UNSEASONABLY

unseasonably
it was 92 degrees out there today
invoking various terms such as
hotter than hell
or hot as balls
or it’s a fucking furnace!
but not so in the grocery store
in the grocery store
where you could see your breath
it was about fifty degrees colder
people hunched their shoulders
as they jogged up and down aisles
pushing frost covered carts
you’d see somebody
standing in the cereal section
hands to their mouth
blowing on their fingers to keep warm
as they contemplated whether to buy
granola or maybe something
more fitting to the climate
like oatmeal or mittens
I went in for a Powerade and some chips
but was soon perusing
the hot chocolate section
envisioning myself in front of a fireplace
with a warm bowl of soup
a blanket wrapped around me
and slippers on my feet
I stomped the floor as I walked along
to keep the feeling in my toes
and on the way out
after paying the cashier
who was shivering behind her register
I looked into a mirror
at my red nose and purple lips
and wondered, “what the hell is it all about?”