Friday, 31 July 2026

Office Christmas Party, I Forget Which Year

To save money and because we were all so
Key worker busy shifting through the festive period

The grand project the big launch
We barely decorated the office and
Barely held some celebrations there

Dirty laundry in my cabinet
Stuffed below a stack of microwave snacks

I'd hardly ventured outside in weeks
No time to visit the parents, such a
Great excuse, working right up to the chimes
Sober as the days were long

Someone started vacuuming at five minutes past
Another kip on the camp bed beckoned

Some messages pinged on my phone
Old friends, your mum and dad, then
An unknown number reading:

hi lov e yuo bu t
we cantt b fr einds ny mor e
hapy new ye r
wi ll neve r forg t th ose time sx

And I won't get any older

The overpowering even through
the car window of the farmyards and
muck spreading in Hampshire fields
as a new song comes on the radio
about a man who used to be disgusted

I'd recently become obsessed with
every new song and all the old songs
a thrilling addiction that
lit up my developing brain along
side the horrifying surges of puberty
with much sprouting and eruptions
        I tried to be amused

But how long can you hold your breath and
pretend none of this is happening
the horrors of school briefly paused
now the immersion in family conflict
can be resumed, and how long

Will this stench continue, it's
right in the back seat with me and
my oblivious sister
in the days before seatbelts
on the way to grandma's
for the summer holidays it's
as if the filth will cling to me forever

Same as the man on the radio with
the unlikely name who's done some kind of
deal with he devil even if he talks
        of angels



Ha ha ha


Wednesday, 29 July 2026

Every minute more

Only deepens the humiliation
just know this
when a person
tries to fight back
against severe degradation
using aggression
or retaliation
it often fails
to restore power
and instead only deepens
the humiliation
severe degradation

locking the victim
further into
a painful cycle
of powerlessness
and conflict
to preserve the memory
to bear witness
to take revenge
severe degradation

Just know this
Jesus said that everyone
who exalts himself
will be humbled, and
he who humbles himself
will be exalted
to take revenge
and seek justice
or ultimately
to forgive
severe degradation


Beau Is Afraid


She learned to express

Untitled
woman of braided steel
raised by parents
recurring themes
drawings of fading memories
who ran who helped

one of the great figures
iconic
drypoint and etching
Do You Love Me?
rendition of the encased couple
etching in red
I Love You
that was our punishment
a deep focus tapestry
iconic

Do You Love Me?
explore materiality
twinrocker paper support
a gifted student
a gift of love
in the workshop
I wanted to love
on wove paper
restoration business
estimate USD 60,000
explore gender norms
transform love
freighted with meaning
initialled in pencil
into hate iconic
raised by parents
to love you more

the depths of
how can I be you
tenderness and trauma
red boot-like figures
I Wanted to Love You More
her own psychology
emptied of it
renowned literary translator
the words "we love you"
iconic
rising from water in a circle
to her friend
removed under data protection
raised by parents
free delivery over £1,000

her friend and assistant
raised by parents
I wanted to love
untitled
she also helped out
explains the childhood
to lo ev yo u mo r e



Louise Bourgeois


Monday, 20 July 2026

On the rebound

So many times I tried
to get through to you
trampoline friends are not real friends
you can't rely on them
you will not survive the
tough times with them. Now

How can you expect me
to go with you to their
bouncing jamboree, or the
thanksgiving tumbling party

I don't roll like that
I won't somersault for you
And I'll say it again your
trampoline friends are not real friends

Down time

We were just normal men
goofing off in the office
in our private lives
in our personal times
Gavin and let's call him Lee
mid-level digital warriors
for the camera sported
oversized red bucket hats
just a couple of gorms
covered by cheap millinery
we sent the cropped
screenshot to the group chat
using the anon option
asking have you seen these
suspicious bucketheads
all in our off duty lives
all in the lunchbreak times
we asked the Q and came back
the A that one's Lee! yes
that's definitely him, we
recognise that old turkeyneck
don't need to see - in fact
would rather not see - his
maroon prune fizz
obscured by bucket don't
forget zoom at five

