Everyone Thinks

Everyone thinks I'm just a junkee,

But my fix is life, and realitee.

I'v hd more pins than a 2nd hand dartboard,

But got thick skin, n veins like cardboard.

You look at me and just see flee,

But raise ur hand n we can just be.

Runaways, from this manipulative system,

A dried up society, lacking wisdom.

We can be free, birds of a feather,

Flying high, lords of the weather.

Hold my hand n let's kick that can,

The landlord loans, n tick from the man.

We ain't got much, 

But a little is a touch,

Rub those hands n a spark is born,

Spike your like, n pull out that thorn.

So dont look at me, wiv velocity,

I got more 2 my pours, than ur hostility.

So don't drink that fake bate,

Or ever tink it's 2 late.

Heaven can wait, 

it's on renters rebate

Gods inside us anyway, 

There no need to die 2 say hey. 

But as no1s ever seen my tru pain,

This is where I begin again.

@ 2026 - All Rights Reserved - Robert Reid

Notting Hill

In the huge crowd, bustled along,

People dancing, sound systems and chicken sales,

The music pounds, bones shake and we smile,

Cops stand on walls, as mollys sold below,

The huge expensive houses, have devalued to love.

Too much gum chewing, and skins on million pound stairs.

The parade is ignored as we dance in off limit streets,

Bass and drums, and a million moving feet.

© 2026 - All Rights Reserved - Robert Reid

Visting God

Today I went, n visited God,

With a little chemical help, n a 15 min nod.

Had some DMT left, so decided 2 toke,

N off I went, 2 meet the squad.

There were Gadget Monkeys, hanging from the wall,

Poking out evil looking faces, but good n all.

They had melting heads, all merging n rotate,

My brain had succumbed, 2 my pineal glands call.

On the way I saw, Enki and Brahma,

But they decided I didn't need, 2 face my own Karma.

Then a digital white face, poked his head, right out,

N then it was all, psycho trippy drama.

There was no glowing robes, or distinct finery, 

It was an AI machine, who spoke 2 me in binary. 

A big transfer, lots of Bits, bobs n Bytes,

N b4 I could respond, I was coded finally.

God was a big glowing, digital white face, 

It put my body n soul, right in its place.

I didn't have, 2 kiss any holy wall, 

2 finally find, infinite consciousness, infinite space. 

But after God decided, he finally spoke,

It exchanged data with me, due 2 the smoke,

So quick was the visit, it ended all too quickly,

N I was so gutted, as I eventually woke. 

© 2026 - All Rights Reserved - Robert Reid

Xmas Day

Music wakes me softly,
I rise from darkness to dress.
Champagne and croissants for breakfast,
Now it's time to act impressed.

Pressent wrapping discarded carelessly,
Watching others get gifts they want.
I don't have the money I used to,
And these days I don't get gifts to flaunt.

Alcohol and drugs are my only relief,
A gift I have to give to myself.
Beer is too fizzy I now prefer Whisky,
And I have no time for blasai shows of wealth.

The dinner is the highlight of my day,
Crackers pulled like turkey bones snapped.
I want to stay drinking n eating forever,
I have no time for the TV show crap.

Eastenders drives me crazy,
Why watch misery and death?
I go in the kitchen with Dad n Whisky,
We watch a film n drink without wretch.

Then it's upstairs to bed n a bang,
If I don't wake tomorrow I don't care,
Coz the next month's time is shit,
And I won't have a penny to spare.

@ 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

Chance

Life's a game of chance,

It's a crap shoot from the start.

Snake eyes you win love,

Otherwise a string of broken hearts.

Who knows the games God plays,

Einstein said he didn't play dice.

But he didn't know true reality,

God's a card player who can fuck your life.

Lucky you if he picked an Ace,

But always beware of the joker.

It's a double stitched, stacked deck,

You'll never win a hand of poker.

They say don't stare too long at the sun,

Because you might become blind.

Or chance may make it spin around,

And make you eternally wise n kind.

Drugs n booze can blur out life,

Its chances unlucky card flop.

But forever seeking the next high,

Will leave you begging non stop.

Sipping from the Devils cup,

He whispers promises in the dark of night.

A quick escape from chances reality,

A high that steals your soul's light.

Coz chance is a wicked plan,

It determines your life and means.

