Snake Dancer

Posted on 2023-08-23 by Bartholomew Barker

Alone in the club
Metal music crashes
Off checkerboard floor

Beautiful serpent
Mirrored scales vibrating
In stroboscopic light

Pliant breasts
Black asymmetric hem
Skirting limbless body

She hisses up to me
Long hair swaying
As she undulates

An incongruous arm appears
Handing me a crystal globe
Brimming with Merlot

She turns and slithers away
Across her back is tattooed
Pulchritudo est non verum

As I struggle to decide
My early alarm drags me awake
I reach to a bottle

This year marks the tenth anniversary of my first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular. To celebrate I’m posting my favorite poems from the book on Wednesday nights, of course.

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About Bartholomew Barker

Bartholomew Barker is an organizer of Living Poetry, a collection of poets in the Triangle region of North Carolina where he has hosted a monthly feedback workshop for more than decade. His first poetry collection, Wednesday Night Regular, written in and about strip clubs, was published in 2013. His second, Milkshakes and Chilidogs, a chapbook of food inspired poetry was served in 2017. He was nominated for a Pushcart Prize in 2021. Born and raised in Ohio, studied in Chicago, he worked in Connecticut for nearly twenty years before moving to Hillsborough where he lives and writes poetry.
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6 Responses to Snake Dancer

  1. Katie Frances Hartless's avatar K.F. Hartless says:
    2023-08-23 at 21:49

    Oh, happy anniversary and thanks for sharing.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  2. berniebell1955's avatar berniebell1955 says:
    2023-08-24 at 03:38

    My lord – a psychologist would have a field day with this.
    Garden of Eden again.

    I was relieved when I realized that it was a dream.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  3. lesleyscoble's avatar lesleyscoble says:
    2023-08-30 at 02:45

    This is superb. A sinuous dream—then you grab for the bottle. 🐍
    I love it ❤️

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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