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Fog and Shale

A mackerel sky fillets the village
then hides it in a breezeless blear.
Heads poke out of net drapes
sniff and fish behind trawling curtains.
Shopkeepers brace for
wet dog splatter and spray
for slopping boots and salty puddles.
On the sightless sea
far beyond the shore and shingle,
lost fog horns are lowing deep
like colicky cattle.
Later, misty reeks will be scoured
from groggy docks.
Hauling hands will rope together
tide-tossed tubs,
then tired feet trudge to taprooms
where the brackish parts
of codgers and young alike
can be oiled and quenched.

Copyright © | Year Posted 2020




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Date: 8/7/2020 6:28:00 AM
Great write, Eric! Reminds me of when I was eating at an Alaskan restaurant and could see out the huge window, two men trying to carry a huge fish to cut up. They had to drop it to the ground at the beginning. Saved as a fave.
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Eric Ashford
Date: 8/7/2020 9:57:00 AM
Thank you Kim. You paint a nicely surreal picture! Good of you to comment e

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