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“The Drive-Thru”
He recited his
order
over and over
to himself
before he even
got up to
the speaker box
that was shaped
like a clown’s
head,
he needed things
to go smoothly
when he gave
his order
he didn’t like
to be interrupted
he knew what
he wanted
to get
what size
and if he
was going to
add any extra
toppings
cheese,
bacon,
and the such
depending on
what he was
getting
there was no
need
for questions
he would spell
out
all the answers
to any probable
questions
they could have
if they just
let him finish
reciting his order
but what he
hated most
was when they
tried
to change his
order
through
suggestive
selling
or to try
one
of their specials
instead,
once his stomach
was told
what to expect
it didn’t take
kindly
to substitutions
it threw off
his whole
preplanned
digestive juices
a bland turkey
sandwich
didn’t sit well
in a stomach
that has been
pumping in
the stuff needed
to break down
a full plate
of spicy tacos
sort of like
drinking orange
juice
while eating a
peanut butter
and jelly sandwich
it just isn’t
done,
he pulls up
to the clown’s
head
notices the same
piece of gum
still stuck to
the clown’s left
eye
from the last
time he drove
thru
he waits for
the crackle
of the broken
voice
to come over
the speaker
not getting any
kind of prompt
for him to
talk
he turns up
his car stereo
knowing their
headset
is usually left
on
listening to the
secrets
people speak
when they think
no one else
is listening,
he’s hoping this
long lag in
a response
is because the
burned out
dude
is handling the
Drive-Thru
he rarely says
much of anything
and has no
interest
in getting you
to try,
change,
or increase
anything
in your order
he was just
doing time
waiting for his
shift to be
over
so he could
live his life,
he already has
his money
in his hand
a five and
four ones
for the $8.59
dollar order
which he has
already counted
three times
and will continue
to do so
till he pays,
a high pitched
fast talking
squeaky voice
cuts through
the bass player’s
lead in to
the next song
signaling
he got the
girl
not the dude,
he turns down
the music
as she welcomes
him
to Circus Wheel
foods
as if she
was the hostess
of a high end
steak house
he tries to
jump in
when there’s
a slight pause
as she takes
a breath
but she only
takes
half a gasp
and cuts him
off
starting into the
prewritten script
about the specialty
burgers
she needs to
push,
but he knows
what he wants
so there is
really
no reason to
go through
all of them
he is just
about to try
and shut her
down
but that new
Blue cheese
and Kobe bacon
burger
does sound pretty
interesting,
“so would you
like to try
one of our
specialty burgers?”
she asks
“so what was on
that Kobe bacon
burger?”
he asks back
his whole preplanned
attack
derailed
by a perky
sixteen year old
girl
she runs through
the goodies
piled on top
of that burger
and goes into
great detail
when she describes
the Kobe bacon
knowing all along
that was the
hook
that got him
she can feel
the hesitation
in his voice
on the verge
of closing the
deal
she goes at
him
hard,
“and if you
get the Extra
Large fries
you get a
free mini
bobble head
of one of
our world famous
Circus Wheel
cartoon characters
they are soooo
cute
kids love them
do you have
any kids sir?”
“why yes,
I have
two in the
trunk”
he says
his reply
not slowing her
down
“well today
and today only
if you up grade
to the deluxe
chili fries
I will throw in
one more mini
bobble head,
and
just because
I like kids
make that drink
extra-large too
and I’ll throw
a handful of
cheese
on those chili
fries
for free”
he doesn’t even
notice
that he is
well into the
third song
since he pulled
up
to the clown
head
“ok, ok,
I’ll take it”
he says
surrendering to
her
“Great,
with all the extras?”
she says
smiling through
the microphone
“yes, yes
with everything”
he tells her
his will
completely broken
“Great,
that will be
$17.93
please pull up”
he starts rifling
through his pockets
he only had
another five bucks
on him
he always paid
cash
he knew you
could use plastic
but he had
never tried
he rolls up
to the window
feeling totally
defeated
then made to
feel even smaller
as she looks
down at him
from her window
the blouse
or her Circus Wheel
uniform
is covered with
patches and
buttons
of various sales
achievements
she gives him
a smile
the kind you
wear
when you go
all in at poker
already knowing
you’ve won,
he feebly asks
“can I put this
on my card?”
“Sure”
she says
“debit or credit?”
