I used to buy my Herbert
Off of
Tommy Steveo
A formidable
Sharp streetwise old hippy
Didn't take any or give no *****
But he wouldn't stiff you or take no ****
A beautiful brash soul
Always driven by reason
He had a memory
I could barely believe
Knew facts of which I could not conceive
From every match
That the reds ever played
Answer never delayed
Instantly dragged out into the smoke
He saw Buddy Holly at the Philharmonic
He had a light for a young McCartneys Chronic
And he had the best ****.

Lawrence Hall
Mhall46184@aol.com
Dispatches for the Colonial Office

                                     Late January is a Time of Grey

I read a little in Billy Collins just now
Because Tolkien is in the other room
Along with the laundry and an unmade bed
Late January is a time of grey

I just want to sit with my coffee awhile
And then I’ll stow the laundry and make the bed
The dishwasher can remain silent until tomorrow
Late January is a time of grey

I was nibbled to death by ducks today
Because
Late January is a time of grey

Lawrence Hall
Mhall46184@aol.com
Dispatches for the Colonial Office

                                  The Bright Green Wheelie-Bin

                            (Much Superior to a Red Wheelbarrow)

The wheelie-bin is pretty in its own rustic way
Thick plastic moulded in ecological green
To be rumbly-dragged on garbage day
To the end of lane to grace our suburban scene

Very little depends upon the wheelie-bin:
Unpleasant household garbage on its rounds
The really useful stuff has been well dug in
The loam – potato peels and coffee grounds

But note ye well - this garden plot thickens
For we have sparrows and crows
                                                           ­                   but no white chickens

Round the corner from
McCartneys home
High as six kites
Me and tony did  gloam
From gobshite the clown
On what seemed a wind up
Stevie had just wound up
Took several calls back to make sure the truth
A young man had just ripped himself out by the root
Played Sunday league the next day
For the wrong team
And then later headed to Anfield
For the game
Gainst the Mancs
Which we won
Two nil
The funny thing
Stevie
Worked in the box office
There was six empty seats
All round about us.

Imagine the stock
You come from
Your brother
Your sister
Your father
Your mum
The pool of the soup
The essence of bread
The things you decided
Went on in your head
To have a brother
So close to your age
Is a blessing
According to
Mr Farnsworth.