Circe’s Antidote

you crawl from the damp earth
where we buried you last year
your gnarled fingers scraping
away from the soil
reaching for the skies
who tip their tears upon your
outstretched pleading aspirations
dying ice crystals melt around
your roots chilling your heart
turning your petals to snow
you dance a lazy swaying waltz
urged on by an insistent breeze
blanching the green...

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Christmas Eve

the snow fell
so hard and fast
that we thought
the earth had
turned white
overnight
and when
we stepped
into the flurry
the lining
of our noses
crackled
with the
sudden chill
and our fingers
screamed
to make it stop
to give them back
their warm blood

inside
the smell
of cinnamon
and spice
caught
on a draft
pulled from
the open door
for a second
the co...

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Iconoclast

In my youth
I stood exalted
above the heads
of all before me.
Their eyes uplifted
in rapturous praise.
Resplendent in my new
and colourful garb.
The light exploding
from my pores
and casting
rainbow shadows.

In my middle age
I was feared.
Turned into
a gaudy icon
to illuminate
cold, grey, battles
of the soul.
The true love
of my creation
shrouded
in a steely
...

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Moving On

staring through the window
at that dark and dismal place
where shadows danced and jittered
and a stranger had my face
I was shocked, but not surprised, to find
my future hopes would never last
if I stayed gazing in the mirror
and obsessing with the past

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Desolation Alley

a weak light rises over the chimneys

the grass is the colour of piss

smog prises its fingers into bronchial lungs

a dog with three legs barrels down the street

curtains stained with inquisitive glances

stare out at the paperboy on a rusty bike

a cat crawls under a red Cortina parked on bricks

November exhales a grey breath on the windows

inside

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GLAM!!!!!

a bald old man

in glitter suits

gets vertigo

on platform boots

his cigar smoke

hangs in the air

whilst outraged fathers

simply stare

and comment on

the raging poof

who hangs precariously

from the roof

or unnoticed

passes by

in the background

on the sly

his black mascara

and red nails

his pouting preening

never fails

to s...

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Bucks Row

gaslight lamps

cast pools of sickly yellow

and the cobble stones

glisten with evening rain

a smell of burnt stew

drifts in with the stirring

of fog and smoke

that wraps your legs

in cobwebs and candyfloss

a street sellers distant call

proclaiming hot chestnuts

while a dog pisses

against a bollard of black iron

blood spills from an alleyway

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M.I.A

the empty bus that used to bring you home

the empty armchair

the empty bed.

the empty tears

discovering

the empty perfume bottle

that they could fill

the empty dreams

the empty vows

the empty promises

to empty children

empty politicians

with their empty lies

of empty threats

from WOMD

just empty rooms

empty orders to...

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Trial And Tribulation.

Blackness all around,

the depths of infinity.

They told me not to look.

A sixteen year old girl

told not to do something.

So I looked………

The slow twilight

as the sun began

to be devoured.

The ghostly stillness

of the cosmos

descending upon

Mother Earth, until,

it seemed,

the whole world

held...

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All Hallows Eve

Gnarled tree roots claw from the ground

scratching over disturbed graves.

Pumpkins grin their toothless snarl,

fleshy tongues of seed and fibre.

The spectral drift of chilling mist

that prods and pokes at exposed flesh.

Somewhere a creature of the night

mewls in whimpering ecstasy

Dank leaves of autumn line the paths

as little ...

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Night Scented Stock

tick

unfamiliar room

in a strange bed

full of creaks

eyes heavy lidded

from restless sleep

shadows dance

in corners

at the edge

of your peering.

silence hisses

as the house groans

branches prise

at the window frame

scratching out

their insistent cravings

in regular tattoos

heartbeat racing

...

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In The Arms Of Morpheus

drifting over

dew cast lawns

bare footed and silent

the silken threads

of spiders webs

lacing toes with frost

melting footprints

cross the path

lead gently to

a flowing river

where dreams

pop to the surface

in silver bubbles

before being lost

In the flowing eddies

the trees

gather close

e...

