after the move

first night in the new apartment
building's been standing
since 1870-something, they say.
rattling heat pipes and the toilet flush and
the groans of my new roommate
who eats way too many black beans
is the new lullaby. awake,
but not yet dawn,
cigarette smoke snakes in
hacking and coughing
right outside the window
my neighbor
hope she's okay
push one cheap plastic blind down to peek
drag, cough, drag, cough hack, drag, cough hock
yellow spit on cracked vinyl siding
glistens and slides