Fine Lines
A satirical reflection on Covid and Partygate
Why, they ask, was the gathering wrong,
Just a few people for not very long?
Happy Birthday with a slice of cake –
It seems their rules are theirs to break.
Through My Cat’s Eyes
The Feline Worldview
I watch it on TV:
Another hurricane hits,
Floods sweep away lives,
Fires wipe out forests.
My cat sits by the window,
Excited to see the rain fall.
World-Beating Leadership: Top Tips
A satirical look at some of our leaders
As the world watches each thing that you do,
Never forget, it’s all about you.
Only you matter, you are the best,
Your wishes come first, ignore the rest.
Make instant decisions, proclaim at top speed –
Those boring briefs are for others to read.
Do what you like, you have the might,
Whatever the outcome, say you were right.
The Bat That Bit
Who caused Covid
Yes, I’m the one: the bat that bit,
An act that landed quite a hit,
If I had known what would unfold,
Perhaps I’d not have been so bold.
Since all of you love global travel,
It didn’t take long for life to unravel,
At first the spread felt fairly slow,
But by mid-March was in full flow.
Car Wash
An embarrassing true story!
For years, on the rare occasion when I noticed my car needed a wash, I would get it done manually, for example by the team of guys in the local supermarket car park. Then, one day, I rather rashly decided to go to an automatic mechanised car wash. You know the sort? Well, lucky you as it seems, apparently, I was not as familiar with them as one might expect.
Spoon-Feeding
Me as a child, my mother with MND
You fed me with a spoon that day,
For the first time. A tear in your eye,
Delight at that memorable milestone,
And all those yet to come –
Such as learning to talk and handle a fork.
Then, I’d make that walk to school and see
My world open up in the blink of an eye.
All guided by you, my loving mum.
Brexit: All Words and No Pay
Politicians know how to duck and weave,
Which is how we got to Remain or Leave.
Brexit – our time to ‘take back control’,
Solve all our problems with one simple poll.
…
The Maasai Mara
Different views and well-deserved reviews
A morning drive in the Maasai Mara. Hard to beat. Yet more wonderful sightings of animals enjoying life in the wild. For most of our time in the Mara we’d been pretty much on our own; just us 4 friends in a jeep with an excellent spotter and guide. Finding us regular sightings. Sometimes even on request. Another leopard, please. No problem.
This day there were a few more jeeps about. Some were rushing along at speed, all going in the same direction. Probably to see a kill. That sense of excitement. Check camera settings ready for action.Visiting Grenfell
It all looks so different today,
that smoking charcoal block,
now pale, swathed in creamy
covers rippling in the breeze.
At the top, the banner of green:
Grenfell Forever in Our Hearts.
The words descend in silence,
stirring memories of that night.
…
The Brazilian Pantanal
Home to jaguars & jabiru, otters & ocelots
People sometimes ask me where they should go to view wildlife. That rather depends on what they want to see! Most of us think of the Big 5 and that’s certainly a great place to start. Many different destinations in Africa tick that box. But what next? In the last few years I’ve been lucky enough to see orangutans in Borneo, lemurs in Madagascar, bears in Canada and those truly amazing polar bears (and walruses) up in the Arctic. So, how would a trip to the Brazilian Pantanal stack up? Would we see jaguars?