It’s just machinery
pulverizing the sidewalk
outside my window.
Nothing to be afraid of…
right?

It’s only some
musclebound guy
in hard hat and goggles
cracking open the cement
like he’s breaking
into a vault.

Sure it’s loud.
But what isn’t these days.
The outside is just
another name for cacophony.
Same for the inside
with its leaking tap,
coughing radiator,
creaking floorboards.
And don’t get me started
on the people that live here.

And then there’s my head.
There are times when
the pounding inside
could drown out
the largest, most powerful
jackhammer on the planet.

Still, things are good.
Yes, Emma walked out on me.
But she left a note,
not a demolition order.