Life on Bay

Remember life on Bay?
It just seems like yesterday
The chalkdust in your hair
And the paper in the air
The heavy metal doors
And the scuffed up tile floors
Where everything was worn
Before most of us were born
But it had a certain feel
It was solid, it was real
You could work a post alone
On the move and on the phone
The digit counters click
As you'd add another tick
You could walk around the post
And not see a single MOST
Grab and stamp a ticket
Then stuff the tube and stick it
That's when work was fun
Cause it kept you on the run
And the food down in the caf
Was so bad you had to laugh
But the girls there were alright
Even though they looked a sight
And they served you pretty quick
And I never once got sick
From the peanut butter toast
That I snuck back to the post
Or the special of the day
What it was, I couldn't say
How about smoking by the stairs?
Twenty people, seven chairs
Or getting on the floor
By just walking through the door
The security was there
But for us they didn't care
No sirens and no hooters
No malfunctioning computers
You could check out your positions
And the odd lot/terms conditions
Without pushing through a hoard
You just looked up at the board
And if you felt you needed air
Well, the front door was right there
You could go out for a drink
Without raising a stink
The Corkroom down the street
Was the place for us to meet
It had an atmosphere
That you can't find around here
And the prices were OK
For my meagre Postie pay
Yeah, that bar belonged to us
With no pretense and no fuss
If you had a thirst to slake
You could go there on your break
I remember life on Bay
And I've got something to say
I didn't work there long
But I think leaving was wrong
I mean, sure, the place was old
But at least it wasn't cold
And now it's standing there
empty, dark and bare
A reminder of old days
And a different set of ways
The plaster's cracked and stained
The entrance locked and chained
No more crowding by the door
At lunch time and at four
Now all of that is gone
And the TSE goes on
But Bay Street was a friend
I was sad to see it end
But as I sit and reminisce
About this place I really miss
I realize that it can't fall
It lives within us, one and all

- Written by Peter Norville