#countrymusic
I walk these neon-lit backroads, Boots muddy from dreams and rain, with a wild song in my pocket and a heart that knows both joy and pain.
A voice in my headphones whispers of rivers running and running free. I want to lose myself in the mountains, but I’m stuck in this small town scene.
Guitar chords roll like thunder through my restless, hopeful chest. Photographs and memories linger. A girl just trying her best.
I wish I could live those stories where outlaws always get away, but every mistake and every heartbreak is just another price I pay.
So I drive with the windows open, let these songs become my guide; A teenage heart caught somewhere between the wild and the ride.
With a little country longing and a rock ‘n’ roll kind of soul, I’m learning to find my rhythm and make these broken pieces whole.
May 24
May 24, 2026 at 10:18 PM UTC
Dear Tin Man, you can keep your armor, that silver shell you wear so well. You think you’re safe from all the heartache, but I know what your silence tells.
See, I’m just a girl, sixteen and hoping that love won’t break me like before; I hold my chest and feel it aching, wondering what this heart is for.
If you ever want to trade, Tin Man, I’d hand you all these shattered dreams; You could show me how to not feel, how to disappear inside the seams.
But if you knew what it’s like to cry over midnight texts that never come, you’d see my tears are proof I’m living, even if they leave me numb.
So keep your tin, your quiet shelter, I’ll keep my heart, however bruised; ‘Cause loving, losing, feeling sorrow, It’s worth the pain of being used.
And if you ever change your mind, Tin Man, and want to know my side, you’ll find me holding all these pieces, learning how to love and survive.
May 24
May 24, 2026 at 10:11 PM UTC
Under neon lights and a borrowed blue dress, in a town too small for these dreams, I confess, where two-step and heartache fill Friday night air, and George Strait on the jukebox says life isn’t fair.
My boots are worn thin, I’ve got songs in my head, writing down wishes I wish I had said. Mama says patience, Daddy says tough, but my heart’s got a hunger, and growing up’s rough.
I’m learning love’s gentle, and sometimes it stings, like a cowboy’s goodbye or a promise on strings. I scribble my secrets in a notebook lined with ink, wondering if I’m braver than most people think.
Sunset on gravel, I’m chasing my fate, Counting the stars past my curfew and gate. Love’s just a rumor that floats down the hall, so I paint my own future on my bedroom wall.
Brown hair in a ponytail, wild as the breeze, I’ll run with the thunder and do as I please. If you ask me tomorrow, I might change my mind, but tonight I’m a wildflower, stubborn and kind.
May 24
May 24, 2026 at 2:13 PM UTC
On a corner,
smoking cigarettes—
counting regrets—
the wind's cold—
I'm getting old.
There's a girl I met—
ain't told her yet.
She'll say, "No."
Guess I'll have to go.
On a bench,
smoking cigarettes—
counting regrets.
The lighter flashes—
I turn to ashes.
My Newport shrinks—
I inhale—
the years I can't unthink.
My fingers burn—
there's no return—
On a sidewalk,
smoking cigarettes—
counting regrets.
Told her yesterday—
she said yes—
I told her no.
It was time to go.
So I smoke my cigarettes—
and add another regret.
Apr 30
Apr 30, 2026 at 12:40 PM UTC
When the thunder rolls in,
we're gonna party like the end,
having whiskey shots like old men
tellin' stories of our kin,
when the thunder rolls in.
When the thunder rolls in. . .
Aug 28, 2016
Aug 28, 2016 at 9:41 PM UTC
Give the David his due,
...give your devil to you?
Jul 1, 2018
Jul 1, 2018 at 2:56 AM UTC
Hello everyone,
I'm so very sorry … I feel horrible doing this, but I have no choice. You see, I have published my first book on Amazon/Kindle! This piece (and many others) had to be taken down because they do not allow published material to be available online for free. (Go figure) I wanted to leave the shell of the posts because I felt compelled to leave all your helpful and loving comments. (Silly sentimental, I know), but I also didn't want to just have the pieces disappear without an explanation. I feel bad enough as it is!
