The Secret Goldfish

Side B

Iron Mike-Bukowski

we talk about this film: 

Cagney fed this broad 

grapefruit 

faster than she could 

eat it and 

then she 

loved him. 

“that won’t always 

work,” I told Iron 

Mike. 

he grinned and said, 

“yeh.” 

then he reached down 

and touched his belt. 

32 female scalps 

dangled there. 

“me and my big Jewish 

cock,” he said. 

then he raised his hands 

to indicate the 

size. 

“o, yeh, well,” 

I said. 

“they come around,” he 

said, “I fuck ‘em, they 

hang around, I tell ‘em, 

‘it’s time to leave.’” 

“you’ve got guts, 

Mike.” 

“this one wouldn’t leave 

so I just got up and 

slapped her … she 

left.” 

“I don’t have your nerve, 

Mike. they hang around 

washing dishes, rubbing 

the shit-stains out of the 

crapper, throwing out the 

old Racing Forms …” 

“they’ll never get me,” 

he said, 

“I’m invincible.” 

look, Mike, no man is 

invincible. 

some day 

you’ll be sent mad by 

eyes like a child’s crayon 

drawing. you won’t be 

able to drink a glass of 

water or walk across a 

room. there will be the 

walls and the sound of 

the streets outside, and 

you’ll hear machineguns 

and mortar shells. that’ll 

be when you want it and 

can’t have it. 

the teeth 

are never finally the 

teeth of love.