The halfwit in me:
I kept your word
In place of mind
Divine rights
Of the godless implied
And the halfwit in me couldn't keep time
A tuneless trumpet
Breaks down the stone
Weight of the keep and take
Contracted by loan
And the halfwit in me stayed out all night
Go on ahead
Build another home
For lean mean eaters
Everything but the bone
Call yourself lucky, we never use the phone
Borrow headspace
From tomorrow and on
Everybody has papers
If they're in on the con
And the halfwit in me kept on keeping on
A Sunday sit down
We still end up short
A life to confess
We still pay less
And the halfwit in me will have one more
------
A choir apart:
Heads up for this joker
Hand on the heart
Pledge to a false flag
Shout from the Sundays
Hallelujahs condescending
The joy was showing
Praise in one ear
And out the other
You'd curse your own name
You'd curse your brother
How can a man sing
With the choir apart
My lips were moving
No soul or heart
Gifts of wine for me
A pass of hands for thee
Late on arrival
I wrote your name in a book
Traded in papers
I asked them all
Longing for someone to add my own name
Pens of fountain ink, written in feather
Acrylic on leather, birds claw untethered
My word is divine, I control the weather
Forget the long season
My path transcribed
The long handshake
Whisper from the midday
Perspective hushed
Tasking just for tips
Golden sings that have been sung
Wise ass wisdom, wasted on the young
Spend your mornings thinking about the night
Don't carry fire, you can use my light
-------
Funny thing she said:
Funny thing she said to me
I could see you giving me a child
But your roaming eye
You're going to give them what is mine
How you come with the day
And you leave with the night
Your lips taste like honey
But I know you're drinking wine
And I'm no easy meadow
There is no water to drink
And hey why the long face boy
Have you even thought of me
Funny thing she said to me
Why'd you even come over last night
You're chiming in the wrong shade of blue
Saturday night meant nothing, but I know that Sunday was true
How you come with the day
And you leave with the night
Your lips taste like honey
But I know you're drinking wine
And I'm no easy meadow
There is no water to drink
And hey why the long face boy
Have you even thought of me
-------
Sullen mind:
I'm cast in a corner bar and you'd tell me
Naked ladies in the sunlight, they adore me
And I can only turn to walk away, because I only have a Christian education
And with a sullen mind, I carry you
And with a sullen mind, I'm fair
And with a sullen mind, I laid down
And with a sullen mind, I'm out of here
I'm cast in a corner bar and you'd tell me
I can take any motherfucker home who loves me
And I can only turn to walk away, because I only have a Christian education
And with a sullen mind, I carry you
And with a sullen mind, I'm there
And with a sullen mind, I laid down
And with a sullen mind, I'm out of here
I’m cast in a corner bar and you’d tell me
That I can go out any night with no money
And I can only turn to walk away, because I only have a Christian education
And with a sullen mind, I carry you
And with a sullen mind, I'm fair
And with a sullen mind, I laid down
And with a sullen mind, I'm out of here
Seventeen past three, and I’m waiting on a friend
he owes me cigarrettes, and I owe him gasoline
Half past four, and the speed is kicking in
Honey, come on over and I’ll show you where I begin
And with a sullen mind, I carry you
And with a sullen mind, I'm there
And with a sullen mind, I laid down
And with a sullen mind, I'm out of here
———
I Will Ask You Twice
I'm playing footsie with Jesus
man what a weak touch
I don't read the Bible, baby
I think it says don't ask much
With good posture for peace
a celebration would be nice
would you marry me baby?
I will ask you twice
Leather boots for justice
ones that fit just right
what size are you when wet?
Do you wear those things out at night?
With good posture for peace
a celebration would be nice
will you marry me baby?
I will ask you twice
I will ask you twice
———
The Roundabout
There's no instance
in conscience or convenience
even though you stand on heavy shoulders
I take the roundabout
cause I like to see St. Jude
again and again
Hands folded in prayer
God, do you write prescriptions?
God damn my signature is fake
I take the roundabout
because I like to see my house
number four, number five, number six, number seven
and number eight
And I'd buy you a drink
but my credit is quite shit
so we can all laugh and have tap water
my friend laughs cause he thinks he’s having a daughter
you can find me at the roundabout
and you try the passenger door
oh shit man, it doesn’t even work
and you’d cry like you’ve never seen water
come to think of it
I think my dad wanted a daughter
you can find me at the roundabout
where every lotto ticket wins you ten dollars
inside the city limits, that doesn’t even buy cigarettes
so you hit the back road, and you grab a carton
lean into my shoulder, wearing an old man’s coat
with a couple war badges and a two cent stamp
will you love me at the roundabout?
you can find me at the roundabout
------
The Great And Undecided
My friend was a midnight writer
and I was a temporary hire
with no mandolin to hold to my chest
I guess it worked out for the best
And I heard ever since you crossed state lines
you found your dream job
My friend Joy wrote a song for me
she was singing it my room
she said you can play it anytime you’d like
if you tell the neighbors it’s my tune
And I heard ever since you crossed state lines
your old man was sending you money
And I heard ever since you crossed state lines
everybody was getting postcards
And you moved away to keep a distance
that’s kind of nice cause I like it here
I was the great and undecided
holding a candle where the light is
-------
Age Old Tale
“Set me up”, says the man with a tall order
and age old tale, undersigned
post script- "I ran out of space"
and “I can still smile with the taste of zig-zag”
Whats a mile a minute to somebody walking backwards in daylight savings time?
Not very fast I guess
Go on, take my advice brother
Skip out on the bill, and piss on the rest
Sitting in my beater
Dead of winter, busted heater
and it always feels like quitting time
I wanna pull you from my mind
Hold you in my hands, and let you unwind
In a harvest of sepia, you came as ox blood
Wednesday was a ruby, and Thursday was a flood
and I’m beloved by the loved, who love to love
and I can still cut loose on a weekday night
