Nell Osborne
192
A man opposite me on the bus
touched himself as he
gave me the pinking
eye-up w/ intent to —
our knees almost kissing
The policeman will wink as he
asks me to be more soporific as to
denature of the event
Life divides into those who have been
under such propositionals
and those who have not
I felt nothing, as I told all the friends who
kindly enquired. thank you but no
nothing? nothing. not
violated? nothing
left, I said.
Constitutionally, you see, I am diamond
It’s too late to learn to love god
I am fully divested of my shares in
supernal self-preservation
I will know time has passed
b/c my teeth have yellow
I do not want to be eternal
accountant I do not want to be
unrelieved
Little girls should develop
a robust neo-diva mentality
become radiant with glibbery
meaning: smooth. shining. slippery.
Cod-filled rivers of laughing fucking
that pulse pulse
that creep creep creep
there is no membrane too
membraneous! As they say
muscles tighten into the mirror
I’m making a joke. say
don’t. look away. don’t.
Nell Osborne is based in Manchester. She's completing a research PhD in experimental writing by women and intimacy. She recently participated in I’d do this all day if I could, a series of performances focused on the act of reading held in PEER’s Participation Space, and has a collaborative Chapette book forthcoming with Make Mud Press.