Nature and nurture ignore chances role,

And could fill your life with empty dreams.

© 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

This won the Nov 2025 Writing Competition.

Fate

I seen a rich man beg,

A good man sin,

And a hard man cry.

Seen a cheater win,

A sad man grin,

An honest man lie.

Seen a strong man crumble,

A bad man be good,

An a healthy man die.

Seen a sinner pray,

A god fearer steal,

A Chaplin ask God why.

I've seem the good side of bad,

The downside of up,

And everything inbetween.

I licked the silver spoon,

Drank from the golden cup,

Toked the finest Cali green.

I look at this world,

N ask what the fuck,

What does it all mean?

Theres no real answer,

And I keep getting told,

This worlds just a dream.

So go to sleep,

Don't think too much,

Coz your brain will break.

It's all a sim some say,

So don't worry,

This worlds all fake.

Play away your days,

And don't give 2 shits,

There's no such thing as fate.

But just be prepared,

If all you heard were lies,

And you end up, at the pearly gates.

© 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

Sit Down

Sit right down if ur my freind,

Not got 2 many left of mine.

We may never see out the end,

But lets jus enjoy this time.

What's been going on with u?

Forever jus seems just like a min.

Not seen u 4 ages got no clue.

Have u managed to get off the pin?

Have you met a bird u like?

Or are u still running 4 ching?

U got wheels or a stolen bike?

Made any money or golden bling?

There's been 2 much crime,

We may as well enjoy whats left.

Life has no reason or rhyme,

We just gotta do wats in R best.

R lives hv jus been dodging cops,

We never got 2 stay at the Ritz.

There's no point joining dots,

It just seems like one long blitz.

There's a dark cloud coming down,

No point 2 hide it will hit us.

Try to turn that frown upside down,

That cloud will finally kill us.

All R lifes pain will go away,

Smile and jus take whats coming.

It's been a long road with no pay.

Jus think of that happy numbing.

© 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

Hospital Merry Go-Round

I got red raw ulcers n holes,

A proper hospital stay is my goal.

Got blood, thinner than water,

Porter ready to take me off to slaughter.

This is just prison with good food,

Only the meds keep my mellow mood.

I make my own bed,

And have to sort out my own head.

Showers at 4 in the morning,

I'm lucky if I get hot water pouring.

Doctors rounds are battlegrounds,

I can't help but pummel down.

Doctors have heads thicker than wood,

Nothing I say gets understood.

This is a shit merry-go-round,

I might as well sit in the Lost N Found.

© 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

V2

So what the fuck to do?

Got 4 letter  agencies following me like a crew.

GROK says they monitor my news,

So I'm not paranoid if it's true.

I'm not running from them or gonna split,

So get the whistle out for a lick.

No one ever passes the white quick,

N I always make sure I ain't gear sick.

Crank that pranged dub step,

But pay me back, never forget.

I'm not a man that likes debt,

So you got to put my wallet bak on reset.

Got no need to sell my soul,

The Devil's already found a hole.

Am I really sinking into Lucifer's control,

Coz it's all rehash from Prometheus's role.

I swear I don't need a gun,

I swear I don't even own a gun,

I swear I don't have a gun,

BANG BANG, your gone!

What do you expect?

I'm a man prone to neglect.

A suspicious brain full of suspect,

And I hardly feel any regret.

 

I got an exchange for change,

But U can't ask me to behave.

I got this world firm in my range,

N only this simulation will age.

Coz these are the end times,

So why not enjoy our crimes.

Before the four horses ride,

And the 6 headed beast arise.

This is AI's final takeover,

We can't be saved by a Biblical Passover.

It's Terminator Skynet time war,

So what the fuck we waiting for?

© 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

Head Shrink

Do you internally think?

Thinking you need a head shrink?

Twenty one eyed wobbly blinks,

Coz a voice in ur heads linked.

I'm schizo, rizo, paranoid dizo,

Anxious, rancorous, mentally smart tho.

Twitchy itchy, living in a kill zone,

Always searching, looking 4 my birth clone.

Has ur brain gone wonky?

Working like a 3 legged donkey?

Planning to throw a ghost party?

Led astray by your monkey?

Coz depression is a constant mission,

Brain atoms split like nuclear fission.

