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Clubland

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Originally published: 2nd June 2022

Image by gR

This poem was placed 1st in: "A BRIAN STRAND PREMIER CHOICE" Premier Poetry Contest sponsored by Brian Strand (Judged 30th June 2022)

The morning after the night before.

a city hungover wakes slowly to silence and lights that keep watch over night the red and red amber the green amber red on still streets with no traffic in sight. railings and stone steps lead down to a basement where graffiti conceals a locked door and where bins overflowing with bottles and chip trays spew half eaten food to the floor. a pigeon whose body attempts as it struts to try to catch up with its head flaps and then makes for what looks like the inside of a sandwich set free from its bread. as blocked grids and clogged gutters sip dregs of drain water left over from midnight's wild rain there are blankets in doorways and the red red and amber and green amber red once again.

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Paghunda Zahid

Date: 10/16/2023 4:15:00 AM

Beautiful

Gary Radice
Date: 10/16/2023 4:21:00 AM

Thanks so much Paghunda. Cheers - Gary

Marikate Kingston

Date: 8/8/2023 8:18:00 PM

I like the irony. The pigeon struggles like the homeless, depending on the same scraps as they do. Fortunately unlike the homeless, this scavenger returns to a safe dry home each night, . "Set free from it's bread" from the "overflowing bottles and chip trays" Such an important, moving and empathetic write. Certainly deserving of a win. Congrats.

Gary Radice
Date: 8/9/2023 6:36:00 AM

Thanks! I was working on another part to this poem about how carvings on buildings and beautiful architecture as a whole suddenly appear and can be appreciated much more when the streets are deserted and silent but I never quite got there. Maybe one day.. Cheers - Gary

Frances Schiavina

Date: 5/9/2023 9:05:00 AM

Sincere congratulation Gary on golden trophy. Greatness appreciated inspires followers and your poem has beauty and depth of ordinary life.

Gary Radice
Date: 5/10/2023 5:17:00 AM

Thank you Frances for your very kind words. Much appreciated. Cheers - Gary

Speaks Volumes

Date: 9/20/2022 3:11:00 AM

Early morning can have so many faces. The eerie quiet of desolate streets before the traffic looms and the evidence of the frivolity of the preceding night, with only empty bottles and food wrappers to prove it happened, and the pigeon is witness to it all only cares about a scrap of food uninterrupted. You took me to that place at days first early light and I liked being there. Thank you Gary.

Gary Radice
Date: 9/20/2022 6:49:00 AM

What a beautifully written reply Wendy. Thanks so much. That means a lot. Cheers - Gary

Bryan Norton

Date: 8/11/2022 11:03:00 PM

Gary, what a great, great poem. I always like your poems,of course, but this one really frosted my cake. Good job, and congratulations, winner! Your friend, Bryan

Gary Radice
Date: 8/12/2022 1:51:00 AM

Thanks Bryan. My poem contains the same glaring error (twice) that you may have noticed if you are a keen follower of all things UK traffic light sequences. I missed the amber out on its way back to red; that is: green, amber then red. But I'm not going to tell anyone and hope I can continue to get away with it. :) :) Cheers - Gary EDIT: I've now amended the words to fit the correct sequence of traffic light changes. :) Cheers - Gary

I Am Anaya

Date: 7/18/2022 4:06:00 PM

The quiet desperation mirrored in Edward Hoppers ~Night Hawks~~~~~ and ~~~~~Andrew Wyeth's Christina's world; you really caught the mood! Gary Radice, belated congratulations on your TROPHY WIN! yay...cheers ~ Anaya

Gary Radice
Date: 7/19/2022 8:09:00 AM

Thank you Anaya. I just had to look up the painting 'Christina's World' following your lovely comments. I'd never heard of the painting's artist Andrew Wyeth and now I'd like to find out more about him thanks to you. :) The theme of hopelessness resonates from Christina's World and we see the world from her position / perspective. Thanks again Anaya. Cheers - Gary

Christopher Flaherty

Date: 7/12/2022 1:20:00 PM

Fantastic Gary Worthy winner Some awaken in the doorway Don't pass go Red somehow never turns to green

Gary Radice
Date: 7/12/2022 9:50:00 PM

It was a walk around Liverpool early in the morning that inspired this poem Christopher Thanks for your comments. Appreciated. Cheers - Gary

Terry Flood

Date: 7/5/2022 3:16:00 PM

I will never, not never, and not even ever… see a pigeon the same way again. Smashing write, Gary. Belated congrats on your win. Terry