Friday, 17 July 2026

Barbecues I never had

If I was a dad
I'd have the Best Dad Ever written on my
big golden daddy of a mug
and glug my tea out of it
make it extra sweet, just like me

If I was a dad
I'd be the best dad those kids ever had
make my own five-a-side team
we'll go boy boy girl girl boy
then I think we'd better stop there

If I was a dad
I'd bring home the bacon,
I'd win the bread
but you can't drive my car,
you won't get in my head

If I was a dad
I'd be the kind of dad that gave the other dads
a good run for their money
keep them on their toes
put them in their place
to be fair. I'd be a very fair dad
up to a point and you'll never
be sure where that point begins
or ends

If I was a dad
you could be my wife and you'd love
every minute of our life, I swear
I'd treat you like a princess
unless you disappointed me in any number of ways
and then you'd see
a very different side of me

If I was a dad
I'd enjoy a laugh as much as the next man
but if you mistake that for weakness
you'll discover I'm not
the forget and forgiving kind

I'll be very firm but very fair
justice must be seen to be done
no one comes at the daddy

If I was a dad
I'd be all for equal rights but
at the same time
I will wear the trousers
and I will wear the pants
it's not so complicado
this daddy's numero uno

Tavern Legend

 You're fired

-SLAM!-

Help her?

- Thank you!

- I am completely drenched

a Towel b Comb c Sponge

- I'm feeling better.

- I still feel very cold.

a Match b Clothes c Hot Water

Interesting...

- I want to drink something hot.

a Hot Tea b Ice Drink c Hot Milk

- Are you serious?

- You don't really want to help me.

Interested ✓ Not interested? x

Install

Choose your own adventure

Wouldn't you submit to the lioness
prowling in her pearl dress
present yourself seasoned and
diced for her delectation if
she only possessed the
unfurled
inclination
of the unreasonable

Saturday, 11 July 2026

Standard Pause Notation

Admiration for Linguistic Stillness
Suspicion of Performative Gestures

        minor cessation (;)

Bring forth the Chronometer of Gaps
Discard the Chronometric Spectroscope

        emphatic hush (_)

Unshackle your Percussive Oscillator
Consult the Gazetteer of Gaps

Do not commit Chthonic Signage heresy
The Petrified Whisper is a lie

        perceptual void (∅)

Begone ye geosymbolists, retire
to your Obsidian Depths

        calibrated lapse (◬)

Medical Emergency Song

I got a sebaceous cyst
a lump as big as your fist
got so much sebum it makes me sick
dome-shaped bump, and really thick

I require medical attention
cause my life's in suspension
my oil-producing gland
is really getting out of hand

Sebaceous
it stops me being flirtatious
sebaceous
full of pus and capacious

Sebaceous cyst
I've never been kissed
sebaceous cyst
do you get the gist
sebaceous cyst
you won't be missed
sebaceous cyst
you're not on my shopping list

It's a source of distress
a cause of some tenderness
it's an epidermoid issue
and I really won't miss you
when you're surgically excised
I'll feel more civilized
farewell keratin protein
no more skin like a baked bean

Sebaceous
oh how to stop it
sebaceous
you better not pop it


Ximhart xo Xantaven (1980)

 Xor xi xyor xansar

      xedoprah xingtab xolokning

xrak xoffe xincea xargo

xuvvakra xeelgo xaarpo xybe xefels

      xissnaa xibbotah


xyo xanna xamak - xingbat -

xaam xoonor xohxex xorgle

      xexi xubble xatt xraxak

            - xubxab -


xohxex xararu xublut

      (xurla xorkral)

xwepgo xax xijnab

      (xiffer xoober)

xanderxoon xin xassfapooha


xamuro xip xuplugg

      xodro xratbee

xohxex xiste xantena xaura

      xok xakamara

xak xes xing xyo


xorfa xo xamo xaxilling

      xrof xelango xo xymo

      xraxax xak xodron

xarxa ximhart xo xantaven


All the Trimmings

Joe hadn't spoken to anyone in three months
weekends shut in, and now the festive period
was crawling into view
with dread in its locks and bleakness in his house

