When Kafka Was the Rage

The pipes in my room begin seething
As I lie in bed barely breathing
Though I always knew
We’d be legends one day
I’d never have guessed you
To do it that way
We tried our best to be frugal
And liquor was cheap on MacDougal
We posed under streetlamps
As if we were on stage
When Kafka was the rage
I saw the world as empty
Corrupted and absurd
I was quite the haunting figure then
So thin and self-assured
And half a dozen women
Devoured my every word
And I took it all in stride
Took it all in stride
I put the whole world on notice
While you strained to master the lotus
Joyce was a titan
And Miller was a sage
When Kafka was the rage
A brilliant new world order
Was rising in my head
And at least a dozen women
Were eager to be led
While Blake’s Collected Poems
Collected dust beside my bed
And I took it all in stride
Took it all in stride
Was it by chance or mere magic
That one simple glance
Proved so tragic
I was half-crazy
And you were half my age
When Kafka was the rage
When Kafka was the rage