Better
Walking south on the west side down, Black umbrellas hiding faces all around. Suddenly a flower in the cold winter rain, And a bright hat that no one wants to claim. Such is the price of January weather, As the...Read More
Category: Personal
The discarded personal items of New Yorkers tell the most intimate and often overlooked stories.
2022 Trash Item of the Year: Chairs
I’m guessing 2022 will go down in history as the year New Yorkers got out of their chairs and began to live again. After seemingly countless false starts declaring “New York City is back!”, it wasn’t until later in 2022...Read More
Life Is A Marathon
My fiancé has run the NYC marathon five times. A few years ago she introduced me to her favorite part of the event: Finish Line After Dark. Long after the sun has set and the runners have drifted off to...Read More
Is This Me? – Out Of Air (Part Two)*
Is this me? Is this really who I am? Abandoned in a doorway, I was just in a trash can. Is this really me, Can anyone live like this? When all I ever wanted, Was to belong and have a...Read More
Out of Air (Part One)
I found you dying in the sunset, As autumn in the City began. Another woman took your picture, And we laughed at your trash can. Though we didn’t know your story, We could feel there was sadness. Because nightfall on...Read More
Washed Your Hands Of This
You finally made it to Broadway, Wearing costumes you made at home. But everyone knew you were acting, And now you’re all alone. The summer heat felt like applause, Ovations of sweat and lust. Your dreams became your reality, But...Read More
Missed America
Darts on a board, Red, white, and blue. Our aim was off, But our intentions were true. Does any of it matter, When the game is a lie? What happens to scorekeepers, When the numbers die? The British Empire fell,...Read More
Your Dream Now
Don’t ask me how I got here. It’s a sad story. pillow talk Don’t ask me where I belong. It’s a painful story. sail away Don’t ask me where I’m going. It’s an unknowable story. lonely dreams Don’t ask me...Read More
I Was Proud
There was a time When I was proud. I had majestic horns And my enemies bowed. Love was mine And so were you. But time changed us And I changed too. My weakness showed My demons glowed. From home I...Read More
Framed
Life was a broken wall Of random graffiti, Until you came With your frame. you are here And now there is focus On this chaos of bricks, Thanks to the context Of you. surrounded by gold above the hidden stairs...Read More
Next Life Time
I prey when I wake up I’ll be a Lamborgini Electric rock rap god I’ll prey to a god That when I am to be risen Thought Full This poem was pulled directly from a notebook discovered flapping on a...Read More
Enough
I gave it my all, And life hit back. The colors of my dreams, Now faded into black. NYC bag gives up on life. Cruelty hit hard, And things got rough. Now I’ve finally broken, I’ve had enough. end of...Read More
Your Day
This day is always so fun, Another trip around the sun. You and loved ones celebrating together, Knowing you are not plastic and won’t last forever. But that doesn’t matter because today is about you, And now this trash is...Read More
Goodbye Thin Mattress
The naked truth Of who we were Was never a bed of love But the darkening street That brought us together Heading in the same direction Now in different taxis Goodbye thin mattress. Forgotten love and an old mattress in...Read More
NYC Empathy: Someone Else’s Shoes
While New Yorkers have a reputation for being gruff, cold, and even obnoxious, the truth is that human empathy holds this city together. New York City is shaped by our ability to appreciate the lives of others – the quiet...Read More
The Last Straw
I was patient. I was kind. I was loyal. I was present. I was there... Now I'm gone... The last straw. Enough. Is enough. That's it. I'm gone. And so are you. For more NYC Trash Stories and insights into...Read More
Nine Lives
I gave you a home and a place to play, Knowing we'd have to move some day. You were my friend through a global disease, And you kept me sane during my lonely unease. And now we must go and...Read More
Technology Calling?
Listening is an important part of human communication. But sometimes we feel more connected to others via our technologies, which seems counterintuitive. Until we lose both. Lost headphones on 55th Street between 9th and 10th Avenues. listen close say what?...Read More
What They Said
They said we were beautiful. They said we were intelligent. They said we were forever. That's what they said. ... Love is fleeting in New York City. Lost love in New York City unexpected endings never far from Starbucks kicked...Read More
You Missed Me
I was here Sitting Waiting For you. But you were Moving Too fast To see me And our future. You missed me. opportunity awaits your seat is closer than you think slow down before it's too late what you were...Read More