1035 - Tennis sonnet

A quick sonnet, because it’s two-thirty
In the morning, and I’ve since gone to bed
But as I lay there, I thought suddenly,
Hey! I’ve not done a sonnet! Oh my God!
And so, here it is, written at great speed…
Played tennis in the early afternoon
Slowly improving, though I still can’t beat
Louis, who remains determined to ruin
My feeble attempts to compete, but soon
I’ll at least win a set. Then, on TV
I watched Federer beat Roddick, who led
But threw away the second set. Immune
To nerves, the Swiss player made history:
Fifteen Grand Slams! And now, it’s back to bed
Sun 5 July 2009

1019 - Spiteful Turkish delight

The Turkish woman’s been quiet lately
I used to hear her come most every night
And sometimes in the afternoon, loudly
But lately this loud woman’s been so quiet
Occasionally I hear sounds of a fight
But only using words, and then silence
Her days of fun and sex gone, now polite
As neighbour could be, now all reticence
The benefits for me have been immense
Because, unlike before, I sleep easy
Mind you, I still wake up when it gets light
Noise from the flat below invades my sense
The Turkish woman’s got a friend round, see
Their female laughter may just contain spite
Fri 19 June 2009

937 - Late sonnet

Later than 25 or 6 to 4
I write this on my sofa smooth and black
Not long since I came in through my front door
Not long either now till I must go back
Through it again to work, alas, alack!
Here I’ve spent many a sleep-deprived night
But this time, if slumber amounts to jack
I won’t be upset; no, I’ll be all right
I’ll whistle along to the birdsong, might
Even conduct them from my window, for
I’ve just got back from seeing you, a stack
Of memories to which I can cling tight
We need each other, that is nature’s law
And who am I to argue with plain fact?
Sun 29 Mar 2009

907 - Busy nights

Amazing: a night in! So few this week
But I'll use it to play some more music
Maybe re-record 'World at War' - a weak
Mix, and low volume made it less than slick
On Wednesday night. Hey soundman, get your shit
Together next time, or I'll bring my own
Equipment, damn you! Didn't drop my pick
At least. Last night, I networked - yes, me, Tone!
Met several new contacts and exchanged phone
Numbers and emails; maybe we will speak
Of new arts projects, build them brick by brick
July festival audiences blown
Away..... Nice dream, go float off down the creek
Off home now from the office...What to cook?
Fri 27 Feb 2009

882 - Salford snowfall

Outside the third-floor window, snowflakes float
Sailing, then sinking in full formation
Frail frozen fleet, soon flattened underfoot
Failing, falling to its destination
Headlights, tail-lights flow from Salford station
Forgetting office facts and office files
Filing themselves away as suburban
Freed from the city by four or five miles
The snow, the shadows, lie in light / dark piles
This freezing season with its frosty coat
This frightened evening, white, black, tight-woven
On forlorn pavements, forgotten exiles
From frequent footfalls, I'll now plant my feet
Forlornly fleeing fate's final function
Mon 2 Feb 2009

851 - From dusk 'til dawn

Are the folks in the flat below human?
They go to bed late, make love about 3
But strangest of all, get up at seven
Or even earlier. It puzzles me
(And disturbs my sleep…) The tension can be
So bad sometimes that even when I’m whacked
I lie there, eyes aching, clock-watching. He
Makes no noise when they shag. Has he awaked
Her or is she asleep? The mattress creaked
But nothing else. On other nights you can
Hear her a mile off, moaning, ecstasy
For peeping toms, maybe, but it’s a fact
I’d far rather have peaceful slumbers than
These rings under my eyes, this lethargy
Fri 2 Jan 2009

836 - Blood chant

The night draws to a close, lullaby sound
Of traffic rushing along Regent Road
On which I walked alone to the home ground
Where I now write, safely in comfort mode
The world turns and tomorrow’s cocks have crowed
Though no-one’s heard them yet, yet it’s still so
Just like past winters when it clearly snowed
Whether my eyes saw or feet trod, or no
The future’s fixed just like the past; both go
Where we can’t see and remain to each bound
We’re somewhere in between, and both have flowed
Through our red rivers, arteries that slow
With imperceptible speed. Round and round
It all goes, following some secret code
Thur 18 Dec 2008

