A Parting Shot

A parting shot Baristas bang to level the grounds Constant caffeinated sounds Murmured speak of 'where to next'? Lonely figures sit and text Gluten-free on plates piled high Condensing people passing by Foreign tongues that click and slur Counterpoint a song from Blur Buy 'to go' to cut the cost By patronage the past has lost Dusty corners, crumbs they've missed Pierced lip and tattooed wrist How strange our habits, then and now That beg the questions when? and how? Suspended nylons now replaced By skin-tight leggings trimmed and laced Time has changed the way we think Of what we eat and what we drink Like poetry that used to rhyme Now lost in Jabberwocky slime.