the plumber

she falls
in love with
a plumber
and makes
the easy jokes
about
laying pipes
and fittings,
plunging
and soldering
joints
together, but
he wearies
of the humor
his hands
cut and dirty
from a days
work.
when he gets
home he wants
to lie
down
in a clean
bed and listen
to music
not the drip
drip drip
of her voice
against
the chrome
drain of his mind.