12,705. I AM RE-VAMPED

I AM RE-VAMPED

Now here's quite a story. The

roadway was 287, near South

Plainfield I guess it is, where there

used to be an old farm right there,

at the curve for the exit, Maybe

it's Franklin. I'm not sure, except

that the old barn is gone now. I last

recall it in the 1970's. It always was

a glimmer to me of a world I'd never

seen; thinking of  that expanse as

farmland, recent, was difficult for

me to do. I remember when that

stretch of roadway opened, a friend

I knew, a friend of a friend actually,

who had a 1956 Buick, bet his friend

he could crack 100mph in that tub

of a Buick, along that straightaway.

-

The bet was, on I went along for the

ride. That year's Buick, the 1956, had

 a weird speedometer. It was horizontal,

and marked off, as usual, with lines,

but instead of a needle/arrow it had,

like a thermometer, a strip of red

mercury, or something, that showed

mph, again, like thermometer, the

speed, as if it was a temperature.

The car, back then, was probably

12 years old, maybe 13, I forget,

and it didn't seem built for any

'speed' at all. So we went; the guy's

name, what we called him, was

'Hodge.' That was his last name

too, so, no big shakes on that. He

was tooling along, and we watched,

60,70,80. It was happening. The

road was pretty empty, still being 

new. The car went through the 

90 mph section OK, and, I swear,

it seemed to peter out at 100. It

seemed it just couldn't make the 99,

I didn't care, it was cool enough

for me, no matter.

-

10 bucks was on the line, and these

two schmucks start going at it. It

cracked 100! It did not! Really, the

stupidest noise in the world. If I

was Solomon, or a diplomat or

whatever, I'd have said, 'Shut up.

Give him 5, and settle at 99mph.

OK?' But I wasn't, and they weren't

ready to settle. I forget what it all

ended up as, but no money changed

hands, they settled on some sort

of honorable disclaimer, we pulled

of the road, and Hodge, at a light,

jumped out to get a pack of cigarettes

at a corner store right next to the light.

Now THAT was fast. 60 seconds

later, he was back at the wheel, and

the light was turning green!