Cannabis on the school excursion

 He had pulled down a sticky bract of that cannabis
But the teacher had been watching the whole time
Now he would be expelled
But it was a beautiful day
Quite possibly the best ever

The teacher pulled him aside
Pulled the stinking bud out of his bag
Accused him of drug dealing on the spot
No more school excursion
No longer a student

Whatever he shoved down his pants
He would roll and smoke before he gave his parents the bad news

A special select few

 Inside their chosen party
What did they prove
Kids crowded around 
stinking of fomo
And expensive perfume

There was an exclusive list
And even those kids were judged by their clothes
only the good ones could go through
The chatter rising and falling
The music coming on

The shade of competition
The glee at seeing some miss out
The rough bullying
The derision and laughter
Sense of unfairness 

For each side of the Gemini

 She came in and demanded that sweet attention
The attention and the attempts to wooing her
No opinions or convictions just allure
Layers of it all

Perfume and sweet words
Two desperate men follow her
desire as tangible as the peeling wallpaper
Layers and layers

This form of worship
Underneath the mediocre build of denial
it requires cement of self denial
it all melts in her presence

She stands back and watches you both
Witnesses laugh in cruel derision
It wasn't a missing a organ
It was a missing piece inside of both, both sought

A beautiful cave inside a two sided person 

Feira on the hillside

 In their city they are absent minded
walk up the side of the hill
To where the feira is
Buy something collect yourself

Setting it all up
Cleaning it all down
Love washed off the pavement
Find the lost ingredient

Before the day greys and reality dims

The Mess and movement
bag your whim
walk under the canvas
Use that change

Before the day greys and rain wins

Congregate gossip and cook the drumstick
The oil and the football flags
Setting it all up breaking it all down
Sweaping it all up

Before the day greys and your head spins

Hipkins the gullible

 Hipkins the gullible

The washing machine came to life.
His name was ginger hipkins.
He started to shake among the other broken and strewn appliance parts.
“I’m not broken.” Hipkins claimed.
He was indeed intact. But he was broken.
He put his light on and screamed the finished siren.
A mouse jumped out of the circular entrance through the round door ajar.
Hipkins coughed.
“I’m still good. The new models were just cheaper.”
Hipkins couldn’t shake the feeling that he was being observed, and he had that spidey washing machine sense that people were hiding nearby listening to his monologue.
“I washed so much for so many years.”
Hipkins grinned from the hollowness of the door.
The garter snake popped up out of a broken basin.
Looked left then right. Then chuckled. Not a cartoon chuckle. A very sinister short laugh.
His slithering body allowed his head to climb up over a cardboard box.
The head popped up, the eyes bulged and focused on Hipkins.
“Broken machines are not supposed to speak, silly thing, silly thing.”
“My name is Hipkins, maybe you could help me get back to the laundromat?”
“Oh no silly thing. Unless of course we make a deal… Hissssss.”
Hipkins budged and turned his internal drum.
“Why do we need a deal, just help me?”
“Nothing is that simple Hipkins. I need you to trap the next mouse that enters your round door. Keep it there. When I come back if you have one trapped, I will help you get out. And you can make your way back to your laundry mat… SSssound sssuave to you?”
“I can try, I guess.”
The garter snake turned his head dismissively and slipped between the surface trash diving down somewhere deep.

Hipkins was alone but kept talking about his situation.
“How am I supposed to trap a mouse inside?”
In the silence Hipkins thought. I better stay quiet.
Four hours later a mouse popped into the open door.
Hipkins closed the door and trapped the mouse.
“Hey what did you do that for?” The mouse asked softly.
“I have to trap you in me for the Garter snake. It’s coming back soon.”
“Why are you doing that for him?” The mouse asked astutely.
“Well because he will help me get back to the laundromat.” Hipkins said matter of fact like.
The little mouse giggled and splattered.
“So what are you laughing at, mouse?”
The mouse sniffed at the window and doublecheck that he was really stuck.

“Well you said that Garter snake will come back and help you get back to the laundry mat. Is that true?”
“Of course it’s true.”
The mouse giggled again.
“Okay just explain how the garter snake will do that”
“Well…” Hipkins spent a minute, but couldn’t come up with anything.
“Listen, if he can tell you how he can do that, let him have me.”
“What will he do?”
“He will eat me!” The mouse said straight.
“Oh that sounds painful” Hiplins said.
“I think it will be painful.”

