Safeway

His voice is a dog fight

on the beverage aisle.

The security guy,

interrupts the text

he's writing to his lady,

tries to calm him.

Unsuccessfully.

the shabby guy

slams a twenty ounce

plastic Pepsi bottle

to the floor.

The pressure bursts

the seal of the cap

and the escaping jet of soda

spins the bottle like a pinwheel.

A small group of seniors

down from Chinatown

gather by the frozen vegetable case

whisper in Cantonese behind their hands

and watch the unfolding drama.

The store manager

comes out from the stockroom

to size up the situation

and tells the would be

Pepsi purchaser

to get out of his store.

The guy is growling

something about uranium

and anuses and the Gulf War.

Dumps a pillow case

filled with his clothes,

two dog-eared books,

and a roll of toilet paper

into the sticky puddle.

Happy? Are you happy now,

you son of a bitch?

I fought a war for you.

For this?

The store manager yells

get out of my store

and don't ever come back.

The guy stomps out of the store

leaving all his stuff behind.

The manager prods the pile

on the floor with the toe of his shoe

tells a stocker who has come over

from the produce section

to clean up the mess.

The books and clothes

and toilet paper go into

a hefty bag (on sale in aisle 6)

and after all the Pepsi is mopped up,

he puts out a yellow warning cone:

Caution - Wet Floor