county line
mike lazarchuk
We used to live
At the beach
Surfing&lighting
Campfires after school
& in the summer
Even if it rained
We didn't care
The wide wooden pier
Furnished electricity
Before the city got cheap
& we'd use it
Hook up lights
A double hot plate
To heat some chili
Fishing at night
For shark sea bass or
Whatever fish was running
Those days of
The first transistors
The bikini girls
Were fresh
& high school
Seemed meaningless
To the point of distraction
Mr. Nimson the dean of boys
Hated bleached hair
& Mexican sandals
Constantly causing trouble
Even though we'd never
Been further south
Of the county line
Than the Venice Beach pier
He knew we'd had our first
Beer&smoked our first reefers
Discovering Dylan The Beatles&Stones
Growing independent
Tripping for the good times
With our newly found women
Letting go whatever seemed overly
Neurotic to drift with the tides
Rolling the Pacific COast
Highway in really cheap Chevys
Carrying only enough money
To make the day on
& a couple packs of Luckies
For smoking after surfing
