The Commute

At the intersection

near Odeon

a man on a red

bicycle straddling

the hot black

pavement leans

forward and shakes

out his long blond

hair. It’s not good

hair, its undersides

the color of river

slurry, tips a yellow not made

by nature. But morning

light catches it

as he tosses

the remaining wet

of his recent shower

to the street, flings his

head back and gazes up

at the sun, like an ’80s

rock god just before

bursting into a guitar

solo. Crosstown traffic

slows, then stops, and he

pedals off, leaving a damp

halo behind, some

of the light.