–
Until cooler heads prevail
Under mild winds
Set sail
No good will come of this
No anger will resolve
Will new problems evolve
Cutting new wounds
Deeper than the original
So until cooler heads prevail
The boat sits in the harbor still
Waiting until
The patterns change
Sending this craft back
On its way
For some reason
The feeling of isolation
Does not bother me
Ostracized
Rather than welcome
Is something that I find welcomed
For in the subtle disapproval
I found
Holding steadfast
To my own principles
Some will appreciate this
Others will laugh and dismiss
Find something
Refuse to cave in
It has taught me that what people
Find important
Is not always important to me
That is all that I needed to see
To understand that if I stand tall
Don’t give in
The reward of being me
Alone amongst a crowd
Rewards the soul more
When I fall asleep at night
That is really all
I can ask for
I hope this post finds you well
Full of heart and eyes that swell
We make our way to city heights
On this blustery winter night
We find a new home
Among many and hoping
For luck to come our way
We will find out with rest
And another day
After many pains, deliberations, and delays
We are finally ready to make our way
To NYC and the east coast
We packed our bags
But still left most
Of what we owned behind
Tight car little time
Here we go
I-80 and the turnpike
I pray it clear with no ice
And we hope to make New York city
By night
Stay inside
There is a storm out there
Blowing winds so cold
It will shrivel your fingers
I am told
City in chaos
A driving ban
Amongst all of this
How could we plan
Just about one thing
I never seen anything
Quite like this
The blizzard of 78
Paled
When this storm hit
Apocalyptic winds
Hustle over the earth
Creating a sense of unknown
In darkness so cold
In the air you hear the raging sea
Even though the sea is
Nowhere near me
Or you
We stay locked in doors
Tight
Shaking
With the blowing lark
I am amazed at this
Horrified
And in awe
None of us saw this coming
None at all
But here is this storm
This beast
This apocalyptic creation
Bearing down hard
On the Hoosier nation
From Chicago
Down the South Shore
We have seen snow
And more
More more
Sleep well rested
While the buildings foundation
Is tested
We stay covered
We stay alive
This is the most violent wrath of winter
I have ever seen
The January winter
Of two thousand
And fourteen
The Lake Effect
Has everyone upset
Blowing snow in
Blowing streets closed
Blowing cities into submission
All along the Lake Michigan
Outer belt
No winter before have we ever felt
This
cold
Guts and glory
Unlikely story
Small town roots
Strapped up big town boots
Through determination
One finds success
In this great nation
Hard work means nothing
It is expected
Luck is where
Preparation and opportunity
Intersected
So no whining about conditions
Relativity
Is a state of mind
Than definitive
Hoping and wishing is bullshit
Work it till your hands bleed
And you’ll be a hit
Small town values
Work through adverse conditions
The ethics you learn
The routine you practice
Will outrun any superstition
Just because I am broke
Does not mean that I am broken
–
The heart broken
Knows the languish for success
–
This languish can only be known
Through heartbreak and distress
–
The world around me spins
Yet I have to catch my druthers
–
In a life that is given
One must learn to rely on others
–
But that bitter irony
Creates a burn in ones mouth
–
Leaning on hopes of easier roads
Leaves the heart less than whole
–
Rust collects on the resting
One must move so no dust can begin collecting
–
Subdued Indiana terrain
Toughened the skin with winter pain
–
A mouth full of iron
Cracked on all sides
–
Makes me wonder
Whats is the next curve in life
–
What awaits
What gives what takes
–
Yet
–
Just Just because I am broke
Does not mean that I am broken
Working in the barn
Burnt ropes with wirey abrasion
Tender skin hoping for evasion
Wind blown grass
And summer sun
Splintered wood on floors broken
Stairs old yet not forgotten
This is where work is done on a Thursday night
Preparing for the next days engagement
Needing a cleaning before the arrangement
People will gather soon to celebrate
What makes life so joyful and happy
The walls full of webs will bloom into life
Wood dull old and crass
Will jump out with new vibes
Shaking the conversations out of the folks
While they enjoy a cocktail and a smoke
All in this barn set on an Indiana field
I will smile and be happy
When this old barn gives it’s yield
Delivering mail was the nine to five
With bills to pay
It was well short of the glamorous life
He had been a musician since he was young
Didn’t care for guitars
Didn’t care about the way he sung
Drumming had grabbed him right away
Counting rhythms out loud
And learning how to play
Dreamed of moving to Nashville
To aid in that Nashville sound
But life moves fast
And his chance never came around
He still plays on the weekend
To make some spare change
It is more just a simple means
To a simple end
But he wonders of what life could have been
Had he jumped off the deep end
Learning to swim as he goes
Where this all would take him
He truly does not care to know
I met him buying some drums
Sells them out of his basement
Best guy in Indiana
Drums that sound like true cannons
I believe his story and feel it quite familiar
A story told by so many players similar
Never wanted to test the waters
Looking back years later
With thoughts of what could have been
Of what life was life
And what opportunities life provided
Back then
A Cup of Songwriting 