PJ Grollet began his working life at age ten as a babysitter and then ditch digger. From there he graduated to packing houses, an interlibrary loan department, the front desk of a resort, and bail bonds. He currently sells money and surfs the dream cycles. He’s the scribe for the five-volume series, The Book of Dreams and has been published in Horror Sleaze Trash.

putting a gun in your mouth twice daily

my dad sat in his favorite chair and 
scooped spoonfuls of strawberry ice 
cream into his mouth as he watched
the conservative news channel. 

an advertisement played on the tv— 
an infomercial for a new toothbrush 
that’s wildly popular right now in 
the United States. 

it’s marketed as a powerful and effective 
toothbrush that’s in the 
shape of a modern 
black handgun.

they placed the removable cap at the 
end of the barrel to
expose the 
brush. 

I’m astonished by how 
many people 
bought this thing and are 
now brushing 
their teeth 
twice a day with 
a gun in their mouth. 

my song

I entered this world 
with a symphony 
buried deep within 
my soul. 

my song remains
unfulfilled revelation.

the arrangement’s death
rattles offered up a glimpse 
of its structure—a maze of connections 
between frequencies, 
and the plant kingdom—but because 
I never brought it out, 
the song turned 
rancid 
and curdled
and died 
in my center.