"Kensington Refrain" by Tom Busillo

Where comfort starts with a strap

you decorate your arm with a spike

and are complete, like an overflowing ditch.

You’d love to think like the singer claimed

we’re burning down the highway skyline

on the back of a hurricane,

but they don’t give you

naloxone for the pain.

Tom Busillo’s writing has appeared on McSweeney’s, PANK, and JAKE, among others, with additional work forthcoming in Calliope. When he's not writing, he likes playing acoustic guitar and attempting to sing Leonard Cohen and Magnetic Fields songs. He lives in Philadelphia, PA.