1051 - Summer in Manchester

The summer drags on… The late light’s okay
But every day it rains. In Manchester!!
I sound surprised. I shouldn’t feel that way
Because rain’s ever-present through the year
In Britain, specially in northern areas
Got some things done at work, drafting guidance
And afterwards, a Chinese and some beers
So much meat eaten lately, and a chance
To stuff myself with mushrooms more than once
I’m back home now and it’s too late to play
Music; a pint of Wobbly Bob beer
Has put paid to my muse: she’s gone to France
Or maybe Mars or Venus. The dark grey
Of nightfall approaches, as I sit here
Tue 21 July 2009

1005 - Dark June 2

The sky darkens now that summer is here
This is the season of disappointment
Hopes dashed with each raindrop that splashes clear
Onto the piss and vomit-stained pavement
We cannot say this summer rain's recent
It seems to be the mainstream, quite the norm
Old dreams of lazy hazy days are spent
The plain reality's this thunderstorm
Imprisoning me here; I can't go home
Just yet or my face will be wet with tears
From the heavens above, from where love's sent
Running in dirty streams down drains to form
Subterranean rivers; disappear
To sea with all our dreams, our innocence
Fri 5 June 2009

982 - Weather report

Please do not rain, I have not brought my coat
Please do not rain, I don't want to get soaked
Come back, dear sun, to you we give our vote
Come back, prodigal sun, or have you croaked?

Saw morning sunshine, left my coat at home
Saw morning sunshine, thought summer had come
Unfaithful sun, you always have to roam
Deceitful sun, without you there's no fun

The dark clouds linger, and the trees blow wild
The dark clouds linger, how long since we smiled?
Will summer be like this, gloomy and mild?
Must summer be like this, is our fate sealed?

The English weather keeps us all busy
The English weather keeps us all gloomy

Wed 13 May 2009

952 - Spring morning

Easter is over, and now life goes on
The leaves are on the trees, they are a sign
Of marching time, of time starting to run
Of things reaching their peak as nature climbs
And reaches with green fingers for sunshine
As glimpsed through bedroom windows at morning
From gently rustling sheets at breakfast time
The garden birds have been serenading
For hours, their eyes and thoughts now returning
To what may be found down there on the lawn
Breakfast is over, washing’s on the line
Gently swaying, thoughtlessly responding
To nature’s ways with regular rhythm
As the wind plays that old tune one more time
Mon 13 Apr 2009

941 - Spring has sprung, but will summer be a bummer?

These lovely spring days, will they ever last
Deep into summer? They so rarely do
Maybe not always would it be for best
If all days were stunners with skies of blue
Perhaps some years we need more rain, that's true
And dull greyness to contrast with brightness
Too much sun, I fear, would simply mean you
And I would gain less, and grass would grow less
Rain brings fertility and wealth, keeps us
Hard at our duty, rarely thinking past
Our jobs for thirty hours, and weekends too
If there is booty to be made. Shameless,
Aren't we, slaves to our greed, never to rest
Until our graves are impressive to view
Thur 2 Apr 2009

932 - Computing, not commuting

The joys of living close to work are these:
Taking an hour to wake up, radio
So slowly drifting into consciousness
When outside showers drip, no need to go
Just yet, get wet in my own shower, slow
And warm, spring fragrance from a factory
Brings soaked-in sunshine from head to my toe
Shaving appliance blunt, there’s no worry
Have time to replace blade, and watch TV
Stroll into work, stroll home, still early, keys
And shopping in my hand, it’s grand to know
So much time left, still so much energy
To write and play, still light outside; now seize
The remains of the day. Makes sense, you know!
Tue 24 Mar 2009

886 - February Debruary

We've slipped on snow and ice trying to get
Together, or get ourselves together
The trains, planes, cars, and even our own feet
Imprisoned at home, saving on leather
Anticipating a change of weather
So we can get it together, us two
And others too: schools where no kids gather
We public sector softies, half of who
Will stay at home given any chance to
So what's the weekend forecast from the Met
Office? Saturday's sunny; temperature
Freezing up in the Pennines. Sunday, cue
The rain. Monday, more snow. May have to let
This cold spell pass; spring's around the corner
Fri 6 Feb 2009

855 - It's a chill wind

Cold Arctic wind combined with clear blue sky
Diagonally crossed by vapour trail
Means rather than go out for a walk, I
Will stay at my desk this lunchtime. The pale
Sun oversees anaemically the tale
Of winter once again, cold spells that sting
The face and fingers, trying not to fail
Employers' expectations; I'm struggling
With aching gums and teeth, and following
Up things I've started, ambitions I try
To meet, lost in the cold atmosphere, stale
As working life reasserts its draining
Of energy and hope. Old people die
In unheated flats. The last coffin nail.
Tue 6 Jan 2009

835 - Song of the dark 2

Hooray! It’s nearly time to celebrate
The passing of the darkest day of all
You don’t need to spend wildly to feel great
Or pass out through imbibing alcohol
No, why not simply sit back, meditate
On how once again we survived the fall
And now our frozen fingers push the gate
Into the garden sheltered from the squall
Expecting sunlit lawns and time to wait
Joy frozen like a statue in the hall
Surreal escapism a rising trait
As light and heat fades like a parent’s call
Clinging to children, hoping they’ll placate
These chill winds, their bright cheeks smooth as a ball
Wed 17 Dec 2008

