i hear the birds sing
to eachother
from across the street.

why can't we have life
that simple?

Les plays classic records on Sunday afternoons real loud
Haven't seen her since her husbands' funeral but I know she's just as devout
In her backyard reading the bible in a plastic lawn chair
I used to think if I was tall enough, I would catch her dancing there
Now there's a gap in the fence where I could see right through
Haven't checked it out yet but I've been meaning to

I was born south of southside in a suburb
The same as all the other suburbs around it
I lost something here once and I still haven't found it

My old friend's uncle took a chainsaw to his kids door
Couldn't tell if he was hunting them down or trying to start a war
I haven't seen her in years, and I didn't know her well then
But I hope she still sees them, and I hope they don't visit him

Terri fell over three times this past week
Had to drag her own body from the bathroom to the balcony
Body bruised black with her face square to the ground
Spent three hours lying there til her son came around

I was born under bridges and the canal with all the trolleys in
I dropped something in there once and I still haven't found it yet
Drove past the field that they built all the houses on
Dreamt of climbing those trees but I never got around to it

The biggest hill I ever drove down wasn't really big at all
But nothing else to this day has made me feel quite so wholly small
Stopped at the roadside graveyard to get a plot in early
Still haven't seen the Lutheran lot look anything but empty

My neighbours' sister died on the table back in 2003
And woke back up on the slab, just in time for her autopsy
She's still alive today, just reached her late eighties
I think if that's how I go then God, don't make me stay

I only speed on roads where they don't fill the potholes in
I lost part of me here once and I still haven't found it yet

Six hundred miles away there's a street named after some guy in my family
And they all still live there, except for my mum and me
Heard her cousin's not allowed to talk to his dad for five more years
Cause he told him he'd **** him, yelling on the stairs
And some small town cop heard it, came back with a warrant
We don't think he'll live that long, wonder if he'll break it

There's a whole lotta love here and a whole lotta sadness
I hid something there once, I still haven't found it.

Walking through the fabled night
of ancient skies and gray sidewalks
Stepping into the world
of hot humid June

When metals towered over the sky,
Like match sticks lined up above stones
the luminescent streets blazed
into the night

Those glasses that shimmered
bright lights and yellow fireworks,
Falling with gravity,
relishing in sweet air and downfall

The wind from a distant land
that caressed the trees,
their shadows dancing
on the streets

I saw you there in broad shadows
when I marched amidst silence
I have lost my path
to the night that has fallen

But in your eternal flames, I stood
knowing that I’m still here

At my brother's for Christmas dinner
Sitting there for a moment I felt suddenly like I was the turkey
I thought they were all looking at me kinda funny
It was like they were licking their lips
And saying "Doesn't he look delicious, a lovely big juicy looking bird
It was like I thought they were thinking
We're not likely to win the lotto (the lottery) at our age
We've never been very lucky that way
The best chance of us getting a windfall of money would be
If dear old Uncle Bardo was to suddenly kick the bucket
Then we'd get his house and all his money
We could give up our day jobs and go holidaying for the rest of our lives
We'd be sliding down Easy Street singing like a bunch of sailors
Wouldn't it be great ?
I thought I better watch out, better watch what I'm eating, what their
  giving me
Next time I better bring a food tester/taster along with me
You never know, life is strange.

I suppose it works both ways though, my brother's always a bit reluctant to come down to my house
He doesn't think I'm very hygienic, he says he's always afraid he'll get food poisoning.

I guess it's all just...just in the family.

If you're lonely,
Start greeting strangers on the street,
A funny thing starts to happen,
When you stop to say 'Hello!'

If you're looking for a real remedy,
So you can feel real happy,
Always remember to smile,
Wherever you find yourself.

I'd bet a five dollar bill,
Strictly on your life filling up,
After you begin to say hey,
Whether it's a passerby, or a new friend.