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Thursday

Douglas Dunn

Gave yet another lecture. God, I’m boring.
Said all the same old things I’ve said before
With touches of ‘however-ing’ and ‘therefore-ing’.
Dear God, it’s true, I’m just an ancient bore.

If only I could tap my old exuberance,
High spirits that I plied in days of yore,
Then maybe I would find a kind deliverance
From the curse of being such a bloody bore.

For I’m the model of a modern academic.
I’m absolutely super at ennui.
I’m just stunning when it comes to a polemic,
And boredom’s snoredom’s what I guarantee.

I’m putting extra pennies in my pension.
Retirement beckons and the garden calls,
That beautiful, botanical dimension
Where boilersuited pensioners scratch their balls.

But I’ve a problem, and it’s called ‘work ethic’, so
I’ll slog on with the daily, dreary toil.
Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, what a lousy way to go,
To work all day then burn the midnight oil.


Douglas Dunn

from Second Wind (Saltire Society, 2015)

Reproduced by permission of Douglas Dunn.

Tags:

ageing boring humour jobs self-doubt teachers
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Black and white head-shot of Douglas Dunn wearing glasses and a suit. He has white hair, bushy eyebrows and a beard.

Douglas Dunnb.1942

Douglas Dunn is a major Scottish poet, editor and critic. He was Professor in the School of English at the University of St Andrews from 1991, and was awarded an OBE in 2003.
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