819 - December 1st, 4pm

The sky all shades of blue with purple streaks
Warm swathes of tangerine towards the coast
The dark blue behind all too quickly creeps
The brightness ahead dims like distant hopes
Look into this darkness - numberless ghosts
All scurry through black tunnels, wait in lines
Their dead white eyes betray no sign they host
Within each machine, all-controlling minds
And so we drive ourselves on, disinclined
To stop until all homes are at last reached
Comforted by the fire, shoelaces loosed
Thinking we're free as long as home's light shines
Safe in bed, visualising sunlit peaks
Giving our cold engines a timely boost
Mon 1 Dec 2008

796 - Sleepless night

The night turns oh so quickly into day
And still we cannot rest, well not for long
A quick chat, then we turn another way
And once again the feelings return, strong
Turning, returning, feeling we belong
Belonging, feeling strong for so long; dawn
Coming and going like a summer song
The early daylight comfortably worn
By your pale skin, my darker skin, both torn
From hot imprisoning bedclothes that weigh
Restricting free movement of hands along
Your sides. And now we both know as your yawn
Disturbs the precious silence, we must say
Good night, good day, some sleep now won’t be wrong
Sat 8 Nov 2008

788 - Halloween fireworks

It’s scary, Mary. It’s H-Halloween!
W-What the devil’s going on round here?
There’s fireworks p-p-popping, have you seen?
And after Guy’s been burnt, the close of year
Is h-h-hurrying with glittery cheer
To wipe away our fear of dark and cold
To buy some nice things, drink an extra beer
And best of all, find someone there to hold
Someone to keep warm, there on your shoulder
Holding them tight as flames flicker, s-scream
Of rockets in a flowery stratosphere
I hope all the w-witches’ hats weren’t sold
And at the party, those g-ghosts aren’t mean
Have a ‘wicked’ time, ’til I next see ya…
Fri 31 Oct 2008

784 - Peter the Puppet's Poem

I wish I was a bird and I could fly
Well maybe not, because I don’t like worms
Besides, that ginger cat that lurks nearby
Would seem a lion; those are my concerns

I wish I was a fish, swimming oceans
Well maybe not, because my memories
Would be so few, I’d never ever learn
Your name. You’re looking fin tonight...Louise?

I wish I was an alien, who sees
His girl each weekend in her galaxy
Or sometimes in his; you could just take turns
Well maybe not, because of space fuel fees

The bird, the fish, the alien and I
Say good night, sweet dreams, till daytime returns

Mon 27 Oct 2008

783 - Song of the dark

The dark time’s here, the clock’s gone back again
And I can’t concentrate on anything
It could be bodily and mental strain
From being a little short of sleeping
It’s fun sometimes to go without, watching
The hours go by with all four of our eyes
The days and nights are ours, intermingling
The dark and the light, day and night. Like spies
We see more than we should, and find goodbyes
Take longer than they did, and yet remain
On each other’s brain once separating
They say snow’s on the way; hope it’s not lies
Even though the ice cold can cause us pain
It would be a beautiful new setting
Sun 26 Oct 2008

762 - Nightride

Rain on windscreen, wipers intermittent
Striped ambulance like a zebra in flight
The further north I drive the more intense
The rainfall, here on the M6 at night
Try not to go above the speed limit
No matter what white van provocation
Defeat my own competitive spirit
Enjoy the slow lane’s soothing sensation
Lose sense of time and of situation
To music in the dark, as when student
Sat stoned in small room clinging to the kite
Of stereo guitar infiltration
And often surreal lyrical content
Stafford, Stoke, signposts reflecting headlights
Sun 5 Oct 2008

