Were You a Carnivore Before You Saw Him? You Are A Carnivore Now

He is famous for being always on time; he arrives at his destination in
one second flat.* In one minute flat. In one hour flat**

         *How? We suspect that he lives in an atlas, where all distances
         are collapsable.

               **"Flat" is not the word. Say instead, there is a limited
               amount of him, like water, and it seeks its level.

Is he "made of paper"? No, he is papered like a hallway. Is he "made of ink"? No, he is a ghost who had ink thrown on him during a fight, and as a consequence is now visible.

The purpose of a shadow is: to put "popeye" where he is not.
Shadowed he stands, like a stencil letter, always next to himself.

Lives where? In voices: hills and valleys. Lives all in the alphabet as if
it were a rowhouse. Lives at the peak of the tallest chalk hill.

         Correction: "I do not live in a world at all," "popeye" says
         indignantly, and tightens the equator around his waist.

-Patricial Lockwood, When We Move Away from Here, You'll See a Clean Square of Paper Where His Picture Hung