A Little Bit Like Company

I'm sitting on a park bench in Albany

Where the fresh water rushes out to sea

We'd drive out here once a month or so

Take Picnic off her leash

You promised we could choose her name

And let her run free


Spoonbills glide their

Open mouths through the water

Willets dart around under the pier

I don't know where you are

Or if you're anywhere at all

But I know you liked it here

Sunlight hits the waves in blues and yellows 

A cargo ship is headed straight for the horizon

I'm pretty sure when you're gone you're gone 

But if by chance I've got it wrong

I hope you've got your eyes on what I'm seeing


Hold my hand come sit a while

We can watch the sun set fire to the waves 

Close my eyes and see you there 

Wind messing up your short, black hair

You’re pointing out the cormorants to me 


The sun sinks down, the sky is clear

I always get this way out here


But it’s a loneliness that feels

A little bit like company


Come On

You're going on about this and that
The words you've practiced falling flat
You say don't think of this like an ending 

We'll see each other all the time
I promise you you'll be just fine 
You've always had a talent for pretending

I can see exactly how this goes.

I watch you fade into the night
Thinking nothing's ever gonna be alright
You say you will but you never call

I've got an airplane's view of the whole damn town
The lights blink on and the sun goes down
And everyone acts like nothing's changed at all

So come on come on
Is that the way you pictured us?
Come on come on
Me waiting by the phone because
Come on come on you've all but disappear

Come on come on
You told me when we met that you
Come on come on
Had a plan to see this through
Come on come on

I know I've lost still I try to fight
But we burn bright, won't last the night
And anger wasn't made to be convincing

So the scene plays out in the usual way
You start to leave I beg you to stay
And I wish like hell I could fade and watch it play from far away 

The sky is perfect but the air is cold
And you say you're sorry but it's getting old 
And I hate the way that I love your eyes looking past me to the highway

So the lights blink on and the sun goes down and the streets are empty
And the cars are gone and this perfect town is resting without me 
The blinds are drawn and the voices drown under crickets I can't see
And I put the picture on my wall and let it rest behind me

So come on come on
This isn't how I pictured us?
Come on come on
Me waiting by the phone because
Come on come on you've all but disappear

Come on come on
You told me when we met that you
Come on come on
Had a plan to see this through
Come on come on

Silver Linings

I woke up scared I'd slept in late
There's nothing going on today
Stayed in bed, played songs in my head
About dying

Everybody says there's always
A bright side if you can find it
Ever tried to buy a better day
With a couple silver linings?

I love to spend an afternoon telling pretty lies to myself
Sit on the floor as the light pours in, try to let it fill me up

I walked down to the reservoir
Where a couple college kids drowned
Didn't really have a plan
Thought I might just swim around

There were daisies growing all along the water
A mattress and an empty box of wine
I kicked off my shoes and wondered
What I might be trying to find

Out there in the distance I thought I saw a glow
Something near the bottom, shining up from down below
It got clear as I got closer
A whole city full of lights
It was cool, it was loud
It was sprawling it was bright

I saw a thousand neon signs
Advertising silver linings
Everyone was selling them
But nobody was buying

I walked home as the sun went down
Wandered through old stomping grounds
Tire tracks, quiet roads
And wished that I could lose control

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Broke Kind of Paradise

Hanging lights and chardonnay
Old friends from school who moved away
Gold bands on full display
Tattoos, great news, I watch it play


New jobs, new plans, new part of the city
New lives, new dreams, new tastes for what's pretty
I'll play along for now, don't need the pity but really I can't find a thing to say


I don't have a house but I'm happy
No car and my paycheck is crappy
But damn if I ain't having fun
Free concerts in parks by the water
Cheap ice cream on days when its hotter than hell
My job is a joke but the people are nice
I love my friends and they don't have a price
It's a broke kind of paradise
A broke kind of paradise

One by one each has their try
Smiles can't hide worried eyes
Like "have you thought about next year?
They're hiring not far from here"
They mean the best for me, but I'm feeling stressed I mean why can't I just be this mess that I want for me?

