replace your gaskets and paint over your rust
i'm working longer days lately, as i slowly adapt to the letter-writin', email-answerin', agenda-settin', activities of the modern department chair. upon leaving the office at 10:30 tonight, i walked through the rain to find a dead old jeep. i got a little whine from the starter, but the dome light soon dimmed and i had to seek alternative transportation.i've always loved aging vehicles -- something about the patina on the beat-up sheet metal, especially on a rainy night -- but i'm getting tired of playing shade-tree mechanic. of course, i'm fortunate enough to drive old cars recreationally. many hard-working folks must depend on such sleds to make a living or get the kids to school.
tonight, i just stood there getting soaked for a few minutes. soon enough, i found myself mumbling and air-guitaring an old song from my all-time favorite festus, missouri band. maybe it will cheer you up during a similar moment. here's the bottle rockets on the sorry state of the 1000 dollar car:
Thousand dollar car it ain't worth nothin'
Thousand dollar car it ain't worth shit,
Might as well take your $1000,
and set fire to it.
Thousand dollar car ain't worth a dime,
You lose your thousand dollars every time,
Oh why did I ever buy,
a thousand dollar car.
A thousand dollar car is gonna let you down,
More than it's ever gonna get you around,
Replace your gaskets and paint over your rust,
You'll still end up with something that you'll never trust.
A thousand dollar car's life was through,
'bout 50,000 miles 'fore it got to you,
Oh why did I ever buy,
a thousand dollar car.
A thousand dollar car ain't even gonna roll,
til you throw at least another thousand in the hole,
Sink your money in it and there you are,
the owner of a $2000 thousand dollar car.
(neil/mascis-like guitar solo)
If you've only got a thousand dollars,
You ought to just buy a good guitar.
Learn how to play it, it'll take you farther,
than any old thousand dollar car.
If a thousand dollar car was truly worth a damn,
then why would anybody ever spend ten grand.
Oh why did I ever buy,
a thousand dollar car.
if you ask me, rocket-in-chief brian henneman goes way deeper on social class and midwestern values than, say, thomas frank. depending on the traffic, you can stream a live full-length version of this song at myspace. even better, the rockets are passing through first avenue on october 14. i'm sure somebody will come along to give me a jump by then...
posted by christopher uggen @ 12:46 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
At least you weren't stuck in Indianapolis with no way to get around.
I suppose that makes up for the Primus mention.
The Brooklyn Side and 24 Hours a Day were very good, and then the BRox sort of went off the rails after that. But I hear they're still very good live.
And yes, as a working class kid, I drove many $1000 cars up until my late 20s. "But it was such a good deal..." I'd tell myself...
$1,000 car?!?
Would that I had been that lucky. I don't know what working class you people came from, but my first car cost me a cool $100 (turns out that was a full $10 over the trade-in value), and I thought I was king of thw world. They just don't make them like the Ford Festiva anymore.
The current car is slightly better (it clocks in at just over $1,000 in the blue book), but it has to last me until I'm out of grad school.
But it has a fly wheel going out that's worth more than the car, so it's a race against time, as I need to graduate and get a job before I can afford a new car.
At least I've found my motivation to get out of here in a timely manner...
Friend of mine bought a $200 car and drove it up the Dalton Highway, which at the time was closed to all but North Slope truckers. (It may still be permit only, I don't know.) Maybe not the smartest thing in the world to do, but in the greater scheme of young adult rebellion, it didn't seem too bad. Besides, Alaskans don't like being told they can't drive on a state-built road but outsiders who work for oil companies can.
Anywho, she promptly got 3 flat tires on the pothole-filled, gravel road. Waited for two hours for the first car to pass by, hitched a ride to the nearest town (1.5 hours back down toward Fairbanks), bought 3 tires at $135 bucks a pop, and waited for another hour to get a ride back up. That $200 car ended up costing her $600 and the better part of a day.
The 4th original tire blew on the trip back home.
my first was a banged-up '69 chevy that cost $175 hard-earned restaurant-work dollars. i brush-painted it screaming yellow and drove it back and forth to madison for six or seven years. 'twas a cold sad day when the block finally cracked ...
Post a Comment
<< Home