manners

20 May, 2026

yesterday i fell down
jumping over a fence
from meadow to pavement 
of a road ostentatiously signposted as 'private'
i caught the floor with my right knee, right over the scar i got from the second of the two times i have more seriously injured myself falling off my bike
that was 2023, i think, and it was february. a countryish road on the cycle route to the next town south of this city. then receding from the microclimate and grit of the urban centre, i had not anticipated the ice, so when i leant into the gentle curve at what i estimate to be around 24 kilometres per hour, my tyres lost their grip.
again, i caught the floor with my knee
and a pedestrian was walking by at the time
approaching while i was lying on the ground,
waiting for the pain to eat the shock
lamenting my torn leggings
he paused as he passed, looked down at me
said, "the road is icy"
"yes," i replied,
and he walked on

other things said

Yesterday :: Tuesday, 19th May 2026