Hawaii [rev.] Poem by Margaret Alice Second

If you want me to work in Hawaii - I'll dress that
way, shorts and sleeveless T-shirt - without the
beach and turquoise sea against a sapphire sky
framed by emerald palms, without opportunity to
dive into waves and ride bubbling champagne
into the sand; we have to stay cool in the office
at 33 degrees Celsius outside - which means -

An inside heat of 32 and sun a-shine happily on
our north-facing windows, the internal air-con is
u/s, we need make do with fans whirring stale air
about, I boil my kettle to add steam with oxygen
to the mix, turn a spray-can mister on everything -
today I'm dressed for our version of Hawaii and
launching a campaign against open-plan office

Conditions while Asst Mgr Mdm La Pompadour
sits in her own enclosure - her personal air-con
turned so cold she wears winter clothes, looks
smugly down her nose at us, delights in belittling
her underlings, the soldiers in bureaucracy who
suffer welded-shut windows after burglaries -
and therefore NO fresh air whatsoever…

[16 September 2014]