My First Car

[Bob Pacey]

My First Car

I sat there staring at the notice
from the folder I had read
and all those distant memories
flooded back into my head.

Your first car, the form announced
my mind began to swell.
The memories of that old bug
so many stories could she tell.

She was born in 1958
on some distant workshop row.
how she made her way to Queensland
I really could not know.

We all dobbed in twenty bucks to buy her
Darryl Macca, Glen and me.
Just a car to take us surfing
was all she was meant to be.

Her paint was old and faded
it wore the ravages of time.
So we chose canary yellow
to bring her back into her prime.

No fancy spray for this old girl
that would be a shame and sin.
We got paint from down the hardware
from the discount section bin.

Then we painted her with brushes
blackened up the tyres and trims
and just to finish off the job
we used sky blue around the rims.

She had running boards and roof racks
and a rear seat that pinched your hide.
And those little indicator stems
that stuck out from the side.

We took the rear seat out completely
and brought a mattress that was cheap.
So when we went surfing down to Agnes
we would have a place to sleep.

We drove her up the beach at Farnborough
with six boards and mates in tow.
Guys were hanging off the running boards
oh what a way to go.

Glen thought the speed was just too slow
so stepped off to lend a hand.
Oh I still can hear the laughter
as he lay buried in the sand.

We often had to tow her
to get that old girl to run.
But she always came good at the end
and that was half the fun.

Parties down at Lammermoor
she sat and watched the games unfold.
If that old lady could but speak
oh what stories would be told.

But all things must end as good things do
yes it almost broke my heart.
One day she just gave up the ghost
and then just refused to start.

We towed her to a mates place
and parked her underneath a mango tree.
Then six months on we sold her
but with her went a part of me.

Yes I've had many cars over the years
seven is the present call.
But of all the cars I've had mate
I loved that bug the best of all.

Bob Pacey ( C )

[Zondrae]

G'day Bob,

Yep! I loved my little VeeWee too. They were so reliable. My very first car, and I had my license only three weeks, drove right out of the dealers and within a few days set out for a trip to Queensland. I was so inexperienced , I should have still had training wheels - but the daring of youth - I didn't see and danger at all. I had a couple of the fastback station wagon style VWs and then the legendary Combi. Every one of them served me extremely well.

[Heather]

Fun memories Bob. Enjoyed the trip!

Heather

[Neville Briggs]

I had a 1965 VW, in 1967. It went forever( till about 1978 ) and had the motor replaced at one time.

About the year 2001, I came across a bloke at Singleton who had a VW the same model, I sat in it and it was original throughout. The thing I noticed was that it had the same smell as I remember in my old car. Funy how a car smell can be a strong memory.


I like the poem Bob. There's really no punch line, and I think in a poem like this a punch line isn't needed, it works fine just as is.

[Bob Pacey]

Just wrote it for an expo the RACQ had at the local gallery Nev. They posted the poems and the pictures around the gallery fo a week for the public to view.


True story about the paint job hand painted canary yellow with house paint.


Bob

[r.magnay]

Volkswagen....translated to English means...Hitlers revenge!

[Neville Briggs]

The Volkswagon was designed by Ferdinand Porsche. During the World War II the German military had Volkswagon army cars, now there's a collector's item if you can get one.

[r.magnay]

...yes Neville, I was aware that the Volkswagen was invented or designed by Porsche, and actually it is "The peoples car" we had a Kombi van for the band, and my wife had a couple of beetles....she would agree that "Hitlers Revenge" is a more apt description!...

[Maureen K Clifford]

Enjoyed the walk down memory lane Bob - seems lots of us had beetles. We had one from 1965 to about 1970 when it got replaced with a Cortina..prior to that it was a 1948 Ford Prefect so we had really moved up in the world getting a flash VW

[Heather]

My dad had an old combie van too. Nearly got killed in that car when I was a kid - but that's another story!