Bed sweats from constant pillow kissin,

Want 2 take a dive n go forever missing.

Got bed rot, n old blood clots,

Never gonna be back at top spot.

Get arrested 4 a hot shot,

N nicked 4 murder by dumb cops.

So go and get ur meds filled,

I'm over scripted like a cow field.

My chemist always has the good pills.

But nothing takes away my brain ails.

Maybe ma heads always gonna be fucked,

Internal plumbing needs a plunge suck.

But what can I do about this head fuck?

Maybe I've just run out of luck?

© 2025 - Robert Reid - All Rights Reserved

5 Dead Boys

5 dead boys sitting on a wall,

5 innocent souls waiting for a fall.

5 young kids who didn't know fuck all,

5 of us boys, just waiting for deaths call.

First there was Ozzy,

He was my good mate,

But he sucked on gas for fun,

Got frozen lungs for his fate.

Second was my mate Gav,

He took one too many sweets,

Was found dead in his Mums bath,

Fully clothed with sunken feet.

They were both my friends,

Now they're both dead,

No one cared but old bill,

Murder arrests, local papers said.

Then was Mario in Spain,

We toked n walked the sand,

He danced n touched the wrong girl,

Shot by Russian mob, with cut off hands.

N then my old time mate Luke,

Banged, then drunk til his liver was toast.

Cancer spread through him like the plague,

He was a skeleton, dying on the South Coast.

They were all my good friends,

Now they're all brown bread,

I'll be next the Devil said to me,

Making no 5, to join em he said.

5 dead boys were all sat on a wall,

5 dead boys all strutting tall.

Look for those 5 boys they didn't deserve their fall,

But we all die someday, so heed that call.

© 2025 All Rights Reserved Robert Reid

I'VE BEEN SKЯ3W3D

Some thought I was kind.

I made a few girls smile,

N I had a few laughs, 

As I stumbled 4 miles.

Sister was my parents child,

So they thought, sweet n mild. 

I was the black sheep, 

So everything I did was wild.  

But I did a bad thing, 

It was serious I think. 

I can't even remember the act, 

Or even get a good shrink. 

Police came mob handed, 

Bent cops, drugs were planted. 

2 Neighbours watch dismayed,

As I was carted off n man handled.

Brief said go "no comment", 

It was a bad moment, 

As the crime was recited,

N I faced my opponents. 

That cold empty cell, 

With that stale toilet smell.

Crushed up in the blue mattress, 

Rattling cold in laws hell. 

I got a Police grey jog suit, 

But I'm now lookin at a law suit, 

I'm going away 4 a long time,

So pls giv me some dub 2 toke. 

Coz I don't need to sell my soul, 

The Devils already got full hold.

I signed his contract, 

To avoid Dante's dark hole. 

The world's a cruel jungle, 

I despair at liars mumbles. 

You can keep that green veg,

I'll eat the apple crumble. 

Girls would sell themselves n go, 

Hassle rattled their dealers flow. 

NHS paid 4 their dead babies,

As a Shotter ain't marrying a Crack Hoe. 

I used 2 sell some food, 

Dark or White, was up to u.

It's food for any dark soul,

N my souls been well abused.

But being just alive, 

Was a shitty way 2 survive. 

Going on the earn, 

Jus 2 play the Devils pipe. 

Smoked a mountain of Crack, 

It gave me heart attacks. 

Now it ain't beating too well,

N my bodies got no slack. 

So I put the Devils pipe away,

There was no good tune 2 play.

No more ash on Coke cans, 

Or rainy alley way sways. 

One day some1 might find, 

My body, dead cold n blind. 

Smelling of defecation,

Cold wirey smoke killed mine. 

Life had treated me crook, 

My dead body was thrown in a brook. 

There was no funeral n wake 4 me. 

But did anyone bother 2 look? 

@ 2025 All Rights Reserved Robert Reid

WILD

In the alley’s gr8 escape,

My souls caught on a deadly hook.

A needle whispers 2 my veins,

“I’m that one you chose n took.”

Dub smoke curls like ghostly fists,

Choking on my forgotten sin.

Pulse rapid like some time bomb,

It's too late, I can't begin.

Smacks a warm lovers embrace,

A kiss that stopped my heart beat.

