Marianne Szlyk

Callie At the Miracle of Science

At The Miracle of Science,
the bartender mixes
a fizzy green cocktail.
Callie sips from the beaker,
but it’s the punning name of the drink,
not its taste,
that makes her wince.

Is ketchup a vegetable in this world?

The blonde in the House of Pain t-shirt,
the one who may say “warsh” for wash,
the one with a calico tattoo,
she grimaces.
She wants a bacon martini,
not spiked diet soda.
She wants to jump around.
She wants shamrocks and shenanigans.
She wants.
She yawns.
This joke has gone on too long.

 

Originally published in Aberration Labyrinth, Sept. 2012