one thought at a time

I need to only think

one thought at a time

I may not be a smart man

but I ain't a dunce

my problem is simple

my problem is I'm

prone to be thinking

all my thoughts at once

          this and that,

          they hurt my brain

          and all my thoughts

          are to blame

I'm working overtime

my thoughts are scattered

I cannot focus long enough

to really see

concentration

is all that matters

instead of this mess

inside of me

          there's no reason

          there's no rhyme

          there's too much happening

          at the same time

tomorrow's a new day

for starting again

maybe I'll meditate

maybe that'll help

maybe I'll try

my best to fit in

confused and condemned

I can't help myself

          give me a reason

          for the pain that is mine

          I just need to think

          one thought at a time

   

lost without you

I am lost without you

I don't know where I stand

maybe some people just accept it

but I don't think I can

it hurts to need somebody

the way that I need you

but still I keep on trying

I don't know what else to do

I am lost without you

my bearings are unfound

I thought it all would be okay

then I took a look around

and you were somewhere else

some place I could never be

all the pieces fell into place

except the ones with me

I am lost without you

I cannot find my way

I could make excuses

but I don't know what to say

someday you may find me

in the desert of your mind

I'll only be known to you

as the one you left behind

I am lost without you

away from home

it was my first time away from home

in a long, long time

I saw open fields out the car window

I saw a clear blue sky

and I saw people walking around

on a Sunday afternoon

looking at skateboarders

and art exhibits

that's what I hope to be

another stranger in a city

with my friends

just hanging out, you know

enjoying each other's company

now I am home, alone

but I can still remember

I took pictures on my cell phone

and their voices still speak

jnside my mind

saying "remember me

and the day we had together"

throatful

it is early for me

one in the afternoon

but I am awake

I've outlasted the moon

the new day is here

should I be hopeful?

to say that I am

is more than a throatful

but I am awake

and my new day's beginning

so far I'm not losing

so I must be winning

they came to stay

I haven't thought of you in years

I hope you're still alive

I hope you dried your endless tears

and there's peace inside your eyes

I remember you as an ageless child

with fear leading the way

you withdrew when the worst came true

and the blues, they came to stay

I slept too late

I slept too late

I nearly missed out on

the whole damn day

what can I say?

I'm a lazy bum

I barely move

my dreams are deep

whenever I sleep

that's what I've become

I do not wake

until I take

massive cups of coffee

in my blood

it's late afternoon

and I am out of tune

pour me some coffee 

in my mug

wheels keep turning

I had so much hope

I could have packaged it 

and sold it

but now it's the same old shit

trouble pounding on my door

I had so much faith

I had my dreams

and I believed them

by day I would try to conceive them

but now there must be something more

          now I am sad and lonely

          life would be good, if only

          things would go my way

          what can I say?

          the wheels keep turning

          and leaving me behind

                                          

if I could walk

if I could walk without

the use of a cane or a walker

I don't know

if I would walk more than I do

it's not so bad

really

I can still get around

I could go see people

if I had people to see

I wish I could tell you

that I would climb the highest mountain

that I would walk to New Hampshire

that I would dance a rhumba

but I wouldn't

I would still walk, however,

and I would be glad

because it really could be a lot worse

so today I am thankful

for my legs and feet

and for the people

who built the sidewalk

no damn reason

there is no damn reason

my life turned out

the way it did

I have had bad luck

ever since those days

when I was just a kid

trouble overwhelms me

it always has

I need something good

and all that jazz

there must be something positive

what more can I say?

