VASELINA ON MY MIND

by Mather Schneider

She was 86'd from the Mint
for hawking blow jobs
and now she comes into The Deadwood every day
to trawl our happy hour.
The reason they call her Vaselina
is because she has a constant outbreak of open sores
on the skin of her chin
and she keeps it coated with Vaseline,
thick waves of it
like fallen meringe.
Her chin shines and sparkles in the bar lights
as she glances around
trying to look demure
instead of like something revealed
at low tide.
She’s about forty and slim
and seems to be educated
and despite the fact that you can see yourself
in the glisten of her chin
I've thought about it,
and so has Fat Paul
who works down at Pep Boys
and so has Lenny
who’s four feet eight
and furry as a wolf.