my first college dorm

room number was

234

as was my childhood

home address

it seemed

somehow

poetic

like perfect addition

it wasn’t until later

when I had graduated college

that I realized that

not everything

is poetry

sometimes nostalgia

adds up wrong

when the clock

strikes

2:34

I make a wish

I need it

My favourite number is 7.

It's the perfect number in the Bible,

because it denotes completeness and perfection,

since God created the world in 7 days.

It's also my jersey number

since I play softball

it has to be nine.

learning multiplication in school was fun with nine, because of the little thing it did.

9 x 2 = 18, and 1 + 8 = 9

9 x 8 = 72, and 7 + 2 = 9

it's also my birthday. september ninth. 9/9.

my ninth birthday party was the one i remember the most. my favorite.

so nine, is my favorite number

My favorite number would probably be infinity. It may not necessarily be an exact number but I think it can apply since it is a similar mathematical concept. It can really be any number and it can represent a scope of numbers beyond our comprehension. I also enjoy the numerous uses of infinity in math such as with domains, ranges, and limits to name a few. I also remember the quote from Buzz Lightyear saying “To infinity and beyond.”

I did/do stand-up comedy.

I once receited a poem I called 'One Million' (must have be inspired by someone else). It was to a club full of wise patrons and drunk students.

I began my count from one to ten dramatically, making eye contact with people in the room and hip-thrusting the final expression.

... eight... nice... *Ten*!

I moved up towards hundred fairly quickly, only slowing down in the eighties, dropping my pitch to bovine levels.

Eiiiiiiiiighhhttty oooooonnnee... Eiiiiighhhhttttyyyyyyy twooooooooo...

After this I spend up, bending down to encourage those at the front to count with me. Some people began to join me my count up to a hundred, a number greeted with a racuous cheer by those into this.

Ninety Eight! Yeah! Ninety Nine! Right! ONE HUUUNDREEEEEED! WOOOOOOO!

I paused. Then continued, now non-plussed and monotonous. That guffled laugh when expectations are subverted crackled around the room.

A hundred and one. A hundred and two. A hundred and...

I did not change tone at all. I made no more eye contact. I had already my reaction.The title of my poem was now meaningful. I think I lasted fifteen minutes until I was escorted off.

Those were good days, and before social media too.

Seven is the number of God. It means infinite which I never understood. Three times seven is God's phrase. I, a heavy Christain, love these numbers. I surround all my writings around the number seven or three. The sound of three and seven is like a red cherry being swallowed.

I love numbers

My favorite is 21

But I doubt you know that

I love 21 so much that I buy things based on factors of 21

So 1, 3, 7, and 21

There are 21 lamps in my house

I know this because I count everything

13 stairs to get to my bedroom

4 cars parked in the driveway

127 days since you didn’t say goodbye

I know it’s 127 because it was January 6th

I do not like the number 127

Maybe it’s because it’s prime and I hate prime numbers

Almost as much as I hate reliving our conversations like a movie

Almost as much as I hate boys that tell you you’re worth something

Almost as much as I hate you

I counted the number of times you called and I didn’t pick up, one

But it was the only time that mattered

Because it was January 5th at 11:14 pm

And that was the day before you never spoke to me again

I even count the number of times your name crosses my consciousness each day

I have a new record low of twenty three

The furthest I got before my mind mentioned you was 8:15 in the morning

I started counting the bristles in my tooth brush and remembered your white teeth

Humans have thirty two teeth and all of yours were perfect

And you never missed a chance to remind me

If I counted the amount of days I spent crying over you

I’d run out of fingers and toes

I estimate it to be around 42

Have I mentioned that 42 is my third favorite number?

It has eight positive factors, 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 14, 21, and 42

Which is fun because four times two is eight

And 42 is made of four and two

And 21 plus 21 is 42

And I really love 21

And it’s been 127 days since you left without a goodbye

And I’m still not okay

Sixty three is another fun number because it’s just 7 times 9

And six plus three is nine

And six and three make 63

And why did you have to disappear from my life on the sixth?

Why not the thirty first?

I hate 31

I used to love six

2 times 3, a perfect whole number just after 5, just before 7

Now it’s just a day in January that I will never not regret

For that matter, sixteen is underrated

Sixteen freckles on the dimple of your cheek

Sixteen times our call ended because my internet was so bad

Sixteen candles you blew out as we stared the other down

Sixteen months before we went our separate ways

I like numbers

I count everything

The ringing of the phone in your hand buzzed a symphony of 1,2,3

Right before you ignored it to talk to me

Kind of like how you ignore me now

In the four hallways filled with 120 lockers each

Right before your sixth period statistics class

And I’m sorry

I’m sorry I wasn’t good enough

I’m sorry that my 32 teeth will never be as perfect as yours

That my interests will never be as exciting as yours

You hate numbers

I remember in third period Spanish

When the teacher asked our favorite numbers

And I said 21

And you rolled your eyes

Because you knew I would rant about the perfect balance of seven and three

How I always go on about

How 21 times 2 is 42

21 times 3 is 63

21 times 4 is 84

84 divided by 12 is seven

Seven times three is twenty one

Twelve backwards is 21

And I’m sorry that I’m not enough

I’m sorry that you are so boring that you don’t make purchases based on numbers

That you could care less that the amount of items in your cart is 26

That when you buy food, you don’t add calories for fun

That at restaurants, you don’t count the people that come through the door

I’m sorry that I’m not normal

I’m sorry that when I see a math problem with a perfect square, I jump for joy

I’m sorry that if a tv channel is a prime number, I change it

I’m sorry that whenever I see 127, I think of you

Even though I doubt I’ve crossed your mind since January 6th

I know you’re probably tired of hearing this but

3 and 2 make 6

3 times 7 is 21

2 and 1 put together is 21

And I’ll never be good enough for you

Twenty one is my favorite number

But I’ll never be your favorite anything

I've never really thought about why my favorite number was my favorite. My favorite number is sixteen. I like it because of how it sounds. I might also like it because I will get to drive when I'm sixteen, but again, I haven't really thought about it before, so it's probably just the sound.