browsing

you get into a
conversation
at the appliance
store with a woman
who is shopping
for a new stove.
you both stand
beside one another
looking at a new
GE model with
a flat shiny
top and a wide
door. it's black
and sleek like
an onyx stone
found along
the beach, with
more buttons and
computer
capabilities
than Apollo
13. nice, she says.
I like it.
yes, you say. very
nice. are you buying
it, she asks, no
you say. I have a
stove. it's circa
1967. oh my she
says, that old.
and it still works.
yes, you tell her.
one burner doesn't
work, and the oven
is small, but gets
me where I want to
go, which isn't too
far with my culinary
skills. I see she
says. so why are you
here looking at
stoves. I don't know,
you tell her,
sometimes I wonder
what a new stove
would be like,
and I just browse
and imagine.