The internet figured me the kinda guy

needs a ten-dollar pencil.

A heritage pencil, single barrel,

like the top shelf whiskey

I never drank

when I drank.

An American made pencil.

Every other pencil factory

converted into lofts,

like the one downtown

where the unlicensed pharmacist

shot the trust fund kid

in his personal oasis.

Amenities include vaulted ceilings,

modern fixtures, edgy designer details

by which they mean granite countertops.

It’s all beyond my reach.

Can’t afford an American pencil.

Wrote this poem with a pen.

Jason O’Toole is a member of the North Andover (MA) Poet Laureate Committee, and a founder and judge of the Anne Bradstreet Poetry Contest. He published two volumes of poetry, a chapbook, and has been featured in numerous publications including the 2020 Rhysling Anthology and a new book of pandemic poems, Poets with Masks On (Finishing Line Press). He was the vocalist for the NY Hardcore Punk band Life's Blood and continues to make commercially unviable music.