Joey Cloudy online

  Isaiah Jones vs the Sea (A 21st Century Odyssey) 

Viva Las Vegas* 

‘Route 66’ 

“If you ever plan to motor west 

Travel my way, take the highway that’s the best 

Get your kicks on Route 66 

[Verse 2] 

It winds from Chicago to L.A 

More than two thousand miles all the way 

Get your kicks on Route 66 

[Bridge] 

Now you go through St. Louis 

Joplin, Missouri 

And Oklahoma City looks mighty pretty 

You’ll see Amarillo 

Gallup, New Mexico 

Flagstaff, Arizona 

Don’t forget Winona 

Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino” 

-Nat King Cole 

“I am not going to ride a motorcycle to Vegas,” Isaiah announced between bites of Arepas. “I rented an RV instead.”

Everyone sitting around the breakfast table laughed, except his grandfather, Hector. Aeon, seated opposite Izzy, could tell by the expression on the old marines’ face that he was relieved. Penny watched and listened as she dug into her plate filled with Ariella’s traditional Venezuelan breakfast of Queso de Mano, Perico, Arepas, and Empanadas.

Ariella was also glad he was driving instead of riding a motorcycle with the others. Sybil was curious why her brother didn’t want to ride with them as she pets Mau Mau while everyone eats as they talk over their plans for the next leg of their journey. 

“I’m glad at least one of ya’ll act like ya got some god damned sense,” Hector muttered, sipping his black coffee. He didn’t feel comfortable with his grandson and his friends being in the US, but he kept his concerns to himself. 

“Ariella and I plan on sailing down to Panama next April. Don’t think we’ll be coming back in this lifetime.” 

Aeon looked up from her plate, obviously surprised by his announcement. 

“I thought you guys were happy here?” 

“We were…before the orange nazi took over; he said his voice tinged with anger and regret. Retired United States Marines Corps Master Gunnery Sargent Hector Leonardo Jones, like every black veteran was now ashamed of what his country had become. 

“These days, I can’t let Ariella out of my sight or travel to the grocery store alone.” 

“Why won’t you ride a motorcycle?” Ariella asked, her softened Venezuelan accent tinged with concern. 

“I’m afraid of riding them, at least riding one here in the States, they are too dangerous.” He said stoically. This caused another burst of laughter to erupt from the group sitting around the table on the aft deck of his grandparents’ 40-year-old catamaran. 

Penny looked up, confused. “Really? Izzy, you have been in both AUA civil wars, still have a bullet buried in your leg, and you have solo circumnavigated 3 times, but motorcycles are where you draw the line and say that’s too dangerous. Unbelievable.” 

“I take calculated risk sailing, Pen; he retorted coolly, I do not take unnecessary risk, and most danger comes from people, of which there are virtually none once you are at sea. Until you reach a port, most of the time, you are alone. I’ve crunched the numbers on driving vs riding a motorcycle, and driving wins. If we were on one of the Caribbean or Pacific islands with hardly any traffic and traveling at low speeds, I wouldn’t mind, the drivers there are accustomed to sharing the rode’s with motorbikes. But traffic in LA and then Las Vegas. That’s a big old nope to that. Besides, I already rented a trailer for your bikes in case we run into bad weather, or anyone gets saddle sore. 

Sybil finally spoke up between sweet sips of steaming hot chocolate.

“It actually makes perfect sense when you think about it. It’s always a good idea to be prepared and this way we won’t have to leave Mau Mau here; he can travel with us to Las Vegas.”   

“Well, Penelope said sheepishly, now I’m embarrassed. I hadn’t even considered what we were going to do with him. I was so excited to get on the road, he sorta’ slipped my mind.” 

“Me too, Aeon confessed, chewing bites of Reina Pepiada arepas. Plus, this way we won’t have to hover over those filthy gas station and rest stop toilet seats.”   

“Well, it looks like our resident genius has done it again.” Ariella laughed.  

After they finished eating, everyone gathered in the marina’s parking lot where the Ghanaian embassy’s ambassador had her PA park the rented 22-foot white Nomad pop top RV. It looked more like a large delivery van or SUV than what they imagined an RV would look like.  

“You know, Penny said as she slid open the side door and tossed her bags into the rear of the vehicle. When you said you had rented an RV, I was expecting one of those humongous Winnebago ‘Breaking Bad’ thingy’s the size of a Greyhound bus, but this, this is actually pretty cool.”

