COAT HANGERS
Coat hangers queue like question marks
waiting for answers -
asking why they have no shoulders to cry on,
no clothes to rely on.
"Perhaps," they might say, " our owners have
left us on the dead rail;
but why O why did they go away?"
Friday 29th December 2017 9:53 pm
SCHOOL PHOTOS
School photos, a ritual,
cherished likenesses of ones' self,
thumbnail prints placed on a shelf
or mantelpiece with pride;
matter of obligation for parents
a record of proud growth.
Cameras with their elephant memories
blinked portentously,
nothing personal.
We were rounded up by disreputable fellows
with a taste for pin-ups,
stage-sets, black cloths,
...Wednesday 27th December 2017 10:18 pm
I'M WORRIED ABOUT THE PRESENTS
I'm worried about the presents this year,
I used to give money, but now it's clear
that the giving of objects seems more sincere,
so i'm worried about the presents this year.
I'll have to find out from Roger or Paul
whether Tanya is allergic to perfume at all;
if so, then those slippers with animal heads
i'll get with coupons, they look rather cool.
I'm worried a...
Saturday 23rd December 2017 7:41 pm
SOUNDS OF CHRISTMAS
and the celesta, glockenspiel,
tubular bells, sleigh bells,
mark trees, tambourine,
all manner of instruments
stepped out of their covers,
their cases,
and a strange thing happened.
Spirit hands began to move
over and under and around them,
and sounds of Christmas
were heard throughout the land.
Tuesday 19th December 2017 11:19 pm
TURNER PAGE
the book of Turner's paintings I held
in awe like a whisper
the agony of such scapes
where a brush once had laced
together a purpose and a vision
for a moment blinded me
to the shop, tucked in
as I was, away from the splashes
of celeb chefs, the cacophony
of tumbling Christmas mock Blytons
Ladybird books that would fly
to post turkey glutted hands for humour
...
Thursday 14th December 2017 10:46 pm
TWINKLE TWINKLE
me, me, look at me!
cries a cold lonely star,
my heat is wasted
my heart grows old
we see you, we see you!
cries the man behind glass
we see you by an ancient light
your curious tenure by day and by night
Tuesday 12th December 2017 10:16 pm
HEADS AND TALES
heads on spikes on london bridge
heads on mounts in castle halls
severed from humans and animals both
heads held high for all to see
for grim respect and symmetry
Sunday 10th December 2017 11:08 am
STEAM DREAMS
What we often remember
my brother and I is that
on intense summer nights
steam engines struggled
on a slow incline with the parcels special
when we lay as though tethered to the ride
wishing we had meccano sets
not to be;
turning over schoolboy fantasies
that burned under the sheets
curtained against a dying sun.
Thursday 7th December 2017 10:56 pm
THE LAST NOEL
No air no air
we have no fresh air
it's what Mr Khan says
in his role as the mayor
aware aware
of polluting the air
take a stand on the issue
Mr Khan if you dare
do we care do we care
if the air is so rare
and the lungs of the capital
cannot repair
Mr Khan O Mr Khan
were you born in a barn?
will you join us in a prayer
for a breath of fre...
Tuesday 5th December 2017 10:48 pm
LAST JOBS IN THE GARDEN
a low sun teased me out
from a pool of shadow
searching for signs of new life
even as the soil plotted against it
overhead a plane like a silver pen
wrote a lazy trail
scattering high hopes
dead leaves in disorderly fashion
a classroom of empty heads
awaited my rough comb
and a crisp goodbye.
Thursday 30th November 2017 10:25 pm
QUEEN IN THE KITCHEN
Here comes Mary like fairy dust
gentle queen of cake and crust
proving dough and proving to us
that baking is something that we can trust.
Her wings fold down, hair a-shimmer
the hot fairy rings begin to glimmer
all good things she doth impart
from the jam-packed cake to the humble tart
her perfection is part of a riddle
hey diddle diddle, cut down the middle
...Monday 27th November 2017 3:24 pm
FORTIFICATIONS
Behind castle walls decisions are made
muesli or toast and marmalade?
where battlements rise to recumbent skies
the chef is planning a big surprise
outside the entrance there is a sign
in the Belvedere room the tasting of wine
where once the hordes were kept at bay
views are enjoyed of a distant bay
festivals bring back the hordes
with beer and burger...
Friday 24th November 2017 10:41 pm
BLOOD SPORT
RUN RUN WITH THE HOUNDS
'TIL THE PISTON FIST IN YOUR CHEST HAS BURST
THEN YOU WILL SHARE
THE FLIGHT AND DEATH OF THE RUNNING HARE
Tuesday 21st November 2017 10:26 pm
THE GOD APP
The GOD APP is very comforting
for those who seek to find
covering topics for the otherwise blind
opening your eyes to the wonder of LIFE
as it tries to keep up with discoveries
such as this new app
simply download online
from the CHAPELSTORE
select your harmonic colour
(favourite) for screen compatability
and empathy maximisation
GOD will speak with you...
Friday 17th November 2017 9:10 pm
DISLOCATION
Take signs for town centre
two parallel lanes off the ring road
up the ramp for car park -
bollards, newly resurfaced - drive slowly.
Window down, ticket spat out
at last a space, tight squeeze.
Mental note - green A3
joined the celestial starburst throng
sought out visual plan
on store locator to find the shop
low blood sugar kicking in
Costa like an open wound.
...Wednesday 15th November 2017 11:17 pm
STITCHED UP
Don't fall in love with visions
don't believe in dreams
they belong to the super rich
those who have the means.
Weave their magic carpets
with resources and with thread
spend your lives in servitude
raise a tipple at Christmas
console yourselves with those worse off
one day we'll all be dead
Monday 13th November 2017 10:13 pm
ST.ANDREW'S PARISH CHURCH
At St. Andrew's parish church
thoughts rise up at once sublime
and bow with cursory respect
where ghosts and guides of old confessors
share the soil with dead professors
who always seem to have the answers
while disconcerting questions hang
and looking up at moving clouds
follow the finger of St. Andrew's church
in accusation of earthly souls
who regularly f...
Tuesday 7th November 2017 9:23 pm
PARADISE LOST
IS THIS THE PARADISE WE WERE PROMISED
they shouted
like headless chickens with beards
in a slaughterhouse exposed
while demons came from every corner
with mirrors reflecting the sun
blinding them with night
and the Gods of Hate so pleased with them
for bringing the innocent
to the funeral feast
and never an end in sight.
Friday 3rd November 2017 9:13 pm
IN THE WHEATSHEAF
In the Wheatsheaf recently refitted
tiny ceiling lights shone down
in celebration of the empty space
we two sat in the window seats
leather bound with guinness and scotch
in the afternoon of the day
where histories of the hop were planted
coaches and horses passed away
we two sat and talked and spun
in truth a sharing of thoughts as one.
The ceiling lights b...
Wednesday 1st November 2017 10:55 pm
A MINER'S RETURN HOME
A miner walked from Wheal Kitty
to Trevellas at the end of a day
and the path he took was atop the cliff
for that was his easiest way.
