I kept looking for the perfect song to memorialize this event. But I only had my 4G iPod. Not the whole iTunes library.
I was sitting in my car for the last time. It was a pleasant day to say goodbye. The brown grass of Wright Park was reflecting the sunlight. I had the front windows rolled down and my elbow rested outside the driver door. The whole car was covered in a film of tree dust and plant pollen. I had left it on the corner of 3rd Ave. S. and G St. for a while. Even though it was probably going to sit in a lot for a few days or a few months, I felt like I should have cleaned it up for its departure. Prettied it up for the open casket ceremony.
This car meant more to me than high school. It had been a dependable beast on countless roadtrips, moves, workday commutes, and other adventures. It's not like putting a pet to sleep, but my attachment with that machine is strong. I remember it rolling down the dusty roads of Death Valley and I remember it camped in the Gorge and I remember it parked outside all of my old homes and apartments. I remember driving it when I shouldn't have (those moments are a bit fuzzier).
Now I needed a song or two to help me say farewell.
First, I selected "Cars" by Gary Numan on my iPod.
Then there was "Drive My Car" by the Beatles.
After that, there weren't too many fitting choices. I landed on "Silver" by the Pixies, because it's the color of my Subaru. Searches for the keywords "highway" and "drive" revealed nothing. I played "Witch Mountain Road" by Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks. Then I just gave up and hit the Random Shuffle.
After listening to "Heaven is a Truck" by Pavement (ignoring the fact that my car's a hatchback), I finished with "In the Streets" by the Shangri-Las, which doesn't have anything to do with automobiles whatsoever. But I found some of the lyrics meaningful (I was going to say "poignant"):
He don't
hang around
with the gang no more
He don't do the wild things
that he did before
He used to act bad
Used to, but he quit it
It make me so sad
Cause I know that he did it
for me
I'll miss you, Subie!
Rest in Peace.