751 - Late night reflection

It’s been a long day’s journey into night
And now, back home again, all on my own
But that’s okay, no really, it’s all right
I’m not upset about being alone
A long time ago my few seeds were sown
And now they fall on stony ground, but then
What’s the alternative? What has life shown
But that I will end up alone again
The difference between then and now is plain
I know all there is to know, and it’s quite
All right to ally myself with that stone
To blend deeply with it like other men
Who’ve travelled through this darkness into light
And paid back whatever they bought on loan
Wed 24 Sep 2008

743 - Turkish delight denied tonight

Two nights ago I thought, That's it! No More!
Again, just as my heavy eyelids closed
The bed below me obviously bore
The randy couple, with bodies opposed
But meeting in the middle as his rose
And fell upon his rose, fair Turkish maid
As my walls shook again, I then proposed
To myself, for the first time, to parade
About my room, stomp and bang doors. I made
My displeasure clear, let them hear. I swore
And furthermore, swore to bring to a close
This era of 2 a.m. shags that's played
Out every night. They heard me, and forbore
To carry on up the Bosporus. They froze!
Tue 16 Sep 2008

741 - No escape

It’s mid-September; the year’s running out
Even the decade’s running out of steam
Or is it me I’m really on about?
Is it me who’s becoming a has-been?
Can’t be, because I haven’t really been
Anything yet, and that’s why I can’t rest
Can’t tend a garden, contentedly lean
On my front gate, sun sinking in the west
I can’t relax, only escape at best
In the late evening, and when lights go out
Consoling visions turn drought into streams
In dreams that drown out shouts and screams, unrest
Upstairs and down, outside and inside out
That within minutes pulls me from each dream
Sun 14 Sep 2008

736 - Dream lover

If I stop drinking completely I find
The noisy neighbours deprive me of sleep
I become super-sensitive; they wind
Me up as I lie listening; they creep
Around, bang things and each other; they keep
Me from the point of drifting down the stream
Away from this dull, marshy plain to steep
And heady slopes where success is no dream
Gold nuggets just for me reflect the gleam
Of the still-rising sun, caressing wind
Undressing beauties, clothing in a heap
I lie at the top, position supreme
Then a bang in the night and I unwind
Unreeling, rolling through the real snow
Tue 9 Sep 2008

729 - Upstairs, downstairs

I woke last night thinking, ‘It’s an earthquake!’
But then I relaxed momentarily
Realising the reason. ‘Ah, my bed shakes
Because of nocturnal activity
In the bedroom below. Though quietly
They go about their business; no moaning
Or yelping; conscious that all sounds can be
Heard above or below, and complaining
Would occur if they were both exclaiming;
Nevertheless, this couple’s great mistake,’
I continued to muse, most shakenly,
‘Is in their absent-minded neglecting
To shift their bed away from the wall. Make
A gap, and we can all sleep peacefully!’
Tue 2 Sep 2008

697 - Stop that train

So tired. I hardly slept last night. Bottles
Of beer to blame, three before turning in
Which made me wee a lot, jimmy riddles
Heard all those poems in that collection
On CD, s’posed to bring oblivion
And usually does, but last night, no such luck
After Benjamin Zeph, masturbation
I should have tried pills, Schopenhauer’s book
The graveyard radio discussion stuck
For a whole hour on old steam trains, whistles
And rattling sound effects. Old steam engines
Just count ’em, shiny black sheep on a track
Three hours late - 4 am - my arrival’s
Announced at Sleepytown railway station
Fri 1 Aug 2008

639 - Doing bird

This thinking is a blessing and a curse
We imagine a lot that isn’t there
It’s okay when you’re writing, but it’s worse
At 3am, doing the ceiling stare
Revisiting, exaggerating their
Concerted coordinated campaign
To keep you on the ground, while in the air
Above you they float, laughing at your pain
They circle the lampshade, drive you insane
Angry, unable to sleep, you’re immersed
In negativity; meanwhile out there
The dawn chorus, the aubade, the refrain
Of unthinking bird brains begins its terse
Reminder there’s another day to bear
Wed 4 June 2008