I Don't Want To Be Here in July

We can stay here through December
When it gets cold I can wear a jacket around the house
And put extra blankets on the bed
My mother says she's sending us a quilt for Christmas

So there'll be that at least

At least we won't freeze

But there's nothing we can do about the heat, is there?

Once July rolls around

It's going to be as sticky and dry and awful

As it was last July

So I don't want to be here in July

It's fun living in the city when there's snow on the ground
And you don't feel like going anywhere

And you can walk to wherever it is you need to be

When they hang the wreaths up on all the lampposts

And the ice skating rink downtown is open

And it gets dark so early and so cold

That there's no point being outside anyway
But when the summer comes, I'd rather be...

I don't want Sam to have to spend another summer 

With no beach 

No pool
No camping
Hating the sun because all it does is make you sweat

Waking up every morning smelling rotten garbage
And black tar
I can't give him another summer like that

My mom found an apartment in Chester

It's...It's not as big as the one we have

But it's near a lake
And there's lots of kids in the area
Good kids, not like the ones around here
Who spend all summer smashing car windows

Just for fun

It's a one-bedroom, but the rent's higher because of the area

Mom says she'd help out with that

I guess I could get one of those pull-outs and sleep in the living room

It's not like I'm used to much privacy anyway

It's not like I need it either

At the end of the summer, she said if we liked it we could...

She says they have good schools there 

The school, the school in the area

Has like, a band or something, a really good band

And Sam's been saying he wants to learn the trumpet

Mom said she'd buy him a trumpet too

She's really into the whole idea

Of us moving and everything

But I told her I'm not moving anywhere with two feet of snow on the ground

So she said, Okay, well then wait, and come this summer

And...

I said I'd talk to you about it, but...
I said I'd go...either way

It's not what it sounds like, babe

It's just that you gotta choose sometimes

What you can bear

A country winter

Or a city summer

I'd miss the lampposts with the wreaths on them

And the walk home past McKinley's store with the mannequins in the window

And watching Sam doing circles at the skating rink

But I can bear missing all that

If it means I don't have to wake up

With my clothes stuck to my skin

Too tired to cook

Because the heat's wiped me out

Too tired to do anything

Irritated all the time

Fanning myself

Air so stale

You feel like you're breathing dust

I don't want to be here in July

I can't be

And if you want to be

We'll work something out

But once the snow's gone

So am I

I said I'd talk to you about it

So I'm talking

This is me talking

So if you want to come, come
If not, then...

Well, then I guess there's some other stuff we should talk about