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Full Contact

A mighty engine with a human heart,

steam billows from the rolling muscled mass

until the beast unlocks and breaks apart.

Its body parts move swift across the grass.

Two behemoths colliding head to head,

their age old frames rough hewn from tempered steel,

the scars of battle dripping ruby red

yet, win or lose, the wounds will never heal.

T...

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the cuckoo waltz

two men

dancing  around

each other

their movement

smooth and fluid

Instinctively

knowing

where the others

feet, hands, eyes,

words, gestures,

will land

one will lead

then the other

a steady

interchange

juxtaposition

of fool, clown,

idiot, hero

a knowing look

a fleeting glance

of shame

...

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Graffiti

the brooding

malcontent

with paper cut

heart

stares at a wall

of graffiti

and thinks

I could do that

so he picks up

a spray can

unleashes

his feelings

in dribbling

white letters

fifteen feet high

his blood

becomes molten

his rage is

a torrent

of years

without voice

a scream

to be heard

...

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Winterfylleth (October)

We die! We die!

scream the old men

of the trees,

as their grip slips

from skeletal fingers

holding them aloft.

They fall to earth

in a blaze of golden glory,

coming to rest

at the feet of

great oaks, sycamores,

birch and elms.

Rustling in their cardigans

of orange and amber

like dry skin

in...

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Thirty Plus Years In An Open Necked Shirt.

On seeing John Cooper Clarke @ Wakefield Theatre Royal (29/9/13)

Johnny Clarke, Johnny Clarke

a walking bag of bones

staggers out onto the stage

like Keith Richards from the Stones

rapid, machine gun delivery

sprays audience with Salford tones

jitters, jives, ducks and dives

whilst wrestling with the micr...

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On Sandal’s Field Of Ghosts.

Mist hangs over fields -

ahead, the castle looms where

died the Duke Of York.

At the willows three

a chill permeates the air

and touches nerve ends.

Here fell the Yorkist

hope – body mutilated

and dragged through the mud.

Decapitated.

His head sent on to York to

top a traitors spike.

I...

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dust

dust settles

dead skin

I trace my finger

through you

wishing you

were here

not gone

in a cloud

of dust

not spread

across my

furniture

like winterfall

and so

I don’t clean

I sit and stare

at the places

you have been

the places

where you

touched me

kissed me

before the rage

and arguments

...

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expanded version of the blog I posted a few days ago - this time covering all four seasons.

Cycle Of The Scarecrow

A Scarecrow Dreams Of Living

A scarecrow in autumnal sheen

thinks of all that he has been.

His age old frame begins to lean

as bitter winds blow in, so keen.

He longs for days of evergreen,

so buys back time, wipes the slate c...

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A Scarecrow Dreams Of Leaving

A scarecrow in the wax moonlight

is snowed upon one winters night

and as the crystals, soft, alight

he dreams perhaps some day he might

take footsteps off into the bright

ice world. His skeletal delight

some hours later, fat and white

with snow-flesh -  waiting for coal sight.

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Damocles

the striking serpent

in my left

hisses and spits

Assssssad

the rabid wolf

in my right

froths and foams

for freedom

and either of these

sly predators

could have delivered

the fatal bite

that caused parents

and children

to weep blister

burn and die

a black man

with skin of grey

and eyes bloodshot

...

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stroke

no words

blood ricocheting

in all directions

going places

where blood should

smoothly flow

not rush headlong

apologies

made by sign

for dragging me

seventy miles

to see

your broken body

no words

thinking

is this it?

is this all there is?

will I live

the rest of my life

motherless?

no wor...

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First Contact

an Inca warrior

with arms outsretched

has his prayers answered

as the shadow

of a great bird of prey

straddles the Nazca plains.

primitive intelligence

cannot comprehend

the nature of the beast

and it is hailed

as deity

by the natives.

they breed

            exchange fluid

                        intermi...

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Overdose (Of Love)

I’ve taken an overdose,

pumped into my veins

the fever of love,

now I’m going insane.

It’s deadening sense

and destroying my brain –

what the hell do I care?

but I can’t stand the pain.

You…..

take my breath away

Love…..

is there no other way?

