1
In digging a hole,
the dirt you displace
is not the amount 
that would fill it.
You shovel the earth
right back where you got it,
but it won’t even 
cover the rat.

2
A forceps is formal.
A fingertip warps
whatever it succeeds
in pinching.
The hand has a beak,
and a beak is to bite off, 
unlike 
hemostatic forceps.

3
Distortion is a pedal,
first cousin to Chorus.
Who pedals her bike rolls uphill.
The patch cord, the cable,
the electrical outlet:
all encumber 
a girl on an errand.

4
Are and are not,
here’s one to talk.
Whoever gets in 
and back out of a hole
will have walked on the dead,
will have stepped 
on the head 
of a rat in a security blanket.

5
Thank your good planets,
pray to a nebula:
it’s the formula
for earthly success.
When they ask you to guess,
don’t argue, say yes.
Draw a line from the guitar 
to the outlet.

6
Abuse of privilege 
reduces trust,
except when the audience expects it.
A needle’s shadow 
leads to a hole:
an oil well that should’ve 
known better.

7
Debtor and debt,
I’m not done with you yet.
Guitar 
for regret,
and the Brenneisen you get
when you pull the key out 
of the ignition.