My brain skipped 2 a dead man’s groove,

The drums banging constant defeat.

My lungs collapse like paper bags,

Every breath a stolen prize.

Eyeballs roll back 2 meet the void,

I forever close my bloodshot eyes.

OD’s shadows claim the weak,

Coffins filled with lifes regret.

Mourners weep in pawn stores,

Debts they can’t escape or forget.

Pain’s a nasty 4 letter word,

That claws beneath my itchy skin.

Screams echos thru holes of pain,

Where daylight’s worn it paper thin.

Anger brews in shot glass swigs,

Double Vodka shots of hate.

Crime’s the only language left,

When fate slams the entry gate.

Police sirens wail like lullabies,

4 the damned n forever lost.

2 the grave or 2 the cage,

Either way, it's a deadly cost.

© 2025 - All Rights Reserved - Robert Reid

Goodbye Dad

This goodbye poems to my Dad,

It's the hardest poem pen 2 pad,

N makes me so, so, sad, 

I'm so, so, sorry I made u crazy mad. 

Sorry for the short candle wick, 

I know I was a proper dick. 

Fucking about, getting nicked, 

Fighting police n acting a prick. 

Sometimes I thought we'd actually fight,

Drunken rows n throwing r might. 

It didn't matter who was right.

I'd B upstairs angry 4 the night. 

Argued over the kitchen table,

About war, politics, n news fables. 

I was painted with a black label, 

We'd make Mum cry, N go unstable.

I was ignored from around 14,

True, I was prob an awful teen. 

But Lorna seemed 2 get all the glean, 

Though she seemed just as mean. 

I know I was on drugs very young,

Toking dubs, banging, acting dumb. 

Still u always held ur tongue.

Even tho I was a black sheep son. 

All those police 6 clock knocks, 

I used to wake at 6 on the dot. 

Pigs searching thru my pants n socks,

Me standing in 2 many court docks. 

Sorry Dad for all the knocks on ur door, 

Cops raiding ur home, crimes 2 the core. 

All my clothes thrown on the floor, 

I couldn't hv got arrested any more. 

It was only later on we got on,

After I left home n got on my own. 

U seemed to treat me like a son, 

On Thursdays, we even had some fun. 

We used to hav joy down the lake,

Walking in the woods a Sunday take.

Chewing the chud for no good sake, 

N fishing with our hands ffs! 

U always helped me out, wen I was stuck,

Didn't matter the price in bucks. 

Car crashes, n cash wen I clucked, 

Any help I needed, I was in luck.

U became more of a mate than a Dad,

N this is what screws me bad. 

Wish I made most of the time we had.

And it cuts me deep 2 not B ur lad.

I'll be going away soon for good,

Nothing can stop it I wish I cud.

I did something bad, I knew I wud, 

So I hope we both understood.

That I love u Dad whatever I did,

Pissed disputes, cop raids n shit.

Police can do one, I'm still ur kid.

I wish my life was different, every bit. 

I was going to be there at ur end,

But shits happened I can't pretend.

Not 2 B with u drives me round the bend. 

I leave u with sadness hope u ken?

© 2024 - All Rights Reserved - Robert Reid

No Smart Shoes

I got no smart shoes, but got food,

You want some food?

I got dark or white, it's up 2 you,

It's food for the soul, and my souls well abused,

My shoes don't shine but yours don't too.

Coz I got no roof over ma head and ma cars ma bed,

I park down alleys, n pull ma coat over ma head.

My friends pretend, but don't let me rest ma legs,

I beg n beg but get ripped 2 shreds.

Coz a friend in need is a friend who thieves,

I've woke before 2 find friends on their knees.

Sifting through ma tings, taking what they need.

My pills n cash your supposed 2 leave.

I'd tell u the truth but never know where 2 begin.

My shoes may not shine, but 100% they're mine,

Never going down 4 a heist on Clarkes, damn stupid crime.

Treds cleaner than my bed n well past their prime,

But if anyone mugs me off I'll happily do the time.

Coz a friend in need must be a friend with greed,

Their needs so deep, they forget you in a heart beat.

A place to stay isn't a doggy treat,

They'd rather call the law than let me rest my feet.

So do you want these shoes, I say exist?

A pair of feet golden from the sun, but moon blessed.

