Thoughts on a new Driver's License

First off - Ladies, take out your driver's licenses or ID card.  You know how they make us put our weight on there?  How many of you are actually within 10 pounds of your listed weight?  Renewing my card this time was the first time in my life that I was actually under the weight listed.  It was a really odd feeling, going down by 80 pounds (yes, of course I was nowhere near listing my actual weight before.) 

The renewal part that made me laugh was talking with the lovely lady at the DMV.  First off, there was the discussion about hair color.  Oddly enough, they didn't have an option for reddish-brownish-blonde with streaks of purple and occasional gray.  Next came the weight discussion.  I did give her my actual weight (it was 429 at the time), but she kindly bumped it down to 420.  Not sure exactly why - let's face it, over 200, it really doesn't matter - but I thought it was kind of her to make the effort.  And I'm getting closer - 426 today.  If I can manage to lose 1 more pound tonight, I'll be right at 15 pounds per month since I started the whole plant-based thing back on September 19th.  Not turbo-speedy, but I think I can make 399 before my birthday. 

Re-doing my license reminded me of a poem I wrote back when I first started driving - back when my car (the Bondage Bunny Mobile - yes, there's a story there, no, I'm not putting it down on the internet without a guaranty of full immunity) represented freedom and exploration and possibly the beginning of adulthood. So...

Daisy May, feeling the wind in her hair

Freedom:

I felt his hand on my thigh, my hand caressing the stick shift.
I rammed the shaft into fifth gear and finally achieved freeway.
The sun-roof open, my hair flowing straight up into the wind,
The sunlight gleaming from his smile
And the sound of some testosterone-based
Heavy metal, brain numbing, emotion altering
Paeon to youth and beauty and the American automobile
Screamed in our ears as we bellowed along with it -
Scaring cattle all along a 25-mile stretch of asphalt.
I knew that we were cruising along a path that led to his bedroom
But I felt secure enough to take my time.
For once, I didn't feel that I needed to rush to get there
In case the winds changed.
We climbed along the back road out of the gorge,
Feeling the smooth kick-out of the car as I caressed it through the curves,
And landed at the pinnacle at twilight.
Just in time to stand there, feeling his strong arms around me,
As the sun disappeared below the horizon, and we slipped smoothly into the night.