“I got something

for you, baby!”

the lady began

running.

Baldy ran after

her.

when he attempted

to tackle her,

he missed, bounced

off her large

buttocks and fell

to the

grass.

the lady ran to

her car,

started it and

gunned off down

the street.

Baldy came walking

back toward

us.

“shit, that whore!”

he sat down with us

on the bench,

picked up his beer

can and had a

mighty slug.

“she wanted it,

she wanted it

bad,” he said.

“you’ve got guts,

Baldy,” I said.

“think she’ll come

back?” Norman

asked.

“sure,” said Baldy,

“she wants this

turkey neck I

got.”

I don’t think any of

us thought she would

be back

but we sat there

drinking the beer

and

waiting.

we were all

virgins.

but we felt very

powerful then,

sitting there smoking

cigarettes,

emptying cans of

beer.

later we would all

go home and

masturbate,

thinking about that

woman in the

park,

kissing that whiskey mouth,

her legs high in the

moonlight,

the park fountain

spewing its

water

as our parents

slept in the other

bedroom,

tired of it

all.

depression kid

I never had money but I did have a

bike

and there was little to do in the

summer but ride my bike to the

beach and back.

it was a bloody-ass haul from L.A. to

Venice

but there was nothing else.

one thing, it really built up my

legs.

I was 14 years old and I had the

most powerful legs in the

Southland, maybe.

the thing that made the

ride more exciting was to

attempt to shorten the time

it took to make the

trip.

each time I broke my own

record I’d go for a new

one.

I pedaled faster and

faster.

and that was all right

except one sunny day while

I was really pumping

along

this guy in a

red sports car

screamed at me,

“Hey, kid, watch where

the fuck you’re going!”

I looked over and there

was this old guy in a late

model car,

smoking a cigar

and he had a young

blonde with him.

her long hair was blowing

in the wind.

“Up your ass!” I yelled

back.

he slowed his car down

as I pumped alongside.

he looked over at me

and said, “Would you

mind repeating

that?”

I repeated that.

the girl with her hair

blowing in the wind

looked at him and

laughed.

“I’ve got a good mind to

park

and beat the crap

out of you!”

“Park it!

Park it!”

I yelled.

he roared ahead

and parked at the

curb.

I parked my bike

and walked toward

him.

I had no fear.

I felt great.

I walked up to the car.

he looked at me

from the car.

he didn’t get

out.

the young girl was

saying something

to him.

suddenly he

started the car

and pulled

away.

he took a right at

the corner.

I walked back to my

bike.