Poetry - June 2018

You've Got To Hold And Give But Do It At The Right Time

It's a well known fact in England
That the better the major championship song
The better the team appear to do
And that doesn't appear to be wrong
Look at Going All The Way in 1988
It was totally naff Stock Aitken Waterman
We lost all of our games that time
Leading to us becoming an also-ran
But that all changed in 1990
When New Order had the honour to do it
They teamed up with Keith Allen
And made something rather special, I admit
Catchy synths and bass made it work
With Barney on form with his vocal
But John Barnes doing the rap as well
Just made it all that extra special
I even owned the t-shirt of the single cover
Because it just felt the right thing to do
England progressed through the tournament
The single was New Order's first number one, too
Everyone was singing along to the song
Or attempting the John Barnes rap
And apart from Three Lions in 1996
Every other England football song's been crap.

(Some love Three Lions (and I do like that!) but for me, New Order's World In Motion is the de facto best England football record ever. It got us all the way to the semis and losing to Germany on penalties, but that song carried us through with gusto, and John Barnes' iconic rap, hence the title of the poem being that first line...)

Fail Plan 2020 Part II

So we as passengers get another timetable
That seems to be made up every night
You have to constantly check online
To see if your train may be running alright
The train company claims it's a slow introduction
I see it as nothing but absolute codswallop
They have made a number of significant errors
Meaning that the new times are all ballsed up
It's made my life a miserable time
Wondering what time I'll need to leave home
So that I can ensure I'm not pay docked for being late
Because the trains don't want to run or roam
The final straw for me was last Friday night
Where there were no trains from work to home
For a whole two hours in total - all cancelled
Good job I was heading up North I said, alone
But had I wanted to head home that evening
I would have been understandably cross
As Fail Plan 2020 continues into a debacle
Where the DfT is responsible for this chaos
They play the blame game and blame everyone
But it is they and the Secretary of State who wanted
A big bang new timetable that couldn't be delivered
So surely his sacking is more than warranted.

(The chaos continues, and really the Secretary of State for Transport needs to be sacked. Now.)

Sunshine in Sorrento

Heading along the Bay of Naples
The sun is shining brightly
We're heading to the sunshine of Sorrento
The many lemon trees we can see
Walking down to the harbour
As the boats whisk people to Capri
We just soak up the sun and atmosphere
As Sorrento shines magnificently
We love all the old narrow streets
With the shops selling ceramics and lace
It feels like being in a lovely old town
Where a smile appears on everyone's face
We sit at a bar by the sea
With the sun shining really bright
Having lunch later in the restaurant
Where the outside trees are pretty and light
This place just feels so homely
We could both stay by the sea forever
As we walk around the sunshine in Sorrento
So glad we've been here together.

(Seriously: if you are anywhere near the Bay of Naples, head to Sorrento. It is absolutely beautiful. Words alone cannot describe, so maybe some pictures can.)

Castles in Naples

I enjoyed my stay in Naples
It really was a mixture in the city
Parts that were really beautiful
And others that were urban and gritty
One thing that dominated the landscape
Were three castles in the city
One was high up in the hillside
Overlooking the other two by the sea
I had to explore the strongholds
And climb up the towers inside
To appreciate the views and their defences
And plenty of places for soliders to hide
Defending the city from invasion from the sea
Or heading up the hill and over land
The three castles are icons of the city
And visiting them all was really grand.

(They have to be done - all three of them. One is free, one is half price on a Tuesday too..)

Retracing Audrey's Steps

When in Rome, they say
Do as the Romans would do
I did want to see the sights
But one in particular was a must do
Audrey Hepburn is one of my icons
And of course one famous film she was in
Was based in this very city
So I wanted to retrace the steps and win
We headed on the Metro
And got off at Spagna station
Walked through the long tunnel
To the square and met salutations
I looked to my left, there they were
The Spanish Steps down to the square
I so wanted the place to be empty
So I could pretend that I was there
When the filming was taking place
All over the city such as the Trevi Fountain
But most of all I'm retracing her steps
And that for me was a special thing.

(Must now re-watch Roman Holiday again..)