Thanks all.
No doubt there's some borrowing going on- but I can't remember where from. Goggle gives the title multiple origins.

Hi Tom,

Can I say that I think that you have an enviable abilities in both your writing and illustrations. Anything which complements the written word, dragging it from the dusty and sometimes inaccessible page is to be admired and welcomed.

Regards,
A.E.

and/or perhaps larkin's This be the Verse?

and they were fucked up in their turn
by fools in old-style hats and coats
who half the time were soppy stern
and half at one another's throats

reminiscent of grey Autumn days which, up here in the Pennines tend to be all year round. the buttoned-up British. Just been talking to a friend near Bordeaux, 25 celsius there, pissing down here.

Lovely, effective poem. I love this line: "People turn serious / in coats and hats". Are you referencing Joyce in the title?
The illustration is a nice touch but no leaves?