Like no we're not still together
Been renting that place since forever
Work's good, yes still Emma's cafe
Like yes well writing is still what I'm going for
I'm sure that you're right I could be making more
Sometimes I wish I could say

Playing shows around the bay
I promise you I'm on my way

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When the Last Bus Comes


Waited for the open mic
Middle of the city, late at night
11:30 or so

Walked to the red line with a couple of friends
Combined all our change and a couple of tens
To buy some drinks on the way

Adam got a fake online

Kept one eye on the street signs
Professed I'd deciphered the boxes and lines
Well, we got there eventually

We stood in front of the screaming crowd
and they never sat back down
And every note, every word I wrote,
Went exactly like we'd planned

God help anyone who said differently

We were the only people alive
No one to ask if our actions were wise
we took the town for a test drive

Learned from the people who'd been here awhile
Or at least had a plan and a confident smile
That's all it takes sometimes

And we stood in front of the whole damn world
And swore we'd never come down
If we missed a train, it was them we'd blame
They'd wait for us once we ran this town

Does anyone know when the last bus comes?

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Sailing Away

I just want to tell you everything that's been on my mind
I just want to show you everything that I need to find

It's hard to take a step alone
Will you meet me on the way?
It's hard to wander on my own
Will you find me in the fray?

We don't need too many things, to go sailing on a sea of fate
Looking for good love, good heart, good luck And sailing away

All these waves are crashing over us but we're diving in
The water's deep and dark and dangerous so let us begin

We don't need too many things, to go sailing on a sea of fate
Looking for good love, good heart, good luck And sailing away

I know we don't know where we're going
I know the wind blows strong sometimes
But neither of us show signs of slowing down
We'll keep our eyes on the horizon line

We don't need too many things, to go sailing on a sea of fate
Looking for good love, good heart, good luck And sailing away

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This City

This city never sleeps, but I do
And it was hard to let go, and hard to come to
Well four hits, a warm night, and it's got you, its got you

Trip on the intrigue, the side streets, a cheap cafe
Get lost to the high-rises and the highways
Learn to see the lake the way you saw the bay

I can't remember why I didn't come before
The things I used to do are cluttered on my floor
They don't seem to work here anymore

It's getting harder to sleep without the wind at my door
I used to know my way home well know I'm not so sure
Between the brick of these walls I found a world to explore
I tell myself to get back, I can't remember what for

These streets are buried deep, my breath shows
Back home I wouldn't bother buying winter clothes
But back home is a place I used to know

Sink into playing, the cafe, a newfound bar
Wonder at the times they claim to know who you are
For a while it doesn't feel that far

My stage a floor, my check a jar, I'm still alright
And the whispers of my old room escape the sunlight
But I'm tired of living in not quite

It's getting harder to sleep I hear the wind at my door
I used to know my way home well know I'm not so sure
Between the brick of these walls I found a world to explore
I tell myself going back won't change what I'm waiting for

I'm not going home
I am home

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Disconnected

It’s been a couple months since I’ve come 'round
Ain’t heard your voice, I miss that sound
I’m counting down the days till I’m homebound
But it’s been a couple months since I’ve come 'round

FaceTime don’t really catch the vibe
Missing my home, missing my tribe
Missing that love we can’t describe
FaceTime don’t really catch the vibe

So if I called you up
Would you still be down?
If I let you know
When I'm around?

Yeah I want you close
Did I go to far?
And I miss those nights
In that beat up car

When I call you up
When I need your love
When we’re out of touch
Disconnected, disconnected

It’s been a couple months since I’ve come by
I miss that wild kinda high
I miss my fingertips on your thigh
But it's been a couple months since I've come by

FaceTime don’t really catch the vibe
Missing my home, missing my tribe
Missing that love we can’t describe
FaceTime don’t really catch the vibe

So if I called you up
Would you still be down
If I let you know
When I’m around

Yeah I want you close
Did I go to far?
And I miss those nights
In that beat up car

When I call you up
When I need your love
When we’re out of touch
Disconnected, disconnected

Do you still smoke that
At a kickback
Wearing all black?
Dancing on tables to my track?
Do you do that?
Do you do that?

When I call you up
When I need your love
When we’re out of touch
Disconnected, disconnected

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When I’m With You

It's a little too daunting you're little too haunting thought I was done with wanting you Yeah I had that drowned, back when you weren’t around but I lose it all when I'm with you

It's true still thought of you from time to time but now you are all that’s running through my mind my mood is glued to you

You take up all of the space I lose my mind in the chase I try to live from your point of view

You've hollowed me out and now I can't be without The weight I feel when I'm with you

I know, I told myself it'd never work and so I probably should let it go but oh when I'm with you

When I'm with you

It's a little confusing, I remember refusing To let myself be choosing you thought I had it all solved thought that I was resolved I’m too afraid of losing you