“Hisssssssss I see you have captured the mouse for me. What an incredible achievement Hipkins. Now just open the door and let me in so I can befriend the mouse.”
“I can’t let you in, and the mouse asked me how you would help me get to the laundry mat.” Hipkins said.
“Oh don’t you get confused by the details, you are a washing machine, leave the strategy to the snake.”
“So I am to open the door and you will befriend the mouse?”
“Of course, why the lack of faith?” The garter snake snapped.
“Okay I’ll do it.” The round door popped open the garter snake dove on the mouse in a split second. A few seconds later the mouse was being digested from the inside of the snake.

Hipkins rocked up and down.
“You tricked me, you told me that you would befriend him.”
“Snakes got to eat too genius.”
“I guess I am a genius.” Hipkins said without too much thought.
“Yes you are, you caught the mouse.”

“So will you help me out of here now?” Hipkins said desperately.
“Sure thing… SSsuave. I’ll just need another five mice and maybe one of those Norwegian rats.”
“You must be kidding!” Hipkins said in protest.
“Well, how else do you expect me to get big enough to move you?”
“Oh now I see, you need to grow bigger.”
“That’s it genius.” The garter snake said emphatically.
“I guess I am a genius.” Hipkins said again.

Johnny Eggs and the matchbox gift

 Johnny eggs was up for retirement he was a landfill worker.

Mostly operated the bulldozer and a tractor the only one who could do maintenance on either.
That day he had invited a poor family who lived near the entrance to the landfill in.

“So have you got something for us today Mr Eggs?” Little Patty whales asked.
“Well come down and have a look.” Johnny said.
Little Patty whales and Sarah followed Johnny to an area of the landfill where things that were unbroken or still intact lay.
There was a red tricycle, a mannequin and a really cute looking Teddy bear albeit with a few scars.

Next to it all was a deep box. Johnny crouched over as Mother Jones arrived on the excuse that she didn’t want her children bothering old Johnny Eggs.
But she never trusted any man with her children. That was Mother Jones for you.
Johnny’s nimble fingers opened the box lid exposing hundreds of in their packet hot wheels toy cars.
Patty couldn’t contain himself. “Can we open one please? Please?”
“You can open as many as you like” Johnny said grinning with no space between his wrinkled face.
Patty started dancing around holding the small box in his clammy hand, motioning it as if it were an aeroplane. Mother Jones tapped Sarah, Sarah looked up at her. Mother Jones motioned while Johnny’s back was turned. Putting on a smile and waving her hands.

Sarah whispered. “Oh you want me to act excited.”
Then Sarah too picked out a car and started dancing as her step brother was.
Johnny looked at Mother Jones, “These moments are precious Mrs Jones. They won’t be as happy as this everyday.

Patty whales just about ripped the little box open so he could get his hands on the little red car inside. His mother said “Patty let me open it for you when we get home.”

Patty looked at her. Then his glance slowly descended as if he had just been disappointed.
Sarah continued imitating what Patrick had been doing.
Trying to keep her giggle back as she was three years older than Patrick and her cynical nature made Patrick’s behaviour seem absolutely ridiculous.

“Do I owe you anything for this Johnny?”
“No, Just let me come apple picking in your yard there come next month.” Johnny said.
“Well, they are already putting on fruit. Come this weekend me and the kids will be out, but you can make it over the back fence real easy.” Mother Jones said cheerily. Johnny nodded his head with that same full grin that beamed. He was pretty much happy all year.
It took him a week to adjust to the first snow, but after that he was just as glad to be alive as he was in summer.
Mother Jones had Sarah carry the box home, partially from seeing her little act as a dig to Patty whale’s free spirit.
They got in the door, and Mother Jones did some calculating in here head.
Patty sat in the wooden chair observing his mother.
“I’m not gonna get one am I.”
Mother Jone’s knew the routine and quickly grabbed the box with his sticky handprint on.
Ripped it open slowly and smiled down at Patty. “Sure you are my boy. This one is for you.

She called Sarah over to use her phone calculator.
“We might get up to four fifty for this lot.” Mother Jones said gleefully.
“I guess we better be grateful to Old Johnny.” Sarah said sarcastically.
“I guess we better.” Mother Jones said, also being sarcastic, as she balanced on gout bitten ankles and took a bottle of Johnny walker out from the kitchen shelf.

Strings attached so puppets move

 I see strings attached
through the vision of the sweating dream
Through the view of the veiny eye
The effort exerted
Pairs turn up and rehearse 
their sacred unions out for all to see

Strings are attached
Weird pulleys move the puppets
Pulling the heart strings
Pretending we are not human
No emotions
just safety

I see strings right through the perfection
I see friendly faces
They have their own interests
their own doubts
Their own strings attached
But their limbs are more easily manipulated