there is no good reason

that life turned out this way

looking out for number one

I feel like my feelings

are under attack

leave me your number

and I'll call you right back

emergencies 

are what I do best

give me your worries

and forget the rest

          everybody says

          I don't belong here

          but they're all wrong

          I'm feeling strong here

          I will do

          what needs to be done

          I'm looking out

          for number one

where I am going

is not up to me

there are so many places

for me to see

so many homes

for me to haunt

it may not ne good

but that's what I want

          everybody says

          it's just no good

          hanging around

          this neighnorhood

          staying up till

          the morning sun

          I'm looking out

          for number one

cold day

water is freezing 

until it is ice

snow is falling

it sure looks nice

the treetops are powdered

with sugar and spice

on those cookies

you made with your mother

the heater is on

gas bill's going up

there's lukewarm coffee

sitting in a cup

it may not be boiling

but it's hot enough

you could warm it up

but it's not worth the bother

          and it's a cold day

          no warm place left to hide

          it's a cold day

          you'd better stay inside

          it's a cold day

after the songs have ended

after the songs have ended

and the audience has gone home

close your eyes and empty your mind

this time is yours to own

a time for being quiet

a time for sitting still

this time belongs to you alone

do with it what you will

you can question the heavens

contemplate the stars

or simply rest soundly

wherever you are

you can laugh wild laughter

you can whisper the blues

do anything you want

it's all up to you

tomorrow will come soon

it's just a day away

it will be time to do

what other people say

so take this one moment

and do what you can

knowing someday inside you

you'll begin to understand

when your life is done

I hope there were some good times

in the last days of your life

I hope that you made contact

with your children and your wife

I hope you saw a blue sky

instead of all this rain and clouds

I hope that you had fun

in whatever wasn't allowed

          I don't know what really lies

          in our home above the sun

          I just hope you'll be surprised

          when your life is done

my computer

I turn on my computer

and what do I see

a whole lot of people

who are luckier than me

they travel the world

they do what they please

why doesn't luck see me

I'm down on my knees

here on the internet

I am not a king

I am digging the trenches

I am not anything

I'm just the same old me

with the same old blues

why can't I do

whatever I choose

jealousy and envy

are the things that I feel

they're both wrapped around me

and I just can't deal

there's nothing to do

and nothing to say

so I'll shut off my computer

and go on my way

any way the wind blows

any way the wind blows

that's where I will live

where nothing is forever

and there's nothing to forgive

you can try and stop me

but that would be in vain

any way the wind blows

that's where I'll remain

I have been a stranger

since the moment of my birth

I have searched hard for a family

since my arrival on this earth

sentenced to a lifetime

of standing all alone

any way the wind blows

that's where I'll call home

know that I will miss you

you'll be in my heart

I always will remember

how you warmed my heart

you can never know

the joy you gave to me

any way the wind blows

that's where I  will be

we used to be friends

we used to be friends

a long time ago

I knew you when

we were both younger

when we still believed

we had something to live for

tricks up our sleeves

for life we had hunger

          do you remember

          the way we used to laugh

          how life used to carry us on

          for our own behalf

we used to be friends

we encouraged each other

time and time again

we drank from life's stream

I thought we'd grow old

I thought we'd discover

that fortunes were told

and that life was a dream

          do you remember

          the hopes we used to share

          were you ever surprised

          to learn we had nothing there

we used to be friends

I don't know the decisions

to tear us apart

I guess it was time

but it all seems unfair now

we had a collision

never knowing how

we knew the scene of the crime

          do you remember

          who we used to be

          now that you are gone

          now that you're history

we used to be friends

a long time ago

I knew you when

we were both younger

I didn't forget you

I didn't forget you

I've always been here

you may have gone

but I did not disappear

I know all your sorrows

I know all your fears

I didn't forget you

I've always been here

no need to doubt me

you don't have to hide

you just need to know

I am on your side

I hope you know

that the message is clear

I didn't forget you

I've always been here

you are my child

and always will be

no one is prouder

of you than me

and if you ever need me

I am always near

I didn't forget you

I've always been here

I am not here

I am not here

I am over there

right where you can't see me

your eyes are unaware

I am hiding out

to protect myself within

and, somehow, if I fail

I'll go over there again

listen to you

take off your headphones

and listen to me

we've got some problems

I'm sure you disagree

but I've read the research

and I know the score

everything tells me

there must be something more

          what can I do

          open up my mind

          and listen to you

I see you

some of us are touched by fate

at a very early age

to paint the paintings

write the poems

bring meaning to the page

I may not have the talent

that other people do

but I know the beauty of hard work

and inside it I see you

          I see you

          with the chisel and the brush

          I see you

          and a love no one can touch

          when the night surrounds you

          but you still make it through

          it's true

          I see you

talking to strangers

I have spent my life

talking to strangers 

at bus stops and street lights

grocery stores and bars

some people have told me

that I am in danger

of making conversation

wherever they are

I'm a shy person

I don't have many friends

so I talk to people

I never will know

about weather and traffic

and we always pretend

everything is all right

in this world that we know

they make me feel good

these friendly encounters

like we're all related

because we're all human beings

where you're completely alone

it seems like a downer

a future alone

is not something I'm believing

so I will go on

talking to strangers

enjoying the moments

wherever I roam

hearing the voices

of the ones who won't stay here

wherever I am

I still feel at home

starlight in her eyes

mama, watch out for your daughter

she's got starlight in her eyes

she's saving for a one-way ticket

God only knows what she'll find

daughter wants to be a big star

like the ones she sees on TV

she doesn't need this small town

the future's there for her to see

big prize winner

wake up in the morning

meet the brand new day

you're the big prize winner

here's your Chevrolet

your trip to the Bahamas

your brand new kitchen set

you were on TV

how could you forget?