I owe ALL of you so, SO much for all of your reads, love, and support. It was YOU that gave me the gumption to FINALLY get off my **** and publish! Thank you all for the warm comments, camaraderie, and encouragement! I will still be here, reading, uploading and just being the Rascal that I am. How could I EVER leave you guys?
The book is called “The Way I See It – FictionPhilosophySoul Food” and it will be FREE for the first few days on Kindle Select, so watch for it, if you are interested. I hope that you go and grab it. If you do, I would also hope that you find it worthy, you would leave me a good review. That will help me get in the public eye! Soon afterward (2-3 days or so), it will be available in paperback.
Find the book(s) here: www.amazon.com/author/jeff.gaines
Or find the book(s), and all about me, here: www.JeffGaines.world
Soon after, I also hope to have my first novel (a supernatural thriller), called “Wanderer” available as well!
Wish me luck!
Big, Biggest Love,
Jeff Gaines
Mar 22, 2018
Mar 22, 2018 at 8:21 AM UTC
My pick-up truck, trailer home, ...the good book by-my-bedside,
Lost a family, lost my home, ...a terrible twist, twist of fate.
Here I can't escape, that feeling, that I want-to-die,
Found a bottle, quit my job, ...stopped responding to-my-Facebook.
LIFE WENT SIDE-WAYS, REALLY FAST, ..NO PLACE TO GO BUT DOWN!
All I had, gone with the past, a new dark road I took...
Woke up one morning on my floor with the good book on my chest.
Flipped it open, turned it around, and with him, found I'm blessed.
..........and now times stood the test.
I needed to walk, ...with the Son,
Get right back-on-track,
All I needed, was to talk with the Son...
*And now they call me the Lucky One,
Now they call me the Lucky One,
They call me the Lucky One,
They call me the Lucky One,
I LOST A LOT/I NEVER WON,
And they call me the Lucky One.*
Family's gone but I have the Son,
*Now they call me the Lucky One,
They call me the Lucky One,
They call me the Lucky One,
I LOST A LOT/I NEVER WON,
And they call me the Lucky One.*
Suddenly I figured out,
All those things I couldn't-ever figure out...
*And now they call me the Lucky One,
Now they call me the Lucky One,
They call me the Lucky One,
Call me the Lucky One,
I LOST A LOT/I NEVER WON,
And they call me the Lucky One.*
Jan 28, 2017
Jan 28, 2017 at 11:36 PM UTC
Hey Dixie.
You were pretty
Smart, weren't
You?
You packed up
And left your
Dead end town
Deadened life.
Hey Dixie.
You were pretty
Sad, weren't
You?
Girls like
You, girls like
Us are
Often sad.
Hey Dixie.
You were pretty
Scared, weren't
You?
Ran, you ran
And I never found
Out if you ever caught
Up with yourself.
Hey Dixie.
You were pretty
Strong, weren't
You?
Stronger than the
Coffee and whiskey
Stronger than your
Lipstick lullabies.
Hey Dixie.
You and I are
Not the same
Are we?
You had a heart
And I've got a soul
Yet you took the
Easy way out.
Hey Dixie.
I guess you were
Pretty smart
Huh?
Jul 15, 2016
Jul 15, 2016 at 12:33 AM UTC
Came in late to work this morning,
Me and the boss got in a fight,
Now I'm sittin' in a jail cell,
Cause I got a better right!
If I only had a pick-up truck,
A little girl in a nice sundress,
If I only had an old dog,
A family farm that was a mess,
Then I guess I'd be a cowboy,
And I'd always have me a job,
And I guess I'd be happy too,
...instead of eating prison slop!
I spent that last night drunk again,
Hung-over after fightin' with the wife,
Came in late to work that mornin',
Me and the boss got in a fight,
Now I'm sittin' in a jail cell,
Cause I got a better right!
I can remember all the country tunes,
Young love out dancing with the wife,
How her face shined in-the-moon,
Left a simple cowboy-n'-country life!
If I only had a pick-up truck,
My best girl in her little sundress,
If I only had my old dog,
My family farm that was a mess,
Then I guess I'd be a cowboy,
And I'd always have me a job,
And I guess I'd be happy too,
...instead of eating prison slop!
