Swallowing the dust off a copper coil, tightening the nut on an iron sleeve Testing every circuit on the midway floor, waiting for the breaker to release Yellow glass jars under high voltage power, turning tungsten red in the night Checking for a short in the terminal box, standing underneath the main light Pliers in a leather pouch, stripping back the rubber till the bright wire shows Checking every connection in the main panel, waiting for the current to drop Sweat on a forehead, grease on a knuckle, forcing the spindle to turn Checking for a wobble in the center post, counting every second till it stops And the wooden horses circle on a rusted track, locked into a dynamic loop Forged iron rods moving up and down, grinding through a brass bushing Phosphorus glare on a swollen plywood floor, burning through the midnight air Solder on the junction, testing all the leads, watching for the system to trip (Keep the motor running till the heat blows out) (Keep the motor running till the line goes flat) Polishing the silver on a warped glass panel, wiping off the salt and oil Walking down the alley where the game stalls lean, checking for a fracture in the wood Lead weights rattling in a hollow pine bottle, filed at the base for a tilt Testing all the switches on the air-gun rack, looking for a loose copper pin Transformers buzz in the rear corridor, humming at a low sixties hertz Melted plastic casing on an old fuse block, bypass running through a nail Every single fixture is an open drain, drawing on a failing storage bank Hands in a pocket full of burnt out bulbs, working till the morning line breaks And the wooden horses circle on a rusted track, locked into a dynamic loop Forged iron rods moving up and down, grinding through a brass bushing Phosphorus glare on a swollen plywood floor, burning through the midnight air Solder on the junction, testing all the leads, watching for the system to trip (Keep the motor running till the heat blows out) (Keep the motor running till the line goes flat) Multimeter needle resting on the zero mark, voltage on the rail drops down Dawn cuts a line through the grey fog bank, sea air rolling over wood Tool belt heavy on a hip bone, pliers dropping down to the dirt Gears slow down on the main drive wheel, friction bringing metal to a halt Filament snaps in a vacuum seal, thermal shock breaking up the glass Walking through the exit as the power dies out, disappearing into the mist (No one at the switchboard) (No one holding the leads) Ocean fog swallowing the whole platform