But all it takes is a half a smile I fall Back in love for a while, enthralled I’m lost in you

When I'm with you

I know that I don’t like this game But I know how I feel with my hands on the wheel and you in the seat next to mine I know how my heart falls a little apart when you ask if my day was alright I know I can’t shake the way that I ache Wondering if you feel the same

When I'm with you



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Felt Like We Could

Drove by our Cafe at the edge of town
Flashed back to fall the last time you were around
And how we always stopped by on the way from school
You ordered yours cold so I did too

It's getting insane how you're in my head
After everything that we never said
After everything that we'll never do
Still for a second for a second I was sure I knew

I saw our friends stare
I heard what you said
That night by the train tracks
When the clouds were all red

I know I got scared
And you left for good
We never collided
Like I hoped that we would
We never talked late
Wrote our names 'round the neighborhood
But there was a moment
when it felt like we could

Your sitting next to me in your purple shoes
And I gotta say something, I haven't already used
I still look to where the light found the red in your hair
You've been gone for a while but it's still your chair

I can see what would have happened if it happened at all
I still watch us ending with the end of fall
There isn't room to pack it all, we're both crying as you choose
But you don't know how good it would have felt to have someone to loose

I saw our friends stare
I heard what you said
That night by the train tracks
When the clouds were all red

I know I got scared
And you moved down to Hollywood
We never collided
Like I hoped that we would
We never talked late
Wrote our names around the neighborhood
But there was a moment
When it felt like we could

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Our Time

No one had what we did
All I ever needed
Was the way that you could bring me to life

Now my one and only
Got me feeling lonely
Nobody to hold me something ain’t right

You always loved when it rained
Oh remember how it felt to just stay inside and waste a whole day
No I’ll never lose the sound of you saying don’t you ever let me go
Well I would’ve loved to hold you
Forever I just hope you know
I would've loved you through whatever

This was our time of year
Just you and me dancing in the red leaves cool breeze
Our time of year
Our time our time of year
And you should still be here
I never stopped waiting for the all clear fall dear
Is our time off year
Our time our time of year

Every time you smiled
Felt my heart go wild
That feeling never faded oh no

You were all I wanted
Now I’m feeling haunted
Everywhere I go there we are

You always loved when it rained
Oh remember how it felt to just stay inside and waste a whole day
No I’ll never lose the sound of you saying don’t you ever let me go
Well I would’ve loved to hold you
Forever I just hope you know
I would've loved you through whatever

This was our time of year
Just you and me dancing in the red leaves cool breeze
Our time of year
Our time our time of year

And you should still be here
I never stopped waiting for the all clear fall dear
Is our time off year
Our time our time of year

I miss calling you up when we were working on stuff
Just to hear you breathe through the telephone line
Miss the moment I knew that I was falling for you
Watching the sun set fire to the skyline

We were both drowning in debt
Proud of things we hadn't done yet
Getting drunk off of cheap wine
In our plywood kitchenette
And it was everything everything everything

This was our time of year
Just you and me dancing in the red leaves cool breeze
Our time of year
Our time our time of year

And you should still be here
I never stopped waiting for the all clear fall dear
Is our time off year
Our time our time of year

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Another Sunday

Oh outside the night is dazzling
And the streets are all alive
But nothing feels like
Listening to the rain fall as I drive

All that water on the windshield
Stoplights bouncing off the road
Nothing tugging at the corners
Going home

And somewhere far away it's thundering
And the wind is blowing strong
But all is calm here
Listening to the engine hum along

The streets begin to look familiar
And the sun has almost set
There's a light on in the window
I can see your silhouette

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Becoming Home



Late night, we're fighting with the bouncer

He doesn't seem to understand that it's our favorite show

We float around on the streets of Chicago

Blurred pictures of us in vibrant tableau

Panting, we just make the last train to Midway

Skin damp from the one place we swore not to go

Nobody's sure of the way going home

But we dance through the rain and pretend that we know

Becoming Home

Slowly we learn how to breathe with the city

Our footsteps build pictures like light trails

Some days nothing sounds like I want it to

Some days I'm the sky during a thunderstorm


You meet a girl in some art class your last year

You notice the band on her jacket

I float around different shows in the city

Old pictures of us still backed up on my phone

Becoming Home

We break down on the side of the road

Coming back from a party just a little too crowded

Not sure who to call but the music is perfect

So we sit in a dark car with the volume up

Trusting that someone will come by to save us

And eventually somebody does

Becoming Home