Belt and braces

Purple coats
Pointy shoes
All manner of shirts
Patterns confuse

Bags over shoulders
Papers in hand
Voices chatter
About evening's planned

Take a seat
If one's to be found
Stop and simply
Glance around

I watch the people on the train
Their dress, demeanour, never the same
Guys on phones, just like me
Ladies read the paper, elegantly
Watches, rings, catch my eye
Passengers bump me as they walk by
I wonder who, what, where and how
But I'll just stop and watch for now

Flowery umbrella
A pretty thing
Unshaven man
Shades of Mr Gosling

Suit and trainers
Seems so odd
Does he really have
That far to plod

Smiling redhead
Hair pulled back
So many people
Clothed in black

I watch the people on the train
As they stare outwards at the rain
Lady sighs so heavily
Sparkling pendant, so pretty
Eyes of blue bore right back
Catching me, I lose my tack
It's the little things that intrigue me so
We've arrived in town, time to go

I watch the people, all the while
It's something to do, it makes me smile

Wistful

I'll tell you a yarn
Of a summer's day
Where the sun shone bright
And we had time to play

Climb high mountains
Paddle through streams
Did all those things
We promised in our dreams

Jumped out of
A perfectly good plane
Landed with a bump
Then did it all again

Took a bungee jump
Off a bridge so high
It felt for a lifetime
That I could fly

Sat by the fire
Shared stories and more
You never once told me
That I was a bore

Raced in fast cars
Through winding hills
Wind in our hair
Loving the thrills

Visiting places
We'd longed to go
Carefree as the rain
Or a flake of snow

But those are just stories
Something in my head
May be pictures I've seen
Or stories I've read
Not a drop of truth
Just a heap of desire
Which life has seen fit
To disrupt and conspire

To consign it all
Forever and a day
To wants and wishes
And lacklustre dismay
May be it's time
I realised the truth
That wants and wishes
Belong in my youth

Dawn sketch

Grab with both hands
The blanket of night
Trick the sun
In to withholding it's light

Give the birds a banquet
So they won't sing
About the break of day
Or anything

Turn all alarms
To a twenty-four hour snooze
The warmth of my bed
I'm not ready to lose

Let me find sleep
Not writing words here
Bring comfort and safety
As if you were near

Breathe

Heart starts to race
As the cross-trainer pounds
Legs endlessly
Circling around

Sweat pours from pores
As the effort grows
Every sinew burns
From head to toes

Straining hard
Lungs on fire
Climbing the hill
I quickly tire

I gasp, I wince, grit my teeth and seethe
Can't find the breath to breathe, breathe

Smoggy air
As the traffic waits
Fumes rise up
As the light dictates

Who can race off
With foot hard down
As the rush hour builds
Across the town

The misty haze
They leave behind
Covers everything
And clouds the mind

I cough, I choke, try as I need
Can't find the breath to breathe, breathe

It closes in
Surrounding me
An air of distrust
Perpetually

Looks and glances
Silently question
Motives and purpose
Every intention

Straining hard
To reign myself in
Find some space
Amongst the din

I'm lost in the tangled web I weave
Can't find the breath to breathe, breathe

Familiar

Fabio Capello
Was on my train today
Writing, pondering
At least it seemed that way
Taking note
Of those around
A defiant stare
He held his ground

Wonder how many people ask
'Is it really you?'
'Or are you a stunt double'
How oft' they misconstrue

Because he looks familiar
At least from the outside
They expect him to be similar
On the inside
I'd be insulted
If it were truly me
Being judged at face value
So readily

Mister Hugo Weaving
Stood in the train doorway
Matrix-type shades fixed in place
'Mr Anderson' he'd say
Staring at those
Who caught his view
Playing the part
As you do

'Man, you're just so alike'
He wants them to exclaim
'You and horrid Agent Smith'
'Really are the same'

Because he looks familiar
At least from the outside
They expect him to be similar
On the inside
I'd be insulted
If it was me
Being judged at face value
So readily

I'd be disappointed
If their outlook was so thin
That they could only view me
From the appearance of my skin








Tuesday 24 July - on the train were Fabio and Hugo look-a-likes who were the inspiration for this verse

Shine

Wake up before five
Light streaming through
Windows that need cleaning
But that's between me and you

Lift myself up and out
Duty calls aloud
Saddle up, don the shades
And head in to the crowd

Sunbeams blaze
A misty haze
Makes it hard to see the way
Flickering through trees
And whispering leaves
A gorgeous start to the day

Head to the station
Gather with the throng
Hear complaints about the weather
Now that's so very wrong

Why can't you simply stand there
And bask in all it's glow
Enjoy the moment while it lasts
You know?