you were on that game show

that airs in channel four

you had mostly the right answers

judges keeping score

and still today you triumphed

your winning's just begun

host, please inform the player

of all that he has won

a year's supply of oatmeal

three nights at the Ritz

dinner in Manhattan

all the news that fits

passes to the movies

the popcorn's all for free

and you will remember

for all eternity

wake up in the morning

today's a different day

you're the big prize winner

life has finally gone your way

life is so material

and winning's such a thrill

you're the big prize winner

do with it what you will

northern star

why do I 

continue to do

what I do

everyday

you'd think by now

I'd have learned

but logic turned

and I looked away

now I'm shattered

and nothing matters

except saving my life

I'm looking for something

but I expect nothing

that will turn out right

          but then I remember you

          and I know I'll make it through

          you are my northern star

clean house

it's time to clean house

the one in my mind

heaven only knows

just what I will find

there's dust in the corners

there's dirt on the floor

it's become such a mess

it's hard to ignore

I see I have cobwebs

where hope used to be

I see I have bitterness

inside of me

I must get to cleaning

a pail and a mop

but it just gets messier

and it just won't stop

so I will use elbow grease

scrub as hard as I can

why it doesn't get cleaner

I don't understand

maybe I need a doctor

maybe I need a shrink

maybe I just need

a little silence to think

but still I keep cleaning

that's all I can do

but how do you get rid of

the pain inside you?

it's all needless rubbish

that I should leave behind

it's time to clean house

and save what is mine

on trial

there is nothing to stop me

that's what I say

as I stumble through life

every single day

I struggle and strive

still I come up short

I alone am on trial

and you are the court

"guilty" you tell me

and I sadly listen

to the words that control me

I have no permission 

to be the person

I once thought I'd be

now there's nobody who'll

pay attention to me

tell me my sentence

give me a sign

that life will go on

and I won't be left behind

this is my longing

to you I will plead

gaining my innocence

is all that I need

a story worth telling (rewrite 1)

if I could write an honest word

here's what I would do

I'd put my thoughts to music

and play them all to you

something new, something blue

something true and compelling

a olive branch to hold on to

a story worth telling

everyday's another day

with clocks a-ticking faster

for life to take another dream

and put it out to pasture

I have no wisdom to depart 

there's nothing here worth selling

all I have is this life and I hope

it's a story worth telling

and so I'll say goodbye to you

see you further up the road

and if you still remember me

I'll tell you all I've known

about a place inside my mind

somewhere where dreams are dwelling

all my hopes belong in there

a story worth telling

a story worth telling

if I could write an honest word

that's what I would do

put my feelings on paper

and mail them off to you

something new, something blue

honest and compelling

a olive branch to hold on to

a story worth telling

everyday's another day

with clocks ticking faster

another time to take some dreams

and put them out to pasture

I have no wisdom to depart to you

I have nothing worth selling

all I have is this life I live

and hope it's a story worth telling

and so I'll say goodbye to you

see you further up the road

and if you still remember me

I'll tell you all I've known

about a place I call my own

a single, simple dwelling

all my hopes belong in there

they're all a story worth telling

another day, another hangover

another day

another hangover

every day is the same

I am sick and tired

of always bearing the blame

of all my mistakes

of all I've done wrong

somehow me and my brain

refuse to get along

and I am left here

hanging my head in shame

another day

another hangover

every day is the same

you'd think I

would learn my lesson

but the answer's always no

everyday I think about

how far down I have to go

maybe I'm in trouble

maybe I don't have what it takes

maybe I'll never try

to learn from my mistakes

from the top of the mountain

to the valley far below

you'd think I

would learn my leson

but the answer's always no

Senegal

I always wanted to go to Senegal

to hear the music

and rest my weary bones

in Senegal I would find a way

to make these sounds

into my new home

but I never moved from my country

I stayed where I thought I belonged

so I never heard in person

the sound of my Senegalese song

so where do I go now?

what do I do?

stay in a place

that I always knew

where the days pass like racecars

they go by so fast

and I am left, hoping

that something will last

still the songs invite me in

and somnetimes I stay

and there I remainon my finest of days 

resolutions

I will be smarter

I won't be as dumb

I will not stay

into what I've become

I will eat vegetables

I will be tough

I will stop thinking

I'm not good enough

I will practice my passion

I will wish for the best

I will take all that's good

and throw out the rest

I will cut down on

my smoking of weed

I will give to others

who are living in need

I will be an observer

I'll keep up with the news

I will be inspired

by whoever I choose

I will do unto others

as they do unto me

and I will be amazed

at the beauty I see

I will not be imprisoned

by the shackles of fear

I will walk with my head up

in this shiny new year

I will work from my heart

and if that's not enough

I will hold on

to the ones that I love

I will be smarter

I won't be as dumb

I will not stay

into what I've become