Took part in a poetry workshop back in July, which I've never done before. It was part of a project called Breaks and Joins that my friend Shax is involved in, facilitated by the poet (amongst other things) Arji Manuelpillai, and I plucked up the courage to accept the invitation.
We were writing about something broken, and I wanted to choose something no longer working but not visibly broken, so chose a flat battery. This is what popped out (almost, changed a few small bits). I think it's a bit Toy Story meets Blade Runner (or even more Blade Runner, if you think there's already elements of that in Toy Story, which is an argument I'm here for).
The things I’ve seen
This lean triple A,
circular and stylish,
Shoreditch hair and expensive Duracell Jacket,
is slowing like a late-night dodgem car
and saying,
‘the things I’ve seen, the places I’ve been’,
is namedropping: Fisher Price – and Mattel,
is heading to the bar after closing
and doesn’t tell the truth.
Too scared to admit
that he just sang and sang
to this giggling child
and lost track of time.
Energy transferred cannot return.
But oh,
‘the places I’ve been, the things I’ve seen’.
