deepundergroundpoetry.com
Ode to Thunder Road
1969 Camaro, red, black vinyl top. baby moons. tires like midnight:
too rebellious for white sidewalls. made for trouble. vindictive ride
of a rock&roll junkie’s lost highway bravura.
six cylinders of subdued horses. not quite the elusive cheetah of the
muscle car jungle. more like a crimson-furred panther.
{how far from obscurity & how near to heaven, when we grip the
guiding wheel & persuade the unhindered gas pedal; when we
cut through the raging wind & speed far from the ordinary in a
roaring manufactured dream.}
young men who consider themselves immortal do crazy things.
screaming across the railroad tracks 1 second before the train got
there, its whistle blaring & calling you dirty names. & old Mr. Death
all upset, shaking his fist at you in the rearview for messing up his
quota again.
daring nights on the strip. high school girls in shop-lifted lipstick, anxious
to make out with cocky James Dean clones, white tee shirts & sideburns.
drag races for pride & hard-earned cash, until approaching sirens scattered
us. running like outlaws high on gasoline & cheap perfume…
…Vietnam vet, crippled by a land mine in a rice paddy, sits at a window in a
steel wheeled chair, watches the bright shiny ghost of a red Camaro cruise by
all happiness & choir of angels in the sky
Published 15th Jan 2015
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likes 22
reading list entries 4
comments 18
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Anonymous
15th Jan 2015 00:06am
this is one of those pieces where you nod and smile and remember.
top notch Feddeler. Top notch.
top notch Feddeler. Top notch.
Anonymous
- Edited 25th Sep 2020 3:45am
15th Jan 2015 00:22am
<< post removed >>
15th Jan 2015 00:59am
I'm not a vet, but I know how it feels to mourn a car and the right kind of speed. My last was a '91 Mustang, 5 liter, V-8. Not a demon, but fast enough. I still dream about driving that sweetheart at least once a week.
15th Jan 2015 2:29am
They actually still road race today with some sick cars, but I like the nostalgia better. Nice tribute, enjoyed...
15th Jan 2015 2:35am
15th Jan 2015 3:32am
Love it and Camaro! My first car was red, t top Firebird.....love the stick shift ; )
You make everything come to life down to the sound of that engine.
You make everything come to life down to the sound of that engine.
15th Jan 2015 4:49am
Ok John you have a very good way with words .. Seriously talented . I can visualize every scenario you create which is so good . Don't stop writing ever xo
15th Jan 2015 5:31am
15th Jan 2015 10:19am
Incredibly well written. It totally invokes that lamentation of days gone. The pathos you have woven into this poem is achingly good.
Amazing work John
Amazing work John
15th Jan 2015 7:42pm
15th Jan 2015 8:19pm
fantastic Ink :-)
invokes memories of what I never was, but would have like to be :-)
invokes memories of what I never was, but would have like to be :-)
16th Jan 2015 7:01am
Crazy good Johnny but then why woudnt it be!
You are such a giftted writer and a great person
I love you brother!
Zazzles xoxo
You are such a giftted writer and a great person
I love you brother!
Zazzles xoxo
16th Jan 2015 9:38am
Aww..all been thinking the heavens were hazy n obscure so as not to be understood n juz experienced..like a beautiful chaos;)
So much running picture u capture here JF, with flying speedy upliftments. Tq fr this journey:)
So much running picture u capture here JF, with flying speedy upliftments. Tq fr this journey:)
17th Jan 2015 7:46pm
Brilliant imagery mate I could almost smell the gasoline burning through the raucous exhaust.
It reminded me, too, that there are bold drivers and there are old drivers but there are no old bold drivers!
Be lucky ;-)
It reminded me, too, that there are bold drivers and there are old drivers but there are no old bold drivers!
Be lucky ;-)
18th Jan 2015 4:50am
Strong expressions, the mechanical man will profit no matter what, and pride is very much spread throughout a lawful yet rebellious phase, outlining technological revolutions best moments and downfalls, really brave move,...
28th Jan 2015 12:33pm
5th Jul 2017 4:12am
Wow...that gave me goosebumps...John. I can see it...and the Vietnam vet. Those paddy fields eh.
