The Overhaul
by Jules St.John

The Overhaul was done at much
expense -- costly, very costly --
as they pulled the ruined ticker
from the depths of that dirty whole
       --- new valves,
       spark plugs to put the fire back in 'er
       shining chrome & steel

--- The new heart had a different
feel than that last one, the one
that got dumped on the side of the road, the one
that fell out, just dropped with a clunk of finality,
then
dead silence, onto that cornfield
road of farmer's dust and beer foam...

Sure, she looks the same on the
outside -- same o' trusty
ol' dusty ol' Beater -- but the guts
are different, the guts aren't the
same -- They came with a NAPA
warrantee -- and a knowledge of how to play The Game.

It was a different ticker than that last one:
harder, leaner, rougher, tougher, meaner.