Walter Beck is a poet who is not here to conform to anyone’s notions of a man. Gratitude is a convention he can live with however, and he expresses his here, in a chant that only Walter can do.
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I’m thankful
For loud mean blues licks
And speed metal riffs.
I’m thankful
For Repo, Rocky,
And the coffeehouses and drag stages.
I’m thankful
For the editors at the rags and mags
Publishing my sweaty-eyed words.
I’m thankful
For being a late-night genderfucker,
For Goodwill skirts and leopard print bras.
I’m thankful
For anarchism,
A personal revolution/revelation to light my way.
I’m thankful
For the bosses, narcs, and rats,
They’re the best enemies I ever had.
I’m thankful
For the pitch black coffee and discount cigarettes
Fueling this highway.
I’m thankful
For my romantic partner in crime
Driving with me at 1000 miles an hour.
I’m most thankful
For not slowing down with age,
I’m only getting weirder with time.
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Photo by Nathan McClain