All the Day Long

Timothy Michalik

We watched the bee diein the shadeand on the sidewalk sun cut throughin the usual ways. A tiny garden in a boxa kid went WHACK to. Now it’s rainingthe city’s busy uninventing taxisI mean that’s New York, I mean.Walking home I thought about saying“when a person dies…”but somebody already did. Just a few days ago.Personally it’s more interestingto live. When I start to feel like“everything” and “nothing”I would like to transport myselfto a great white roomand think O good I can be happy again.Turn on the light look in the mirrorbees pour out of the faucet.That’s not supposed to happen.On the street w/ Brie she asksabout our old life I say You knowI find that really sad. Just days agoG texted me Making sure u have a hotelfor my wedding?? I’m sorry noI won’t be coming and therethe sun beams out of the sky.It transmits these little haiku. Like stay / inside a lot / rain might come.That wasn’t one of them.But it felt that way and how aboutwhen Schuyler says “The smell of snow…I am not suicidal”I think maybe he is. Was.Wake up there’s no more sunWhite ceiling / my favorite cloud.

Poem Commentary

This poem is in memory of Don Crescendo. 

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Photo:
Jack Garland
Timothy Michalik is a Michigan born poet and an MFA candidate at NYU, where they teach undergraduates. They are the founding editor of the journal/press Copenhagen.

Issue 10

Iowa City, Iowa

Co-Founders
TR Brady
Maggie Nipps

Afternoon Visitor was founded in the spring of 2020 in Iowa City. We are an online quarterly publication of poetry, hybrid text, visual poetry, and visual art. We want work that investigates and divines, that searches out and wants. We’re looking for accidental visitors, harbingers, and spectres.

We’re particularly interested in giving space to trans + queer writers in every issue and presenting work from established and emerging writers. We welcome experimental work, long form poetry, and sequences.

We nominate writers for Best of the Net.

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