Joe forced himself to go for a walk,
on such a cold and winter's day,
down to St Luke's
he would never venture inside,
he wasn't that desperate
but there was a glowing structure in the grounds
strangely alluring in the afternoon gloom
maybe a nativity scene
it couldn't hurt to take a closer look
find some minor amusement at the tableau
of angels and farmyard animals

Joe was too close to turn back when he realised
it was just a hut selling Christmas trees
'Can I help you mate?'
for Christ's sake he couldn't just leave
and he wasn't in the market for a
mansized fir companion
'Last few remaining mate, I can do you
a very reasonable deal'

Joe opened his voice and tried to explain
his vision of the nativity and
how he didn't really celebrate Christmas
'I get it mate, I really do. We should
focus on the core message and ignore all
the modern sideshow. Even I can see that.
Tenner each though. All gotta go.'

Joe lugs his mansized fir companion
back up the road. Might as well
buy a turkey now


Tuesday, 7 July 2026

Cute Paper Hedgehogs

on closer inspection
parents were horrified
seemed like a kind gesture
no malice involved
a man approached
an older man
just a mistake
unsettling encounter
Merseyside police
normally checked the pages
crafted the little creations
pure sexual stuff
Nicholson Baker

       𝄐

grabbed a middle page
absolutely obsessed
received a hedgehog
and a furry nose
came across a Facebook post
no offences have been committed
seven other families
it was adult content
eager to get their hands
parents were so concerned
taken home a hedgehog
a carrier bag full of them
mortified by the mistake
handing them to children
made them at home as a hobby
made from explicit pages
ran upstairs and grabbed
for a local charity
pure sexual stuff
Nicholson Baker

       𝄐

complete with googly eyes
created in good faith
only some contained
sister being murdered
handmade creations distributed
explicit content
their hands on a hedgehog




Paper hedgehog




Monday, 6 July 2026

I want to reach the final with you

We came through the lengthy qualifying group
playing home and away, at first
some glorious wins followed
by a narrow squeak, a stalemate
and one or two disappointments it has to be said

We weren't the best
but we weren't the worst

Everyone would agree that
improvements had to be made
tactical tweaks, some fresh energy
could help
but let's not panic

We made it through the group stage with ease
solid performances all round
some of it was cagey and
may have lacked for excitement
but we got the job done, you know
at this stage
it's all about
getting the
job done, it's certainly no
time to panic

Some sniped where's the flair, where are
the thrills we were promised
but you know at this level
it's a results business
this isn't a Hollywood movie, it's
real life, you just
keep plugging on

There were some calls for radical change
but we've come this far
with a solid defence, so
we can afford to ignore the small voices

We must stick together -
team spirit, hard work,
trust in the process -
see the job through to the bitter end

Quarter-finals, semi-finals
waiting for the knockout

I'm in it for the duration
I'll cope with red cards
I'll deal with the injuries
I'm ready for penalties

I want to reach the final with you



Brackets


Saturday, 4 July 2026

My latest misadventures

Why always me, I thought as the last-remaining
Alcott barrier on the London network
clamped down on my back, it
was an honest midjudgement on my part
I'm sure they'll - ouch.

Extrication was an impossible task,
there was an ineffectual flailing of limbs
and a plaintive cry 'Excuse me. Can somebody help?'

Boots I saw muddy boots and a sarcastic
ha-ha look at this one
flapping like a crab with its claws taped up
you know the penalty for Fare Evasion son

Sir I am 57 years old.

We all saw you on CCTV trying to
scuttle under the Alcott
she's an unforgiving mistress isn't she?

