something between the circus and the sewer

by JD Clapp

Back in the days

Before I knew who I was

What I was, how to be

In the glorious late 80’s

Working on the fringe 

Of the cityscape, the badlands between

The haves and have nots

We’d give the crackheads

Who lived behind the office

A bag of dollar burgers 

So they wouldn’t bust into

Our we’ve almost arrived late model

Cars.

On Fridays we’d go to happy hour

At that up-and-coming swanky place

Drinking half-price premium drinks

Living that fucking dream, splurging on

A gram of coke packed in a 

Cool guy Sno Seal

Until

One night Carlo bragged how

Much cooler we were

Than those crackheads

Behind the office.

Then Lou Reed kicked me in the brain

And I said, you know man, 

In this city different people got different tastes

And nobody knew what the fuck I meant including me.

Photo fo JD Clapp

BIO: JD Clapp is a writer based in San Diego, CA. His creative work has appeared in over 75 different literary journals and magazines including Cowboy Jamboree, trampset, Blood + Honey, and Bull. His work has been nominated for several awards including the Pushcart Prize, Best of the Net, and Best Small Fictions. He is the author Poachers and Pills (2025), and A Good Man Goes South (2024). His debut novel, Grit Before Grace, will be published by Cowboy Jamboree Press in fall 2026.