river trip to buddha caves

Luang Prabang, Laos

mud and bougainvillea

a tiger-striped dog

trots down a hot white alley

the moist breath of the city monster:

watery and metallic,

smoke gusting from squid on a stick

roasting over charcoal.

the evening breeze

is plumeria and jasmine sweet,

the scent of corn steaming in a sidewalk pot

reminiscent of a human body, or iowa.

castles in the sky

i thought i saw a pony on a rooftop

between cyclone fence-caged potted trees

but it was probably just the spaghetti

of perception, the edgewise glimpse

out the window of the skytrain

as the station fell behind,

where beyonce's  wiggling hourglass

is plastered on the pillars flashing past

touting her ass for pepsi.

the spores of commerce

climb the blackened high-rise

abandoned by the invisible hand,

cooking up little recipes of doom

and justice is just a peach

beyond the reach of hoody boys

with a bag of snacks

from a convenience store.

and the crickets sing to the toads

who wait to eat them

between their boasts and croaks.

lust leads them to the street, fated

to become traffic flattened pancakes,

perforated shadow puppets……

like the rest of us who dare

to cross the thoroughfare,

staring at our smart phones.

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On the way to Chainat, where Peace Corps has a 10-day training session for volunteers who have been here 6 months. Carolyn will be giving a short presentation on Friends of Thailand funding for volunteer projects. Here for the night then back to Bangkok.

fugitives

bin laden wore a cowboy hat

to protect his face from drones

but it didn't save him from a speeding ticket

a buddhist monk was seen on youtube

with louis vuiton luggage and designer sunglasses

aboard a private jet.

he'd ordered twenty two mercedes benzes

and owns a house at lake elsinore

in california where perhaps he'll flee from paris.

and snowden  still languishes

in the transit zone at the moscow airport

641 water monitor lizards were rounded up yesterday in thailand.

they'd been poaching on the shrimp and fish farms

and the villagers were upset so wildlife officers

captured them and transferred them to a protection area.

a giant python was apprehended

near cairns, australia

in a st vincent de paul charity store

where the snake had rummaged and strewn

the merchandise and left a pool of vomit

the police suspected a burglar

with a destructive motive

and a serious health problem

until the snake was found.

meanwhile, a certain former prime minister

flits from dubai to hong kong, zurich to panang

attempting to arrange an amnesty,

a safe return to the scene of the crime

where his sister will surely welcome him

with open arms.