“credit please”
he says
“just so you
know
that will be
fifty cents extra
for credit”
she says
her smile
getting bigger
he nods
as he
hands over his
card
she hands it
back
with the extra
large drink
then quickly
gives him the
rest of the
order
he is surprised
at how light
the bag felt
for almost
eighteen dollars
it should feel
like there’s a
brick in the
bag
for that price,
it wasn’t until
he got three
stop lights
away
that he got
to thinking about
his newly purchased
burger
there was no
such thing as
Kobe bacon
Kobe meat was
from a Japanese
cow
there are no
Kobe pigs,
her reached into
the bag
pushed aside the
two mini bobble
heads
and dug under
the chili fries
strike that
chili “Cheese” fries
and grabbed the
Blue cheese
Kobe bacon burger
and takes a
close look at
the box
Kobe bacon
is spelled
Cobee bacon
a small pig farm
in the center of
Compton
according to the
small print
under a dancing
pig,
his open window
carries his voice
as he screams
out
into the streets
“You Win This
Time
Little Girl,
but I’ll be back
I’ll be back”
then he thinks
to himself
as he pulls
back
the wrapper
on his burger
Compton
does have some
pretty good
BBQ joints
as his teeth
tear off a
big chunk
of the Blue
cheese
and Cobee bacon
burger…
Tom Allen…08-26-2018…
He recited his
order
over and over
to himself
before he even
got up to
the speaker box
that was shaped
like a clown’s
head,
he needed things
to go smoothly
when he gave
his order
he didn’t like
to be interrupted
he knew what
he wanted
to get
what size
and if he
was going to
add any extra
toppings
cheese,
bacon,
and the such
depending on
what he was
getting
there was no
need
for questions
he would spell
out
all the answers
to any probable
questions
they could have
if they just
let him finish
reciting his order
but what he
hated most
was when they
tried
to change his
order
through
suggestive
selling
or to try
one
of their specials
instead,
once his stomach
was told
what to expect
it didn’t take
kindly
to substitutions
it threw off
his whole
preplanned
digestive juices
a bland turkey
sandwich
didn’t sit well
in a stomach
that has been
pumping in
the stuff needed
to break down
a full plate
of spicy tacos
sort of like
drinking orange
juice
while eating a
peanut butter
and jelly sandwich
it just isn’t
done,
he pulls up
to the clown’s
head
notices the same
piece of gum
still stuck to
the clown’s left
eye
from the last
time he drove
thru
he waits for
the crackle
of the broken
voice
to come over
the speaker
not getting any
kind of prompt
for him to
talk
he turns up
his car stereo
knowing their
headset
is usually left
on
listening to the
secrets
people speak
when they think
no one else
is listening,
he’s hoping this
long lag in
a response
is because the
burned out
dude
is handling the
Drive-Thru
he rarely says
much of anything
and has no
interest
in getting you
to try,
change,
or increase
anything
in your order
he was just
doing time
waiting for his
shift to be
over
so he could
live his life,
he already has
his money
in his hand
a five and
four ones
for the $8.59
dollar order
which he has
already counted
three times
and will continue
to do so
till he pays,
a high pitched
fast talking
squeaky voice
cuts through
the bass player’s
lead in to
the next song
signaling
he got the
girl
not the dude,
he turns down
the music
as she welcomes
him
to Circus Wheel
foods
as if she
was the hostess
of a high end
steak house
he tries to
jump in
when there’s
a slight pause
as she takes
a breath
but she only
takes
half a gasp
and cuts him
off
starting into the
prewritten script
about the specialty
burgers
she needs to
push,
but he knows
what he wants
so there is
really
no reason to
go through
all of them
he is just
about to try
and shut her
down
but that new
Blue cheese
and Kobe bacon
burger
does sound pretty
interesting,
“so would you
like to try
one of our
specialty burgers?”
she asks
“so what was on
that Kobe bacon
burger?”
he asks back
his whole preplanned
attack
derailed
by a perky
sixteen year old
girl
she runs through
the goodies
piled on top
of that burger
and goes into
great detail
when she describes
the Kobe bacon
knowing all along
that was the
hook
that got him
she can feel
the hesitation
in his voice
on the verge
of closing the
deal
she goes at
him
hard,
“and if you
get the Extra
Large fries
you get a
free mini
bobble head
of one of
our world famous
Circus Wheel
cartoon characters
they are soooo
cute
kids love them
do you have
any kids sir?”
“why yes,
I have
two in the
trunk”
he says
his reply
not slowing her
down
“well today
and today only
if you up grade
to the deluxe
chili fries
I will throw in
one more mini
bobble head,
and
just because
I like kids
make that drink
extra-large too
and I’ll throw
a handful of
cheese
on those chili
fries
for free”
he doesn’t even
notice
that he is
well into the
third song
since he pulled
up
to the clown
head
“ok, ok,
I’ll take it”
he says
surrendering to
her
“Great,
with all the extras?”
she says
smiling through
the microphone
“yes, yes
with everything”
he tells her
his will
completely broken
“Great,
that will be
$17.93
please pull up”
he starts rifling
through his pockets
he only had
another five bucks
on him
he always paid
cash
he knew you
could use plastic
but he had
never tried
he rolls up
to the window
feeling totally
defeated
then made to
feel even smaller
as she looks
down at him
from her window
the blouse
or her Circus Wheel
uniform
is covered with
patches and
buttons
of various sales
achievements
she gives him
a smile
the kind you
wear
when you go
all in at poker
already knowing
you’ve won,
he feebly asks
“can I put this
on my card?”
“Sure”
she says
“debit or credit?”
“credit please”
he says
“just so you
know
that will be
fifty cents extra
for credit”
she says
her smile
getting bigger
he nods
as he
hands over his
card
she hands it
back
with the extra
large drink
then quickly
gives him the
rest of the
order
he is surprised
at how light
the bag felt
for almost
eighteen dollars
it should feel
like there’s a
brick in the
bag
for that price,
it wasn’t until
he got three
stop lights
away
that he got
to thinking about
his newly purchased
burger
there was no
such thing as
Kobe bacon
Kobe meat was
from a Japanese
cow
there are no
Kobe pigs,
her reached into
the bag
pushed aside the
two mini bobble
heads
and dug under
the chili fries
strike that
chili “Cheese” fries
and grabbed the
Blue cheese
Kobe bacon burger
and takes a
close look at
the box
Kobe bacon
is spelled
Cobee bacon
a small pig farm
in the center of
Compton
according to the
small print
under a dancing
pig,
his open window
carries his voice
as he screams
out
into the streets
“You Win This
Time
Little Girl,
but I’ll be back
I’ll be back”
then he thinks
to himself
as he pulls
back
the wrapper
on his burger
Compton
does have some
pretty good
BBQ joints
as his teeth
tear off a
big chunk
of the Blue
cheese
and Cobee bacon
burger…
Tom Allen…08-26-2018…