apartment living

i was never good at apartment
living.

the noise, the smells.
cabbage? goat?
babies crying and crawling
down the hall
with fat
diapers.

domestic battles raging
inside the air vents.

dogs peeing in the elevator.
i'd bang
pots and pans against the walls,
the floors

the ceilings trying to get the bongo
music to stop.

sometimes i'd ask the super
to either get the
bugs
out of my unit, or please just

shoot me on the spot.
the rent went up every year as
walls got

smaller, the tenants got wilder.
it was ellis
island on crack,

and everyone was sick
and coughing in the lobby.

i remember taking the steps
twelve floors up

carrying a raw chicken
and two potatoes,

a bottle of rose
for my date tonight.

god help her. i try to warn her
and tell her to arm
herself,

but she doesn't listen, and i
get a call from
the cops.