Before the Main Feature

The children love their cartoons,
but cartoon people make them wary.
Elmer Fudd evokes his share of laughter,
But they give wide berth
to the bald-headed runt
wandering the streets in hunting cap,
brandishing a twelve-gauge shotgun.

The Tasmanian Devil is a riot on the screen.
On the street, they close their eyes,
wish him on his way back to Tasmania.

Beep beep, says the road runner,
as the coyote gets his skull bashed in again.

But it’s different in the house:
continuous plotting, the most dangerous
of Acme gizmos.
They’ve learned that
the road runner doesn’t stand a chance.
He slaps. She cries.
Strike up one bloody victory for the coyote.
Beep beep, says the telephone
kicked across the kitchen floor.