#73 A WOMAN'S BRIEFS -- COUSIN TROUBLE
My cousin, Carole, whom I adore
This blog posting is a test. For the last four days my blog site refused to post blog #72. We think we got that fixed, manually. But is it really fixed? The question is, did you receive this? If time permits, scroll all the way down and send a comment say, “yes.” that might help.
Here, meanwhile, a memory of when my beloved cousin Carole and I were fourteen, roller skaters, and obviously immature. We’ve grown up. She’s a remarkable woman. I wrote this in the early 1980s
CUZ & ME – 1954
ONE:
Friends, come close and gather near,
I have a tale to spill.
I would love to tell the one I know
Of Catholic priests, and frogs, and fear,
But then I’d not grow near
to this, a tale of Cousins. Carole, and me.
I’d never brush the painted words
I wish your waiting minds to see.
So, on!
Late one summer’s Friday night
With roller-skating done,
My beloved Cuz and I
Embarked on feckless fun.
Well,
At fourteen years we laughed and chattered
Our skirts were brief, our feet dance-battered,
Skate-cases bounced and clattered.
Walking home was all that mattered.
Till . . .
Till our friend, Rabbit, came along
His nose for fun a’twitch’n,
All sixteen years, antenna-ears,
And an awkward way of hitch’n down
His Levis so they barely caught his hips.
“Hop in, I’ll take you home.” He grinned.
But it was Truck,
His red-haired friend,
Who held the door and let us in.
TWO:
It was night, remember.
We were young and in September
Phoenix tends to feel like spring,
Demands a lark, invites a fling . . .
The weather must have made us mean.
You need to know that we were skaters.
As well, we were determined haters
Of two female foes with rounded busts,
Girls who dared to smoke and cuss,
And deftly stole the boys from us.
THREE:
Driving home, fate made it happen
We passed those female foes.
Carole thought to yell some mild abuse,
I proudly snubbed my freckled nose.
Enough, don’t you suppose?
But, Carole, my much-loved Cuz and I
Too many years together,
Began to feel adrenalin flow,
Without a word began to know
The time had come to serve the blow
Two busty broads had coming.
FOUR:
This tale is true, remember.
From the back seat of the car we schemed
With coy but brilliant shrewdness.
Rabbit, Truck, adored our teenaged rudeness.
Our cunning minds surged even more.
We slipped down to the darkened floor
The car with boys heads straight ahead,
Crept slowly to a stop.
Rabbit spoke with cocky pride,
“Hi Tammy, Nelda. Wanna ride?”
Well-concealed, we swelled with laughter.
We hatched the plan the guys went after.
They played their roles with skill.
Our noses, though, began to fill
With floorboard dust—and pride.
We had to sneeze. We nearly died.
From the darkened street outside
Suspiciously those girls replied,
“But, we saw Carole and Barb inside . . .”
Truck jumped ahead and played the game.
“Heck, they wouldn’t be the same as having you.
So come on, let’s all hop in front.
Forget those Dips we finally dumped.
Let’s take a little ride together.”
FIVE:
On cue they cruised out east of town
Prompting lines that put the hidden cousins down.
They kept insults and chatter flowing
While moving ever closer to the mountains.
Stop and cuddle, kiss and giggle.
Gossip flowed till my middle ached
With earned revenge.
Still well-concealed, we fought for quiet
Through this late-night drama.
Time was of the essence
In the birth of tasteless trauma.
Carole and I used our hands to talk,
Our eyes to mark reaction.
We bit our tongues,
With fists upswung,
As that rotten front seat faction smeared our precious names.
Then, Oh, oh, ahhh! Ka-choo!
My precious cousin blessed the air
That triggered Nelda’s turn, and glare.
And through the moonlight’s filtered light
I smiled at her with sweet delight.
My smile, it’s true,
Turned rather haughty.
She gasped, and shrieked,
“Dear god, a body!”
A body? Yes, indeed there was.
Two, in fact.
Me and Cuz.
Written 1980 - SCROLL DOWN TO COMMENTS