The moon rode high oe'r the breakers
as the path did twist and turn
and the Gods of the deep were lurking there
with nothing new to learn.
Fourteen hours at fifty fathoms
had taken the breath from him
and the night was quiet ...
Tuesday 31st October 2017 10:09 pm
UMBILICUS
The kids have left home
you're both alone
the phone is horribly silent
garden centres with their cosy diversions
still seem a lifetime away
you stare at the garden
it seems somehow sad
with its reminders of seasons passing
selfies stuck in too recent times
stare back your stomach turns
mum is concerned
recently busier to pass some futile time
...Wednesday 25th October 2017 10:23 pm
UMBILICUS
The kids have left home
you're both alone
the phone is horribly silent.
Garden centres with their cosy diversions
still seem a lifetime away.
You stare at the garden
it seems somehow sad
with its reminders of seasons passing.
Selfies stuck in too recent time
stare back, your stomach turns
Mum is concerned
recently busier to pass some futile ti...
Wednesday 25th October 2017 10:12 pm
DUO
sent for by the headmaster
in trepidation I ventured forth
through unfamiliar blunted corridors
then finally to face the man
in tweed jacket, piercing glasses
smooth hair.
his back was turned busy at a cupboard
I knew he kept his cane in there
instinct told me, amongst other
savage collectibles
known only to top men in charge.
then a brief acknowledgment
...Monday 23rd October 2017 10:57 pm
LOOKING BACK
What will she do when her looks have gone
when the mirror resents her advances?
What will she say as her dreams fade away
of the handsome knights
no longer down on bended knee
to offer more than they could fulfil
what will she do then?
What will she do when weeds grow through
familiar paths of love's sweet past
reaching out for bounties lost
and the handsome knig...
Thursday 19th October 2017 10:56 pm
PENNY ARCADE
Those of us of a certain age
will remember the penny amusement machines
as they caught the blowsy light off the sea
with their feet on bare boards
on piers from Worthing to Caister and how
we raked through pockets weighed down by copper
with gambling intentions that felt good and proper
early adrenaline supercharged
preparing to use our Britannia discs
taking what s...
Wednesday 18th October 2017 10:55 pm
LARKIN ON FILM
posing like an undertaker
Larkin gazes into his lens
with a distant look
past the obvious
a self - timed study
in black and white
a selfie
(he would have hated that word,
too sweet, narcissistic
for such a considered moment).
and we see the puritan look
curiously drawn to death's impediment
side - lit through lace
and sense that poetry lurks...
Tuesday 17th October 2017 10:46 pm
GROSS ENCOUNTER
Once I saw a vampire on a lead
a muzzle around its face
quite harmless it seemed
with its red rimmed eyes
and a sense of time and place.
I smiled at its keeper, he smiled back
no words were necessary
the vampire used telepathy
but I didn't find it scary
I knew what it wanted, it knew that I knew
and the sun was low in the sky
so I raised my crucifix just...
Sunday 15th October 2017 10:11 pm
THOSE MAYFAIR HOTELS
those mayfair hotels heavy with servitude
exacted a heavy price
as I toiled to create a dance paradise,
youth and energy on my side
a roller coaster ride.
Where their rubbish piled up
the alleys were too dark
to give away secrets,
so I fled the confessional through
the church doors of the salty night,
followed the thames for home
galleon black reflecting lon...
Thursday 12th October 2017 11:03 pm
AFTERMATH
Autumn makes plans that never work out
then collapses in tears as her leaves break down
but sympathy saves her with mournful reason
nostalgia for light in the dying season.
Wednesday 11th October 2017 10:13 pm
MRS DROGUE
Mrs Drogue late of The Limes
has had an accident today
she would have pressed the buzzer
but felt a little confused,
she thought her son who passed away last year
would be coming to visit today.
It's when the body makes its own decisions
one carer told me
that's when these things happen.
We go back a long way
Mrs Drogue and me
she was never easy, an awk...
Tuesday 10th October 2017 9:52 pm
HUNTERS' MOON
relish your dark woundings
prime your pellets
check your powders
for soon comes the hunters' moon
polish your stock
let your barrel breathe oil
make slick your cloths
preparations
practise footfalls of stealth
bayings of night creatures
the crack of flight
all this must abide
and you must hide your dreams for now
while fen and forest
sweat a...
Saturday 7th October 2017 7:42 pm
YOU SEXY BEAST
ray winstone's lying in the sun
ben kingsley comes to stay
an acting lesson and no mistake
ray is trying to keep his cool
ben is having his say.
"no no no you can't say no
you piece of fuckin' shit,
i'm 'aving fuckin' none of it"
says kingsley (looking fit)
"I can't " says ray, "i'm off the job"
ben says teddy wants him
more swearing etcetera
ray is fl...
Friday 6th October 2017 10:43 pm
NOT WINNING COMPETITIONS
Disappointment comes riding into town
on the back of others' success
streaked with self pity.
Get over it say the old timers
who ride up front
jaws set tight against
the bitter winds of defeat
before they take that step up
through swing doors
into a pure chance saloon.
Thursday 5th October 2017 9:27 pm
A VISIT TO BLENHEIM (A Churchill speech)
The long shadow of Blenheim has cast
a longer shadow of victories past
of men who led against the stream
to tackle tyrants and crush their dream.
Come you to Blenheim now to see
these walls and arches of destiny
come with your denim and pocket guides
to see where fragile peace abides
and ask the ghosts how they made their play
that finds you alive in Blenheim t...
Tuesday 3rd October 2017 9:27 pm
CRYSTAL BALL
In the gypsy lavender scented tent
she gazes into a crystal ball
at a gypsy table with beaded cover
like a stage set of a gypsy's lament
Gazes intently with head like an alien
into the squatting orb of the ball
knowing everything and nothing at all
her mind plays tricks
the glass is dark
where ocean meets the sky,
future bleeding with a tremulous sigh
he...
Saturday 30th September 2017 7:24 pm
IN THE GARDEN
in the garden
spiders' webs brush my face
I thought they were tears of regret
for passing summer gone dry
but perhaps they were tickling fingers
stroking a conservative sky
whispering of a short future for spiders
and another long goodbye.
Friday 29th September 2017 4:39 pm
THE VIADUCT
Long limbed viaduct
strides with its giant tread
feet dressed with frills of trees
that brush its brickwork
as the train bears down
as those who ride look down
at the wriggling stream.
Now no-one is looking down
no-one rides
the brickwork no longer strides
the frills of trees have taken over
where feet pressed down
no more strides of no long limbs
where...
Tuesday 26th September 2017 8:57 pm
BUYING A CARPET
"Take a look around, I won't pester you"
said the carpet salesman, so we looked at
the pillars of skyward carpet rolled,
onlookers in a forest of compressed comfort.
We changed our mind as to colour
saw a pattern we liked,
took a seat
made a deal
agreed on Friday for delivery
all cut and dried.
His radio played Telstar
first ever british number one in A...
