she called around 10
said grab your bike
we're going for a ride
15 minutes later we cross san Pablo
and I have no idea where we're going
these are our adventures
Emeryville looms above us
Saturday night glittery
we switch off our lights and

dive

into semifreddi's faint
smell of mold
we are bandits
stickin' it to the man with
every loaf of ciabatta
every cinnamon twist
every piece of sourdough bread is
another radical putting their fist in the air

5 minutes ago black timbuk2 bags were empty
now seams stretch with yeast and giggles
we laugh at ourselves
put foot to pedal and arrive to
terrorize the bacteria of the trader joe's dumpster
it's empty
mouths hungry for naan and vegetables
we ride away dejectedly
lights blinking like the eyelids of the sleepy cops we slip by.
on weekends we prowl
anarchist garbagewomen
fighting for full dumpsters
and friendly employees

we're only hiding under
the bandanas and the shadows
and we're only pretending not to care
but this is where we are
late night bike rides and fog over the bay
dumpster diving and our overflowing hearts
if we wanted to,
we could do this forever



Emily Fong is a poet, Youth Speaks performer, and student at Berkeley High