Michael Caplan

Sunset over the water

Slipping down the east coast

Stopping regionally in Rhode Island and Connecticut before arriving in New York

At the new station, half heartedly connected to the old

In the middle of constant construction

I anticipate a contrast between the

muted grey blue pink purple yellow orange sunset, and the

buzzy sharp white LED station lighting that I will step into


Slipping in and out of a light late afternoon sleep reading MIL-STD-1629A

Environments: The conditions, circumstances, influences, stresses and combinations thereof, surrounding and affecting systems or equipment during storage, handling, transportation, testing, installation, and use in standby status and mission operation.


I watched gulls flock around two bums lying in a pile of cold sleeping bags and trash

In Boston

The smaller birds knew what the styrofoam container promised,

And they milled around, slipping on the frozen pavement and jumping back into the grey sky above

But the container was empty, save a sugary sticky glaze of the sauce

likely left over after lackluster noodles from the food court in the back of the station


Above which I first learned the term “mezzanine”

When i was 15, searching for a place to eat a McChicken

Purchased directly next to that greasy Chinese stall

while moving quickly, alone, from bus to bus or train

Slipping in and out of my skin, shadowy against cold air and diesel fumes and street lights and bare branches

</html>