HARD CANDY

H A R D C A N D Y

Junkies have a way of finding scars
screams never seem to fade
rain, it’s like boils in the city
sometimes,
sometimes when it rains all the filth and scum
and piss and shit
actually washes down the sewers
and a new air struggles through the concrete alleys
concrete streets
avenues
bars
night clubs where the hard candy melts
where the hard candy bleeds
sweltering
like new children born in the darkness of the vein
the breathing of the night
the squeeze of the jazz and the ecstasy
the sucking of the flesh
like a cold contagious hunger
with soft teeth buried in warm flesh
but the night will pause for the heroin needle
the heroin sunrise
as the air drops the way glass smashes against subway exit signs
as the flesh of the city
is cut by drunks and the scum urinating on the scars of
dead flowers
dead photographs
dead visions
hard candy
the junkies dance in this carnival
this suicidal psycho Cinderella circus
this crystal crack cocaine candle
with the crows and the pigeons and the prostitutes
down on Broadway and 68th the hard way
and like Andrew says,
“city vultures never have to leave the ground.”
so fuck the scars
feel the sound.

More comments:

• A former member wrote: this is totally hardcore. i love it. most of my poems are about drugs.
  
  
• On Sunday, November 30, 2008, carlosjackal (1799) wrote:
  
  Coooooommmmmmeeee! Bacccccckkkk!!!!! *manhugs*
  
  
• On Wednesday, July 23, 2008, Diviana (64) wrote:
  
  Gods, its never enough to spew on and one about how fucking orgasmic your words are, but all I can ever do is sit in front of my mac and...feel. -Div
  
  
• On Friday, March 14, 2008, Spiral Downward (406) wrote:
  
  This had me from the first line! Awesome and Honest!
  
  
• On Thursday, January 31, 2008, Liz (339) wrote:
  
  agreed, the end is so good i'm about to read the whole thing over.
  
  
• On Thursday, January 31, 2008, Liz (339) wrote:
  
  oh! and i had no idea it was you
  
  
• On Thursday, January 31, 2008, skully (75) wrote:
  
  loving this, makes me realize I've got a lot to learn.
  
  
• On Saturday, December 29, 2007, Distorted_Reality (146) wrote:
  
  I don't know why I decided to click on your first post when I was reading random poems, but I'm glad I did. Andrew Vachss is amazing and so is this poem! :)
  
  
• On Monday, March 19, 2007, carlosjackal (1799) wrote:
  
  This was fabulous filth concluding in the perfect final two lines, "so fuck the scars/feel the sound."
  
  
• On Wednesday, March 21, 2007, Bakkhus Unbound (1055) wrote:
  
  Ahh, thank you for going back & reading my 1st DP-post (HC still remains one of my personal faves). Ncase you didn't figure it out: Andrew is the Crime Writer Andrew Vachss & the City Vultures quote is from the first line in his fantastic novel Hard Candy
  
  
• On Wednesday, March 21, 2007, carlosjackal (1799) wrote:
  
  Yeah, I checked out your comment box conversation with Hatter below. And that line is definitely genius, "city vultures never have to leave the ground". I bet the cheeky bastard came up with it in 2 seconds, just for it to be appreciated for years and yea
  
  
• On Wednesday, March 21, 2007, carlosjackal (1799) wrote:
  
  rs to come. Once again, this was a darkly fantastic piece, Jon. Bloomin' nice!
  
  
• On Friday, November 3, 2006, verablue (139) wrote:
  
  fantastic write, such brutal imagery.