you wandered the crowded balconies like mountain goats , packed the high-rise bars , arranged like gravel in flower-boxes , and clung on for dear life , no safety net to catch you if you dropped , eating the sugar glasses to boost your energy and sweating like microwaved chocolate as a result , losing what friends you may have arrived with and making fresh acquaintances this side of the oval doors , transient investments of saliva and attention you 'd shed like old skin once you were washed back outside by the flood , those lingering couples ensconced in mountain niches hosed free by cleaning ladies in full combat kit .