Chrome rails, tangled rope,
A mass of worldly burdens:
Rooftop carrier.

Luggage packed & stowed,
Full tank, and Sun at our backs—
Modern pioneers.

A race against time
Falling night in hot pursuit
Needle on Empty.

Panhandle challenge:
Sixty-minute, on-the-house,
Four-pound bovine feast.

Four miles from Shamrock
Swift change to gun-metal sky—
Early spring hailstorm.

T.V. . . . swimming pool . . .
and phones in every room:
Luxurious stay.

Wigwam or Teepee
Is merely academic—
Have you slept lately?

T-shirts and gee-gaws
that fit ev'ry description:
Kitschy paradise.

Imposing chieftain
In full war regalia—
El Vado Motel.

Asleep in a field,
Regiment of warriors:
Slow-rusting Edsels.

Dogs barking at the
Llano estacado moon—
Last Motel in Texas.

Under western skies . . .
Tumbleweeds outpacing us,
Driven by the wind.