doing my bit for THE pUBLIC

to be honest i have been a sceptic of the public building

however a few weeks ago i had the chance to see it for myself

i went to see a friend and fellow poet geoff stevens read his poetry there

to be honest i wasnt too impressed with the place

the didnt really organise geoffs gig very well

no mic

people speaking on phones

and kids running around

so all in all the place didnt impress me

but who knows it may grow on me

anyway........

everyone seems to be writing poems about the public

so i decided to have a go

however the only thing i could focus on is the fact that it was once a bus station

the old bus station
by sean gould

now west brom has a public gallery
the black countrys answer to the tate
i remember when it was a bus station
where i used to catch the 78

every week as a child
we would catch the bus there
whilst helping mom carry her shopping
out of the queens square

she would give me some money
to go and buy some cakes
whilst she went in preedies
for a packet of fakes

as you walk into the station
you would be hit by a smell
it is an odour
i remember very well

smells like that
you can never forget
a combination
of urine and sweat

inside the station
theres a variety of folk
a mixture of the black and the white
the rich and the broke

two old ladies gossip
until there hearts content
whilst a cider soaked man
sings a drunken lament

a waiting man
unwraps a toffee
and a resting bus driver
drinks a well earned coffee



a little old lady
struggles with her bags
whilst young teenagers
experiment with fags

of course the toilets
were the worst in west brom
but now like the station
there flattened and gone

now the public building
proudly stands there
the home of the artist
and the culturally aware

theres no staggering drunks
with bottles of booze
no smoking teenagers
and no dirty smelly loos

so why dont you come in
and take a look around
a little piece of culture
in west bromwich town

written 29th july 2008