how i didn’t want that road to end.
23 miles was not enough.
not pictured:
heather’s home-made pumpkin ice cream
in fiesta-like striped bowls
the sound of the other heather and i’s laughter cascading
and the heart-shaped cheesecake
her boyfriend sent
salt-water hands held to chest
rob buys us sheets of 25-cent-machine mustache tattoos
rob clears away the dishes
rob hops up on the sidewalks with his bike
to pluck flowers
to stick in heathers helmet
bag strap
bike rack
karthik and i
pedal side by side
gravel crunching underneath
ocean to our right
picking apart multiple things including
san diego’s critical mass
at some point this song rolls on the mental reel
pedaling bridges over channels and i think
this one’s for you shiz
laughing at the solana beach station
when rob points to the mini binder clip
on my brake cables and asks
what’s that?
oh, that’s my gps system
i explain
that’s where i clip the directions
i write on pieces of paper
the you’ve-gotta-be-fucking-kidding-me
sunset boulevard/fort stockton hill
how even when i want to pull over
i pedal through the resistance
my arms outstretched to chicago
how i say that when i think of you
i think of your light
its brightness streaming
doris and brook
knocking on the front door
during a nightwalk
before they go in tomorrow for the birth-giving
thank-you cards in their hands
