I am in a small supermarket with my wife
She send me off to find people I do not know
A few minutes later I find myself next to shelves
Stocked with Adidas training shoes
Which are all priced at five pound ninety five
As I normally pay twenty pounds I am much impressed
I ask the senior assistant if she would find me size twelve
At first she does not answer me and is inwardly smiling
I suspect that a disgusting joke is passing through her filthy mind
Which I ignore as I do not care for ribald humours
She apologises and tells me that they have sold out of size twelves
And suggests that I try one of the superstores who are sure to stock them
I leave the store on my scooter but stop at the door to ensure
1/ That my wife is no longer in the shop
2/ That I am not unconsciously stealing anything
Overnight it has snowed and the roads and pavements are icy
But I still travel at speed in a careless manner
Confident that I will not crash and injure myself
When I try to reduce my scooter speed it only increases
I am now taking corners at over eighty miles per hour
When I am next aware I find that I have come to a halt
Opposite Richmond Park Railway Station
My scooter has now changed into a bicycle
This confuses but does not faze me
My position on the bridge gives me good views
Of the passing trains so I remove my camera from its case
And wait and wait for the next high speed train
It is whilst I am waiting that my episode begins
I am floating floating above the parapet of the bridge
I know that I am floating but cannot control my involuntary actions
In the distance near the thistle path I see a goth and his young daughter
Walking towards me and as I do not want to frighten the child
I return to the pavement near the pelican crossing leaning against the wall
The goth is wearing a heavy leather coat even though summer has arrived
I apologise for any alarm that I have caused and am told
That he quite often meets people floating above the parapet
And that his daughter is totally oblivious to such wonders
Before she leaves the little girl gives me one of her two dolls
And tells me that all life exists beneath the wigs of dolls
A high speed train passes by but I do not film it as I no longer have my camera
I have given to the child in return for the doll
I am now in a large waiting room which is not a waiting room for trains
My wife is sitting on a polished wooden bench smiling at me
I still have the doll BUT my bicycle and scooter are missing
There are mad people in this room making cocktails
One of them teaches me how to make a cocktail called
The Lost Hours
Which originated from the Turks and Caicos Islands in 1936
I suspect that I am being cornered but my wife assures me
That I am much loved and these episodes are quite common
In people such as me as their energy needs to be released quietly
I begin to tease the mad people by showing them my doll
And explaining that all life exists beneath the wigs of dolls
This makes their conditions worse and they are removed from the room
One by One by One by One by One by One by One by One by One by One
I feel both elated and ashamed at myself but everything is crystal clear
I know that like a train passing through Richmond Park Railway Station
That another episode is near but I refuse to acknowledge my fate
And close my eyes willing this poem to fade and slowly so slowly my sanity returns
I can hear seagulls fighting in the distance which is comforting as I live near the sea
My wife tells me that unfortunately I have made a pact with the devil
And that part of me will always haunt the parapet opposite the railway station
And that this poem will be bathed in a tangerine light for eternity
But I have returned and under my coastal window I can see my rapid scooter
The doll has vanished as well as the bike that I never used
But my sea views are tangerine as they will always be