I could build a house with puppies;
I could pile them in a line,
Wrap their ears around each other
In a modernist design.
I could tie their tails together
At the corners and the doors,
Hoist a few load-bearing spaniels,
Flatten dachshunds for the floors,
Stack Dalmatians for a chimney
(They are mostly fire proof),
Pin the most absorbent poodles
As the shingles to the roof.
But the kitchen and the bathrooms
Must be tiled with the shells
Of abalones, turtles,
Armadillos, and gazelles.
And the siding must be hieroglyphs
Of chicken feet and goats
Embossing layers of dorsal fins
With sailors’ anecdotes.
Then I'll make a fence of kittens
Using zip-ties and some glue,
Forge a fountain from a toucan
And a baby kangaroo.
And I'll pave the drive with minnows
But I'll irrigate with worms,
Fill the soil with phytoplankton
And the sky with pachyderms.
Then I'll populate the planets
With gastropods and birds,
And I'll saturate the universe
With unpretentious words
Like bifurcate, veridical,
Recalcitrant, inane—
Or otiose, jejune, didactic,
Virtuous, or sane.
Then I'll take the Throne of Asteroids
And wield a sword of flame
And I'll make the distant galaxies
Reverberate my name!
I will subjugate the aliens,
Enslave the human race,
And tattoo every baby
With a picture of my face!
Or
I could calmly eat my supper,
Do my homework, go to bed,
And leave the architecture
To professionals instead.