The dragon of darkness

tells you to stay,

as morning bre...

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She Wears Pink

she wears pink

to brighten his day

and the November sun

shines off the black

of the bonnet

of the car

that they share

down Elm Street

into Dealey Plaza

into the bright

Dallas daylight

with their backs

to the red brick

book depository

he waves to

children nuns

preachers cowboys

cons and killers

until...

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Golgotha

Under a northern sky,

the colour of slate,

the bones of our fathers

crunch underfoot

as we climb the hill

to reach the cross

of judgement

at the summit.

Know your place

child of mill worker,

miner, steel worker,

know your place -

for you are not

of our class,

you have no education

at our schools

and univer...

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totem

maple wood smoke

drifts across the pine

and firs curling

into Inuit ghosts

that pace stealthily

from tree to tree

towering totems carved with bird

wolf bear and snakehead

calling to the old gods

that we were here

we lived and died in these

ancient forests

silver river slit...

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To Love In Vein.

Sebastian

was dark and broody,

Celestine

was pale and moody

(Celestine’s real name

was Judy).

Sebastian

dressed all in black,

(by the way

his name was Jack)

he thought he was

good in the sack.

Judy

thought ‘Oh, what the heck’,

Jack

thought ‘what a lovely neck’,

so hard to keep

their lust i...

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Sci-Fi So Good

I look up to the spickly skies and wonder whether creatures

are idly looking down on me with glubulitious features.

For if the truth is out there (and I have no cause to doubt),

is it green or mangerine and does it blodge about?

Does it wear snickly nylon suits that sprackle when it walks

and will it chuggle like a baby every time it talks?

...

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medicated

in a corner of the room

daylight pools its last ripples

and she stands alone

afraid to step onto the shadow

that creeps towards her

afraid of the sly shuffle sound

that drags itself across the floor

or the mewling voice

that whispers its fears

and fantasies

so that when she blinks

the orange light

has dimmed

and the room sh...

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Daniel In The Hyena’s Den

his limbs break like sticks

and these protectors

these vermin

hurt him

he has no more dreams

only the lonely nights

locked in the room

where pain will come

with demon eyes.

others

see a thin child

nothing more

but much less

in soul

they justify

their negligence

by quoting

numbers

pr...

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Alien Feelings

Shattered, splinters of midnight

caressing and glancing off skin.

White, frozen beams of moonlight

that spotlight two strangers dancing.

Electric blue, cutting through mist

as a small, fair hand is held near –

then a blinding flash as two lovers kiss

and a slow, gentle, ebbing of fear.

Eyes drawing near, then cutting like lasers

...

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The Ballad Of Billy Nomates

You were bigger than a bus,

with a face as red as Martian dust

and a neck that started somewhere in your crown.

I was small and insecure,

as I approached the guarded door,

knowing that you were about to put me down.

You were giving me that look

that said you couldn’t give a fuck

for my need to get beyond the ticket box.

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Taking Root (20th July 2013)

looking like a sapling

with a pure heart of oak

the white rose entwined

around three lions

taking Root

before the stumps

strong willow blade

flashing in the summer sun

bending

but not broken

before the green and gold

deflecting

slashing

blocking

hammering

not since the days

of Sir Geoffrey and

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Natural Selection

Outbound

I look at them

they look at me

through glassy eyes

that never see

we’ve shared this carriage

many years

never sharing

hopes or fears

I swiftly pass

the guarded gate

and check my watch

in case I’m late

despite producing

dog-eared ticket

the blank faced guardsman

doesn’t click it

I side ...

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Sticks

The girl with the clothes hanger limbs

and hard, emaciated, haunting face

trips languidly down alabaster slopes

dressed in chiffon and gossamer threads.

A lightning pure flashflashflash bleaches features

already the shade of phantoms and

the dark socket depths of haunted eyes

are ablaze with a shimmer of flash bulbs.

Angular shoulder blades...

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The Westgate Run.

Upon the Merrie Cities oldest street

when twilight creeps across the Yorkshire sky,

traditionally friends and strangers meet

and let the velvet darkness pass them by.

