I had this steel drafting pencil behind my ear
Which must have slipped out while
I dozed and performed random violence for evidence
On a scratch pad during a fugue.

Some jackass gets lashed behind the curtain
And guess who catches the flak.
It’s lonely it’s getting harder
To do the dirty work of ever getting them back.

Gardener brushed the willow with tar,
Which on a phase-shifted wavelength we fucked under
Slowly on some pills
The Angel of Minor Tranqs had cheeked that week.

In the service it’s good for my hands
Not to know what each other is doing, but the agency
Wants to update my file and run some Rhine tests. I told them,
Before you lock the door, make sure I’m actually inside this time.

Mebane Robertson has published poems in The Beloit Poetry Journal, Blue Unicorn, The Journal (Ohio State), and many other journals. A finalist for the Ohio State University book award, he was recently nominated for a Pushcart Prize. His book is due to come out in 2007.