i watched
the kindly
looking laundry
lady lay into
a poor guy
who fed his
coins too quick
into the machine
he placid smile
faded into a
thunderstorm of
rage as she
muttered in
spanish and
rammed a hanger
into the slot

as a veteran of
coin operated machines
and the subtle art
of servicing them
i tapped her shoulder
and asked to try
she scowled and
a flashback of my
past with hangers
flashed recklessly
through my head as
she stepped
to the side

i smiled at her
and slapped the
bottom of my palm
on the side
of the machine
once
twice
three times
with a clink
the trapped coins
tumbled down
into the slot
she smiled sweetly
before turning
to the poor guy
and glaring
before barking
something
which made
him flinch back
from her waving
crooked finger

round and round
the bubbles spin
as lavender flashes
in my hollow skull
one more weekend
before leaving
for waco for a week
of locker installs
then to virginia
before eventually
sitting here again
washing clothes
as the kindly lady
watches the laundromat
from her booth