simmers a soup of leftovers
whilst he searches for the right paper
without lines
without margins

he settles down to scratch his creative itch
with a yellowing finger
he hesitates at the edge

scrawling barren furrows
in turquoise ink
he loses a knife to the floor

adding salt
he shuffles
cooling his soup in the vowels of a breath
making steam
which hovers above the table
like mist over water
until rivulets of purple jewels
trickle from his eyes
blurring his vision of reality

the clock is ticking but he must wait
for the comfort of soup in his belly
for the whisper of words on the page

From inside their socks all laced up in plastic
the smell of your body appears olfactively

bad, from the odour of dimples to the hum of the shins
a repulsive reminder of restaurant bins.

Every pore, every sweat gland, harbours a smell.
If your feet could start talking you might hear them yell

“Clean up your body you’re a walking disgrace
that mustardy ear wax should bring tears to your face.

It’s like cheese left in cling film mixed with soap on a rope.
Get back in that shower or you’ll smell like the bloke

wearing boiled sprout cologne in the middle of summer
with the hint of a Lycra clad long distance runner.

Picture spuds going mouldy or carrots gone soft.
Or learn from your feet and keep it all in your socks.”

maybe something that is written about (I don’t know) but something that is mundane – very late – but I bumped into Val yesterday in Tesco’s car park and I have challenged her to post in the next couple of weeks – so here goes …..

God sat down in his conservatory
and noticed the world was full of washing
his view was full of washing

so God invented Silicone Valley
and blessed it with sunshine
blue skies and cartoon trees

the washing dried quickly
man played outside in the fresh air
God had a lovely view

but man got bored with fresh air
it was hot and it made him irritable
so he went inside

inside was boring
there was no fresh air
and nothing to do

so God invented technology
gave man the remote control
and air conditioning

man bought himself a larder fridge
drank ice-cold beer
and everyone was happy

until God sent man a bill
which he could not pay
so man worked overtime

he was tired after work
too tired to do his washing
and then he noticed his wife had left him

on Monday morning
man went to work grumpy rude
the boss texted God asking for help

God missed the message
he was outside in the fresh air
pegging out his washing