A free-verse poem — Sleep tiptoes inside my skin, like a thief entering a familiar house. Drenched in his sweat, he waits, for the right moment to steal the energy I made love to all day. Sleep drugs me like I am the easy catch at the party, who could be escorted to a bedroom. Sleep…

A free-verse poem — Eyes anchoring darkness, feet on a patterned mosaic, crushing on colonies of red and black ants, body reeking of the loaded day’s stench, heart crooning requiems, I looked for her hither-thither. Alas! My sight beheld two incandescent stars on the pitch charcoaled sky. But, oh whitewashed orb, where are you…

A list (poem) — Icy Pepsi sticks. Lyrics pamphlet with stills from the movie inside cassettes. The devil from the Onida TV advertisement. Multi Game 9999 in 1. Payphones. Milton water bottles. Bomberman. Max Payne. Cheetos. Bytes. Peppy Balls. The shutting down tune of Windows XP. Boomer bubblegum along with the free tattoo. Indipop…

A list poem inspired by Auguste White’s McSweeney’s list — Kayal died while doing the eleventh dish because her heart couldn’t take the fact that her maid just called up in the morning and quit her job. Just as she touched the feet of the musician whose music saved her life, Sahana dropped dead. When asked what she’d do as…

An anaphora poem — I want this escalator to lead me directly to an infinity pool and not to the same old landing that’d take me to my office. I want to stuff my body with forget-me-nots to forget better. I want an unlimited supply of hot sizzling brownies so that I can choke…