call_it_karma raze i asked a few other girls to the dance before i asked her. i saved her for last because she was the only one i thought might say yes. she shot me down like all the rest. her date blew her off. we ended up together. call that karma if you want. now i add to what she's already drawn. her hands have built a sleek city for me to move through. i pencil in a brown bear between two tall buildings. i use an earlier drawing as a guide. i have to scribble the circle of the carnivore's skull to get it right. the same way you'd colour in the outline of a thing already formed. i add the ears after the fact. the bear becomes a mythical beast. a grinning green dragon breathing fire from somewhere south of its head. i cut paper wedges for teeth and glue them behind the lips. white space to the left of the frame is filled with another tall building. people with featureless faces get a running start before they jump. i try to sharpen their collective last gasp. the more vivid the scene becomes, the less finished it feels. a crude first draft is on the flip side. i break the tip off a plastic dart. ammunition for a toy gun. i pop the stem in my mouth and chew. it tastes like black licorice. 230825 what's it to you? who go blather from