Past the houses that used to be boozers,
Near the nurseries that were once khazis
And the wine bars transformed from urinals
And the banks become bistros, then past the
Isolation wards razed for homeowning
In estates built where once they fought typhoid,
Boiling rags to beat tuberculosis,
Beyond cinemas long since sans celluloid
Converted to warehouse-size boozers,
Warehouses done up as apartments,
Whole high streets bricked over as house fronts,
Retail parks bricking over escarpments,
Railway arches now filled with ceramicists ,
Post Offices turned into ‘Spoonies
By canals lined by workshops, now studios,
Where the sun never shines where the moon was,
They’re going to build slums out of face masks
Slums out of face masks
Slums out of face masks
They’re going to build slums out of facemasks.