underground<br />books.org
Like us on twitter facebook
  • UB
    • Roadside Assistance
    • 2013 NYC Poetry Festival
    • kiteFULLofWHISKEY
    • hotel romania
    • WHY we are different from pretend Genius
    • European Edition
    • The Unlikely Blond
    • [UND] >
      • INDIA
      • UBHomeVideo
      • WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE A POET
  • POETS
    • Dylan Krieger
  • BOOKS
  • THE KITCHEN POET
  • SUBMIT
  • UB TRUTH
  • #JRPD
  • UBSHOP
  • UBTV
  • PS: Your Poem A Week w/ Philippe Shils

Ally Malinenko - 3 poems

11/6/2013

0 Comments

 
Picture
Because It Is Important To Be Assertive Americans Speak Fairly Loudly

 

Oh my god, she yells,

so that the whole subway car can hear her,

Dylan got into school, she says with glee,

There was only one spot left and we got it.

We found out when we got back from France.

You’ve been to Paris before right?

You do speak French don’t you?

My god, Dylan is only three and already

she speaks French.

You must go to France.

I can’t believe you’ve never been to France.

You’ve got to convince that husband of yours

to take a day off work and go on vacation.

It’s healthy! Look at Mona’s husband. Heart-attack city.

I’m not kidding.

They found him at his desk at work.

Poor Mona, she never got to France.

And now, who knows if she will?

Funerals are so expensive

and I don’t think they invested well.

Also,

you can’t go to Paris alone.

That’s just depressing.

You don’t want to be like that right?

 

Not Every American is Ambitious, Patriotic, Money-Grubbing or Even Unsophisticated

 

We are all exhausted, a long flight

from Rome to Dublin,

waiting to catch the next one

back to America

eating at the Burger King

because it’s the only thing open.

I wait on line,

while my husband

has our bags back

at the table.

The woman next to me

sighs loudly and tells

everyone that she’s been

waiting 15 minutes for a milkshake

for her son,

who stands next to her

too old to be crying over a milkshake.

Where is it?

The woman demands,

waving her hands

around

and the girl from Dublin

who had no choice

but to work in the airport

Burger King

is trying to explain

that the machine isn’t working

and also, it’s 7 in the morning,

a fact the woman reminds

her doesn’t matter.

What is wrong with this country?

she asks

and then later

back at the table

her son says,

Dad, Europe is

kinda

sorta

retarded,

huh?

Yes it is,  Son.

Don’t worry,

his father tells him.

We’ll be back in the US soon.

In the good old USA

where you can get

a milkshake

whenever you want.



Make Your Stay in the Land of Opportunity a Pleasant and Successful One

I follow him

nervously

through the subway car

the money folded in my hand

Giving money to people has always been my husband’s job.

Not mine.

He tells the same story,

each time,

about his wife

and their new baby

about getting laid off

these days we hear it all the time.

Be careful, my husband tells me

People are getting desperate in this city.

On the rare night that we are out

there are more homeless kids in the village

that I ever remember seeing.

Just be safe, he tells me.

I weave through the crowd.

He tells us his son’s name is Alex

which is my husband’s middle name

and I grip the money tighter.

I catch him right at the doors

right when he’s about to leave

and say

here.

He takes the money, nods and leaves.

The woman next to me shakes her head

and rolls her eyes

because I’m the one being

duped

on the long desperate ride home.

This city is made of iron

and nails

and you need to be too, honey.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    The Kitchen Poet is now Tumbling.  

    UB INSTAGRAM

    submit: go  here. enter text in box.
    Read the original 9 KITCHEN Issues
    Picture
    #1
    Picture
    #2
    Picture
    #3
    Picture
    #4
    Picture
    #5
    Picture
    #6
    Picture
    #7
    Picture
    #8
    Picture
    #9

      Join Our Free Raffle for a Kitchen Poet Cookbook!

    SIGN UP & WIN!
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.