my right and talk in a
soft urgent tone,
probably about
their love life
to my left is a couple
who stare continually into
each other's eyes and
laugh about everything
and nothing at all
the Vietnamese cooks are behind
me chattering loudly
I don't speak Vietnamese
so I tune them right out
like the buzz of
electric lights
others are everywhere
talking about this, that
and the other thing
they are angry, happy,
sad, in the middle,
unsure, and together
in the seat directly across
from me sits no one
just a pair of ivory chopsticks
I know what must be done
and I dot it
I know what must be done
and I dot it
_
Joseph Osel is a writer.
"Pretty Damn Good" was first published in 2009 by Pro Press.