Turvy Topsy

[MystyrMystyry]

I was trying on new jackets
in a large department store
when it crossed my mind the
mirror seemed to be a door

a portal I could walk through
into a different world unknown
so I thought I'd take a step
enter into the realm alone

at first it looked the same
with the prices competitive
but the place was backwards
and soon became repetitive

can I help you sir? they asked me
over and over and over and over
welcome initially but all too soon
it cloyed, and so I ran for cover

on the street the main difference
litter, gum, oil spills I found
in heaps and piles and lots
were what made the ground

buildings were built of cardboard
much like a box used for a package
glitter, bows and giftwrapping
were preferable to the lackage

it was dinner time so I searched
for somewhere nice to eat
by which I mean food and inside
not the place constituting a treat

at the first diner a chalkboard
advertised the premises itself
walls, carpet, windows, ceiling,
fireplace, doors, or a bookshelf

side serving of wallpaper or tiles
curtains or tablecloths furnished
all I could eat if I could eat it
and hinges and handles garnished

I consumed my fill til I was sated
and then rose from my chair to pay
the proprietor looked at me bemused
not how it works, not that way

around here it seems the customer
is the one who instead gets paid
a surprising and pleasant idea
but I soon realised not the best made

the products all were unsatisfying
ere long I got tired of trying them out
reverse fabrics and materials reserved
I was so hungry I could eat a house

the place it made me frightened
and now I could stand no more
had to escape with some sanity intact
so I raced back toward the store

as I entered they detained me
became 'browsing customer du jour'
amid streamers, confetti and noise
apparently this was the law

I leapt and fled their clutches
to make it in the nick of time
where my reflection reflected on
his fifty minutes of crime




.

[Jerrybaldy]

Some of the rhyming seemed forced MM but the freedom of your imagination always makes you a treat. A place to eat... lol.. If litnet were a physical place there would be an upside down, inside out door that wasnt there, engraved MM.
P.S this reminded me of the Magical Faraway Tree.

[MystyrMystyry]

Thanks JB :)

I tried to make it a tad wonky to help illustrate the 'otherness' - part of the operation was that the rhymes were deliberately not the best choices, but I'll leave off discussing the creative process for another thread. Right now I can see a few places where it could be fixed for clarity - but I'm in the middle of something else, so later.

As for the Faraway Tree - it wasn't one of the titles in my library, and hadn't actually heard of it until about 2 years ago when at a party a mate's girlfriend kept insisting I read it. I promptly forgot about it. A google search just revealed that there's both an animated series and an audiobook by Kate Winslett - I think I'll go with that one.