No train delay
Shadows play
Distorting every view
Lift your eyes
Up to the skies
Of glorious, glorious blue

Make hay, they say
While the weather's fine
So like the sun
It's time to shine

Silver

A sliver of grey
Delivers me on
Through tunnels and cuttings
Till most travellers are gone

Papers are strewn
Across now empty chairs
Smoky reflections on windows
Cast ghostly stares

Dark looming clouds
Fill up the skies
Their leaden umbrella
Stretches so wide

I long for a silver
That sparkles bright
That lifts up the spirits
Not hampers delight

Not ashen or granite
Nor somber or stone
What around me now
Can atone

The shiny heart necklace
Of the lady near me
The platinum rings
Of those in my company

Earrings that shake
As the train flies by
The glittering powder
That shadows her eye

Whispery highlights
All pearly and light
Carry me to
Where I must alight

Destination reached
Empty carriage I depart
My colours all sorted
My day set to start

Longing for the sun

No matter the day
All remains grey
Gloom covers everyone
From morning's first light
To commencement of night
We're longing for the sun

Work through the grind
The duties that bind
Shame there's an absence of fun
Until we escape at the end
Hoping to greet our friend
But we're longing for the sun

To walk on the beach
Have the waves lap your toes
Put factor thirty
On your blistering nose
Go out in just shirt sleeves
Or the tiniest dress
And never end up
A goose pimpled mess
To bask in the heat
As it pours down on you
To look up to see sky
Of glorious blue
Watch flowers bloom
Not pelted by rain
Please, please, can you
Wipe away all this pain

As August looms near
Can't help shed a tear
Summer's course is almost run
And is there anything worse
Than writing a verse
Longing for the sun

Costa Composition

Kicking back
Espresso in hand
Taking time out
A moment unplanned

Feeling slightly grown up
Spreading my wings
Reading papers, relaxing
All those adult things

Amazingly easy to forget who you are
When you ferry kids endlessly by car
Strangely simply to stop being you
When every minute there's a chore to do
Complacent, complicit, in my demise
Lost who I am when I wear this disguise
Doubting, daunted, by what lies ahead
May be I should just be in the now instead

My cup's drained
Only tide marks remain
Was lovely to feel
Vaguely human again

All it needed
Was the news and coffee
Then I stop being 'Dad'
And start being Three

Unplanned outage

It just stops dead
Nothing at all
Quiet descends
Life slows to a crawl

Communication
Ceases immediately
Friends are cut off
Seemingly

No way to make contact
Can't wave or say hello
To those in your virtual world
The ones you think you know

Imagine if this lasted
Beyond a single day
How ever would we manage
We could never say

Those little tweets
About haribo sweets
That we've got the blues
Oh, I've bought new shoes
Had to journey alone
No friends in your phone
That you're happy or sad
And you'll be eternally glad

When the signal's repaired
And connected is made
All the gripes and the moans
Can now be displayed

Think of a world without me and you
Is that how it feels when there's no O2?

Day two dawns
And nothing has changed
Wi-fi's the saviour
If it can be arranged

There's anger, frustration
The shedding of tears
Time to use a phone box
You've ignored all these years

Still no way to make contact
Except face to face
But you know that's not possible
Isn't it a disgrace?

No FB pokes
Or twitter jokes
From Delaney or Cheggers
About who's now preggers
No sharing of news
Or those damn shoes
It's like everything's at an end
Without messages to send

Think of a world without me and you
Is that how it feels when there's no O2?

Request

I have a small favour
Of which I'd like to ask
It's something only minor
Not a major task

It's starting to unravel
Right before my eyes
What was fine has turned the corner
The results would be unwise

Detriment, embarrassment
Explanations to be made
Don't want it to drag on
Or to find myself mislaid

To my chagrin, a rueful grin
Won't cancel it all out
But before I lose you in detail
Let me tell you what it's about

I need a tiny helping hand
A nudge in the right place
To ensure the success of the day
And to help me save my face

Before you give me your consent
And we firm up our accord
Know there's nothing in return
No prize, and no reward

And now we are all agreed
Your task can be revealed
Please, as the train rumbles on
Wake me up at Sutton Coldfield

People on the platform

The commuters slowly gather
For the delayed eight twenty-seven
The chill of the morning
Wakes those still in slumbering heaven

All manner of colours adorn
North-bound Platform one
It compensates slightly
For the absence of the sun

Zebra print shoes
Matches zebra print top
A variety of heels
Go 'clippety - clop'
A traveller calls out loud
In a guttural way
All heads raise in surprise
That's not the commuter's way

Bags are hoisted on shoulders
As the carriages approach
On each other's personal space
We ignorantly encroach

People on the platform
Barely notice passers by
Except for short skirts or cleavage
That catches their eye
People on the platform
Why are you so blind?
There's a million tiny details
To notice, to find

On the train it's no different
Everyone sits in solitude
Not even acknowledging my 'bless you'
Really, how very rude

Totally blind to everyone else
Lost in their smart phone world
Just as is the writer here
As this poem unfurls

An impatient lady
Continually taps
The sneezing continues
As newspaper flaps
Father and son by me
Exchange words and looks
As we stop at a station
Heads are raised from books

People on the platform
Make their way up and out
Headed towards whatever
Their day is about
People on the platform
See you when it's home time
And then may be you too
Will appear in my rhyme

Back to reality

Numbers flash up on the noticeboard
Train is bang on time
Being whisked away to a different world
With a friendly chime

Passengers embark for another day
Of grime and sweat and toil
Computer screens and ringing phones
While kettles and tempers boil

And yet for so very long
This world has not called to me
Free to do all manner of things
No daily grind for Three

School runs and praise assemblies
Made up my routine
Add hoovers and tidying to the mix
Making sure it's all clean

But now those chores have ended
Or rather banished till weekends
There's other tasks set before me
With which to make amends

And three six five it totalled
To the very date
Snap, add one year on
But in my head it doesn't equate

Where did all the time go
It just vanished in to thin air
No burden on my shoulders
Seemingly free of stress and care

But now it's back to reality
Nine to five straight through
Hold tight, let's go together
And may be I'll feel brand new