What the hell. Can you just release -

My partner of course was nowhere to be seen,
and I could hardly blame her. She didn't need
to get mixed up in another one of my escapades
what with her professional standing. We would laugh
about it one day, maybe later this
very day, over a nice casserole and a glass of vino

* * * *

I'd purchased the not
inexpensive can of Qhoopass™ for an occasion such as this
popped the flap to see the liquid iron filings
slurp and assemble rather pleasingly, then ascend
my enemy's leg his chunky faux leather clad
treetrunk leg. Now, I thought, he
will rue the day. Oh he will rue it.
So long as he withheld his disbelief
long enough for the patent Qhoopass™
congealing process to render him paramagnetified 

* * * *

My pride and joy allotment crater
had flooded, so I tried to rescue the
latest cucumber crop. 

First things first I should alert my tidy wife
but the burning sun and the floods, the
exponential fruit and vegetable growth
it was all too much really. Whatever
you do don't panic

Stuffed some of my proud cucumber in my mouth
my fat mouth to test its resilience. A moist chew
and most delish to use a word my wife hated

I was going to offer a cutting of
this fast growing heritage gourd
to Annette my co-worker
but right now yes I should warn the others

To lend myself some dignity I donned
a straw hat and my vintage t-shirt
the one sporting the legend
Canned Iron Comedian
we all liked the way it hung on my dadbod

The water was rising and my top was wet
tried to pull it off over my head
but it got trapped in the straw hat
my mouth full to choking with fruit
or was it a vegetable, and I recalled

The words wise words of Wolsey: All
human activity is meaningless, and
struggle is futile boy

Some local children had spotted my pool
and began to frolic, good for them

* * * *

But once she found it charming the sweet talk
and the queer slang I used

She said you big dummy don't you see
how the whales and elephants
are looking down on us from their jungle perch

She was convinced they were spying on us
something to do with the refraction of light
nacreous clouds, the fata morgana

At first it seemed quirky cute later
frankly insane, plus she had the temerity
to say they were trying to burn the five statues
of our heroes the great ones our champions
the five true statues we'd been searching for all our lives

We had never been told their names
why do your sky creatures have it in for those guyz
oh, she said, you know they're guyz

I needed some new vocabulary to
pull down the ropes from the skyline

Friday, 3 July 2026

Ivory Power more like

The decision of granting of tenure is a life long commitment
Oooooh I'm up for tenure mur mur muh

I left teaching because I couldn't get tenure
I stopped worrying about tenure
So it looks like I got my tenure

The rules have saddled colleges
with self-indulgent prima donnas
elbow-patch eggheads and smug becardiganed twerps
who seem to think they're philosopher kings

Checklist, I never leave home without
One, my laser pointer with five settings
it's a real ice-breaker with the sophomores

Tenure can be used as a club to wield against the powerless
O me! O life! I'm having a mid-term crisis
I mean, I have tenure. I really can say whatever I want

Two, reference management software
i.e. EndNote to manage libraries

Tenure in any department is a serious business
His tenure review is in three months
It means, essentially, employment for life
You can't get fired, even if you're bad at it?
He's trying to get an article in print
What does Gopnik say?

I mean, I have tenure and it's a terrible idea
Well I'm up for tenure this fall
I really can't say whatever I want

Three, leather bound notebook
it adds a touch of olde worlde class
yet remains entirely blank

I can really say whatever I want
I'm up for tenure at Columbia!
It keeps them around forever and they don't have to work hard
What does Gopnik think?
I'll be up for tenure in a few years. Does that count?

Four, my periodic table temperature-controlled mug
gifted me by a fellow Nobel Laureate

Professor Thurber loves to teach
but I really didn't want to become a professor
or get tenure or even teach or even exist

Maybe we don't have to wait for tenure. Maybe we
just say goodbye yellow brick road goodbye Harvard
or maybe we just have to wait to wait to wait for tenure

Five, I like to wear the full gown, hood, Tudor bonnet regalia
my track record of astronomical research
deserves a certain ceremonial grandiosity

I probably shouldn't be saying this on TV, but
a dual monitor setup is de rigueur
sure a stylus tablet, the stream deck and
to the extent that tenure supports ergonomic peripherals
a high-end USB microphone, and academic freedom, I support tenure

"I'm a tenured professor"
Congratulations. I'm so happy for you
Professor Thurber swears by Hagoromo fulltouch chalk and yet
the academic tenure process stands in the way of great research
Oh Donald you don't have to tell me about
the dramas played out in academic departments

