HU&W

everywhere I go
I get the same old message:
hurry up and wait

air travel

arrive at airport
wait around for a long time
get on a big plane

asking for a friend

is there anybody sitting there
would you mind
if I placed my hand on yours
would it be such a crime
tell me now
and I won't bother you again
anyway, I'm asking for a friend

this city in summer

man, this just ain't no good
this city in summer
I'm melting and nothing can be done
it just ain't no good
a weatherman's bummer
I'm melting and it's no damn fun
gimme a beer
I need to stay hydrated
can you tell yet
that I hate it
man, this is fucked
this city in summer
I'm melting and nothing can be done

worry

I don't want to worry anymore
worrying is what I do
I worry about the world
I worry about the country
sometimes I worry about you
sometimes I take a great big breath and
try to be at peace
but my worrying won't cease
there is no relief

needing solutions

needing solutions
Iset out on my journey
it's the same old thing

Everything is a trigger

So, man, I'm so sorry I've been out of touch. A lot has happened, but I don't really want to go into it. 

You don't have to get into it, farmboy. I understand. I just presume you're off writing. That's a good thing. Isolating yourself, not so great. But you know the difference...

Sooner or later...

You're a good learner. If nothing else, I'm sure of that. What's going on?

Like you said, I'm writing a lot. Doing a lot of writing on mandolin.

There's a little challenge.

It's good to write on an instrument you're not very good at. It frees me up, somehow, if there are some kind of limitations set up. And if you're struggling to play an A chord, like I am, that can be good.

I saw Ry Cooder a few nights ago. He's my favorite guitarist, and he was so fuckin' good. It's really wonderful to get out, the summer's been so nice. Which is not to say everything's perfect, far from it. I still have that depression stuff most of the time. Sometimes I feel like I can't stop and think because I'll eventually wind up thinking about something that will make me sad. Everything is a trigger.

I remember. Are you still see your therapist, farmboy?

Yeah. It's a fuckin' miracle, man. Health insurance is a problem, but I have it worked out for the most part. At least for right now.

My therapist is great. I have great people helping me on this journey since the accident.

And I have you, too. Thank for being so understanding, man. I owe you.

I miss everything 2

I miss everything
that used to be
things I never noticed
in front of me
summer fades to fall
winter melts into spring
I miss everything

I miss everyone
people I hardly knew
those I took for granted
on this worldly rendezvous
I know you now as strangers
before the setting sun
I miss everyone

         let's have a drink
         for everyone you've ever met
         to honor everything in life
         you never will regret

I miss you and me
when you touched my soul
when you found me broken
and made me whole
when you healed my wounds
and set me free
I miss everyone
I miss the rising sun
I miss you and me

I miss everything

a gentler wind

I don't need more pressure
I'm good at pressuring myself
in the name of sweet forgiveness
with a dose of mental health
I don't need a hurricane
pushing me out and in
all I need is a gentler wind

I miss everything

I miss everything
that used to be
things I never saw
in front of me
summer fades to fall
like winter turns to spring
I miss everything

I miss everyone
people I barely even knew
those I took for granted
on this worldly rendezvous
I know you now as strangers
before the setting sun
I miss everyone

         let's have a drink
         or everyone you've met
         to all those you've ever loved
         and never will regret

I miss you and me
when you touched my soul
when you found me broken
and made me whole
when you healed my wounds
and set me free
I miss everyone
I miss everything
I miss you and me

yes in a world of no (new verse)

everywhere is confusion
everywhere is greed
everywhere there's an obstacle
to block what we all need
a need to be like the wild weeds
that keep insisting to grow
all you can do is keep moving
towards a yes in a world of no

a-blazin'

it's hotter than hell
summer Is finally here
with fans a-blazin'

river city gal

there are billion of people
on this spinning planet
and you're my favorite one
you make me laugh
when I wanna say damn it
you're so much fun
you're number one
not two or three
you are the only
one for me
can't you see
you're my river city gal

today

today, a good day
I could take it for granted
or show some respect

in your father's voice

you can do what you want
it's your own damn choice
speaking to yourself
in your father's voice
the man who taught you
all along
that everything you do
is wrong

you were good-for-nothing
too much noise
you breathed too loud
said your father's voice
and every word he said
you memorized
now you're repeating
the same old lies

          take a look now
          somewhere somehow
          you turned out perfect
          remember when
          you couldn't have a friend
          was it worth it?

crime and punishment
whatever destroys
is used against you
in your father's voice
you're a grown man now
you don't live at home
it's time to find
a voice you've never known
that you can call your own

you can do what you want
it's your own damn choice
          

how to be happy

I don't know if I know 
how to be happy
it's a skill I never learned
if I were to ask you
how to be happy
would you tell me in return
I've collected all the data
I've read the studies, too
they all say the only missing piece
is you

there are lots of books about
how to be happy
some brand new, some old
a million songs about
how to be happy
and a trillion stories told
I've analyzed the content
I've memorized each line
they all come down to  
your love combining with mine

          trying to be happy
          is nothing but a mess
          how to be happy
          is anybody's guess
          