833 - Snow joke

We're simply having a wonderful time
Some of us have split up with their partner
Others have lost their jobs, reason or rhyme
House prices fall like snow, ever faster
That snowman over there's a real b*st*rd
His carrot should be stuck in lower down
Where it can be seen sticking up his rear
And Santa, his gifts are wrapped in plain brown
Bags this year, and bought from 'Under a Pound'
Charity shops that pong like 'Life of Grime'
Old people can't afford to 'Light My Fire'
Let alone relight it; Take That, Boyzone
They're all back, and my shoes don't even 'Shine'
Oh yes, so much to smile about, ain't there?
Mon 15 Dec 2008

825 - Time to leave the playground

Beautiful blue sky, winter blue sky blues
Noticing red ears, noses and faces
Frosty ground fosters slips, slides, the odd bruise
Boots, gloves for those you love in cold places
Smoky breath, tokens of death in phases
From warmth to chill, as from health to illness
Children laugh, old men cough and wipe noses
Low key minders, reminders of stillness
Playground sounds, parental unwillingness
Mid-afternoon, soon hidden in the hues
Of purple, the bright bauble’s last traces
Stay down now as night covers trees and grass
With numbing blanket. Thank it, don’t refuse
For someone’s needed to push up daisies
Sun 7 Dec 2008

824 - Saturday shopping spree

A lovely sunny winter’s day shopping
In Macclesfield and then in Manchester
First stop was Aldi, using their parking
Facilities and buying our drinks there
Next stop the charity shops, which was where
I hoped to find cheap clothes, but instead they
Were packed with eighties records; grabbed our share
Ate a snack or two, then drove all the way
To town and braved Primark on Saturday
Okay, maybe I did too much spending
But two coats, eight tops, three trousers later
I felt better equipped than yesterday
Not only that, but it was fun spending
Some time with a good friend, so thanks to her
Sat 6 Dec 2008

821 - Winter memoryland

My ears ache from the cold, and I love it
It’s like the winters of old, of boyhood
It’s fun being outside, a little bit
Nostalgic; takes me back to when I would
Slip newspapers in letterboxes; good
Winters with decent helpings of crisp snow
Earning enough to buy records that should
Be worth something now, and enough to go
To gigs by the Jam, the Banshees; you know
The sort of groups I liked. They had a hit
Or two in the late 70s. All good
Guitar-based stuff. Made us want to pogo
I remember when the fans all used to spit
On the singers. Punk rock was not yet dead.
Wed 3 Dec 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

748 - Bye bye blackbirds

The time of year is here when leaves turn brown
And well-fed birds point young beaks at the sky
The time of growth is over; they have found
Their feet; now they must flap their wings and fly
Over the sea and land to some new dry
Warm shelter which they’ll make their own and fill
With their own stolen sticks; where they’ll apply
Inherited instincts, do what they will
Tiptoeing on their own soil, dart and drill
For buried treasure moving underground
Sharp-eyed and wary by day, and, perched high
On distant branch, work done, ready to trill
Their thrilling songs, our simple tunes outgrown
Replaced by rare rapturous melody
Sun 21 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

730 - Summer's end

Well I can now officially declare
That was the worst summer I’ve ever known
Very few sunny days, no chance to wear
Your summer gear, unless, of course, you’ve flown
Abroad this year. The rain’s fallen, wind’s blown
Last night I got drenched while out buying beer
Today is too cold to walk into town
Tomorrow it seems like I’ll have to wear
An autumn jacket. But, though skies aren’t clear
Stiff upper lip, folks, and never despair
Bad weather keeps us in, keeps us alone
Stops us from spending (except on a beer)
Credit crunch cutbacks; we’ve got to take care
To reduce debts and not take out more loans
Wed 3 Sep 2008

708 - Rain rain don't go away

Sunshine and showers, from morning till night
Make pretty flowers, bright green blades of grass
The happy faces when the sun shines bright
The empty places when it rains at last
The summer’s nearly over, nearly past
We’re under the weather, we’re really sad
We’re flying far away, we’re spending fast
We’re lying there today, splendidly glad
We don’t like sunshine and showers, they’re bad
We only like sunshine, so that we might
Do nothing for two weeks… Hey, what a blast
Just lying on a beach, what fun we’ve had
No water needed, alcohol’s all right
Still, nature’s feeding on rainfall’s cool splash
Tue 12 Aug 2008

678 - Learning to dance

It's Sunday, ballet show day in Stockport
They're singing 'Summer Holiday,' dancing
In stripey bathing costumes like they're taught
And at 7.30 the show's starting
Meanwhile the summer school term is ending
The real summer holiday's nearly here
And we must have one, but not depending
On bank balance or whether skies are clear
Two cappucinos and crisps please, young sir
With four new summer tops chosen and bought
That make me look a young fashionable thing
Till they're out of date later on this year
And by these tricks are careless people caught
In debt from peer pressure, overspending
Sun 13 July 2008

636 - Dark June

Oh hell, now June is here so soon it means
That soon it means to get darker again
Enjoy the last three weeks of increased beams
For then the orb we orbit turns just when
The light we worship seems a trusted friend
For its far distant frightening winter home
Growing shadows bestow their death kiss; end
Approaches in its dread red and white form
With frosty beard and funeral bells. Now comb
Your thinning hair and don’t forget sun cream
You mustn’t let your skin peel off. Back when
You were young you could burn and smoke and roam
But now stay safely home, avoiding scenes
Your oxygen, your lifeline, is your pen
Sun 1 June 2008