Saturday 23rd September 2017 11:12 pm
MUSIC POEM
I scraped some music off the walls
it slithered down in waterfalls
tasting sweet upon my tongue
fragmented songs as yet unsung
bursting out was heavy rock
that scattered all delicious dreams
my ears were caves where settling in
were Diana Ross and the Supremes.
Memories are made of this
such private moments of plasterwork
when the decorators come in
they'...
Wednesday 20th September 2017 9:34 pm
JUDGEMENT DAY
the English played away on judgement day
over Europe's darkening skies
vengeful fleets of planes
made music of fear.
Blitzkrieg tit for tat to subdue old Dresden
masterminded by Bomber Harris
the laying down of a gentle blanket
a technique perfected
with excretions of terror and blast
incendiaries and bombs
destroying that treasured city at last
of refug...
Tuesday 19th September 2017 9:41 pm
IN THE FATHER REDCAP
in the father redcap on camberwell green
a fight broke out
the worst i've seen
blood and beer all up the walls
all the fault of billy bloxsome
now the pub has changed its name
it's called the nollywood club (for nigerians)
fair do's. I've never tried to knock one out
all those boozers have changed or gone
familiar faces on the streets an age away.
More came...
Friday 15th September 2017 10:29 pm
LIVING DANGEROUSLY
reaching into a chest cavity
he wrenched out the beating heart
drums crescendoed in the flaming night
faces crowded in with tribal eyes
falling back in a profane festive dance
strange lights swung high arcing down
in a careening conglomeration
waves of gore became a river to cross
an unspecified far bank
sensed but unseen
forbidden, unclean.
A wind...
Tuesday 12th September 2017 7:42 pm
1930's STREET MAP OF LONDON
"Luftwaffe Luftwaffe where have you been?"
to London they say to cause a scene
a firestorm of devastation
a lesson of war to bow the nation.
Now as I look through a magnifier
at the 30's map the view distorts
under the glass bulging swaying as my vision shifts
north jerking west hither and thither
ink runs with the camouflage of streets
now history is silent, ...
Sunday 10th September 2017 9:43 pm
THOUGHTFORMS
My body resting considers the lure
of an unexplored corner.
Who knows what lurks there
what smile - the love of your life
yet to be, or simply a concrete wall
lost to time and space, leading
nowhere
but i'll never know either way
i'm tired so.
I have scooped up enough for a lifetime maybe
so instead I muse
on the devil may care happenstance
passing by,
...
Friday 8th September 2017 3:21 pm
VENUS FLY TRAP
In the venus fly trap
my thoughts are digested
legs folding in mortise constraint
isn't nature wonderful
if my destiny is only to give
that alone is worth
the perfect life I used to live,
to participate in such rare beauty
to be absorbed subsumed
into this witches' brew
sweet is the alchemy that God designed
a hideous death for the privileged few.
Wednesday 6th September 2017 9:18 pm
HORSE TRADING
On this lazy stretch of field
horses graze in quiet repose,
the sun casts no shadow save
to define their necks and flanks.
Soon machinery will arrive
to squash the earth for houses
bring death to grass and buttercup.
There is no sleep as the dream moves on
soon these horses will be gone.
Those who shall dwell upon this land
will covet that image of hor...
Tuesday 5th September 2017 10:54 pm
PIGEON POST
The power line supports two pigeons
buttressed against a sly wind
for a good hour they hunch together
nature sparing them a need to move
I approve of them together
find them a good pairing.
They can get up to mischief I know
with their white napalm on cars
irritating the hell...
Saturday 2nd September 2017 8:13 pm
LATE SUMMER WIND
The wind has been playful all day
along the castellations of the coastline
ducking down behind signs
aquaplaning through valleys
puffing deckchairs inside out
brushing the pelts of heather and vetch
forcing his attentions
fancying his chances
troubling those in age's advances
and like all young souls has worn himself out
hands deep in air pockets
cre...
Wednesday 30th August 2017 5:35 pm
NO FRILLS
DONE THAT
GOT THE T SHIRT
BEEN THERE
NAME IT I'LL SHAME IT
NEED TO KNOW BASIS
I'LL SHOW YOU HOW
I'M HERE TO DO THAT
IF I WASN'T
YOU WOOTEN 'AVE FOUND ME
SO PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE
PEOPLE LIKE ME ALWAYS KNOW BEST
THAT'S HOW THE WORLD WORKS
NO FRILLS
Tuesday 29th August 2017 3:04 pm
WORLDS ON WHEELS
Young Alfie and Jack right on track
with Scalextric all over the lounge
coloured paper crudely discarded
"Granddad granddad look i've won!"
said Alfie turning his body
around on his knees
scudding the pile of the carpet.
Granddad gazed down from his silent Shop Rider powerchair
like the keeper of the gate all knowing all suffering
leaping the gap of years to fi...
Friday 25th August 2017 10:29 pm
FAMILY PLANNING
Mohammed al Aziz climbs into his waiting Rolls Royce
a new driver he notices but says nothing.
The trip to Israel has been successful
his private jet turns slowly ready for checking again.
Mohammed soon joins his wife
they hold hands, look out over the Gulf
"All will be well," he says
her brown eyes are pools of deep hope.
"Our child will be special,
...Wednesday 23rd August 2017 9:28 pm
AN EVENING OUT IN THE 70s
"Sex with her was like an out of body experience,
with a body like hers it needed to be,
mind you she's got a face like an angel,
a hell's angel!
We've had ten happy years together,
been married for thirty;
it seems like only yesterday
I wish it was tomorrow
i'd cancel the wedding!
Here: I said to her: I'm gonna dance on your grave -
that's good, i'm getting buried at...
Tuesday 22nd August 2017 9:15 pm
SHE LOVED THAT CARDIGAN
She loved that cardigan
really took to it,
good quality
had it from new
not a strong colour but versatile
warm and cosy
handy for nipping to the shops in
good for evenings spent indoors.
She wore it in all weathers.
Never saw her without it
I expect she wore it to bed.
She couldn't bear the cold
and telling me that over and over
somehow must have ju...
Wednesday 16th August 2017 9:39 pm
THE GARDEN BRIDGE(From Tales of the Unaccepted)
In the year of our Lord two thousand and thirteen Joanna Lumley had a dream
of a bridge too far with shrubs and trees, sweet nectar, birds and bees.
She got her chums on board; an architect of her dreams, high flying illuminati
offered their gentlemanly support in this far flung horticultural sport.
Standing out in that austere circle like Marilyn Monroe on presidential podium
...Monday 14th August 2017 8:50 pm
PUBLIC AMENITIES
The wind of change blows along the Humber
the city of culture is doing the rhumba
with civic joy
for the famous bridge has been duly listed
along with the flats where Larkin lived
and a barrier for the tidal surge,
Edwardian toilets for men and women;
all's well for the City of Hull.
Meanwhile in the deepest south
there are rumblings and winds of discontent
as th...
