Anyone know any poems about:

The end of the work week

The end of the work day

The end of one's work (career)


Les

"The Mary Gloster" and "A song of Kabir" both by Kipling.

The world's last poet
strolls down the world's last corridor of trees,
while behind him (discreetly, not to distract him),
the world's last lumberjacks
hack down the trees to make the pulp
to make the paper for the world's last
book of poetry, which the poet,
inspired by the trees,
is about to write.
______________________

Dean Blehert

Go here
[www.boondocksnet.com]

for a history of the slogan "Bread and Roses," the people who chanted it, and a link to a poem inspired by them.

That has nothing to do with TGIF, but it's related to the work week.

==========

I take it you want poems about the relief of getting off work, not the desperation of unemployment or drudgery. Here's something that's actually a song lyric, but it may suit your needs:

    after toiling in the salt mines all day
    i shake off the detritus of the archaeology
    as i chalk up another notch to character
    the five o'clock whistle whispers its threnody.

Read the rest of it at [www.losingblueprint.com]

I found that by searching for ["five o'clock whistle" + poem], so you might have luck searching for POEM plus any phrase associated with the end of the work day-shift-week.

There's that one posted on Homework- about the harvest worker.

pam

Marian, this is more like what I was looking for:

Artist: The Vogues Lyrics
Song: Five O'Clock World Lyrics

Up every mornin just to keep a job
I gotta fight my way through the hustling mob
Sounds of the city poundin in my brain
While another day goes down the drain

But its a five oclock world when the whistle blows
No one owns a piece of my time
And theres a five oclock me inside my clothes
Thinkin that the world looks fine, yeah

Tradin my time for the pay I get
Livin on money that I aint made yet
Ive been goin tryin to make my way
While I live for the end of the day

Cuz its a five oclock world when the whistle blows
No one owns a piece of my time, and
Theres a long-haired girl who waits, I know
To ease my troubled mind, yeah
oh my lady, yeah
oh my lady, yeah
In the shelter of her arms everythings OK
When she talks then the world goes slippin away
And I know the reason I can still go on
When every other reason is gone,

In my five oclock world she waits for me
Nothing else matters at all
Cuz every time my baby smiles at me
I know thats its all worthwhile,
yeah oh my lady,
yeah oh my lady, yeah

Les

What Then? by Yeats
The Grammarian's Funeral by Browning

Linda, thanks for the Kipling some great lines from the Mary Gloster:

>I didn't begin with askings. I took my job and I stuck;
>I took the chances they wouldn't, an' now they're calling it luck.


Les

Take this job and shove it
I aint workin here no more
my woman gone left and took all the reason
I was workin for

(I gather you probably know that song.

Well, Talia, this one has a little more attitude than what I was looking for, but I was always impressed by the fact that it was written by Johnny Paycheck:

TAKE THIS JOB AND SHOVE IT



Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.
My woman done left,
An' took all the reasons I was workin' for.
You better not to try to stand in my way,
As I'm a walkin' out the door.
Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.

I've been workin' in this fact'ry,
For nigh on fifteen years.
All this time, I watched my woman,
Drownin' in a pool of tears.
An I've seen a lot of my good folk die,
Had a lot of bills to pay.
I'd give the shirt right off of my back,
If I had the guts to say.

Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.
My woman done left,
An' took all the reasons I was workin' for.
You better not to try to stand in my way,
As I'm a walkin' out the door.
Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.

Well, that foreman, he's a regular dog,
The line boss is a fool.
Got a brand new flat-top haircut;
Lord, he thinks he's cool.
One of these days, I'm gonna blow my top,
And sucker, he's gonna pay
Lord, I can't wait to see their faces,
When I get the nerve to say:

Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.
My woman done left,
An' took all the reasons I was workin' for.
You better not to try to stand in my way,
As I'm a walkin' out the door.
Take this job and shove it,
I ain't workin' here no more.

Take this job and shove it.

Les

Les, this thread reminded me of an old poem i learnt at school about the end of the work day, but i can only remember bits of it, and not the author. Does it ring any bells for anyone?


When the toil of day is done
and the evening sun is setting
homeward comes each weary one
toil, in rest, forgetting.

When the songbird homeward flies
something something something


rikki

Rikki, a quick search of the internet showed nothing with those lines, perhaps it is still in copyright.

Here's another song with the theme I'd like:

The Easybeats

Monday morning feels so bad,
Ev'rybody seems to nag me
Coming tuesday I feel better,
Even my old man looks good,
Wednesday just don't go,
Thursday goes too slow,
I've got Friday on my mind

Chorus

Gonna have fun in the city,
Be with my girl she's so pretty,
She looks fine tonight,
She is out of sight to me,
Tonight....I spend my bread,
Tonight...I lose my head,
Tonight...I got to get tonight
Monday I have Friday on my mind.


Do the five day drag once more,
Know of nothing else that bugs me
More than working for the rich man,
Hey I'll change that scene one day,
Today I might be mad,
Tomorrow I'll be glad,
I've got Friday on my mind,

Les