i got out of the car in cleveland
there was snow on the ground
i wanted to have a smoke
a cop car pulled up and parked

i waited in the cold with diamond
we got cut in line
we waited in the warmth of the twilight zone elevator
i looked through the door to the blue lights of the b-side
sexual valentine’s day flyer on the window
a working man came and went back and forth
up and down the stairs with big buckets of ice
the crowd waited and made jokes

i got nervous
rushed through the merch booth
so embarrassing
no questions
no i.d.
not 21
no re-entry
sophia wrote my name on piece of tape

i introduced myself to a girl standing behind me in the audience
and asked her where we could eat
she said she didn’t know
she was from pittsburgh
i glanced at her while we sang
she walked away after the encore without saying goodbye
the doorkeeper told us of a few late night places where we could eat

smoking a cigarette out front after the show
a lady approached me and asked if she could have one
the show was over
she’d just arrived
she was there to drink at the b-side
much to my surprise she talked to me while she smoked the entire thing
and i looked into her eyes
she seemed inviting
i think we both wanted to stick around for the evening
“no i.d.
not 21
no re-entry”
i wanted to ask her for her number
“the next time i’m in cleveland…”
i didn’t know if she felt she knew me well enough
before she said farewell a total stranger approached us
he asked if he could borrow a few dollars
“10, 20 dollars”
i gave him 3 ones out of my back pocket
he said it was coming back to me

people were drunk on the crowded sidewalks
a drunk young man with a woman’s birthday party hat
tells me it’s not his birthday
“a good way to get discounts and free drinks”
he complimented me on my coat
i couldn’t take out my voice recorder in time

the whole drive home
tyler and i talked about cleveland