Stats - Day 23

poems written = 37

poems written per day = 1.6087
poems remaining = 13

required poems per day = 1.8571

50PoWriMo - XXXVII

meta



just because a poem is slight
a few compact lines
doesn't mean it can't hold some great insight
sadly not the case this time

50PoWriMo - XXXVI

one hundred thousand pounds




thirty-five point six tonnes of pennies
it's hard to picture than many
piled up into a shiny wall
over seven hundred days
(not quite two man-years) at minimum wage
six times the national
debt per head of population
or adjusting for inflation
two grand in 1939
could a man raise ten to the fifth quid if he
suddenly needed extra liquidity
not by selling anything of mine



thanks to @sallonoroff on the twitter for the title (i need all the help i can get)

Stats - Day 22

poems written = 35

poems written per day = 1.5909
poems remaining = 15

required poems per day = 1.875

50PoWriMo - XXXV

twenty years ago today




i remember hearing
a quiet collective cheering
when we heard that she'd withdrawn
and within days she'd be gone
for the first time in my lifetime
i'd live under a new prime
minister although
i'd just assumed she'd never go
we're doing our best to forget her
we knew things could only get better
(though evidently only a tiny bit)

50PoWriMo - XXXIV

to the incredibly loud and annoying girl who won't shut up




trust me darling, you are not
as funny as you clearly reckon
nor for that matter as hot
as you make out with all that make up
(though that battered vintage homburg
and insufficient skirt's a bold fashion
statement) i'm so tired from work
so shut up, grow up - you might wake up

Stats - Day 21

poems written = 33

poems written per day = 1.5714
poems remaining = 17

required poems per day = 1.8889

50PoWriMo - XXXIII

making promises to my son



i can't promise to be someone you're proud of
but i promise to be proud of you
whenever you deserve it
(and to believe that's always)
i can't promise to be a model man
but i promise to be a solid base
from which you can build your own manhood
i can't promise to know what you need
but i promise to teach what i know 
i can't promise to protect you from all harm
but i promise to always be there
to help you pick up the pieces
i can't promise you'll always like me
but i promise i'll never
stop loving you

Stats - Day 20

poems written = 32

poems written per day = 1.6
poems remaining = 18

required poems per day = 1.8

50PoWriMo - XXXII

i've been awake since 4am




the caffeine in my bloodstream tries
to stop me closing up my eyes
although it's all i really want to do
life and children have conspired
to need me awake - though i'm so tired
i'll have to go and make my 13th brew

Stats - Day 19

poems written = 31

poems written per day = 1.6316
poems remaining = 19

required poems per day = 1.7273

50PoWriMo - XXXI

untitled (for my wife)



you are sleeping in my arms
as peaceful as a closed flower
the warmth of your breath
diffusing across my chest
like an ebbing tide
dancing away from the sure
i try to match
the rhythm of your lungs
out of phase to minimise
your rise and fall
the warmth of your closeness
a comfort i cling to

it is in moments like these
when i need you least
i treasure you most

50PoWriMo - XXX

i might get that ...




once there was a girl
with a tattoo on her left cheek
that read
"something this true can never be vain"
her face thus adorned
she made her way through society
leaving in her wake
a trail of doubt and confusion
to what did her bold statement refer?
was it a statement of fact
     or a philosophy?
was there a level of irony
     or was there a flaw in the logic?
was there an absolute truth?
could there be a comparative truth?
for that matter
     was there an absolute vanity?
was it some sort of in-joke?
were they no longer cool enough to understand?
was it real?
     did it hurt?
          would she live to regret it?
but noone ever asked her
they just stared and wondered
because the sort of girl
who has a tattoo on her face
might be too scary to talk to

Stats - Day 18

poems written = 29

poems written per day = 1.6111

poems remaining = 21

required poems per day = 1.75

50PoWriMo - XXIX

i saw her on tv and half my life rolled back




manda rin, manda rin
she sets my hormones in a spin
i barely know where to begin
to talk about sweet manda rin
i love the shouty way she sings
for bis, data panik or the kitchen
she's the teen-c nation's queen

manda rin, manda rin
star of my teenage imaginings
since that photoshoot i'd seen
in melody maker magazine
(you know, where she's tricycling)

manda rin, manda rin
no matter where my heart has been
in all those moments in between
some part has always had her in

50PoWriMo - XXVIII

i had a lot of time for introspection because i forgot my keys and had to wander the streets



there's nothing like doing something stupid
to focus the mind on all the stupid things you did
no matter what achievement may balance the scale, you're
only able to dwell on the failures

Stats - Day 17

poems written = 27

poems written per day = 1.5882
poems remaining = 23
required poems per day = 1.7692

50PoWriMo - XXVII

just some of the many reasons why i have never been successful



i've never had a goal defined with any sense of clarity
i've never worked out how to make motivation
i've never reckoned anything is due to me
i've never shot for things above my station
i've never really not been cruising comfortably
i've never had the courage to commit

i've never mistaken dreaming for reality
i've never worked hard enough for it

50PoWriMo - XXVI

the poet or the marketeer



she would rather date
a successful french poet
than a man who works
in marketing
a reasonable mandate
i thought although it's
not knowledge based, just her
gut feeling

Stats - Day 16

poems written = 25

poems written per day = 1.5625
poems remaining = 25

required poems per day = 1.7857

so that's the half-way mark reached, and only a day behind schedule. i am running very low on ideas and inspiration, however.