Paul,
I think it would be infinitely tedious to try to find some tangible narrative in this. It seems to me to be a chain of allusions and puns and associations which add up to the pair of lovers enduring the vicissitudes and joys of living. The joys and agonies of flesh, personal and gastronomic and the meaning and folly of life and the price of life etc. There are meanings lurking under the bed and in the wardrobe beyond analysis. That's not meant to sound pretentious--just to say you can't pin down steam but you can admire the way it whistles out of the kettle, floats round the room and disappears. I'd love to have written this one.
Janet
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