Nathanael O’Reilly
Overhead on Campus
A found poem
Lavender shorts are tight
My straps are a little loose
I hate, hate, hate
wearing skirts
I’m like, the only one
who did all the reading
If you want, you can come
to the library with me
I’m a little bit concerned
about the whole West Nile thing —
five people have died already
Well, that is a blessing
I can’t wait to slam him
on the evaluations —
he’s always pushing
his liberal agenda
Have you seen this PETA video?
It’s the saddest thing ever
I literally cried
Oh My God
Is she even thankful that I did that?
She was only on her first bottle
It was a long night —
I’ve blocked most of it out
Are you going to the party
tonight? Lucky son of a bitch
Wow. You blame me for that?!
You couldn’t pay me to be an RA
You’re not moving my shit!
I’m about to fucking lose it
I do not want to deviate from the plan
I only had two hours sleep last night!
I’m tired as fuck … Did you
just say what I think you said?!
I love you
Text me during class!
Nathanael O’Reilly was born in Warrnambool and raised in Ballarat, Brisbane and Shepparton; he currently resides in Texas. He is the author of Distance (2014) and the chapbooks Suburban Exile: American Poems (2011) and Symptoms of Homesickness (2010), all published by Picaro Press. He is the recipient of an Emerging Writers Grant from the Australia Council. Over one hundred of his poems have appeared in journals and anthologies around the world, including Antipodes, Australian Love Poems, Blackmail Press, Cordite, fourW, LiNQ, Mascara, Postcolonial Text, Prosopisia, Red River Review, Snorkel, Social Alternatives, Tincture, Transnational Literature, Verity La, Writ Poetry Review and Windmills.