Rex Leonowicz, “what about wheat beer? does grain alcohol count?”

Author: Poetry Editor

May 22, 2012

This week, a poem by Rex Leonowicz.

WHAT ABOUT WHEAT BEER? DOES GRAIN ALCOHOL COUNT?

“why are you
so against snacks?”
the friend asked
after i refused the rice cakes
having refused the tangerines
the peaches the pizza
already.
i shrugged,
poured more beer
then more green taurine caffeine
energy
drink named monster,
carbonated chemicals a garnish
in my ceramic cerulean mug that reads café—
the vessel that’s been lately feeding me
my meals of
tall boy
seltzer diet soda
tonic and vodka
black coffee
vitamin c powder, green tea extract drops
dissolved in water
caffeine concoctions
that always come out
grainy at the bottom
(some are work, the others, play).

my mother tries to remind me what new york is:
she brings me everything bagels with cream cheese
for breakfast
the tin foil tells you its toasted
they say toasted bread is better for you
but i am skeptical
(of bread in general)
and i have been hearing that everywhere—
on the l.e.s., a woman says,
“yes, she doesn’t really eat grains anymore”
to her friend about a friend— as
the toxicity of wheat and yeast
hits mainstream,
it amazes me
that we can speak easy on the street
about not eating.

——

REX LEONOWICZ is a trans-identified intersectional feminist from New York City. His poems have appeared in Bodies of Work magazine and Testimony, an exhibition and online journal of lgbtq creative work.