A soft, sleepy, gentle good night kiss,

a lingering, lurking…. laden, less is more kiss.

And ended in bliss.

Hot, breathless, pounding bliss,

a satiated, surfeit of scented good night bliss.

 Face to face, surrounded by an adolescent thicket

waiting, excited; they stand and stare. ‘Leave her the fuck

alone’ one grates. A shake….of the head and they collide.

Two Bay City Rollers, hard country lads, who knew how to

Stand and fight. Wincing punches traded, the hard crack

Of knuckles, on cheek, nose, lip, head, draws a rabbles gasp.

They go down, one atop the other, and piston like the fist

rises and falls. Muffled, muted moans seep out, as lips bust,

ears bleed, cheeks swell, eyes close and muscles ache.

Standing again, crouch-like, waiting ready. ‘Had enough?’

Bent, breathless, glaring, feeling the pain and sense of loosing.

Spit and blood, pained tears of defeat, defiance, pride. Round two.

No words these friends now; only split flesh, blood and bruises speak.

A ritual, hewn by the crack of bone on bone. A teacher who,

stood by like a coward now arrives, ‘He’s had enough’, and he had.

The circle of crows breaks, and the trance of grit and ugliness, of

Passion and anger is taken. Sickening excitement and fear over,

For a girl…a prize, possession, passion, pride……35 years ago.

© Vincent Creelan 2009

bad day at work hunny!!

The adorable Jake...

Sabotage

Is a gorgeous word, a rich dark word,

my favourite but little used word. It

is an exotic word with history and power,

a word that evokes another language and

culture, an act and consequence. Or ….

perhaps sabotage is just when shit happens.

It was the strokes that robbed me of my Gran

It was the drink that finally broke a son’s love

It was the dust that ruined a dream vacation

It was a bomb that ended a promising career

It was the red tape used as a pathetic excuse

It was a conversation that broke a Prime Minister

It was the inability to talk that split a couple

It was a pyramid money scam in Romania

It was bigotry that tried to make us move out

It was a handball that diminished a reputation

It was being gay that for so long stunted his life

It was another’s jealousy that ended a friendship

It was an age limit that denied him a new hip

It was a txt message that took away the will to live

It was a betrayal that left him dead on the bar floor

It was two glasses that alas made it all come clear

It was a circled personal ad that hurt her so much

It was a failure to act that brought the towers down

It was a joke behind his back that undermined

It was doing the wrong thing for the right reason

It was because loves blinds us sometimes to the truth

It was for the greater good, but at what cost

It was to protect something older, wiser than us

It was lust or love that cheated her of an inheritance

It was distance and family that meant it could not be

It was oil that made the world even less safe than before

It was a mutual friend’s need that broke his heart

Sabotage is a gorgeous word, a rich dark word,

My favourite but little used word. It can be

for change,  scandal, tragedy. It can be

for inaction, or  intervention, for love,

hate, drama and desperation. Or…..

perhaps sabotage is just when shit happens.

I miss the
Cuckoo’s call at dawn,

Or the smell
of a fox at the bottom of my lawn.

The
Peregrines cry has been so quiet of late,

Who can say
what maybe the honey bee’s fate.

There seem
to me, a deal fewer Swallows this year,

When was the
last time you said, is that a Corncrake I hear?

Vanished are
the Daddy-long legs I played with as a boy,

Even the
troublesome ants, fail anymore to annoy.

Well
travelled Chiff-Chaffs and Willow Warblers seem rarer

And wasps at
the barbeque a deal less scarier.

The Irish
Hare appears shy, even in March,

Sadly the
Snipe and Woodcocks fate has been harsh.

Ladybirds
and Butterflies have become man’s pawn,

I miss the
Cuckoo’s call at dawn.

Fixed high
upon a tall, long dead tree.

Its roots,
branches, bark, is shorn; and

Now with
wires and cables it looks so forlorn.

Standing
lonely as it has done for years.

Quite dead,
discoloured, and yet it appears,

It carries
power, light and even chatter,

To our homes
and lives, and that’s what matters.

Long lost
cousins all look on,

Fir, Ash,
Lime, Beech and even Almond

It’s a scene
repeated a million times,

Just one
more example of our bloodless crimes.

Death Valley, Sequoia Nat Park, Garand Canyon and Monument Valley were all so very different but each equally stunning and unique and beautiful…. and quiet/ no crowds which was fab. David photographed endlessly ( 100+ Gb of pics between us!) I wrote and took notes for poems which I am returning to today. The wildlife I encountered was a complete treat; seeing Pacific Otters in the Pacific just enjoying life was a highlight, and a quick glimpse of a Condor in Death Valley a complete surprise.

As for Vegas, I am glad in the end we choose just one day and night there. It is an amazing crazy place, a party town no doubt, with a smorgasbord of delightful talent on display… but in the casinos there is an air of sadness and soulless existance, without now even the echoing sound of dimes/quarters and dollar coins rattling into steel trays. AND just like SF, and NYC before it too many guys and gals living rough on the streets….. and scores and scores of tiny little woman at every block corner plaguing you with call cards for gorgeous women who will come direct to your hotel room to keep you company!!!

Anyhow some pics for now….

Outside there is noise, and cameras and crowds.

Taxis pulling away, police landrovers and cordon tape.

Inside, quiet and dark. With men in white overalls,

Stools lying on their sides, glass broken on the bar.

He lies on his side, face turned in to the toilet door.

Legs curled a little like a child, he does look small.

There are no marks visible, no disturbance.  Just him.

Nor is there life in his hollowing face and unseeing eyes.

He is still, the skin pallid looking older than the day before.

No essence or spirit or vitality; that has drained out, in

A thick dark pool under and around him. He is not there.