February 02, 2011

Cobblebrae Crescent

                                (based on a true street!)



Sane were the tenants of Cobblebrae Crescent
Twisted and dippy but mostly all pleasant

Gippo - his caravan out on the lawn
Jackie - quite slutty, no ladylike charm
Were considered a couple but oceans apart
She'd shout nasties at him, near breaking his heart
Hanging around him till he'd right her wrongs
Ripping his soul to the words of a song
Gippo held tightly, a motionless past
Loving her more with each insult that lashed.

Alison Done things in orderly fashion
Lill gave her class an enormous tongue lashing
Our Miss and her mother, a hard path to tread
Keeping one from the other in honour and stead
Ali was bare, a father was driven
What precious he tried, would not be forgiven
All she had left was the sting of her belt
Embittered and broken, so young skin would welt

My auntie and uncle lived there with their daughter
All fleeting and diving - was quite hard to spot her
I was scared of their stairwell, the blue light that flickers
And hated the dog with it's nose near my knickers!
Auntie was lazy and tried to stay young
But the harsh light of day hit the mirror that stung
Always a welcome though manners were loose
Came away on a high, due to sugar abuse.


Maizie and Albert, were the oldest of tenants 
Always had faith and a heart full of penance
The nets on her windows were brilliantly white
Repetitive chores lasted into the night
She'd struggle at times to keep herself steady
With mints there to freshen her breath at the ready.
The cross on her wall was a permanant fixture
Too much rum ended in her baking mixture.


My beautiful William - those baby blue eyes
Never knew how I loved him and tumbled inside
I'd scrap with the big boys - on his team I'd win
Was heart-bloody-broken, he dated my twin
I was the tomboy, she was the floss
Softly and often she'd gather the moss
Always told mum, that she'd 'fell down that hill'.
Though I tried and I tried to do that at Will


Roberto, Italian, 5 kids but no wife
Snuffed out in an accident learning to drive
He married again, a young slip of a thing
Though she had to leave school before wearing his ring.
She bore him more children, a daughter and son
Left him soon after, he'd baked his last bun
Shot off for a future, a youth that was wild
And continued to sleep with her oldest stepchild 


The house on the edge with the very low roof
Belonged to old Tom (88% proof) 
Lollipop man for the primary school
They all called him 'Grampa' , thought he was quite cool
Little did they know when crossing the road
He was squiffed when performing the Pelican Code
But 4 on the dot, when the kids were all gone
It was 'changed, pub then bookies' to put a bet on.


Tessie was timid, a keen hideaway 
Would peek through her blinds each and every day
How she would love to just breathe outside air
Without those mad heartbeats resurficing fear
Relying on others, a constant routine
Oh, what she'd give to be comfortably seen
She knew that in life the next door she'd go through
Is the one that death brings, in that definite queue


So there, on the cobbles, the glass and the bricks
Dwells a manic infusion of healthy and sick
Some stories would floor you as you take your walk
If Cobblebrae Crescent's bricks started to talk.



13 comments:

Words A Day said...

This is fantastic! Funny and poignant..

I so enjoyed reading it, the rhyming, the personalities, summing up so much up about characers in a few words! Well done...

I see its based on a true street, it felt like that anyway - it's so lively and well written!

Friko said...

The characters have to be real. It's brilliant. Not just for a poem but a whole novel.

Go advertise yourself, more people need to read and enjoy this.

Stafford Ray said...

What a litany! I dare you to drop a copy under each door!

Oddyoddyo13 said...

I love your depth and wit! I was just watching a show with a girl named Jackie in it...she was none too pleasant either. :)

Maggie said...

Lena, this is brilliant. I just loved this one.

Tess Kincaid said...

This is wonderful. What a great tale!

Helena said...

aw.....thanx for the comments so far! Some characters are loosely based on real ones from my childhood. My teacher and friend, Grampa and William namely.

Stafford - I would love to stroll down that street again, but I bet you anything that bloody dog is still there!!

Linda Bob Grifins Korbetis Hall said...

full of texture and wit.
lovely tale.

Anonymous said...

I love all these characters. This was fun to read. And thanks for stopping in at my blog :)

rel said...

Lena,
My oh my Lena what a wonderful rhyming cast of characters you describe. Well done Lass, well done!
rel

Brian Miller said...

this was great...i feel like i know the neighborhood now...and yes if only those bricks could talk...

Rek Sesh said...

This is wonderful...really enjoyed this..a ballad almost...the bricks surely have more such tales up their alley...

Nana Jo said...

This is fantastic! What a microcosm of flavours. I feel like I would recognize some of these 'bricks'. I had a William in my neighbourhood, too. I hadn't thought about him in years ...