notes on Eric Berryman’s latest offering to the canon It is the guilty pleasure made visible, A wink from father to son, A son without a father in the dark Of a bar where the language Makes his kindergarten blush And chest hairs pop. It sounds like dick, big dick, giant Questions like where do I Stack up…

360 Panorama SOHO Baby! - BeyondNFT | OpenSea The dulcet tones of acoustic guitar presage the longest year in history.opensea.io I’m Black, formerly incarcerated, and I grew up in the toughest neighborhoods of NYC. My dad is white, right-leaning, and lives in rural Pennsylvania. We don’t see much the same way, but I think we’re agreed that we’re both human. In December of 2019 I went to go visit my…

As a kid, I always got the cheap Matchbox and HotWheels cars, the knock-offs from Odd Lots or the pull-back-and-go models whose springs malfunctioned after two whirls. Somehow, though, I’d traded my way into a collection I loved. …

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 Leo sat in Uncle Sal’s looking at Beth and her friend. His body tightened up, recognizing the guy as one of the goons who’d chased him months earlier. He forced…

Abolitionists and criminal justice reform advocates have identified a pattern that occurs as we attempt to humanize a system that is fundamentally flawed. Well-meaning reforms have simply entrenched the antiquated, questionably-effective punitive models that cause widespread suffering and siphon public funds to support a bloated and inhumane human warehousing industry…

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 Sara walked into the kitchen after putting Edwin Jr. to sleep. Abuela had microwaved dinner and made sure Leo had a plate. He sat at Sara’s table, dug into the pernil and…

When someone tries really hard and is hurt soundly It creates a void Filled easily by grievance It makes you want power Regardless of its source Contrarianism and sabotage Make perfect sense So does violence Often by proxy When someone decides to follow an ideology It creates a rush Supported by the…

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 Young Leo ended up seeing Jenny again. Initially he couldn’t imagine how he would arrange for another meeting, and skulking outside her house felt strange. …

Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 Young Leo looked at the house from the woods. Lights were on on the lower and upper floor. He hoped to see her pass by one of the windows. He wasn’t sure what he was doing…