sitting in the back yard with michael,
not drunk yet, but moving
in the right direction –
coasting, drifting –

he says he has it all worked out on paper,
tells me he’s gonna pay off his house and
then the kids’ college loans and
then he’s done

says he’s been tired for
a long time now

says bowing out seems like
the right thing to do

gonna make his ex-wife happy,
if nothing else

and nobody wants the summer of
fun to end, but there’s this girl
passed out naked on the bathroom floor

her sister, laughing in the kitchen

says, roll her over in case she
pukes, she’ll be fine

says, someone find tony
before he tries to fuck her

grabs herself a couple of beers
for the road, then she’s gone