Illustration by Denis Shifrin

Lithe, petite and very, very pretty

Tank top, short shorts

On her left shoulder a tattoo.

A tattoo of a Hindu God

Scowling image with curlicues,

Twisting with every motion of arm and torso.

On her thigh, emerging from the barely concealed

Buttock – a vine –

Twisting sensuously down her

Leg.

****

Pecs don't just happen.

Here too….tank top is mandatory

Slavic genes help.

You trash your chest with weights

Bench presses, cable crossovers

Even simple closed fist pushups.

All in front of a mirror

So that you can curl your arms

Snarl

And admire your progress.

****

Between 3 and 4 every afternoon

A handful of retired gents

Mustaches and pot bellies.

One with a bandanna across the brow

To catch the sweat that never comes.

Between sets they talk

Politics

Finance

At the end they drink coffee.

And admire the girl with the tattoos.