Like Grapefruit

I cannot sleep
I lay in bed listening to the wind howling against this old apartment building
It’s screeching tonight, relentlessly it screams regrets
I hear it, hear it as I toss the blankets aside, I’m becoming too hot and strip down to my underwear
I left my car unlocked, there’s nothing in it
My little dog sleeps at the foot of my bed and raises his head to listen to the sirens that go by
He often walks up to my face and with those eyes he’ll ask to be pet
And while I rub his tiny belly he’ll lick my hand and then leave me be
I look up at the ceiling and notice I have no smoke detectors
The thought of a fire quickly comes to mind
The walls are so thin as I hear the downstairs neighbors making love
I start to eat cookies, vanilla cremes to be exact, my little dog whines I give him one, then two and a half
and I look out the window, making a part in the blinds
The street lamps making light of the cars parked alongside the road and the Christmas lights that illuminate the night
I crave peppermints and candy canes or a nice warm bath surrounded by candles
Someone is walking briskly in this cold
And I wonder where they are going, who they are, and why so late
I run my fingers through my hair, I have the urge to cut it all off
I think to myself to let it grow, ok I suppose
I lay back in bed and listen to the dishwasher
I turn one way and then another
My little dog is upset and he jumps off the bed
I stretch and walk into the kitchen feeling the cool linoleum under my feet as I reach into the fridge to have a bit to drink
I cannot sleep.
No, not tonight.