Friday 11th August 2017 9:05 pm
THE AUTOBIOGRAPHIES OF THE FAMOUS
The autobiographies of the famous
are a kind of afterlife
that glory demands
and God is bribed by illusion.
The books of those lives
covers, spine, contents
are the pressed blood of works
dried but not forgotten
like bodies they are sealed systems
autopsies when opened
then the glory tumbles out
to inspire the aspirants.
Others with more furtiv...
Wednesday 2nd August 2017 10:34 pm
TALES OF THE UNEXPECTED
After the meteorite ploughed a crater
into the Kentish Weald
the sky was a black void
of swirling smoke and steam
all the air drawn up into a vortex
like a burning breath.
Thousands were vaporised where they stood
but Arthur Wellesley agoraphobic
had stayed behind doors
watching X Factor
considering the rising stars
of Simon's galaxy
as the windows bl...
Tuesday 1st August 2017 9:55 pm
AFTER WOLFENDEN
like hermit crabs out of their shells
they came, all pink and personal
blinking in the freedom of light
they looked around
not over their shoulder
slightly wiser
and slightly older.
Sunday 30th July 2017 10:39 pm
WHOOPS APOCALIPS
The poetry of bliss
is in a kiss
and in the promise of more to come
I will touch your lovely bum
bumbedy bum bum
that's fuckin' poetry innit?
If you feel the beat of this
you can kiss what brings me bliss.
Although a man
i'm just a slut
and apparently i'm off my nut.
Enjoy!
Friday 28th July 2017 10:04 pm
THE APPOINTMENT
Hickory dickory dock
under the station clock
i'll meet you there is what he said
but eleven in the morning came and went
the hickory dickory hands went round
without a sound
no explanation came.
By twelve the moment had breathed its last
the meeting never came to pass
under the hickory dickory clock
with the silent hands
and no tick tock.
Thursday 27th July 2017 8:04 pm
WHEN SANTA COMES TO STAY
When Santa comes to stay
the children stay away
they seem to find him overwhelming
not quite true in his special way.
For nothing comes but once a year
without a price to be paid
with his funny suit and fatherly grin
knowing innocence must fade.
He never really gives us hope
filling sack and stocking
we need a saviour to come to stay
with revelations shoc...
Tuesday 25th July 2017 11:14 pm
VARIETY ARTISTS
"It's the laughter lines you see
they stay with you right through thick and thin
eyes you can hide, but not the lines
the network changing constantly
like the points in the rails you keep going over
in sluggish and sullen towns.
They don't mean us any harm the audiences
but you need to earn every penny
we take 'em out of their drudgery
eight to five lives doing...
Monday 24th July 2017 1:59 pm
WHEN LONELINESS CALLS
When loneliness drags its heels
slouches in the slow lanes
anxious going nowhere
all eyes are unfocussed
and that nagging shadow
won't look up
when hope comes to call
hearing that lonely bell
where loneliness calls instead
with a silent voice
echoing down empty halls.
Friday 21st July 2017 10:34 pm
SANCTUARY
Sometimes you meet your enemies
face to face
your hands tied
you are at their mercy
you wait for a move
this mainly happens in films
for dramatic effect.
In real life usually the enemy
remains hidden
working on his strategies from the inside
biding his time
to finally have his way.
The doctor explained
to my step daughter-in-law...
Thursday 20th July 2017 9:09 pm
YOU FALL IN LOVE WITH EYES
You fall in love with eyes
because the eyes have it
they write histories in the making
they are wine for the taking
never perfectly saying no
always willing.
Because the eyes have it
they will follow you in every detail
as you take those histories
and make them futures
until those eyes make light of will
and see you and see you still
behind the grey wa...
Wednesday 19th July 2017 8:43 pm
THE NINE ELMS CAT
Stretched like a contented cat
Nine Elms Lane
from west to east, the Thames hard by,
from which savage cuts have made
a ditch at low tide to guide
flat bottomed barges weighed down
with black gold to feed the retorts
with their tongues of flame.
A mist meets each morning with a curse
of workers spilled out from buses and trams
knapsacks for the hard day ahead.
...Sunday 16th July 2017 10:58 pm
WATCH TV
Go binge
make us wealthy
have yourself a ball
watch TV
do nothing at all
the world of film awaits you
so go binge
make us wealthy
have yourself a ball
watch TV
do nothing at all
the real world can wait
do nothing at all
is all
Saturday 15th July 2017 10:18 pm
IT'S FUN TO BE FROM THE NORTH
It's fun to be from the north
it really really is,
everyone's so friendly
we tell you the way things are
no fancy frills
no slippery words
we say the way it is.
You can count on us from the north
you really really can
helpful in every possible way
no needless fuss
from the likes of us
we like to keep it thus.
We're not stuck up like the southerners
...Friday 14th July 2017 9:58 pm
TROUBLE IN METROLAND
Sammy Friedland is on his exercise bike again
looking out through diamond leaded glass.
Becky labouring at Schubert in the music room,
smells of kosher cooking seeking entry
around familiar corners.
His old primeval blood finds its way
through the looking glass heart
with its strictures of spreading pain
he reaches for a pill.
"goys and girls come out to p...
Wednesday 12th July 2017 9:53 pm
ON THE BRIDGE
A man looks down to the water's flow
from an iron bridge
the river below.
Something stirs
his mind goes back
to a North Atlantic flotilla attack.
"Hard a starboard!" he shouts aloud
drawing a disbelieving crowd
then draws his duffle coat tight around
hearing the peremptory sound.
Momentarily startled
he sees the swans
in some apparent disarray;
his ...
Sunday 9th July 2017 11:43 pm
SLOW DEATH ON A SLIDING SCALE
When I dragged out the box of coal
in the yard there was that moment
when I destroyed a snail
or at least its shell
and thus its sole means of defence
created from pure beauty of design,
the soaring strength of spiral,
the soft palp glistening and exposed.
The death of a snail on a cosmic scale
of one to ten would I know be regarded
as quite low maybe above the i...
Tuesday 4th July 2017 10:21 pm
SEX ON A SHOESTRING
Sex on a shoestring
it was always thus
no expensive follow up
only a flexing of witty repartee
and a firtation with responsibility.
He who plays the pipes must play the tune
but with the money for the jukebox always running out
I always twisted about
with a backward corkscrew motion
and left those ravers with their
pretended favours,
as sex on a shoestrin...
Sunday 2nd July 2017 11:36 pm
GRUNGE CONCERT
This concert I wanna tell you about
pivotal, '92 it was
grunge out of Seattle
you would have been there
I kid you not
if you'd knew about it
I was totalled then, a storm building
wipe - out brainwise.
Can't even remember where it was
this concert I wanna tell you about.
but it happened, know what i'm saying
fuck me it was up there
with Hendricks and th...
Friday 30th June 2017 10:45 pm
REACH FOR THE SKY
While worker bees in their hives make honey
the queens are thriving and making money
in full metal jackets the workers live
spent shells to remind us to regret but forgive.
Now the keepers come in their suits
avoiding stings and natural disputes.
