compagnon de route/

take the train. fast track. hugging and weeping. corner office. find your future.
destiny niche calling path. sticks in a winter forest. rabbits in the dry leaves. i have everything insurance. my life is earning interest. kicked up and down the stairs.
sitting in a giant metal cage. look at this one. people watching. catching up. here we are.
critical information. we feed you. jet set. right of way.
in the blink of an eye. powers of persuasion. get things done.
public schools. this year's fashions.
you can't do that.

don't fuck with us.
there's only one thing you have to do.
stay back.
you have to let go.
it's a win win win deal.
good for me.
i think it will be ok.
metal clanging in the courtyard.
the air in here makes us sleepy.

-you realize what we're talking about...
-absolutely! we must confront evil in its face.
-even to the point of...
-committing evil ourselves, yes.
-horrible! yet it seems somewhat inevitable, don't you think?
-oh yes, i can't picture it being any other way.
-what a strange and muddled circumstance...
-without doubt... but our plans must go forward. there are, after all, the sweet rewards of victory. and you must agree we can avoid no delay.
-i suppose it is true that if we gave ourselves the chance to examine the thing, doubts could be raised, flaws could be found in our endeavor.
-not at all, this would not call our actions into question. their merits are impeccable. rather, any waste of time would only embolden the enemy and invite their continued atrocities.
-such aggression they possess! hard to imagine such a people...
-impossible were it not for the same shameful mark on some in our own land, an evil which however diluted lends no end of comfort to those who would assail us.
-frightful! but we must see it is so. as you say, look the thing in its face.



-fear this, for you have sinned. follow me, for i can save you from your fate.

it's early evening. i'm in some sort of very tall treehouse where my parents' house should be. it's been a sunny day, unseasonably warm. as i look back out i see it's gotten quite cloudy. ominous sky. the clouds are so low now i feel i could touch them, spinning above me in an alarming fashion. the darkness grows and that eerie shape forms. i think, i've dreamt it so many times but finally i am seeing one for real. it twists in place down by the creek and i phone my father to tell him... something is amiss.
i was downstairs earlier in what appeared to be a computer lab. on assignment this afternoon. i have another story to do, doesn't he know i'm already juggling... i need to get into town. guess i have to walk. quite warm today. it's somewhere on the town square, isn't it? where is everyone? i think about how far it is in to town. half-hour left? i'll never get it all done... might as well go back. what a pleasure to sleep at my desk with everyone around.
later i'm in a metallic room with glass walls. the floor is covered with children sitting indian style. my professor is there, sort of a mentor/buffoon type. he beckons me into the hall for a pow-wow. i feel sluggish. trip over the children and fall sideways. drag myself into the hall and have a seat. the guy kneels by me, tries to tell me where i've gone wrong, how i'm not applying myself. he's examined my work in detail and has discovered a grave error which may be systemic. it's... i'm having trouble keeping my head up. i keep falling asleep.

meadowlands/

pain management. checks cashed here. clothesline blouses. you can change your life. safe space. independence. piles of tires and wires. stacked buildings. i live in a box. the bubble burst. seagulls over the junkyard. and planes overhead. who bombed this? choose freedom. ball and chain. and father and son and. never blend in. i love my job. do you know? justice for all. smoking area. perfection has its price. high voltage. masked men. mob rule. take the day off. fire escape. gasoline aqueducts. ready when you are. bridge to nowhere. the untold story. place your trust in me. meadowlands. leave the gun.