I got a splinter

I got a splinter
And I'm not sure how
I found it last night
At some swanky bar
Lodged in my finger
My left thumb to be exact
I'm not sure how I will get it out
I tried tweezers
Next I'll try a knife
Which should have been my first tool
Since I've always had good luck
With a knife in the past
Tonight, I will be going to a hipper spot
Which will be dimly lit
Equally as dim as the swanky bar
Both poor places to try and remove a splinter
Not to say it hasn't been done before

I will invite a bunch of people to welcome me in
To my thirty-third year
My thirty-second birthday to be exact
The same group of people that have welcomed me
A few years in a row now
Some people I only see on my birthday
And never in between
And still others that have been there in the past
Will not be able to attend
Since they have moved
From this city
On to another
And these people that I am inviting
Are my New York friends
Nothing more, nothing less
And we know that we don't see each other much
But there is still a comfort there
And as long as I am in this city
There are no other people
I would rather spend a birthday with
Because we all get older
And we all live here
And the commonality of it all
Is enough for me

I will still undoubtedly
Search for this splinter
That has somehow become
A part of me
And yet has stayed apart from me
Its own individuality remains
A piece of wood or metal or glass
And yet
Until I get it out
Every day it becomes more a part of me
And my only worry
Is that these things can find their way to your heart
Or your body rejects it
Creating an infection
At which point
You have to remove yourself from it
As apposed to removing it from you
It could also, quite possibly, disappear
Which really means
It finds a place to become a part of you
With no harm done
And you would be hard pressed to find it
Without tearing yourself to bits
It's nice to think it disappears
(people will tell you it worked itself out)
But all that really means
Is you just can't see it anymore
And I know just enough about that
--
6.14.06

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