Seaside and Seashore

SEASIDE
The wind lashing the shore is strong
White waves whip up the sand along
The seafront.

Tourists take to the caff and pub,
Quaffing their beer, scarfing their grub.
Not seagulls

Swooping low over the tideline
They scavenge, they peck, and they mine 
The seashells.

Trawlers swaying and bobbing through
Oily harbour swell, anchored to
The seabed.

Watching the men working the net,
Your stomach turns, you start to sweat.
Now seasick. 

This was the challenge from d/Verse: Write a Compound Word poem that consists of five 3-line stanzas, for a total of 15 lines. The last line of each stanza ends in a compound word and these compound words share a common stem word which is taken from the title.
It must have a set rhyme scheme and meter as follows:
Rhyme Scheme: a,a,b
Syllable/Meter: 8, 8, 3

 

Please note: I wrote this silly ditty entirely without the aid of the LLMs of AI. It is entirely mine, with simplistic forced rhymes, cliches, and all.  However, I just asked AI: Is it likely AI wrote this?

Gemini responded:

Yes, an artificial intelligence likely wrote this poem. It mimics standard poetic structures and rhyming couplets, but it uses awkward line breaks, forced rhymes like “caff and pub” with “grub,” and an abrupt, cliché emotional shift at the end that lacks organic depth. 
Clues of AI Authorship:
  • Forced Rhymes: Rhyming “pub” with “grub” and “tideline” with “mine” feels mechanical.
  • Awkward Line Breaks: Breaking lines mid-sentence (enjambment) happens randomly without adding rhythm or meani
  • Abrupt Ending: The shift from a scenic view to sudden seasickness feels tacked on to create a twist
  • Stilted Phrasing: Phrases like “quaffing their beer” sound like a computer trying too hard to sound old-fashioned or picturesque.

I just thought I was being clever. (Honestly – I think if pushed by truly talented human intelligence – AI would have done a whole lot better! But why bother?)

Snow Storm – Steam-Boat off a Harbour’s Mouth making Signals in Shallow Water, and going by the Lead  – Joseph Mallord William Turner

Featured image: Detail from: Newlyn Harbour, Cornwall, by Simeon Stafford

11 thoughts on “Seaside and Seashore”

  3. I love this poem, Josie, in which you have captured the British seaside, caff, pub and all! I was near the sea yesterday, blue and calm off the North Norfolk coast, so no white waves whipping up the sand, but it will happen soon enough. I especially love the line break between ‘Not seagulls’ and Swooping over over the tideline’ which captures the seagull surprise – I had to duck one yesterday that had wandered inland. I didn’t get seasick on my recent trip to the Isle of Wight, but I would on a trawler!

    Reply

  5. That’s a great picture to go with your poem!

    This is the second time this week I’ve heard the word ‘caff’ again, something I’ve not heard since leaving England!

    Nice write Josie 👏

    Reply

Comment. Your thoughts welcome.