marathon training

slow pegs toe the towpath
peel back the algae film
under the dull mist sky
stop to pee
like six times at least
empty both bladders
very stiff, very type two
until the high kicks in
ten miles in
listening
to weyes blood sing
oh god turn me
into a flower
put me in
a wee clay pot
somewhere with nice light
not too hot

this must have been near the start of the marathon training. for i am once again, near the start of the marathon training. my longest run since the marathon is 24km and i’ll be pushing it up to 27 in a few weeks. i think i’ll hold at 30 for a while. i did lots of very long runs last time so maybe i’ll do more runs but less long.

you go through a lot on a long run. listen to lots of music. tune out for a bit. then a song might grab you. maybe cry a bit, running about crying in tiny little shorts and a vest. this is just who i am.

thinking about being a poet while getting an m.o.t.

my byline is a shyline
to project my insecurity
protect my anonymity
objectify my vanity
the car passed its m.o.t.
three minors, one of which
will strand me
unprepared on
a lane in the country
but that’s not for a while yet…

it still hasn’t happened yet, the stranding, but it’s a matter of time. the car got through its m.o.t. again this year. it picked up a dent somehow though.

first class travel problems

on a tired day i can’t will myself a timetable
halfway to barrow
my heart a furnace
then pressed on from preston
the train’s delayed
and so is my wellness
for a few hours
because after work there’s a sauna
and free champagne
which reminds me. my new mantra:
never drink fizz in transit
it won’t be frigid and the bubbles will die

if i have to travel for work i at least want to go first class. i don’t like to fly if i can avoid it. but i find travel very stressful. especially if i’m on my own. i don’t have much wherewithal of sense of direction. but anyway, take it from me, on the train drink ipa, champagne is wasted. i think it’s ok on a plane though. weirdly.

another p.b.

nearly bail on the great scot’s ten
but i’m literally trapped in the atrium
and it only takes thirty eight minutes
so i may as well run
then the button on my trousers popped off
and fell into the toilet bowl
i suppose
life is precious and unpredictable

i have entered the great scots run each of the last three years. i got two pbs in the half and a pb in the 10. i can’t be bothered running it again this year. maybe i’ll get more into cycling. oh yeah i already signed up for another marathon. oh well, maybe next year.

new season new look

a moneypiece redux
this one’s light
confirm and further
comes storm amy
on her birthday weekend
the train’s cancelled
so i’m sober and driving
and i watch her get
a birthday piercing
a trivial salesman
sells us wax jackets
though we buy them
somewhere else
cheaper
from a scoundrel
shame swelling around the cheeks
‘enjoy that jacket!’
the trivial salesman
encouraged me
and i felt bad
for going behind his back
until
i find out he was a liar
its a serviceable jacket
anyway
anyway

its the perfect time to buy a new rain jacket. well actually it is the most expensive time, but if you didn’t buy one in the spring sales, your hand may be forced. luckily my love and i bought new rain jackets last year and they are still waterproof. a big vote for wax jackets from me. despite the salesman, if not lying, clearly implying something that wasn’t true. anyway. it doesn’t matter. i’m over it. anyway.

4000 weeks

asleep we are equal
toss and turn
before another sequel
one of only
four thousand weekfulls
some may work exposed to weather
whether lucky others’
weeks are peaceful
the labouring class
the majority of us
we all must
sudo apt-get out of bed,
by dint of caffeine
best be wakeful
de-enforcements comin’ in
to the office
try and stop us
half a day every fortnight or so
certainly satisfies my appetite

i just did my day in the office for the month. i do like that the office is proximate to many shops. and there is a gym next door so that’s quite useful. but then at the office i alternate between working hard at my desk and taking calls in a little phone booth thing. no advantage whatever over being at home. i guess it would be different if i worked as a road surfacer though.