Ntozake Nelson Lyrics

Oh no, another day begins
Calenders and wristwatches are counting down my sins
Construction trucks outside are piling up the years
After 25 the brides leave the single girls in tears
God bless them, god bless them all
'Cause we've heard about what happens when their engine stalls
The tallest ones are mauled in the falls of the Midwest
The quiet ones are farmed out to businessmen's requests
And osteoperosis gets the rest
They'll remember her best as charming and good-looking
Though they wouldn't take her now for all the beer in Brooklyn
Her cooking is her pride but she sits alone for dinner
In the dark under faded posters of Lew Alcindor
The local red-eyed bottles have settled in for the winter
But you won't see me there
I can't raise my glass and the others never cared
I'll drink my morning coffee without Irish and I will make amends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends

Hip-hop saved my life that summer, you wouldn't understand
'Cause when I felt those beats cascade over the grandstand
I felt like a man and you know a man gets thirsty
But the clerk at the A+P wouldn't sell to me
I felt the crowbar in my hand
I got the liquor and the cops got me
While I was in the can my buddies were commanded
To clean up someone else's mess in Afghanistan
They never came home
Now I put each posthumous 'Pac release on their tombstones
Their families hold my survival against me
And I hold their religion against them
And I hold my jacket against myself
Like an army blanket on a plane of wounded personnel
And it doesn't seem right
To go without cocktails on a bereavement fare flight
The stewardess smiles and tries to cheer me up as the plane descends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends

Oh no, another evening ends
All the tired fertile women are leaving with their men
Just cops and cabs remain as the city's lost its citizens
I could drive you home 'cause that's the way I'm going
And no one likes driving the bridge alone
Even when it's retro-fitted you can hear the builders moan
My regrets pile up like cars behind traffic cones
I'm not sure what I drove here for
But I can dream of walking you to your door
And I can leave my evening jacket crumpled on the floor
And I'll forget you ever loved him and I'll forget that you still do
And I can leave this life alone or I can spend what's left with you
And I can call the cemetery to buy us adjacent spots
We can adopt a Vietnamese kid to leave flowers at our lots
And darling you can pick the name
I can tell I'm talking insane I don't mean to offend
I may never fall in love but I'm getting to the age at which I'm willing to pretend
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends
I miss the bottle, I miss my friends