doesn’t it seem like we both have a lot of “plain donut energy” happening right now? At least in the form of our current existential crises. I don’t know if it’s a good idea for us to date until we know what we truly want, and why we really exist on this earth. It may not even be wise if we do find our purpose. You’ve read No Exit, right? We’ve got a lot of time to figure things out.
Ari (she/her/hers) is a Boston transplant from Arizona. She is currently in a Juris Doctorate program and running into Micahel F. Gill on the streets at odd times.
Michael F. Gill lives in Boston and creates poetry, music, podcasts, and puzzles, all of which can be found at http://www.bbtp.net. He is currently listening to disco and running to the bakery.
DIY MFA 