Has anyone noticed.....? I think I got away with it...

Walk to work

Start with make-up in your eyes
and an increasing paranoia
about your skirt and the wind.

It is downhill at first but prepare
your new-woken hips
for the approaching incline.

Rid your face of indifference
when the man with a dog says morning
and yanks too hard on the lead.

Acknowledge the boy on a scooter,
the usual bickering birds and the bench
and sign that were painted pink one day.

The person behind will get a shot
of your arse (again) and the traffic lights
will take forever to let you cross.

Walk a little faster to check out that guy's walk,
then feel a little older, perhaps wiser,
than most of the students on the bridge.

Your shoulder-bag is heavy with lunch
you'll appreciate later; your music
is irrelevant here because of the traffic noise.

The Frenchman will be smoking
and there are people queueing
to get into pubs at 9.20am.

There are still back streets here to take,
however small. Stop for a coffee—you'll be
a little late, but it's worth the risk.

You're nearly there. Slow down
a little but run up the stairs. Avoid the steps
to nowhere on your left; head down, to work.