When the Dogs Bite

Wednesday, 9 April 2025

9th April 2025

chilly morning

out for an early walk

barking at cats

morning lesson

escaping from North-South

busted lip

IV.VI

She lifts aloft the faded piece of newsprint

while long dried petals fall from a single rose

because the light is dim she finds she must squint

to read the news in journalistic prose.

"Woman killed on Cannock Road street crossing

by the driver of a blue Vauxhall saloon

who fled the scene without even stopping

and left the woman dead beneath the moon.

The victim has been named as Mary Campbell

who lived in local Heathtown Clover Ley.

The unknown driver took a careless gamble

and ditched the car in Dudley's Tivi Quay.

Tuesday, 8 April 2025

8th April 2025

plum blossom

appearing on leafless twigs

faded cherry blossom

IV.V

Next to the front door is another toilet plumbed

though somewhat cleaner than the one upstairs

as though the recent tenant had succumbed

to his responsibilities and cares.

There is evidence of recent use of bleach

for the empty bottle in a waste bin stands

and an untouched roll of tissue set within reach

of a seated person's desperate grasping hands.

The tiny window allows winter light to filter

through crackle-crazy glass preventing views

and on the windowsill below is built a

homage to some yellowed paper news.

Monday, 7 April 2025

7th April 2025

rainbows

through old chandelier glass

vanishing frost

IV.IV

The downstairs floor is covered in cheap vinyl;

a bulk order by the council in the day

her own flat is floored with the identical

though hers is cleaner, she is glad to say.

The front door has a safety glass in viewport

though the glass is barely see-through, thanks to grime;

and on the floor a pile of letters uncaught

by the least efficient basket of all time.

The larger window she was most afraid of

where passers-by could see her trespass here

is covered by some sticky-plastic Fablon;

the kind Blue Peter viewers always cheer.

Sunday, 6 April 2025

6th April 2025

first flames

of the blossoming spring

orange tulips

IV.III

This row of flats in Wolverhampton's maisonettes

have two floors each; a nod to resident's desire

for space to raise a family without regrets

of leaving terraced housing to live higher.

She ventures down the stairs with extra caution

for there are windows facing access to the door

where people can see in, though just the portion

who live upon this residential floor.

But most of these are flats rented to students

who tend to leave them empty when terms end

but it's always wise to be a little prudent

about the passers-by she might offend.

Saturday, 5 April 2025

5th April 2025

sparring

in the evening sunshine

eggs and chips

IV.II

The toilet here has lived with bitter terms

to tell by crusted stains of recent use

The bowl a petri dish mutating germs

through weeks of cruelty and abuse.

Anything within that swampy soup

of putrid waste has been unflushed for days

she does not dare to even touch the loop

of chain where strange bacteria graze.

She tries the bathroom sink and is rewarded

only with a few drops from the empty pipe

Any try for hygiene would be thwarted

unless she brought with her a cleansing wipe.

Friday, 4 April 2025

4th April 2025

cycling

in the near dark

aching legs

IV.I

The bathroom leaves no room for doubt

the girl had left some days or weeks before

she can see the contents from without

through the foot sized hole in door.

She enters anyway; she hopes to find

old make-up she can use for filler

of the hues of painted nightmare kind

and herself, according to the mirror,

or maybe drugs to trade for food

but there is nothing left; the cupboard flayed

except for acne cream imbued

with desperation and a rusted razor blade.

Thursday, 3 April 2025

3rd April 2025

pumping car tyres

in the evening sunshine

chill wind

III.X

Whoever was this racist gent

she's glad he nosedived from the roof

we are all of immigrant descent

with Scandi, French or German root.

The only patriots in Britain

are the Celtic tribes of yore

who lived here since before tradition;

settlers from the time before.

With great distaste she leaves the room

where suppurating thoughts engage

in such young men, with hatred spewn

by rich white men exploiting rage.