Thursday 29th June 2017 5:10 pm
YOU SAY
you say yeah yeah
I say yuh
you say motor
I say car
you say garridge
I say gararge
I say live well
you say give it large
it's really no use
we'll never be alike
so you say vanish
and i'll say "on your bike"
Tuesday 27th June 2017 10:46 pm
AIMS
We grow old
even as our cherished aims stay young
overtaking us
with their demands
their expectations of us
and out we come from behind
cobwebs of effort
looking for more light and energy
as they begin
inevitably to fade
but we played our cards right
speculated with loose time
like cast off change
now we throw in our hand
knowing at last we will
...Monday 26th June 2017 10:49 pm
AUNT NORA
Aunt Nora suddenly last week
got her picture in the Yorkshire Post,
met up with a fella
who took her for a ride
in his vintage Rolls
a Silver Ghost.
Like Bonnie and Clyde
they took that ride
Nora in the back
with her top right down
as they slowly drove
through a Yorkshire town.
A misunderstanding about the tonneau
caused Lady Godiva
to compromise...
Saturday 24th June 2017 9:48 pm
70th BIRTHDAY BALLOON
The birthday balloon
toys with the air
swaying and swooning
tied to a chair.
The party's over
time to think
of 70's bright promise
the years just a blink.
It dances to a fan
a fandango of heat
head held high
to heart's gentle beat
and then quietly subsides
like the huff and puff of age itself.
It's makeup can't be removed
and, slipping si...
Friday 23rd June 2017 1:50 pm
WE'RE GOING DOWN TO THE COTSWOLDS
We're going down to the Cotswolds
where the air is fresh and clean;
though Chelsea is our spiritual seat
our other dwelling is rather good
quite isolated by hedges and wood.
The local message is understood
we contribute to the great and good
supporting local stores and our pub
we like to mix and match our life;
Jem is doing well with ponies
Toby and I are joining...
Wednesday 21st June 2017 5:58 pm
THE WAYFARER
The wayfarer
hard pushed to find his way
ascending the slippery slope
saw the beacon of raging hope
flames sent out a guiding light
in the sultry dense suburban night
he thought he might just tarry there
not being one to easily scare
but like an offering to the Wicker Man
he'd found the place where this life began
and ended.
Monday 19th June 2017 9:07 pm
MOTHER'S RUIN
The estate was built
in nineteen thirty eight
my mother there since nineteen forty one.
My mother came out
for the very last time
my mother came out
through the familiar gate
the one that clicked at
my father's arrival every day
before he finally went on his way..
The black car strangely incongruous
patiently waited in its own shadow
while curio...
Saturday 17th June 2017 7:51 pm
BIRDMAN
The birdman has news
fresh spirals of air sweep through his thoughts
his declination to fresh pastures set
aloft
black fluttering crowds
follow his name
decisive in supported flux.
The news travels fast
what is left behind is stored
in subtle energy, collectively
aloft
and what beauty follows!
swifts and swallows
fanning out like a courtier's c...
Tuesday 13th June 2017 11:16 pm
SILVERSIDES v CHARRINGTON
The case of Silversides v.Charrington
unique in the annals of crime
prepared for the courts,
in a curious sense
presented no reason nor rhyme.
Silversides was a robot
and guilty as guilty could be
in strangling Mrs. Charrington
in metallic ecstasy.
The victim was found upon the ground
with rigor mortis set in
"as stiff as the robot," said Dr. Wiley
wit...
Sunday 11th June 2017 10:23 pm
ENGAGEMENT
The automatic weapon carries his weight
as like the twist of a coin
destiny focusses in significant sight
his to serve the piercing spinning bullets.
Panther still
half crouched
behind deep shadowed walls
in blistered sun death whispers
unheralded names
in sand.
Personal histories explode to oblivion
cacophonies of blood oiled tendons
reap death h...
Friday 9th June 2017 9:57 pm
DOWN MEMORY LANE
down memory lane the other day
bought a suede jacket
happened to see it hanging there
biscuit brown soft and classy
nineteen sixties
down memory lane the other day
short lapels
button missing
turned one on me lathe
sewed it on, big deal
just the thing
waltzed out down the town
down memory lane again
confidence boosted
well up front
convinced me more tha...
Tuesday 6th June 2017 10:37 pm
LAID TO REST
Imagination fully stretched
in bricks and concrete permanently etched:
Byron Avenue
Keats Drive
Longfellow Crescent
Tennyson Road
municipal tributes
to the muse and the ode.
Bricked up versions of memory's incursions
stretching out across former fields
insulting nature
with their token trees
the obsessive regard for birds and bees.
None of these g...
Sunday 4th June 2017 4:33 pm
HOME STRAIGHT
A jealous wind blows through the rooms
of St.Augusta's Nursing Home
Mrs.Grundy come last Monday
wore her come to bedtime eyes
to beckon Mr. Albert Gregory
and work her charms now recollected
her hands to places reconnected.
The word went round from nurse to nurse
whose jobs were often well rehearsed
especially in Mr. Gregory's case
large as he was in the fuselage
...Monday 29th May 2017 8:12 pm
O TO BE A POET
I thought i'd have a go
at writing a poem
a man I know said
it has to flow.
I thought it would have to rhyme
as well,
but he said not necessarily,
but mention that you get depression
everyone will enjoy confession.
Take a few ideas from Wordsworth
using nature to make your words worth
more (that's a device to overrun a line)
that's what he told me...
Saturday 27th May 2017 11:48 pm
MEET THE RUSSIANS
Global high fliers
strangely captivated
by Big Ben from a yacht
London Bridge
Henley Regatta
all flowing past
like their gowns from Balmain
or glory holes of Mayfair.
High heels on lonely hard marble
of bright foyers
to camera flashes
lightning results
always the sun, for the rain
reminds them of peasants
tractors,
now it's X factors
and the wor...
Thursday 25th May 2017 10:32 pm
HELL AS PARADISE
Fast tracks to paradise
exploding myths
brothers wrenched from the womb
already lusting for the tomb
the scent of death
blood brothers
all that binds
blinded minds
that knives can cut
furnaces that forge
already yearning for the burning
all will be well in hell!
wrongs righted
old wounds healed
in paradise.
Tuesday 23rd May 2017 8:10 pm
REMOVING THE STOPPER
Nineteen sixty nine was a good year for me,
I take down the bottle so marked
in a special room
remove the stopper
the genie is free
I am twenty five again
refreshed and more alive.
I have become addicted to the bottle
going back to the experimental years
again
again
but back I go to sixty nine
no one else need know
and yet -
it was a ...
Sunday 21st May 2017 10:14 pm
TO THE NORTH!
Driver Williams (Kings Cross MPD)
has cleared the twin tunnels
Gasworks and Copenhagen then
struggling free the Peppercorn is panting
Fireman Higgins already tickling
the throat of the firebox with coal -
some to the left
some to the right
with a twist of his shovel
a pause then withdrawal
the eyelid closing.
Taut as a longbow is Higgins
for the climb to Fe...
