i had not taken notice
that there were no flies
in that lobby
the mail slots are still there
the supernatural tungsten charm of

Bogey cigars and cancer
i can smell the sordid gardenias
when did nature go so wrong
and i can see the nylons and
the hats waiting for a call
i sometimes feel that in
1923 on a rainy day
i took a bottle of pills
ladies were dainty
even then

Bogey never waited in the
silk upholstered chair
for a girl named Gina
or a Midwesterner
called Claire
as a matter of fact
if you must know
my business mac
i have only passed by the glass
guarding this lobby on the way
to nothing more