Doldrums

July rains
baptize garbage piles
on 26th street
then evaporate
to twilight steam.

September’s still
beyond the horizon,
the soft shores of Spring
a distant dream
in my wake.

The Doldrums
of Gotham Summer
have becalmed my ship
and I am adrift
on this graffiti sea.

Adorned in albatross,
I will navigate
august Manhattan’s
burning quiescence
and trade for Fall.

(Excerpt from "Another Hotel Room")