I have a tenure joke, but you won't get it

Pluracy

Taylor Swift (Irish accent)

Taylor Swift (Japanese accent)

Taylor Swift (Scottish accent)

Taylor Swift (French accent)

Taylor Swift (Australian accent)

Taylor Swift (Italian accent)

Taylor Swift (Jamaican accent)

Taylor Swift (German accent)

tˈeɪlɚ swɪft (unintelligible accent)

Taylor Swift (Dutch accent)

Taylor Swift (Irish accent again)

Taylor Swift (Swedish accent)

Taylor Swift (Spanish accent)

Taylor Swift (Russian accent)

The gang gets the technology

The gang reassembles in the old flat
it's not an apartment or a condo Mehgun
in superliminal munculate mode
due to the archetypal limbo state discovered
back in 2050 by the Lunar HoloMonks

ElVee proudly displays an apple
box of tiny green lightbulbs
'You remember these, they're collectors items'
he gathered from the wreckage of the house next door

He thinks there's a market for everything
but he's the market. 'You're the market buddy'

Later sat in Loop's room with a floral IPA
I point out their window at the new shops
which were once shady lock-ups. They're in
a low mood 'They just sell trash'

Try to lift them up 'Maybe I want to buy trash'
They jab back 'You can certainly afford it, all that
cash under your mattress'

The dynamics are the same, the main difference
is we have a Skiv-0h for the washing up. Mehgun says
'doing the dishes' of course. She's visiting as usual,
stays long weekends at least half
the week never any suggestion of paying rent
but I've learned to keep my fat lip shut

Something's off and I try to voice a thought
about cheap nanosurgeons who fail their Grade One
stitch class but ElVee waves me away
'That's such a 1986 thought, you
can't live in the past' but that's
exactly the point

It was (certainly not) the worse of times
wait a minute, it was always the worst
once we had t-shirts printed up
reading We are the Worst after the Dean's remark

The fire in the swimming pool.
'The corpse in the shopping trolley'
adds ElVee. 'And the bomb that
definitely wasn't a bomb!' pipes up Mehgun

She suggests taking
the aeriolator to the newmarket
see if anyone wants our vintage lightbulbs

Loops still likes to squeeze my shoes,
always with the shoe envy
'Green - felt' he murmurs
'They're not for sale.'

Their grandson avatar has popped up
naturally I point out these munchkins
are illegal now. Loops says it's a mere residue and
Bobin is pure fog which can't be detected

But 40 years ago or 40 years ahead
even if we are the worst I say
let's all make up and be fuzzy friends again

Thursday, 2 July 2026

Beanstock Festival

Bean Day were the headliners
Haricot Styles, Fava John Misty
you get the picture (yes we see)

He enjoyed them all
but he never found his way back
he's been driving round the car park
looking for a way out
in a clapped out cracked up tractor

He's been living off black beans baked beans kidney beans
they never held the festival again so he
can dust the crops with the gift of methane

He's been bin diving for rags and tools
his one-man tent has seen better days
his bin diving in a ditch
his bin diving in a foxhole
has rendered him unrecognisable
even unto himself yes
we've all seen better days

He's been living off soy beans butter beans broad beans
he's been sick he's been well he's been
to heaven and he's seen hell

He's seen sunshine and he's seen rain
treated both of them with disdain
he's been better but haven't we all
and he's been down so long
it feels like up to him

He's been living off and in and under the land
he reckons he's got another 25 years in him
the festival of survival is second nature
the spectacle of surprises will never end

Wednesday, 1 July 2026

The Zelkova Tree

I think that I shall never see
anything like the Zelkova tree

A tree which sits on Dulwich Common
it's been added to Google maps
native to Japan, this foreign
import has led some to rhapsodise
about its charms - 'splendid, awesome
with a muscular fluted trunk'

Others are less impressed
with this 200-year-old guest

'good tree'
'adequate tree'
'I mean its a tree innit'

    'Just the tree
    near the park
    and near the road'