2003/video

The drug store
where I rent videos\movies
reminds me when I’m
checking out something
I’ve rented before.
So many things are unmemorable.
And not only that –
sometimes something
I’ve already seen
is the best thing
to be had.
It bothers me that they know
what I’ve been doing,
maybe even more than
I do myself.
You like this stuff, she says,
swiping the snack mix
across the scanner.
Well, it’ll do, I think,
end of the day when I droop
and just have to sit down
and quit trying to wring
what I want from the day.
A productivity I can’t
quite pull off,
prevented by injuries
and acquiescences.
A satisfaction that eludes me,
so that I’m willing to
watch a move I’ve seen
again.

7/17/03