Jan. 22, 2004  Bloody Men  by Wendy Cope  Listen (RealAudio) |
How to listen  Poem: "Bloody Men," by Wendy Cope, from Serious
Concerns (Faber & Faber).  Bloody Men  Bloody men are like
bloody buses You wait for about a year And as soon as one
approaches your stop Two or three others appear. You look at
them flashing their indicators, Offering you a ride. You're
trying to read the destinations, You haven't much time to
decide. If you make a mistake, there is no turning back. Jump
off, and you'll stand there and gaze While the cars and the
taxis and lorries go by And the minutes, the hours, the days.
Literary and Historical Notes:  It's the birthday of romantic
poet Lord Byron, born George Gordon Noel in Aberdeen, Scotland
(1788). Byron was the product of his father's second marriage.
His father, nicknamed "Mad Jack," struggled with debt, made his
living by seducing rich women, and may have killed his first
wife, though he was never charged with the crime. Byron was a
poorly behaved child, and his nursemaids h