Hector and Ariella waved goodbye as they took off to walk their dogs, the mastiffs Bella and Donna.   

“Chao pescao Ariella said with a wave, her voice tinged with sadness. You kids have a safe trip.” 

Penny, Aeon, and Sybil finished loading their gear into the rear of the RV then climbed on their bikes. 

“We have comms built into our helmets, so if you need to talk, they are wired to an app on our cellphones.” Aeon and Penny both wore their old racing leathers, gloves, jackets, pants, and boots that matched thier bikes. While Sybil wore only a pair of sea green and charcoal colored biker shorts and a matching cropped cotton tank top with her favorite bright white platform sneakers.  

Aeon and Penny both rode their older bikes, the same motorcycles they rode in college almost eight years ago, while Sybil rode a brand-new 2029 Lime green Kawasaki 990SSXR Ninja. Aeon mounted up on her old 2022 crimson Ducati Superleggera V4, while Penny rode her nautical blue and tangerine-colored 2022 KTM RC 390.   

“Get on in there, Mau Mau,” Isaiah said as he stood next to the open door, the midnight colored 145-pound Cane Corso hopped into the passenger seat of the vehicle in a single bound. Isaiah closed the door, then stepped around to the driver’s side, climbed into the driver’s seat, and pulled out of the parking lot into the light morning Long Beach traffic.

As they drove towards Vegas, he knew that the AUA / African United Alliance bodyguards were out there somewhere, tailing him as usual whenever he was on land. He was prepared to follow the course dictated by the GPS AI voice as they maneuvered through the city until they reached the highway, where they would open the throttle on their bikes once they were out of the city, heading west towards the Vegas Strip.   

After breakfast, Aeon, Penny, and Sybil said their goodbyes to Hector and Ariella. Ariella helped Aeon tie her afro puffs into 4 large plaits before she put on her helmet. She gave them several Tupperware containers filled with the leftovers from breakfast for them to snack on later.

Everyone drove carefully as they made their way through the city towards the highway, except Sybil, who popped a wheelie as she cruised down the street, even with her full facial helmet on, they all knew she stuck out her tongue as she zipped by them.   

“We’re taking the scenic route this trip, folks, it’s an hour longer ride but worth it for the view,” Penny announced through her helmet’s mic. Five and a half hours from now, we will be in Vegas, baby.”  

“OK, Pen, this is your hometown, so you take point. I’ll be tail-end Charlie and cover you guys’ rear.” Isaiah replied, adjusting the volume of the speakers in the cab of the RV.  

“Oh, he’s gonna’ cover our rears. I feel safer already.” Aeon teased. 

Isaiah chucked as he turned off the voice of the AI navigational software and followed the three girls on their candy colored motorcycles. Penny turned on the music in her comm so everyone could hear. They all laughed as the cool crooning of the King of Rock and Roll filled their eardrums.  

“Bright light city gonna set my soul 

Gonna set my soul on fire 

Got a whole lot of money that’s ready to burn 

So get those stakes up higher 

There’s a thousand pretty women waiting out there 

And they’re all living the devil may care 

And I’m just a devil with love to spare 

So Viva Las Vegas 

Viva Las Vegas” 

-Elvis / Viva Las Vegas  

[Notes on Venezuelan breakfast] 

[Reina Pepiada (Curvy Lady) Arepas – Cornmeal cakes grilled, baked, or fried, split open and filled with chicken, avocado, mayonnaise, cheese, onion, cilantro, lime juice, bell pepper, garlic, salt, pepper, and hot sauce]

Empanadas – Pastries filled with cheese, meat, or beans, baked or fried. 

Cachapas – Sweet corn pancakes, served with fresh cheese or butter. 

Perico – A scrambled egg dish mixed with tomatoes, onions, and peppers. 

Queso de Mano – Soft, fresh cheese spread on arepas or cachapas. 

Tizana – fruit salad or cocktail made with chopped tropical fruits; mango, papaya, pineapple, and a splash of orange juice. 

Chicha – traditional fermented or non-fermented rice or maize-based beverage. 

Coffee – Venezuelan coffee served black or with sugar. 

Hot Chocolate – Thick, rich, and made with Venezuelan chocolate.] 

[-About the author: 

JD Cloudy’s poetry has disappeared in the literary journals; Fatfizz, Mad Swirl, Texas Beat Anthology, Danse Macabre, Du Jour, and Death List Five. He has won no literary awards, entered no slam competitions, and never completed college. He lives to write in Dallas, Tx.]