Friday 19th May 2017 11:00 pm
FORWARD TOGETHER LET US GO
let us go forward together
let us take fate by the hand
we can make a difference together
make great again this land
with right and proper policies
with a strong and resolute plan
we can go forward together
don't say we can't - I say we can
go forward together
a bigger and fairer society
with trust in ourselves and the future
and good and honest piety
...
Thursday 18th May 2017 10:36 pm
BOVINE POETRY
My audience of pigs
was good and ready,
I in a barbour and waterproof hat.
Their tails like question marks
snouts in the troughs
some looked up with piggy eyes
on the hand selected animal farm.
In an experiment in animal reaction
I wanted to practise the nuance of rhyme,
an observer (which every experiment should have)
would have been impressed for sure
as I g...
Tuesday 16th May 2017 10:47 pm
WHAT'S NEW PUSSYCAT?
It was nineteen eighty
Peter Sellers was dead
my hero, his voices
inside my head
I bought a house
relationship failed
she wouldn't move in
the grass in the garden was
deadly long - scrubland
in heat - ventured through it
with scythe and song
at a swing and then
I found the cat
a clump of fur
on a bed of rough grass
lifting it with its light dead weight
...Sunday 14th May 2017 10:53 pm
DUST TO DUST
I've seen too many coffins of late
flowers arranged lying in state
fragmented thoughts
flayed emotions
too many cars in black
too late for the seance of reason
the holding of hands
to contact the dead
too late, too late
when breath has ceased
the spirit released
Too many eyes
haunted by questions
betrayals of trust
too many coffins
too much du...
Saturday 13th May 2017 10:17 pm
ROMEO AND JULIET IN REAL TIME
He's like really amazing
and he thinks i'm amazing
it's amazing.
i'm like so into him
and I think he's into me
it's so amazing.
like he sent me this selfie
and i'm like scrolling down
and there it is
and it's like so amazing
and i'm like so in love.
Thursday 11th May 2017 11:04 pm
TO A CURVE
Sometimes a curve is all we need
to make our hearts and minds succeed
straight lines the march of time
illusions of supremacy
the ambitious cocky stiff salute
to distance conquered
progress gained
but the curve was never made for war
the rifle bent is a head
hung low in slow repent.
Sometimes a curve is all we seek
when hands in sweet caress combine
...Wednesday 10th May 2017 10:21 pm
CHESS VERSUS LIFE
Two men play chess
by the light of a candelabra
on a stone plinth
in a castle hall.
An adjudicator sits nearby
silence reigns
a thin evening light casts its goodbye
through a high slit,
runs its finger down
a tapestried wall.
The men in velvet doublets and hose
solemnly cast in concentration
both equally guilty
only the loser of the game will die,
...Monday 8th May 2017 10:40 pm
REGRET FOR A LOST PAUSE
Pausing for effect
then turning around
to face the hour
the day
the week lately past
now stowed indefinitely
as in a festooned attic
he waved himself goodbye.
He had no idea when that dream ended
and when this one had begun.
All the good things of the world
could not save him
from staring into the sun.
Friday 5th May 2017 10:40 pm
DEBUTANTES
Whatever happened to the debonair
those vile bodies without a care
the Mayfair Johnnies
Burlington Berties,
scamp scaramouche
the amoral
the louche?
Where did they go
the quick quick slow
scoffing in Bentleys
in the know
was it the war
that buried them deep,
put these scalliwags to sleep?
with their debutantes, groomed for season
bouquet ...
Wednesday 3rd May 2017 10:18 pm
EXODUS
smooth shanked in tumbling air
descending
we went on cycles
England's proud flank dogging our heels
Wales to the fore,
her blue and tidy pride
far outweighing our speed
and oxygen thumping chests,
tiny carriers of water and vests
packed tightly for spreading out
in the thin line of tomorrow's redoubt.
Monday 1st May 2017 9:38 pm
BORN AGAIN
Nothing seemed to comfort him
his troubled soul cried out for relief
then he heard a clarion call
offering a firm belief
born again ! born again !
never the same the same again
he was inducted
like lightning conducted
by Billy Graham's rally cry
ringing out ringing out
from uncertain ground to heavenly sky..
"Billy Billy you are the bes...
Sunday 30th April 2017 8:07 pm
TIME FLIES, NOTHING CHANGES
Bob Payne opened his door again
six years now elapsed,
looked older, nudging eighty
I guessed
oak and mahogany maintained
rugs respecting remembered silence
punctuated by a shouldering grandfather clock
spinning interior hours, days
weeks, years.
I had left his house before with
all surfaces polished.
Now I saw the rings that cups had left
a puppy's teethma...
Friday 28th April 2017 9:42 pm
AT THE WATERING HOLE
Still there, those old beasts
at the watering hole
wallowing in sentiment
thin skinned
thickset
brass necks.
Those were the days my friend
we thought they'd never end
but they 'ad to
balaclavas and sawn offs.
The barmen keep their distance
behind optics,
behind Victorian mirrors
they know these faces
know that tales will be told
egos massaged
...Tuesday 25th April 2017 10:28 pm
DESMOND HUGH ALOYSIUS
He was gently lowered into the ground
Desmond Hugh Aloysius
while late daffodils hung their heads
for Desmond Hugh Aloysius
A large liver and giver of life
a roystering boisterous musical man
he left behind a re - married wife
whose husband stood by unexpectant
a gentleman of sombre demeanour
whose thoughts and opinions, never vicious
were discreetly held ba...
Sunday 23rd April 2017 7:34 pm
MOMENT OF TRUTH
I reckon I got it figured out
the big picture, how we got here
why we're different from those early critters
who stood and couldn't figure diddly squat
you know - that blink of time
when something big came to town
from out there....
looking up I followed his gaze
Then I figured how easily you can lose your way
your mind back to being a child again
all ...
Thursday 20th April 2017 11:36 pm
SACRIFICE
It's legitimate to kill a wasp
to remove its presence forever
even though its design provides us
with evidence of flight,
something we humans aspire to
with our superior brain -
but kill we can
and justify it we may
there is no declension
worthy of a mention
and so it must be
that some will sacrifice the children
the stunned and scared
the political...
Tuesday 18th April 2017 10:58 pm
PRINCE CHARLES's LAMENT
We had sex in the stumpery
sex in the Aston,
I discharged my royal duty
like a good 'un,
sometimes the mood would take us
on bracing walks in tweeds
discovering the peripherals of pleasure
after the pie and pudden'.
I oft would try to catch her
where the compost bins grow high
with the sweetcorn erecting
i'd love her with a sigh.
Alas! the seeds of Aut...
Saturday 15th April 2017 12:53 pm
NORTH BY NORTHWEST
Thank you Alfred Hitchcock for capturing
the heads of Mount Rushmore on film
too big to be a joke
proof that nature must be made to serve man
as near to God's image
as his giant imagination can get.
God Bless America!
and preserve those travesties
in all their rocksure
cocksure majesties.
Thursday 13th April 2017 7:56 pm
THE ELEPHANT IN THE GARDEN
He had built a fort for the kids
with wood saved from a skip,
health and safety just a four letter word.