Came in late to work that mornin',
Me and the boss got in a fight,
Now I'm sittin' in a jail cell,
Cause I got a better right!
If I'd stayed on that family farm,
If I still had my old dog,
Then I guess I'd be a cowboy,
Maybe the wife would still be gone?
Then I guess I'd be happy too,
...instead of singing this sad song.
Then I guess I'd be a cowboy,
And I'd always have me a job,
And I guess I'd be happy too,
...instead of eating prison slop!
Came in late to work that mornin',
Me and the boss got in a fight,
Serving my time in a jail cell,
Cause I got a better right!
Yeah I guess I'd be a cowboy,
Cause I will never find a job,
And I bet I'll be happy too,
...no more eating prison slop!
Yeah, I guess I'll be a cowboy,
Yeah, I'll always have a job,
Yeah, you know I'll be happy too,
...pick-up truck and an old dog.
Jun 25, 2016
Jun 25, 2016 at 11:17 AM UTC
East of Mississippi far away from the hustle,
old mills, dirt and muck,
mirth and the muscle...
Where livelihood’s still found resting in the arm,
out past the cities and down on the farm,
Growing up simple cause that’s where we are,
trying to hard and never getting far,
Toiling in the fields or out in a barn,
Well that’s where we are never getting too far,
…but that’s where we are.
I’ll set the stage and you listen here,
is this like any story that you’ve lent to an ear?
I know it’s familiar and everyone should know,
how life takes turns and where it seems to go,
you lead with your heart and love seems to flow...
It was Saturday night and I was at the county fair,
Where every kid hung out, yeah ya’ll know where,
Center of town and east of Mississippi’s
with the young cowboys and the girls were all hippies,
The winds picked up and she shined in the moon,
My heart thumping so hard it made me swoon,
I knew I had to make my move soon,
So I walked right up and grabbed her hand
and spun her around like I had a plan,
We started dancing and wouldn’t you know,
love was on the horizon and that’s how it goes,
From the square that night and back to my car,
small town lovers that’s about as far,
…and I was playing it cool acting Brad Pitt to my best
and asking her to dance was my best guess,
Oh my baby in that sundress!
…and nothing in this world will ever compare, life with her was what I needed to share,
I asked her to marry me right then and there,
Her eyes lit up and the crowd just stared
as the clouds rolled by and the moonlight flared,
She walked right up and grabbed my hand
and stood me up like she had a plan,
and that first kiss was ‘man-o-man’
…and nothing in this world can ever compare to those green eyes and that brown hair and life together is what we’re gonna share and the love in her eyes was always there.
She was so pretty she made me feel old
and that’s our story of love I’ve told.
I know it’s familiar and everyone should know,
how life takes turns and where it seems to go,
How there’s nothing in this world like her sundress
and dancing in the moonlight was my best guess.
County fair, a proposal and our first kiss
and she walked right up to me just like this,
…and nothing in this world can ever compare to those green eyes and that brown hair and life together is what we’re gonna share and the love in her eyes was always there.
She was so pretty she made me feel old
and that’s our story of love I’ve told,
I know it’s familiar and everyone should know,
there’s no work in this world like love to grow,
…and there she was in her sundress
and dancing in the moonlight was my best guess,
County fair, a proposal and our first kiss
and she walked right up to me just like this,
…and nothing in this world can ever compare to those green eyes and that brown hair and life together is what we’re gonna share and the love in her eyes was always there,
East of Mississippi and every town square
where you’ll find her she’ll always be there,
The winds will pick up and she’ll shine in the moon
and your heart will pump so hard it’ll make you swoon,
I know it’s familiar and everyone should know,
how life takes turns and where it seems to go,
How there’s nothing in this world like her sundress
and dancing in the moonlight is a pretty good guess,
County fair, a proposal and the first kiss
and she’ll walk right up to you just like this,
…and nothing in this world can ever compare to those green eyes and that brown hair and life together is what we’re gonna share and the love in her eyes was always there,
I know it’s familiar and everyone should know,
there’s nothing in this world like love to grow…
Jun 23, 2016
Jun 23, 2016 at 10:46 AM UTC