new from above/ground press: Television Poems, by Jessi MacEachern

Television Poems
Jessi MacEachern
$5

Uncorked
Bob’s Burgers S4E17, “Eggs for Days”

The question we should be asking is:
Do you see the egg? Look up
“racoon, babies, wall.” Drive out
the mother with audio harassment.
From crawl space to family restaurant,
the voices groan. Three small faces look
up into the mother. The anger grows with
the stench. Nose hairs twitch like gnats.
A childless man emerges and runs
to the ocean. In steel bowls, we
divide our spoils. In the single-
occupant gender neutral bathroom,
we hide our feelings. Three small
faces open up wide; the result is profound
silence. Schnapps pours freely, pink sludge
in the bloated guts of our guardians.
The hangover cuts into the holiday
like a crime scene. Nostalgia
seeps into us; we recognize
the three wicker baskets, feel
the synthetic fibres against our palms.
Soon a headless bunny will stand in
the yellow straw, a sweet sacrifice.
“Sensational Gardens” combats rot,
the signature scent of a New Jersey
celebrity falls flat into decay.
Three small faces merge
with stars, a manly offering.

published in Ottawa by above/ground press
August 2021
a/g subscribers receive a complimentary copy

Jessi MacEachern lives in Montréal, QC, where she teaches English literature. Her poetry has been published or is forthcoming in CAROUSEL, Touch the Donkey, Poetry Is Dead, Vallum, MuseMedusa, Canthius, PRISM, and CV2. Her debut poetry collection is A Number of Stunning Attacks (Invisible Publishing, 2021).

To order, send cheques (add $1 for postage; in US, add $2; outside North America, add $5) to: rob mclennan, 2423 Alta Vista Drive, Ottawa ON K1H 7M9. E-transfer or PayPal at rob_mclennan (at) hotmail.com or the PayPal button at www.robmclennan.blogspot.com