Ben Fama

FLANEUR

Fashion makes me less crazy

it should be looked at

never discussed

it’s an honest joy

to be shocked by beauty

in the 21st century

I was shocked when my lover was caught stealing

from Dean and Deluca

I was thinking of a line

by Robert Hass

the floor manager stopped us

we simply went to a different store

poetry

a requiem for leisure, pleasure, thought

I cannot take your high school friend’s

hoop earrings seriously

and every picture on my phone is obscene

seriously, look at it—

all these fucking effetes

boring travel stories

details of somebody’s dreams

champagne condensating

on leather seats

all summer long

I wish I could afford a room

at The Peninsula New York

suites with TV’s above soaking tubs

with city views

and all that sun on Fifth Ave

I live inside it too

I am at Uniqlo

buying underwear

and after I paid

I stayed and shopped again

a surprising second erection

after you’ve just finished

and you know it’s time

Ben Fama is the author of Mall Witch (Wonder 2012) as well as several chapbooks, including Odalisque (Bloof Books 2014) and Cool Memories (Spork Books 2013). With Andrew Durbin, he edits Wonder, an open-source publishing and events platform for poetry, performance and new media art. He lives in New York City.