There were heady views over the neighbours,
added extras -
viewing platform
door with no purpose
no safety rails (not an extra).
Two old water butts for eyes
with ramps to a different level
like a masterpiece of confusion by Escher.
The kids became pir...
Tuesday 11th April 2017 8:33 pm
TONGUE TWISTER
He shot his mouth off with his tongue
what a mess.
What he is on about
is anybody's guess.
Airwaves recoil
perplexed
at the mortal injury they sustain
and yet
in the wider context
nobody seems to complain.
Sunday 9th April 2017 10:07 pm
OLD POLITICIANS
Those old politicians
once so full of promise
they all had political leanings
left or right
sympathies with flow and flair
some imagined a purpose
all adopted a cause of sorts
assembling on the benches of
altercation and derision
astride a striding edge
of contorting exposition
each and every one of them
with their minds to the grinding wheel
polishing ...
Saturday 8th April 2017 8:42 pm
HISTORIES AND MYSTERIES
We enjoyed the mysteries of the pyramids of Giza
looking up at the leaning Tower of Piza
and other visual delights
then with curiosity sated,
in various hotels
deep into the night
we discovered the mysteries
of interplanetary flight.
Long have we been together
those mysteries now dormant like dreams,
but I do know this, that
still on a whim
those histo...
Thursday 6th April 2017 10:20 pm
NIGHT ERRORS
Yesterday I was in gypsy Spain
with hot haciendas,
under azure glare
passions aflame.
Today I am in a sukh
buying killims and thobes
courtesy of Marrakesh.
Meanwhile it has come on to rain
in the home counties and it's
uncertain where my dreams lie,
under which shifting sky,
but with pillow talk
I walk the walk,
and now I know there are no pig...
Tuesday 4th April 2017 4:28 pm
IN AT THE DEEP END
I found my doctor a little remote
as he checked my lungs
and checked my throat.
The trouble was the blinking screen
new guru of the live well scene,
it seemed to come between us
as he consulted comparison apps
I said I was recently prone to cramps
and suffering memory lapse.
The screen came in between us
as he searched for answers online
and, offerin...
Friday 31st March 2017 9:34 pm
MARRIAGE VOWS
I the undersigned accept
my authority being undermined,
all decisions I shall forfeit
my personality will be deemed to fit.
If I take steps to avoid this fate
I will engender a tete a tete
and thus upset this holy estate
so I simply accept the inevitable
and end up a simple vegetable.
Monday 27th March 2017 11:30 pm
IRON MAIDEN
How I dread your immortal gaze
your implacable cold embraceable ways.
I have confessed my mortal sin
my love for you is overdue
now hold me tight with penetration
as my blood spurts into you.
Saturday 25th March 2017 7:54 pm
DAI WOODHAM'S SCRAPYARD
Like scruffy schoolboys the locomotives
with hunched shoulders, disgraced,
mooched off to Dai Woodham's
scrapyard in Barry
for a holiday by the sea,
no buckets and spades
only old rakers and scrapers
witch's wares, eyeless cabs
blunted back to front
the final ignominious shunt.
Then came the vultures
flapping on nostalgic wings
seeing some of their fav...
Thursday 23rd March 2017 11:17 pm
THE LANES OF LONDON
London lost and London found
above and below the teeming ground
where worshippers and young bucks too
lived out their daily aspirations
and lower delights
to the call of bells
or the lure of nights,
overlooked by the leering lanes
where God's ideals flowed down the drains.
Brick Lane, Drury Lane, Love Lane all remain
others merged or built upon
as Bear Lane, L...
Tuesday 21st March 2017 8:19 pm
RHYMING ROCK
I am a stick of rock
with poetry running through,
many stories in my spine
telling me what to do.
Sticky sweetness of nectar too
bursting from my head
I am addicted to myself
to myself I must be true.
Sunday 19th March 2017 10:30 pm
THE TIMES
The Times it is a'changing
crumpled headlines rearranging
in the fire at my feet
scorching, giving way to heat.
"Immigrant crisis on the way"
the problem waits another day
as the message goes up the flue
giving more room for me and you.
Saturday 18th March 2017 11:47 am
DENIAL
Deny the forest
the monsters
a voice
deny the whispers
the knowing looks
soft swell of ground
prepared for nature's choice
deny the children
imagination
their voice
deny their wide eyes
their wishes to know.
Instead prepare the soft swell
of their souls for sacrifice
on the altar of adulthood
and the growing apart
from Gods of wonder
for...
Thursday 16th March 2017 11:27 pm
FATE
Fate had me worried
it seemed to beg my attention but
never knowingly over - impressed by
life's extensions I gave up the idea
that there is a place for it
in any real controversy or plan.
Like a pop desiderata or a sweet romance
for me it is
the ultimate copout,
leering over our shoulders
like a man in a white van.
Wednesday 15th March 2017 11:34 pm
ANSEL ADAMS, PHOTOGRAPHER
Ground his way up the shining hills
in a climb to silken serenity
captured with tripod and film
the towering Yosemite.
Grizzly in his towering frame
Ansel Adams stood right there
a future captured with his name
with grizzly beard and grizzly hair
to show the world the wonders of light
how nature sings its wandering song
and captures souls on wings of flight
...Sunday 12th March 2017 9:36 pm
CHELSEA CREEK 1970
Chelsea Creek is in my head
winding back through imagination
passing the scrapyard of Johnny Fenn
past the retorts of Chelsea Basin
and the teeming yards of railway trucks
diverting where the rails rise
to Cremorne Bridge and the postman's special
the southside Battersea conurbation.
Ducks dwell close to reeded banks
on Lots Road power station's flanks
and soon, ...
Friday 10th March 2017 3:48 pm
SMOKING REQUISITES
The ancient couple sit side by side
in perfect harmony
I have given them a home.
To be precise: two ashtrays
one of malachite, rich dark
lustrous green with conchoidal rings
and its companion
lapis lazuli, royal blue streaked
with fool's gold
both smoothly scooped
for stubbing out
Having now no purpose
other than to give exquisite pleasure
as create...
Wednesday 8th March 2017 10:23 pm
TV SOAPS
Crudely persuasive
TV soaps
more influential than isotopes
more affecting
than drug injecting
and the plots go on
like the drift of clouds
to please the torpulent
corpulent crowds
What happened to Eddie
was he going steady
yes, 'til Charlene came along
then his girlfriend's brother
took revenge
another plot as old as Stoneheng...
Monday 6th March 2017 4:15 pm
A TRIP TO LOOE
When Tobacco Road
Concrete and Clay
were tunes of the day
in nineteen hundred and sixty four
down to Looe we went by train
where it hugged the coast
with a snaking lasso.
The King class loco with its rake of red
arrived at Liskeard a little late
from its stable at Old Oak Common shed
the connecting tanker
freshly fed, obliged to wait
a duty of service ...
Saturday 4th March 2017 11:20 pm
CHURCH RIDDLE
They came to check for the meaning of life
found only the deadly sins
hiding there with a virtuous face
mistaking them for signs of grace.
