I’m going through the rack
of men’s trousers
in the musty basement
alongside a tall, skinny guy
I don’t want to look at
twice, but he starts to talk:
“Everything in here’s a 42
or XX large. Some fat guy
musta died last week.”
Just then, I find a nice pair
of corduroys — 36 waist —
too long, but I have a friend
who can hem.
I don’t try them on, just pay
the $3 and get out.
I know I won’t care who
I’m wearing on the white carpet
of snow already unrolling
under all those cold stars.
Warren Woessner is the senior editor of Abraxas magazine, and a part-time resident of Edgartown. His most recent poetry collection is Clear All the Rest of the Way (Backwaters Press).
