Redundant

Through bloodshot eyes,

I see reflections in an oily puddle.

Belching smoke stacks

Sprout from the sooty huddle

That is the city.

Rusty gantries dangle limp

Like withered limbs

From gutted factories

With hollow skins

That once breathed life.

Flat-eyed men with heavy shoes

And burnt-out dreams

Drag their cares behind

With stifled screams

Down to the pub.

Then stagger home

Anaesthetised with spirits raw,

Loath to meet the day again

Recrimination`s pain

Stuck in their craw!