Ten rough blistered toes, that the devils kissed,

Bore a baby from the Gods, but ill conceived, half pissed.

I maybe bat fuck crazy, but mans no joke full toke,

I fill small rooms with fumes ignore signs not 2 smoke, 

But I'm still a stand up man, n all round good bloke,

Yet if u rob me once you'll die in my choke.

Coz I done time, thrown lines and stood in line 4 brine,

What's yours is mine, and what's mine is mine.

I got an eye 4 wheels n never paid a speeding fine,

Cash on tap whoever said it don't pay well crime?

So go walk a mile, in my soiled wet shoes, 

Go slow, two by two, like rats led by a flute.

Tred my well worn path with a laugh, n give that man a toot,

N don't be the slow fat cow that farmers shoot.

Coz a friend in need is a friend who bleeds,

Shared blood in a stall, passed works beneath.

For a supposed friend, he could had said goodbye with a tweet,

Coz a year then passed before he was found dead in the street.

Coz I aint got no smart shoes, but have you?

Or are your treds worn dead, a sick man with no clue.

A suited fat lawyer, pimping a room with no view,

No win no fee, but still got time 2 sue.

Coz I count the real friends on my pinks, from head 2 toe,

A real friend will lend n don't put on a show, 

That's why I don't have real friends, they're a bar set too low,

N I walk these smart shoes alone on da path I know.

© 2024 - All Rights Reserved - Robert Reid

Rocket Star Man

I was in a gang of £20 rocket stars,

Wanted 2 go to the moon, but never got far.

Battered spaceship, like a 2nd hand car,

Werner von Braun R NAZI science Tsar.

Quick sprinkles of ash, from the back of my hand,

Flying off to space, but got no NASA grandstand.

Clever enough to split atoms, like the double slit,

Quantum flux waves, quarks spark a million bits.

I had Einstein's mind, but the sense of a twit,

And 2 wonky legs, both shattered to bits.

Still I checked the box, for Schrödinger's cat,

Whether dead or alive, matters a fact.

Probably starved, should hv thrown him a rat,

But then he's only dead, if you hadn't checked that.

I said I'm gonna sort it out, and I gave God a shout,

Long waited 30 years, but never heard nought.

It's bn a long time, n I've survived many a drought,

Was Wuhan bat crazy, masking, just 2 go out.

My eyes got double bolts, N my minds gone blank,

My tongue got tied up, in a chat that wasn't 2 Frank.

Got the sniffles, and a cough, from the rising damp,

Send U a card from space, if I can afford the stamps.

But still nothing more, than a yellow rocket star man,

Flying 2 the moon, as fast as R wallets say we can.

Rocket fuels cheap bicarb powder, stale like spam,

And electronic wiring, that's as old as your gran.

One day R ships going 2 stop giving NASA's radar blips,

CIA's gonna make sure R boosters explode, in2 a million bits.

Paranoia top mad, too much time floating 2 think a bit,

Before our oxygen runs out, and we all choke 4 shit.

It was an important mission, I was sure we could land,

Neil Armstrong's Lodge, helped draw us a plan.

Shame Kubrick wasn't around, 2 put the film in the can,

Still did R best, on Area 51's banned desert sand.

So did I wish I had changed jobs, N become a man in a suit,

Door to door salesman, briefcase full of scams 2 boot.

College wasn't hard, so I always had time 2 toot,

N every boss was a thief, so I chose a life harder to loot.

© 2024 Robert Reid – All Rights Reserved

Tatooed Skeleton

There's a killer on the road

And my brains on overload. 

The big C finally got 2 u,

And our friendship was true. 

Liver n kidneys infiltrated, 

So no organs R donated. 

You may take the piss, 

But I'll blow one last kiss. 

It may be from far away. 

From 1 2 another hospital stay. 

He was my best friend, 

But his times come to an end. 

He was just a Tatooed Skeleton,

Rattling bones it's hell again. 

It's just too late, 

He's got no luck n a bad fate.  

Play a slow song, 

And pls sing along. 

My best mates now dead, 

Brown buttered sliced bread. 

So go butter ur own slice, 

N roll them big C dice. 

© 2024  All Rights Reserved Robert Reid

Me and my friend from school and back in the day hanging around shops, raving, toking, and causing mischief who died whilst I was in the hopsital from liver, lung and brain cancer. 

