Jacob Russell lives and writes in South Philly. His work has been performed by InterAct Theatre, been published
in the Beloit Poetry Journal, Salmagundi, Laurel Review, Pindeldyboz, Main Street Rag, Bitter Oleandar, Philadelphia Stories, and is soon to appear in Pedestal and Clockwise Cat. He’s currently finishing a second novel, and maintaining a literary blog: Jacob Russell’s Barking Dog.
Every good argument is also a story
twisted into a grimace
Pressed to confess crimes I only wished
To commit, I would say almost anything
Divest yourself of bodily pleasures
Boethius in the basement
Counseled by Wisdom
Think, as only a recent example—Of the things you do daily
Perform them in private and leave no record
It does not matter
Someone is sure to be watching
Search for the right arguments
Adjust to the change in time
I am not at liberty to reveal more
None of us are
In the darkened wings of the museum
Solitaire by lamplight
In a cabinet of bones