Frank S. Palmisano III

The Same Rules

do not apply in life as
they do in movies.

There are no Tom Cruises running
prostitution rings from their parents'
basements,
no Matthew Brodericks, whose sly,
sneaky wit and prating ways causes
us to cheer, releases us from our own
sobering reality,
no Ben Afflecks who always get the
girl, no Clint Eastwoods who always
get their man.

And I am living proof that somewhere
this movie magic fails.

 

 

 

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Frank S. Palmisano III is a 27-year-old poet whose work has appeared in close to 100 poetry journals and other mediums, including Rattle, Wisconsin Review, and Bender. In his practical life, he works as a technical writer for the U.S. Army Research Laboratory at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland and just finished up a teaching assignment as an adjunct professor of English at Towson University. His first book of poetry, tentatively titled Synaptic Misfires and Other Tortured Tales From the Left Brain is due out this year through JVC Books. Despite these accomplishments, his most impressive moment came recently when his admission application was rejected by the Creative Writing Program at the University of Maryland.

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