On Boulder Highway [Part 4 of My Las Vegas Trilogy]
An original poem by Chrome Dome Mike Kimbro
Consider reading along to my Spoken Verse Performance.
VERSE 1
In time, I found my way back to the desert.
A cool Louisville lady was on my arm.
Rockin' sharkskin pants, and a bitchin' shirt.
Checkered flag ring was my good luck charm.
VERSE 2
In need of hydration, and a tad winded,
Read the mini bar menu, and clutched my heart.
Yeah, that cardiac arrest was mostly pretended,
I chose the eight dollar water which was 'smart'.
VERSE 3
Headed down to the casino floor around 2.
Asked of the guy on the bar stool next to me:
What's the deal with your WWBD tattoo?
“A tribute to the poet Bukowski!”
VERSE 4
I chuckled and ordered us another,
He was older, but not quite retired.
Knowing I’d found an artistic brother,
The standard sizing up wasn’t required.
VERSE 5
But I didn’t wear my values ‘on my sleeve’.
So he didn’t have it quite so simple.
My sipping his brand didn’t help him achieve,
A gauge on my preferences or my temple.
VERSE 6
Maybe my tastes are a tad high brow:
The private Villas at The Mirage.
“Love” by The Beatle’s. Parties at Tao.
All a part of my Las Vegas collage.
VERSE 7
Kalifano at The Venetian Signature Galleries Las Vegas
Then I opened up about the stuff I'd bought.
Dropped ninety grand for geodes and a predator.
I scored a Wyland, though not the one which I sought.
Then came the bad news from my editor.
VERSE 8
About my book of poems on class warfare,
Seems my fans’ devotion has fallen off lately.
My realtor had found a nice home in Bel Air.
Guess I’ll be writing in a place not so stately.
VERSE 9
But those words came out like a confession.
As if reading my obit or epitaph.
Not needing to ask my chosen profession,
The stranger smiled. It was his turn to laugh.
And that’s when he said:
CHORUS
“Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
For a vista which will inspire.
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
If you don’t like to think, or perspire.
So, clear off your planner.
Drop the straight life fixation.
Take Desert Inn straight to 582.
Between the Royal Manor,
And Boulder Station.
You’ll enjoy a new world view.
On Boulder Highway.”
VERSE 10
“I’m here to help you understand.”
Said my new friend, from his bar stool.
“Plan your work, and work your plan.
Is the mantra of a fool.”
VERSE 11
“You see, schemin’ and mappin’
Lead to coronaries and grief.
We should let our lives happen,
Cause our time here’s too brief.”
VERSE 12
“Still, you’ve gotta feel,
For those who try to master,
The art of making friends,
And influencing strangers.”
VERSE 13
“And while we admire their zeal,
They’re all heading for disaster.
It’s writers on whom they depend,
To point out the many dangers.”
CHORUS
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
For a vista which will inspire.
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
If you don’t like to think, or perspire.
So, clear off your planner.
Drop the straight life fixation.
Take Flamingo straight to 582.
Between the Royal Manor,
And Boulder Station.
You’ll enjoy a new world view.
On Boulder Highway.
VERSE 14
Introduced myself as a Texas messenger.
For some local knowledge, I was fishin’.
Then explained to my fellow bus passengers.
An East Las Vegas ode was my mission.
VERSE 15
One guy said Sam’s Town was his favorite place to play.
“Don’t expect a Steve Wynn vibe,” was his caveat.
Another gave kudos to the Station’s buffet.
Which he’d take over anything the strip has got.
VERSE 16
A query from a guy wearing wraparounds:
“Surely you’re not going all the way to ‘Trop’?!? [Note: slang for Tropicana]
If you do, make sure you’re out by sundown.
It’s a place that’s well known to the cops.”
VERSE 17
One thing for sure, the gent had my attention.
An apartment complex which needs a warden?!?
I asked the name of the stalag he'd mentioned.
They all spoke up in unison: "Sportsman's!”
VERSE 18
“Royal Manor” suggests a residence of Nobles.
No doubt the aim, since it looks like a castle.
That’s funny, since it’s rep is closer to Chernobyl,
At 3pm, they said I shouldn’t get hassled.
VERSE 19
In the voice of a gal I wish I’d dated:
“Next stop: Boulder Highway”, was announced overhead.
I thanked the locals, who’d already calculated,
It was 5 to 1, that by 4, I’d be dead.
CHORUS
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
For a vista which will inspire.
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
If you don’t like to think, or perspire.
So, clear off your planner.
Drop the straight life fixation.
Take Sahara straight to 582.
Between the Royal Manor,
And Boulder Station.
You’ll enjoy a new world view.
On Boulder Highway.
VERSE 20
Had the leasing agent withheld details?
I wondered, as my neighbors left in hand cuffs.
What’d I expect, this ain’t the Palace at Versailles.
And I thought Compton and 8-Mile were tough.
VERSE 21
I quickly got weaned off of Dom Perignon.
Yeah, the problem was simply one of scale.
Because Mogen David will get the job done,
At four dollars a bottle, when it's on sale.
VERSE 22
Thought about companionship which was 'faire',
But the gal to guy ration had me balking.
Locked eyes with an amazon, with legs up to there.
Her ASU sports bra did the talking.
VERSE 23
I assumed that she cleaned up pretty well.
And it was a plus that she smoked my brand.
But dating's not smart, in a place where you dwell,
Til you've figured out the lay of the land.
VERSE 24
Decided that, during a three day stupor,
I’d neither seek nor accept the Presidency.
My arms were hugging the porcelain pooper.
Just a month into my Sportsman’s residency.
VERSE 25
Yearning for the peace found only in the grave,
“Take me now, sweet Mother Mary”, I would plead.
And she must have heard me, cause the nausea waves,
After chewing ice, they began to recede.
VERSE 26 - Option A
As I assessed the total cost of this journey,
I heard "Go All The Way". It came from the toilet.
Glanced down to see Bukowski looking up at me.
His message clear: Stopping now would only spoil it.
VERSE 26 - Option B
Then from deep within, I heard: "Go all the way."
Wait, not within. Hell, it came from the toilet.
Down there was Chuck Bukowski, to my dismay,
His message clear: Stopping now would only spoil it.
VERSE 27
Yeah, I’d watched Factotum 2 or 3 times,
Where Matt Dillion and his ladies paid the price,
For a skid row existence, wasting their primes.
Here's another taste of that stranger’s advice…
CHORUS
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
For a vista which will inspire.
Look East, young man,
Toward Frenchman Mountain,
If you don’t like to think, or perspire.
So, clear off your planner.
Drop the straight life fixation.
Take Tropicana straight to 582.
Between the Royal Manor,
And Boulder Station.
You’ll enjoy a new world view.
On Boulder Highway.
It's time to close out...
VERSE 28
The human race, as a whole,
Just let their passions smolder.
But that’s not how we roll,
On a street known as Boulder.
The End
Copyright © Michael Kimbro 2016. All rights reserved.
PS - I sometimes include what I call "poetic remnants" following a work. These are passages which didn't make the cut, for whatever reason.
Here's a poetic remnant from this poem:
VERSE 23.5
But such logic is too easily repressed,
During the period known as Miller Time.
The Don Juan inside needs a females caress,
After three or four Dos Equis and lime.
Alright. Thanks for your time and consideration.