Mercedes 190SL

The right-hand drive 1958 Mercedes was the last of my adventure cars,  joining 1961 & 1967 Austin Healey 3000's in my automotive memory junkyard.   Isn't the Mercedes absolutely beautiful?   All three cars were bad news in the maintenance department,  costing lots of money and causing many headaches.  All three have tons of ownership stories associated with them and all three resulted in celebrations when I sold them.  The right-hand drive Mercedes was probably a defensive move on my part - to distract me from buying another motorcycle - having just ended six months of rehab from my motorcycle accident and having the insurance settlement burning a hole in my pocket. 

Readjustment Blues

Just out of the infantry this morning,

I had to pay my dues across the sea,

But no one back in boot camp ever warned me,

What the readjustment blues would do to me.

"Welcome to Havannah", said the pilot,

"We must have made a wrong turn on the way."

"Let's buy some cigars and keep it quiet,

If they don't know we're here we'll get away."

Just as I had realized he was joking,

I saw we were in Washington D.C.,

'Cause there was all the patriotic buildings.

Just like I had seen them on T.V.

It must have been a holiday,

'cause there was this parade.

People carried signs I couldn't read that they had made.

'Till I got closer and my heart fell to my socks;

There was a battle raging and

The air was filled with teargas and rocks.

There was the flag I'd fought against so often,

The one I fought for hanging upside down,

The wind was blowing hard, the dirt was flying,

It made the city sky look dark and brown.

I saw a girl, she could have been my sister,

Except her hair was long and in her face,

She explained this was a demonstration,

Against the war and for the human race.

Now I've seen a lot of strange things in my travels,

Cannibals, yes, and aliens galore,

But I never thought I'd see so many people

Saying we don't want your + + + war!

The troops all had on uniforms

Just like the one I'd worn,

But they were all domestic and my duty chose war.

They carried guns just like the ones across the sea,

Except this time I was the citizen

And they were pointing their guns at me,

Yes, I was just a citizen and

I was walking down the street,

And it was just then that the Readjustment Blues

Got through to me.

Gee,  I'm crying as I write this - as I listen to the song.   This was the most powerful song to come out of the Peace Movement,  I remember Gary Simmons calling me into his room in F-Dorm at Chicksands and playing the song for me.  I was simply stunned - more so than with any song and I get vividly drawn back to that moment each time that I hear it.   He was due to go back to the world in a couple months and was as affected by it as I was.

A few days later I went home on leave and took his banjo with me as carry on luggage,  he did not want to ship it and had too much other stuff to carry.  So I agree to take it and leave it with a mutual friend in Canton.  It was a beautiful top of the line model he had bought from local Brit,  I was really sorry that I did not know how to play it because virtually every stewardess in the three airports and the two planes asked me to play it. 

And while we are in the crying mood here are couple others than I have always found quite moving.

Well, some say life will beat you down

Break your heart, steal your crown

So I've started out for God-knows-where

I guess I'll know when I get there