Quirks and Oddities: A List Poem

Pillows feel like sandpaper to my bare ears and keeps me awake

So I keep my hair long, as a soft cover for them at night

My mouth fills with air when I sleep on my back making my lips

Snap open with a jarring "PPFFF," like a bag of chips squeezed too hard

My right hand automatically flies under my right cheek

When I lie on my right side, my left hand folds and rests against my lips

But when I turn to my left side, my left hand grips my right thumb

As if to stop myself from sucking it

The only jewelry I wear is fan-shaped dangly earrings

If I leave the house without them I feel conspicuously naked

I can only drink coffee from a glass or ceramic mug to keep it hot

But I can't drink it unless there is a metal spoon in it to help cool it down

I only eat with pretty, flowery silverware, choosing carefully from the array

of mismatched pieces, never looking at them again once I start eating.

Naida Lavon

May 1, 2022

PCC Poetry Class

Angie Ebba, Instructor