& as the man behind the counter
commented on my t-shirt
i told him we'd met before
@ the old location
years ago
& the talk turned...
i accidentally walked out w/ 8 ounces
of monkey-picked tieguanyin
sticker shocked
but after many cups @ home
gettin water right &
steep time:
honey, flower garden, lemon,
readin a history book,
the clock turned...
this stuff isnt really "monkey picked"
but a tale the east sold the west
in its ironic naivety
it was either sending monkeys
up tall tea trees
& throwing rocks @ them
so they'd tear off branches of leaves
& throw them down
or that the monkeys
were trained w/ feasts
to climb up
& pick only the choicest leaves
from the tops of the trees
the world turned...
my head was racing
like daytime
the thoughts i looked forward to
wouldnt leave me alone
locked in a wrestle w/
i couldnt best until finally
maybe for a few hours
but focused on portsmouth square
in an undreamy way
analyzing
awake but asleep
until 4:30 AM
gettin up
puttin some water on
& having more tea
the tides turned...