Gary Radice
Date: 7/6/2022 1:42:00 AM

:) I was watching a pigeon somewhere recently scavenge for food and its movement intrigued me. I thought to myself that that pigeon just had to have a walk on part in a poem of mine. Thanks for the visit Terry. Read you soon. Cheers - Gary

Bill Baker

Date: 7/5/2022 3:14:00 PM

A work of an artist, using your gift of poetry and exquisite imagery and descriptions to paint the fullness of the scene. Excellent poetry Gary. A FAV for me. A poet friend in Texas, Bill

Gary Radice
Date: 7/6/2022 1:39:00 AM

Bill thanks so much once again for your praise and words of encouragement. I've said it before and I'll say it again; it makes this hobby of mine feel all the more worthwhile. Cheers - Gary

Sara Kendrick

Date: 6/22/2022 6:40:00 AM

Very descriptive work you have penned in this one. I have never been in a city at night, and this reads like it would not be the place to be after the sun sets. Sara

Gary Radice
Date: 6/22/2022 9:37:00 PM

Thanks Sara. I spent many a weekend with friends going to clubs / discos in cities at night during my youth and then walking around early morning trying to find a taxi home. :) Cheers - Gary

David Kavanagh

Date: 6/6/2022 1:42:00 AM

Heya Gary, you capture the surreal picture between clubland ending, and a new day beginning quiet tangibly, I remember these aftermath images when heading into work on the early shift, but when I was part of the clubland scene I barely noticed them talking place, A super read and well deserving winner, cheers David

Gary Radice
Date: 6/6/2022 6:29:00 AM

Hi David. I'm trying to remember the last time I went to a club..I think Betty Boo was doin' her do whatever that or then was. I used to prefer the rock nights in Southport. First time I went to the bar to buy a beer the guy said he only sold it in crates ..and he wasn't kidding! Everyone was sitting with a crate of beer. I'm old. Cheers - Gary

John Watt

Date: 6/5/2022 10:21:00 PM

Gary, I'm circling back to offer my congratulations for your trophy win. Well-deserved, my friend. Hope you enjoy your week ~ John

Gary Radice
Date: 6/6/2022 6:24:00 AM

John, thank you. You know, I wasn't going to enter the poem into Brian's contest but your comments persuaded me otherwise. :) Cheers - Gary

Susan Lawrence

Date: 6/5/2022 2:46:00 PM

Gary , A visceral response to your words . The sights, sounds, smells and sway of timeless time. Beautiful depiction of the city creating such an embedded image in my mind . Congratulations on your trophy win! Thank you for your kind comments on Johns poem and for visiting my art website. Blessings, Susan :)

Gary Radice
Date: 6/6/2022 6:20:00 AM

Hi Susan. Thanks so much. Your artwork is outstanding and I'd recommend anyone with a love of art (or even if they haven't) to take a look at your work at susanlawrence.net Cheers - Gary

Sam Kauffman

Date: 6/5/2022 11:26:00 AM

Congratulations on your trophy win Gary. You have masterfully melded the sights and sounds of the city with its human tragedy in unforgettable imagery. Well done! I love your collection of city poems and always look forward to reading them. Cheers!

Gary Radice
Date: 6/6/2022 6:17:00 AM

Hi Sam! Thank you for your lovely comments. One day I'm going to arrange my poems under the separate headings of Cities, Seaside, Railways and Childhood; they all sum my writing when it comes to poetry. :) I just wish we could arrange our poems in the order we choose when it comes to our lists here at PS. I digress. Thanks again and Cheers - Gary

Timothy Ray

Date: 6/5/2022 9:23:00 AM

this is a great poem of the city, you brought back to me so many remembrances but more so the gratitude i am free of it....great poetry starts us on a path and then the neuropathways kick in, great poetry takes us deeper and deeper within and you have accomplished that par excellence

Gary Radice
Date: 6/6/2022 6:12:00 AM

Thank you Timothy for your visit and praise. I love visiting cities. I love writing about cities, although, like yourself, I very much doubt I'd love to live permanently in one - particularly in the very centre of one that's for sure. :) Cheers - Gary

Brian Sambourne

Date: 6/4/2022 9:49:00 PM

Congratulations, Gary, on a superb write. You bathe the city in a lonely morning light of traffic signals giving direction to absent cars, to pigeons picking at leftover trash. So strongly visual. Best wishes, Brian

