Embellishing - 1st Half

Here's the scoop, friends... This is, as indicated, the 1st HALF of this fairly lengthy poem. The 2nd half had to be posted separately due to Poetry Soup's file-size limitations. No other way I could manage to make it happen...BTW - it's also posted as an Audio - Just a couple days ago I told my old bud, Jimmy, “Jim…our ‘57 Chevrolet Ran a little warm last week while me and Con were driving back from seeing friends in west L.A. “It made it through the mountains like a champ, but in the desert, ‘round ‘bout noon, it started runnin’ hot. The engine started knocking, so I started driving slower, but as I did…the noisier it got! “Fin’ly - just to play it safe - I pulled off on the shoulder, and shut the motor off - to let ‘er cool. I like to think I’m handy when it comes to fixing things and, when it comes to autos - as a rule - “Anything I need to do to keep an engine going isn’t all that tough to figure out. But when you’ve overheated - and you’re stranded in a desert - there’s really nothing you can do about “Pulling off the highway (so your motor doesn’t blow), so I was only doing what I should. And I remember Connie saying, ‘Let’s just call a wrecker,’ as I slid out the door to lift the hood.” And THAT, my friend, I swear to God, is all I actually told him…telling him we’d let the motor cool, Then wound up cruisin’ down the road in barely half an hour…and did it all without a single tool! Now…a radiator in no way is dangerous when it’s cold…but…when it’s hot - it looks the very same… So wishful thinkin’ tempted me to see how hot it was…and what I tried to do was pretty lame! I gave the cap a partial twist - expecting steam and pressure - but went too far, and - out the water shot! It looked like Mount Vesuvius for 6 or 7 seconds as I screamed, “Oh, my God…that’s blankin’ HOT!” A quick retreat had saved my arms and face from being scalded, but suddenly, a burning in my hand Had me yelling “Holy crap” and once I’d dropped the cap, I found that I could actually read the brand - Within my PALM. Yes…clear as hell…embossed upon my skin - reading in reverse, in fiery red… Even through my teary eyes I instantly deciphered exactly what those throbbing letters said! “AC Delco, ENGINE COOLANT,” ran from side to side, and at the bottom…“NEVER OPEN HOT!” Jumping out to see why I was screeching, Connie witnessed the backward reading injury I’d just got. “Serves you right, you stupid fool,” she coldly started razzing. “You should have stopped when we were losing power. Now we’ll have to have it towed…and - you’re a branded man,” she laughed…“I only hope I find a tower. “Wrap your hand around a can of Pepsi - from the cooler. I doubt if you can shift…your hand’s a mess!” “Your not gonna to tell the fellas, are ya’, Hon?” I asked. “Of course I am, you dork,” she said…“unless…” “Unless what?” I shuttered. I could feel the hustle coming. I knew the price I’d pay for my mistake Was going to be a whole lot more than just my mangled hand ---- the way it is for every one I make! Connie knows how hard us guys will strive to keep our buddies from learning of the dumber things we do, So every time I screw up something really, really bad…she’ll always looks for ways to, turn the screw! Keeping what I’d done a secret: turning off that cap - and getting burned so bad it made me cry - Cost me seven evening gowns and twenty pairs of shoes…just to get that ornery skag to lie! Along with: how I’d fried my hand (by spinning off the cap to see if it was hot enough to blow), She also took an oath to never mention - to my friends - we’d had to call a wrecker for a tow. Satisfied the incident was mine to recollect in terms I knew would paint me less the fool… Telling Jim about it, I’d made sure to stop the tale at where I’d pulled ‘er off the road to cool. But this is where the story gets a tiny bit peculiar…and emphasizes how they…tend to grow. All I’d told my buddy, Jim, were just the basic facts - and only ones I wanted friends to know - Now, don't skip the 2nd half finale, it's a dandy -