venicebeach

on a
rainy
Friday in
LA, here,
where they
sell:
crappy T-shirts,
creepy t-shirts,
sunglasses, bikinis,
"imported" jewelry,
bongs and full Chinese massages
for $45.
and that’s on the boardwalk
in full view, except, of course,
for
the
full Chinese massages for 45
dollars, which are up the
stairs
and down the
hallway, where
full Chinese massages
are always, out of view of
everything and
everyone, including
the swarm of black, indie
rappers hawking mix
tapes
for $5 or $10 a disc to anyone
who catches an eye.
a homeless man sleeps on a
boardwalk church step.
a free-lance artist
dances to a song
playing in
her
head only,
if even
there. runners.
bikers.
boarders.
a few.
surfers who don’t mind
the rain
because they plan on getting
wet, anyway.
and, so, the world continues, as always,
here,
and everywhere
for that matter,
with
most just doing what they need
to do to get by.
only the
full Chinese massage 4 $45
customer, up the
stairs
and
down
the
hallway,
is left
to wonder if there
will
be
a
Happy
Ending.
everyone else
already
knows.