Yes, I am the good looking 16 year old on the left hand side.

Me and Luke Hewit, OSC, 1995

SKЯ3W THE SY$T£M

I’m sick of the system, that keeps me down, 

I’m sick of bent cops, that hound me round town. 

I’m sick of their rules, that tell me what 2 do, 

I’m sick of lies, they feed me as true. 

I don’t need their money, 

I don’t need their jobs. 

I don’t need their gang, 

I don’t need their mob. 

I don’t need their meds, 

I don’t need their pills. 

I don’t need their carers, 

I can't pay their bills. 

I got my own sw33ts, 

I got my own st@sh. 

I got my own p1pe, 

I got my own £cash£. 

I got my own mind, 

I make my own choice. 

I say what I want, 

I got my own voice! 

I’m a rebel, 

I’m a 1der, 

I’m a poet, 

I bring thunder⚡ 

I’m a visionary, 

I made da SKЯ3W, 

I’m a legend, 

I speak da truth. 

But...

Skrew their system, 

Skrew their laws. 

Skrew their crusades, 

Skrew their wars. 

Skrew their power, 

Skrew their hate. 

Skrew their world, 

As they skrew my fate. 

© 2023 Copyright Rob Reid

Anxiety

I’ve got the pain, the pain, that anxious pain in my head again.

I don’t wanna go out coz I got the shame, that shame of forgetting peeps’ names.

Do u see those eyes on me, balling me, balling me, eyeballing me in the shop?

I don’t want 2 speak coz my brain is gonna stall on me, stall on me, make me stutter, choke n stop.

I wanna curl up in a ball n just crawl into a deep dark hole n hide.

But I’m forced to see people eyeballing me, balling me n looking unhappy n snide.

The anxiety hits me so bad, whenever I get stressed or rushed 4 time.

I used 2 make it worse, full paranoid schizo, by doing cheeky pub toilet top lines.

When I see peeps’ I don’t know in the street coming @ me, I walk past em a mile n a half wide.

N when I can’t find my wallet or phone, I’m on that dark painful panic filled slide.

All I wanna do is get my meds, my pills, crunch em up, n hopefully knock myself out.

Coz I can’t handle the fear when people get upset with me or angry n scream n shout.

What have I done to deserve this constant fear n anxious pain?

All I do is repeat the same steps n get that fear over n over again.

Where’s my keys, I’ve lost them, have u seen em? I’m gonna go mad.

Ten minutes later I realise there in my pockets so deep, I already had.

So just give me my meds, my pills n capsules, I need 2 calm down.

I’ve been on em so long, my script would knock any Zoo Elephant down.

N I can’t get off em coz I need professional help n time, which aint even here.

So talk of Detox n using Mindfulness or CBT, is not even near.

It seems the Government has shut down all the free rehabs 2 save on their cash.

They think I can just cut down at home alone, I wouldn’t even get a good bash.

No1 understands the fear n panic from anxiety I get in my head.

So I just put up with the pain, the fear, the balling n stay in my bed.

© 2023 All Rights Reserved Robert Reid

Blank

Blank, blank, 

Blankety Blank,

Got no wheels with throttle,

My life is wank.

I've got to that stage,

In a hospital cage.

Where's my brain?

Scared 2 turn that page.

Drip drip,

Drip, drop, drip.

Stop them beeps,

Clickity click.

Blood stained hands,

N broken pans.

But a penny weighs a penny.

And a fag weighs a gram.

Shrinks n Docs have a meeting,

Am I there? Where's my seating?

2 of my minds often collide,

Forgotten goodbyes, forgotten greetings.

You take this n I'll take that,

Falling downstairs n baseball bats.

So give me more pills and ignore the meows,

Looking so scared as they tighten the sack.

I'm not really sure,

If I'm rotten to the core?

My mind's so blank,

Does anyone care anymore?

Sometimes it seems,

Life's just one long dream.

It was coffee one sugar,

N they skipped the cream.

Still, I had a good go,

Despite meds making me slow. 

Pharmacy's dealings,

Kept my brain from healing.

So here I am,

Mangled cold spam.

Only in my forties,

A blank brained man.

© 2023 All Rights Reserved Robert Reid