Poison

In the company of strangers,      
night after bloody night        
I poison my morality -      
Bourbon whiskey, cigarettes        
and ephedrine    
   
we howl in arms against it all        
laughing with the vanity        
of our remembered selves,        
pretending we still can be        
who we once imagined possible        
        
then the dance        
in darkened rooms     
like glowing hollow sculptures        
seeing double; we are poisoned        
from the inside out