In pictures from a dim and distant past,

as gaslight spilled from heavy shadowed doors,

to neon tinted bars of Friday last

the sound of liquid laughter gently pours.

...

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The Jesus Gene

In a Papal palace

a piece no bigger than a postage stamp

is missing

from the pranksters shroud.

Christopher waits on tables

at the local Pizza Hut

and changes water for wine

upon request.

His mother is a virgin,

in all but hymen,

and keeps a photo of a pipette

upon the mantelpiece.

She tells Christopher

it was an...

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Northern Lights (54th)

The Northern Lights are ablaze tonight

And, oh, I’m feeling down.

You never could just treat me right,

You always played around.

This fallen angel’s lost his wings

And come, at last, to ground –

While all the while my world turns

And those Northern Lights go round.

The heavens glow with neon arcs

The skyline blazes brigh...

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The Project.

First:

Woke up to darkness

from a restless sleep.

A dream of colour,

light and steady beat.

Alone with my thoughts,

drifting on the void

until the idea

was fully employed.

Second:

Still dark, much later,

getting what I need.

Some paint, certainly,

plaster, wood and seed.

Starlight and fire,

ice and molten r...

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Before She Came (The Girl From Kansas)

before she came

I stood here

for what seemed

like eons

with a blood red sun

setting behind me

my head full

of nothing more

than sawdust

straw

and dreams

a hole in my chest

where beetles

scuttled

happy

come rain or shine

my only fear

that crows might see

through me

be brav...

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Thanks to Patricia & Stefan for getting me thinking about this topic again.......

Animals

this lion was sat there

being a lion

when a man

who beat his wife and kids

shot him

through the head

and used his fur

for a rug

this alligator was sat there

being an alligator

when a man

who raped a child

thrust a spear

int...

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Domestosterone

I’m tougher than a brave marine,

in hard-worn battle gear,

all decked out in camouflage.

There’s nothing that I fear.

You may have taken all my mates,

but they were old and weak,

you’ve never met a foe like me -

I’m tough as fucking teak.

I laugh at all your vain attempts

to seek out and destroy,

for when I’m in my element

...

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Needle Tracks

my dealer’s gone away

no more searching the streets

for a new hit

my needle blunted

gathers dust

and my addiction wanes

but there are times

where the craving gnaws

at my insides

where the itching

and scratching

for ethenyl

screams at my psyche

until I have that fix

my turntable spins

a lonely revolution

...

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The Sparkle

The Sparkle,

silver starlight in your eyes,

a soft touch

before we say goodbye.

It’s over too fast,

I hope this feeling will last

until the morning

The Sparkle

of teardrops on your cheek.

All my tears,

the happiness I seek

was over so fast,

I hope this pain won’t last

until the morning

The Sparkle,

our...

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A Step Towards Summer

I look into the mirror’s depthless space,

at what is standing in the shadows cast

by light dimming swift with each day amassed

and passing by me, at a startling pace.

I sprint to catch the future in a chase

that takes me on a journey to the past

and makes me wish each moment used will last

until the day they put me in my case.

...

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I Wish I Had A Harley

I wish I had a Harley,

all black and silver chrome,

I’d park it in the drive

outside my modest little home.

I don’t want it to ride,

I just want it in my drive

as a symbol to the world

that I’m still very much alive.

You see I’ve reached that tender age

where a ponytail seems a good idea,

a tattoo would be cool

or six s...

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In The Belly Of The Whale.

In a silent chamber

a disc of shining gold

has crossed the void

for thirty five years or more,

a blink in its ultimate journey

to exit the solar system

and span the galaxy.

This Voyager –

spinning, spiralling, swooping

in a cold, dark, vacuum.

Waiting to sing

for unknown creatures

at the other side of the...

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Noticed

I lived my life, most often, like a ghost,

ethereal, drifting from room to room,

a chill chasing me from pillar to post.

Rippling across the senses of those whom,

in solitude, sought meaning in their life

before they passed beyond it to the tomb.

I was not noticed by them, or my wife

who gladly let me rest in silent shade

whilst stab...

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