Aston Junction
By Philip Sidney
- 6803 reads
Quiet and cool in the concrete cave
beneath a criss-cross of humming roads
the only movement - a slow ooze
of condensation down clammy walls.
A century ago the canal would be
gridlocked all day and all night
stern to aft, choking coke smoke
bitumen coated, tarpaulin covered
carbon inhaled but humans secondary
transporting goods from factory to trader
slow but relentless, the clogged artery
all competing as time is money
work - good for the soul, lives built on
coal, dreaming of rest and amber
Ansell’s in a hand-blown glass.
The Aston expressway sits above
gridlocked all day and all night, bonnet to boot
tarmac and diesel, people packed - unable to dream
of a time when this will be a place of tranquillity.
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Comments
lots of c words, but none of
lots of c words, but none of them bad! History is past and present here.
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This is very evocative for me
This is very evocative for me. My dad was an Ansell's lifer, paid partly in beer tokens. I used to look down from the expressway and think how I wouldn't want to walk down there among the huge concrete pillars with that smell of HP - terrifying. Thanks for the read.
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Hi Helen
Hi Helen
Very evocative - and beautifully written, as always.
Jean
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A compact view of the
A compact view of the interlocking of the levels of the present and past, with their different pollution and work problems. The last line made me wonder, how many in the dense traffic are dreaming of a place of relative tranquility they will arrive at soon? — we still have some left! Rhiannon
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Really beautiful, this. Such
Really beautiful, this. Such atmosphere created in the rich description. The only thing lacking in this writing was sound, but then I turned the volume up in my head and heard it all. It's all there - loved this - rhyme, assonance - everything.
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Great insight into the
Great insight into the dependable progress of a beautifully faulty race.
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Enjoyed reading this
Enjoyed reading this atmospheric travel tale and having experienced gridlock on many occasions
I'm glad I live on the coast free to wander along cliff paths knowing "...rest and amber Ansell’..." is waiting for me after a long slog.
Regards
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Agree with above comments.
Agree with above comments. Well written and atmospheric, as has been said.
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Love this, Philip. Right up
Love this, Philip. Right up my street.
Parson Thru
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