I want to splurge on dive bars and thrift stores
I want a shore brimming with relics

in our endless quest for cash
in our ceaseless self-tweaking

I wish I were young again
instead of scrounging for change

this time I would do with less greed
more humility

without peaks
without verdicts

I’d be a sip of Scotch whiskey
a tyrant with a mild vice

who would admire the painting
without caring who painted it

(originally published in Winamop, Winter 2024)