I need some lessons in
how to be happy
I need some homework to do
for an education in
how to be happy
I need a teacher like you
I need you to teach me
how to be happy
'cause I don't have a clue

toodle-oo and adios

don't tell me
how much I mean to you
I got two good eyes
I can see what you do
or don't do
I can hear which words are false
and which are true
which is why
I'm saying goodbye
ain't no tears
in my eyes 
you're standing much too close
sayonara, baby
bon voyage, darling
toodle-oo and adios

99 answers

I got 99 answers
and not one of them is right
I got 99 answers 
and I just can't sleep at night
it's thane in a hundred
that keeps hiding out of sight

leave us alone

leave us alone
all you weasels, cheats, and liars
racist signifiers
holocaust deniers
leave us alone
white men in expensive suits
all you republican recruits
disciples of fox news
you don't have a clue
of what you're gonna do
when whatever happens
happens to you

leave us alone
all you presidential pouters
there's not any doubt of
your sexual encounters
leave us alone
greedy ambulance chasers
immigrant haters
reputation erasers
you don't have a clue
of what you're gonna do
when whatever happens
happens to you

guess 2

guess I wasn't ready
guess I didn't try
I thought that I was steady
but I guess somebody lied
guess I couldn't figure out
exactly what to do
guess I wasn't good enough for you

guess you couldn't find
what you wanted me to be
guess I didn't see the signs
you placed in front of me
guess I wasn't worth it
a puzzle with no clue
guess I wasn't good enough for you

          so here I go again
          pulling myself up again
          from the ashes
          yeah, it's one more time
          to the end of the line
          I guess I'll take my chances

guess you were another chance
for me to lose or win
well, I ain't going back
to losing again
I'll look for someone else
who knows to be true 
guess I wasn't good enough for you
guess I wasn't good enough for you

anything but fine

when some people say how are you
they don't really care
it's just what's right to say
when they see you standing there
so beware
be alert
make sure what they're asking doesn't work
play with their mind
say you're anything but fine

guess

guess I wasn't ready
guess I didn't try
I tried to be steady
but I guess somebody lied
guess I couldn't figure out
exactly what to do
guess I wasn't good enough for you

guess I wasn't someone
you wanted me to be
guess I didn't see the signs
you placed in front of me
guess I wasn't worth it
a puzzle with no clue
guess I wasn't good enough for you

          so here I go again
          pulling myself up again
          from the ashes
          yeah, it's one more time
          to the end of the line
          I guess I'll take my chances

guess it's one more damn chance
it's lose or when
and I ain't going back
to losing again
I'll meet someone else
who knows to be true 
guess I wasn't good enough or you
guess I wasn't good enough for you

emergency

for the past ten minutes
I have not lost my temper
it means nothing to you
but it's a world record
everything makes me mad
'cause everything makes me sad
I know everything's not so bad
but I'm in panic, you see
emergency

shelter me

there has to be
some kind of way
to get out of
this mess I've made
I don't want to be afraid
anymore
there has to be
some kind a scheme
upwards
down
and in between
if life is nothing
but a dream
then nothing's for sure

shelter me
where nothing can touch me
where nothing can harm me
shelter me tonight

a whole other lifetime ago

it feels so far away
but it could've been yesterday
when you and me
were young and free
and we had no idea
who we would be
there was no way we could know
seems like a whole other lifetime ago

fog on the Pacific

fog on the Pacific
no boats are sailing by
gray and blue and silver
and there's no horizon line
easing our way southward
with the foghorn's song to hear
onward through the waves
we begin to disappear

into the fog on the Pacific
we are floating on the sea
with Juneau far behind
and home in front of me
I like the back and forth
every drop and motion
I could look forever
and just begin to see the ocean

fog on the Pacific
breaking through the waves
there is no sense of danger
only memories to save
of rocking up and down
into the great unknown
fog on the Pacific
I am going home
fog on the Pacific
I am going home

once I was loved 2

once I was loved
or so I believed
in my foolish heart
and my broken mind
once I was loved
but it soon turned to grief
when I realized
love was not mine
to find

          give me a moment
          to catch my breath
          I'm not used to honesty
          eventually I'll be scared to death
          and I can't believe
          what you promised me

once I was loved
once it had me fooled
with soft words and kisses
and a reason to live
once I was loved
but it broke all the rules
I gave till I gave
all that I had to give

          give me a second
          I'm gasping for air
          my instincts tell me not to feel
          I'm closing my eyes
          though I see nothing there
          I keep asking myself
          if this could be real
          
once I was loved
or so I believed
in my foolish heart
and my broken mind
once I was loved
but soon it turned to grief
when I realized
love was not mine
to find