Friday 3rd March 2017 7:46 pm
ON THE OTHER SIDE OF READING
On the other side of Reading
people smile insanely
instinctively drive on the right.
On the other side of Reading
bollards and traffic cones are welcomed
as artistic design icons
On the other side of Reading
roundabouts have too many flowers
in a civic equivalent of bliss
as if in celebration of potential accidents.
On the o...
Wednesday 1st March 2017 11:01 pm
THE FACEBOOK OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
Nah nahnah nah nah you can't catch me !
read the facebook message from Moriarty,
Sherlock reached for his calabash and the needle
shouted for Mrs Hudson
went into a dream.
Watson was stuck without a computer,
so a boy was sent to fetch him at once
but the doctor was checking Mrs Watson
and didn't give a fig for his friend,
When Sherlock saw the light again
...Saturday 25th February 2017 12:53 pm
THE DEATH OF JOSEF JAKOBS 1941
On a rifle range within the Tower
Josef Jakobs was shot in a chair
he could not stand
his ankle broken
from landing in a Huntingdon field.
He was no foe he later pleaded
but died he did and the chair never healed.
Shot by eight good men and true
five bullets hit him and all went through,
his wife and children said fond goodbyes
but the clouds rolled on under wart...
Wednesday 22nd February 2017 10:08 pm
THE CAVE IN THE SIDE OF A CLIFF
There once was a cave in the side of a cliff
just a gash to be entered because it was there
no other motive was needed at all.
To be the first in was of prime importance
to photograph its mysteries,
lay bare what might be discovered there.
Much planning was needed to conquer it
with ropes and tackle as the cliff was wet
and strange vegetation defied a hold
...
Tuesday 21st February 2017 11:15 pm
PLATFORM ANNOUNCEMENTS
the eight fifty eight
will be late again,
the customers late
for their dates again.
The nine thirteen
would be running today
but due to staff shortages
was cancelled anyway.
Someone stepped out
being tired of life
so Salisbury station
will suffer delays
but the six fifteen
will arrive on time
and for that we must draw
some satisfaction.
None of...
Saturday 18th February 2017 10:37 pm
HYPOCHONDRIA THE LIBERTINE
Hyponchondria the libertine
keeps you on your toes,
her ideas are top of the list
you can't ignore her woes.
Then she lets you off the hook
with a smack of stunned surprise
when you find that pressure spot
is just behind your eyes.
Tuesday 14th February 2017 5:26 pm
TICKET TO PARADISE
Serenity
golden beach
kalua kiss
the state of bliss
these are tricks of the brochure
and online courting
the lure and bait of extortion
in a velvet glove
it seems to me
available for all eternity.
Saturday 11th February 2017 10:32 pm
SEWER CONVERSION
A sewage worker found Jesus in a sewer
for his disbelief he found a cure.
The sewage system is an awesome place
to find relief and a state of grace.
It could have been the methane's rise
that worked its magic to his surprise
yet to this theory he won't admit
immune to the presence of piss and shit.
It seems that life may be enhanced
in quirky and murky way...
Friday 10th February 2017 5:13 pm
GATHERED HERE
LIVES IN MEMORIAM
LIVE AT THE CREMATORIUM
SHAKING OF HANDS
HEADS HUNG LOW
COFFIN SAFE THE MEMORIES
AS LONG AS WE LIVE ON.
Thursday 9th February 2017 9:51 pm
PROUD OF THE PAST
One day these kids will show off their past
with photos in frames on mantleshelves
"That's my grandad, I was five"
they'll say
recalling with misty eyes
the heritage railways they visited together
knowing not the torture of those earlier days
when locomotives taught their men a lesson
they'd never forget
of fiery alliances
on reckless rails
leaving h...
Tuesday 7th February 2017 10:28 pm
NUCLEAR EVENT
resigned about the nuclear event
they bought themselves the latest tent
and set it up to face the world
to share its fate as fate unfurled.
Newly minted as husband and wife
their dying would be a gesture for life
and a tent was as good a place as any
from which to watch the death of many.
Wednesday 1st February 2017 10:58 pm
MR PRESIDENT
From the uncertain depths of diplomacy
rose up this Kraken
his massive mouth spouting
and no one knows the ocean's mind
or the depths that it can sink to.
In the ascendancy he is
scornful of harpoons
the hide impenetrable
so, all you travellers on the seas
and on your land and in the air
remember to take some extra care
as others legitimize those loony tunes.
...Tuesday 31st January 2017 9:56 pm
CURSORY RHYME
(DEDICATED TO PAUL WARING)
I went to my cupboard
but Mike Hubbard was bare,
so I closed the door
and left him there
Monday 30th January 2017 4:08 pm
NORTH WALES IN THE FIFTIES
pavements are damp
people like towels brought in
off wet dripping lines
or as ducks flapping in packamacs,
windows defy gaze under blinds
crying tears with their wares.
Mr. Protheroe stares out from his outfitters
at the rain running away with itself.
Damp slate answers back a sky
hewn from hills.
There are buses due, themselves
havens of damp, Cerri...
Sunday 29th January 2017 2:45 pm
LATE ARRIVAL
After the rain the sun
after the sun the North Circular's joust
low silhouettes of abrupt streets
then sunset of Essex
no brochure could contrive.
In the marquee the tableware set
reams of cutlery arranged
flattering on white
napkins rising majestically
small flower sprays,
a legion of glasses
and profoundly grinning the melon segments
with their tears ...
Thursday 26th January 2017 10:10 pm
SERIAL KILLER
Now he was stuck with the body
in control of it but not of himself.
He spooned an eye from its socket
angry after the kill, his purpose spent
the climax had been in the planning
subtle persuasions of trust, manipulation
and now here on the plateau
it always felt this way
and he needed a memento.
Tuesday 24th January 2017 9:42 pm
THE BIG ISSUE
Here on the winter high street
things were looking up
footfall strong, shops brisk
then I saw the bundle on the ground
Big Issue seller, news of
Trump the billionaire
a moment for that bright hair.
Coin of the realm slowly trickled down
discs of bright conscience
salves of small guilt.
under his hood shined in my vision
a former dweller under different sk...
Sunday 22nd January 2017 4:32 pm
I USED TO BELIEVE
I used to believe that belief was pivotal
that signing your life on a dotted line
was like a club for the initiated
the way to go, you know what I mean
but doubts have left me blinded by the light
I find life more comfortable not knowing why
and solace in the darkness of a starry night.
Despite the pleadings of suits and cassocks
those moral dimensions never rang true
...Friday 20th January 2017 10:18 pm
LIKE REFUGEES
second hand books like refugees
dog eared,
the worse for their experiences
wait patiently in rows
psalms embalmed
some with photographs tight held
loved by the departed
resources behind
and around their spines
obituaries of once - bright age
of facts captured
and
like refugees they come and go
to join new families
in new musty ranks
in holdin...
Tuesday 17th January 2017 11:37 pm
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