Google says there are more than 150 billion pennies in circulation

is that more or less than how many pearls lie in the ocean?

who knows how many pearls there are?

I feel the squeeze of self when I am forced to choose sides

to choose or to choose

this one or that one

this one or this one

this one, this?

this one.

yeah, right.

moreover, no one else hurts me for not taking bribes

like my fingers may break under the weight of all that water

do you guys get sick of seeing Abraham Lincoln everywhere?

my teacher said he was a professional

do professionals deserve to live on in copper plated zinc

and if so after death where do I live?

the ocean has beautiful real estate, I’ve heard

I swoop down and touch the wings of the gulls

in my spare time

sometimes i feel nothing first and then i feel angry

write in your own words, always. your own words.

nobody else can write your words for you.

like that's a good thing

when the only thing I know how to write are my own words

they live in my notebooks on my calendar my future

they are not pure they are

two percent word,

ninety eight percent me,

they are my own.

no chance of someone else screaming: Please! Take me instead! Take me!

no chance of parole.

so, simply writing takes a lot of me.

pearl diving seems less painful, but less easy