Booze Allergy
Some folks say
if booze was like pollen or dust,
you\'d itch, sneeze or wheeze
right out of the bar
and you\'d know, just by that,
if you\'re cursed with the scar
of an alcoholic\'s mark.
But it ain\'t that clear, not that kind.
You can swill that liquid misery
down to the dregs -
your body takes the beating like a champ,
but it\'s your skull that\'s twisted,
wrung out and cracked.
It\'s a thirst that\'s more like hunger -
a gnawing, a need, a goddamn obsession.
You keep crawling back
to the neon altar,
sucking down the pain,
each time thinking it\'s the balm
to soothe that ache you\'ve got festering
deep inside the gut.
But it\'s a lie, of course.
You get those shakes, that sweat,
you make oaths to porcelain gods
as your insides riot,
vowing never again.
But \"never\" is a joke
you forgot the punchline to,
and you, my friend,
you can\'t take a joke anymore.
Mentally? Nah, mentally you\'re on the ropes,
dancing with the devil
with every sip
that promises salvation
and delivers destruction.