Mickey D is Jumping Out of the Archive...
Day 271
You Can’t Write a Poem About McDonald’s by Ronald Wallace
Noon. Hunger the only thing
singing in my belly.
I walk through the blossoming cherry trees
on the library mall,
past the young couples coupling,
by the crazy fanatic
screaming doom and salvation
at a sensation-hungry crowd,
to the Lake Street McDonald’s.
It is crowded, the lines long and sluggish.
I wait in the greasy air.
All around me people are eating—
the sizzle of conversation,
the salty odor of sweat,
the warm flesh pressing out of
hip huggers and halter tops.
When I finally reach the cash register,
the counter girl is crisp as a pickle,
her fingers thin as french fries,
her face brown as a bun.
Suddenly I understand cannibalism.
As I reach for her,
she breaks into pieces
wrapped neat and packaged for take-out.
I’m thinking, how amazing it is
to live in this country, how easy
it is to be filled.
We leave together, her warm aroma
close at my side.
I walk back through the cherry trees
blossoming up into pies,
the young couples frying in
the hot, oily sun,
the crowd eating up the fanatic,
singing, my ear, eye, and tongue
fat with the wonder
of this hungry world.
•••
Why do we like fast food? Is it because it is fast? Is it because it is so bad for us? Is it the French fries? I will readily admit to stopping at McDonald’s just about every single morning for my daily dose of coffee now — they have a mocha that is, well, darn good and cheaper than the coffee shop! And sometimes I will even splurge on a bacon bagel sandwich, all cheesy and greasy and fatty and full of all things bad for me. Why do I do it? Because it is there, it is yummy and it is simply awful for me – don’t we always want that which we aren’t supposed to have? I rounded out today with something bad for me at every meal time. Mocha and that tempting bagel of bacony goodness for breakfast on my way to sit in a waiting room for 5 hours; a crème de menthe doughnut that smelled as heavenly as it tasted from Sweetwater’s Donut Mill on Sprinkle Road after leaving said waiting room; a Whopper with cheese sans pickles and onions and dripping with saucy awesomeness to share with Mom for dinner while on our way through Three Rivers during the drive home. I will admit that today the food choices were a matter of convenience, but I will also go so far as to say that the Whopper’s flame broiled patty had a party with my taste buds – it has been forever since I had one of them.
At least I skipped the French fries today…..
Cfbookchick - a Girl, a Camera, a Challenge... 
Ah passing up the fries, that takes an iron will, my friend!
Well, since it was the Burger King variety of French fries, it didn’t take much will…
True!
Sometimes a little junk food is what we need.
Great poem and image to go with it. 🙂
I was a good girl today – I had my mocha of course, but bypassed the bagel, skipped the food part of lunch, opting instead for a nice tall ice water and for dinner home made noodles with chicken. I am craving some ice cream though….
Gracious, what a loaded post! And I do mean loaded. 😉 First off, way to make the best of a long waiting-room wait. Second (and most important) the very fact that you and your mom were able to go home after the wait tells me that the wait ended with at least a reasonable outcome for Aunt’s surgery so you could safely leave and still felt hungry. Third, and also very important: cool art! I LOVE the photo (whatever magic you did with processing, it sings). I *love* the poem (never heard it before, and it’s spot-on). And I can sooooo sympathize with the post. Crème de menthe doughnut, *seriously*?? Thank heaven I’m not near enough to run to said bakery-heaven right this minute. I did, however, just down a batch of bacony goodness as part of my supper, so . . . .
My aunt is doing wonderfully tonight – up and walking and on a liquid diet that includes some pudding and pain meds already cut in half. She should be home by Saturday!
And that doughnut? Almost worth another 50 minute drive to get another. Almost.
I actually took that photo this fall and finally did something with it. We pass by this McDonald’s each time we go to Borgess Hospital and I find the sign pretty darn nifty in all of its original coolness.
Wow, that image just pops! And where ever did you find that wonderful poem? Its cool! Must read it to my son. 😀
Being a vegetarian, I am only a victim to their fries. I simply inhale those.
And yes, we definitely want it because it is a wee bit naughty? We are doing something that is not good for us and getting away with it. Some rules are meant to be broken and are fun to break, is it not?
I actually did a Google search for a poem about McDonald’s! I had been planning the old “Two all beef patties” song from the 70’s, but this one was what caught me!
And yes, it IS fun to break those rules once in a while!
That is a really cool sign! 😀
It is, isn’t it? I look at it every time we go by – the McDonald’s that goes with the sign has been renovated to look like the sign!
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!! Love all things vintage – and your treatment of the photo is perfect!
ps – do they know they’re missing an arch?
I believe that is one of the really old arches that they used to use – this one has had it for years and they reno’d the restaurant to match the sign. Very retro and very cool!
Love the photo. The poem is delicious!
I wish I could lay claim to a poem like this – you and Kathryn could, I know! How I wish I could move words around the way the two of you do!
mmmm.. i could certainly enjoy some McD… although I’ve sworn off it for 3 months.. roll on March!
Three months would be a long time for me to go without my cheap mocha!
now you have given me cravings and it’s not even 8am here….Mmmmmmm
It is later in the day when I am catching up to this comment and I am wondering if you gave it to the craving, Jennifer?
I did not…and I even managed to stick to my shopping list for the groceries today too…although I snuck in a chocolate bar…or two 😉
Must be a McDonalds week, like I said in an earlier post I love their Fries, also their egg nog shakes at Christmas time. YUM YUM. I do know of a McDonalds that looks like this in Connecticut, we went there as a treat once a month as a kid. My parents would let us have “soda” until we were 10, so it was always shakes with our meal.
Thanks for the memories.
Anytime, Dawn! I think that this is quite the niftiest McDonald’s evah!