The most supreme loaf
In the apartment-kingdom
Shows his subjects grace –

That is, until benevolence
Is interrupted by the cat mind
The king is an animal still.

And often a loafing epoch
Is pierced with frenzy,
No government can long endure,

And my hand, or Jenna’s leg
Falls victim to fangs, just so –
The unvarnished prelude of hissing.

Cat Bite!
In this house of all houses –
A scolded king now banished from the bedroom.

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Matt Gulley attended Wayne State University in Detroit and the MFA program at Long Island University in Brooklyn. He resides in Brooklyn with his girlfriend Jenna. @selfawareroomba on twitter dot com