1631 - Thoughts of Chairman Tone

My chair is too low for my bloody desk
It's a cheap office chair bought from Argos
The last one broke. I've still got it. Don't ask
But I've learned from work of the importance
Of ergonomic factors, or the cost
Is paid in aches and pains, repetitive
Strain injury, sore neck, back, elbows, lost
Days due to headaches from eye strain, when if
We had protected ourselves, we would give
Ourselves the chance to do our best. Each task
At work's important, time cannot be lost
But more so at home, where it's done from love
Not necessity. Before I'm a husk
I must buy a higher chair from Argos

1630 - Thirty years of war in fourteen lines

In 1630, the Thirty Years' War
Mainly about religious victory
Of Lutherans or Calvinists over
The many territories of Germany
And neighbouring lands, dominated by the
Holy Roman Emperor - Catholic
As the name hints - was approximately
Half way through, when Sweden, under the slick
Gustav Adolf, moved to protect Baltic
Ports from Imperial conquest, then went far
Deeper into German lands until he
Died in '32. For the Habsburgs, big
Losses of Dutch land and Spanish power
For the Bourbons, Louis Fourteenth's glory

1629 - Arab Spring

In the beginning was Tunisia
Then Egypt overthrew old Mubarak
Now everywhere from Yemen to Libya
Is rising up, people on the attack...
Of course, the haves would push the have-nots back
In Manama and Benghazi, bullets
And tear gas are used by regimes we back
For strategic reasons. People take hits
Like they have done for decades from tin pots
Democracy is a minor affair
To western policy-makers. Don't sack
Strongmen who use our own guns to win votes
And rig elections to guarantee our
Oil supplies without a major price hike

1628 - Things will only get better!

Things are looking up, spring is in the air
Even Salford looks good under that sky
On days like this I used to run somewhere
Or cycle my way through the big country
Best to be active, since it's still chilly
Too cold for being high up in the hills
Snow's forecast tonight, so says the TV
The Pennines with their white satanic mills
Nature briefly painting buildings and fields
With star-like blossom of frozen water
But that's a few miles east of here. Soon I
Will leave my work. Even shopping appeals
To me today, a feeling that is rare
But I'll head straight home - I've some steak to fry!

1627 - My big fat Greek meal

Dimitri's is no longer quite as good
For after work meals. Their special offer
Used to be three courses, plenty of food
If ordered by six. Now we must get there
Before five, and that's too early when we're
Working till five, and want a pint or two
Before the restaurant to create cheer
Last time I spent fifteen, this thirty-two
Which we can ill afford. Oh why did you
Choose that place, Paula? Still, at least I could
Choose a whole sea bass, which was so tender
And when the bones and head were left, could do
A ventriloquist's act with it, though blood
Was nearly flowing from my pricked fingers

1626 - Just an average evening

I've just seen a great game of football, Arsenal
Beating Barcelona from 1-0 down
Meanwhile, I've also written down random thoughts, all
About society and how it's grown
Against our inherent nature that's sown
By selfish seeds wanting to multiply
No matter what. How do we then disown
This impulse nature's given us, that flies
In the face of reason, or do we die
As a species, accepting we are small
In the grand scheme of things? Protest has grown
In Libya and Yemen, all inspired by
Events elsewhere in what's called the Middle
East. Now to cook my dinner on my own!

1625 - The Hacienda must be destroyed

Been reading about the Hacienda
A famous, then infamous club, it shut
In the end due to gangs who went in there
And sat in their own places. You'd get cut
Or at best hit if you sat in their seat
Financially mismanaged from the start
By Factory and New Order, their receipts
From record sales kept it open, the heart
Of indie cool, trendies in overcoats
Trendies but not spendies, so it was rare
The huge place was full in my day, but what
A difference later with top DJs! Beats
And ecstasy brought in far more punters
Gangs and guns, becoming too hot a spot