Gary Radice
Date: 6/5/2022 1:54:00 AM

Thank you Brian. Visual was certainly what I was after. Hope all's well. Read you soon. Cheers - Gary

Connie Marcum Wong

Date: 6/4/2022 5:16:00 AM

A surreal look at the city Gary. Brilliantly expressed! Congratulations on your deserving Trophy win. Blessings xxoo

Gary Radice
Date: 6/4/2022 6:15:00 AM

Thank you Connie. The idea for the poem came from a walk around Liverpool one Sunday morning. I was going to add another verse about carvings and plaques on the sides of buildings being visible to the human eye before vanishing in the the hustle and bustle of rush hour..but adding it now after the competition has finished and placements decided doesn't feel right so I decided to leave well alone. :) Cheers - Gary

Carol Mitra

Date: 6/4/2022 4:08:00 AM

This piece of discriptive poetry is so beautiful....I read and reread it many times over....Love loved it....Congrats on a top win :)

Gary Radice
Date: 6/4/2022 4:32:00 AM

Carol, thank you. I'm so glad you enjoyed the poem. I'm going to sit down and read all the winning entries from Brian's competition later today. Thanks again. Cheers - Gary

Jenna Logan

Date: 6/4/2022 4:02:00 AM

Gary, the rhythm of your rhyming last word in each verse is akin to the lyrical tempo of a song. How cleverly you show the contrast between partying in the night and the traffic light changing, although no need for its direction... eerie and suggestive! Also contrasting the wastefulness of the rich and the homeless who sleep in doorways with whatever they must use for blankets. I'm reminded of a Twilight Zone episode, and that's a big compliment! Impressive writing.

Jenna Logan
Date: 6/4/2022 5:42:00 AM

You're welcome. Quite often one of my poems becomes a rogue and goes where it chooses. Usually, it's for the best.

Gary Radice
Date: 6/4/2022 4:30:00 AM

Thanks Jenna. I started out writing a poem about a city the morning after the night before but played around with a few ideas along the way. One of the more obscure ideas was to try to bring the club out onto the street..so you have the lights changing..bin bags spewing and grids downing liquid..Edward Hopper the US artist was a big influence too and his themes abound. Twilight zone? Praise indeed. Thank you! Cheers - Gary

Tom Cunningham

Date: 6/3/2022 12:22:00 AM

Enjoyed your poem Gary, witnessed those scenes a few times but thankfully my clubbing days are long gone. It reminded me of that poem Dublin by Louis McNiece. Hope you have a great weekend. Tom

Gary Radice
Date: 6/3/2022 12:38:00 AM

Thanks Tom..I'm going to check that poem out. Thanks for the heads up and hope you're enjoying the Jubilee. Take care. Cheers - Gary

Paulette Calasibetta

Date: 6/2/2022 11:48:00 AM

Gary, your poem reflects an image of opulent living in contrast to homelessness. The image of your piegeon who tries to catch up with his head makes me smile. Your observations are masterfully expressed and cinematic. :)Paulette

Gary Radice
Date: 6/2/2022 11:33:00 PM

Paula, thank you very much for your lovely comments. I'm so pleased both John and yourself mentioned the cinematic style of the poem. It was something I was hoping to achieve. :) Cheers - Gary

John Watt

Date: 6/2/2022 9:41:00 AM

Gary, you have an artist's eye in your poetry that paints a picture with powerful images and evokes a carefully nuanced vibe; not unlike the background music in a film setting a tone. The poignant contrast between the high life and the downtrodden is a subtle shift with the pigeon as the avatar (I loved the "trying to catch up with its head" line!) and the uneaten food on the ground as the symbol of opulence. But the brilliant theme is the stoplights going through their cycle, connoting both the loneliness of the scene and the persistent divide between classes... I might even call this "Hopperesque", with full confidence that you know just what I mean. As always, your excellent cadence drives the poem through its scenes, with a gentle forward motion. Absolutely brilliant; I loved reading this and wish I could give you more than one fave. Warm regards ~ John

Gary Radice
Date: 6/2/2022 11:28:00 PM

John, thank you for your very kind and very insightful comments. Yes you are so right: Hopper themes of isolation, loneliness and detachment abound. I like the idea of how clubs at night come alive with queues of people outside but when closed, hide in plain sight in the city. You are spot on with all you have commented on John. :) Thanks so much. Cheers - Gary