Pulp Poem of the Week

I wondered which would be better—

to work as a prostitute to live,

or to die rather than work as one?

I’d say the latter answer would be

the one chosen by the healthy mind,

but then again,

there’s not really anything healthy

about being dead.

Anyway, they do say that women

who are sexually active tend

to have a better complexion.

Not that I cared if

I was healthy or not.

Hitomi Kanehara

Snakes and Earrings

2004

(trans. by David James Karashima)