The Artist - Jim White, Mark Kozelek, Ben Boye

I watched the kid through the glass

Carefully slicing the wheat rolls apart

Slicing the marinated bell peppers, the sun-dried tomatoes

Slicing the mozzarella, specifically picking each piece meticulously

Placing each piece on the countertop neatly

Laying it all out on the bread orderly, studiously

Folding the sliced bread back together with mathematical precision

As if he were an emergency room surgeon

As if each move he made were a life or death decision

He was focused and relaxed, his hands steady, like a master painter dipping his

brush in the paint

You were in a spell watching him create

I had goosebumps watching him create

I said to you, «That kid’s an artist»

And you said, «I know», while you stood there wowed

I said, «I've never seen anyone make sandwiches that I’ve considered an artist

until just now»

After lunch, I held a cab at Columbus and Broadway, and we kissed goodbye

I got into the cab on the new Sun Hong Kong side

The driver asked, «How is your day going?»

I said, «It just started»

He said, «Your's was just ending»

I said, «Where's your accent from?»

And you said you were Brazilian

I asked, «Where from in Brazil?»

You said, «The capital, Brasilia»

And for the last 19 years you’ve lived down the coast in Pacifica

WIth your 20 year old son and your husband who is also Brazilian