Desperate People Don't Wear Watches

You gotta check around

Shawn’s

And see if there’s anybody there

If there’s nobody there

Go to Matty’s

And see if Pince

Is bartending

If he is

You can hang there tonight

Wait for him to get off

And crash on his couch

He won’t like it

But he won’t care

As long as it’s only a night

If Pince isn’t working

It’s probably because

He quit another fucking job

He can’t afford to quit

And that’s going to be a problem

But it’s not your problem

You got your own problems

Eleven minutes to bars closing

And you think you still got a shot

At not sleeping on the streets

Then you better head right to Nick’s

And try to find somebody drunk and crying

Who lives within walking distance

Of downtown

That’s your best shot

Don’t go between Ford and Alt

Thinking somebody’s going to stumble out of

Pat’s or Freedom

You don’t want any of those guys

They don’t give a fuck about you

They’ll knock you out

Before they give you a fucking dollar

To go get a cup of coffee

No humanity there

Especially not now

Not at closing time

Be careful who you walk up on

Watch who you lock eyes with

Don’t check your watch

Don’t even let ‘em know

You have a watch

You’re supposed to be desperate, remember?

Desperate people

Don’t wear watches

Keep your hands in your pockets

Except when you go for the ask

Then take ‘em out

And cross your arms

There’s a technique to this

There’s a way to make sure

You don’t wind up on some park bench

Getting your stomach kicked

By some cop who’s not getting

His overtime

I know it’s summer now

And you think you can hack it

But trust me

Mornings are cold

No matter what season it is

Keep your sweater close by

Don’t tie it around your waist

Just stash it in your backpack

With the cookies I gave you

And that bottle of Pepsi

And don’t forget

You got a clock on you

You got that ticking time

Not leisure time

Just because everybody else

Is talking loud

Tripping into streets

And singing whatever song

One of those fucking dj’s loves to play

When they want to get the drunk college kids

Really riled up

Before they ship them out

Onto the avenue

Just because everybody else

Is doing whatever the fuck they want

That doesn’t mean you can

Or you should

You should be looking around

Looking around

For a kind face

Trying to find somebody

Who looks like they’re lonely

Who looks like

Maybe

They don’t want to wake up alone

Tomorrow

You poke your head

In every doorway

And dive bar

You can find

Until you see somebody

Who looks as desperate as you do

And then you sleep on their goddamn floor

If that’s the best you can do

You need to know that

You need to know

The best you can do

And do it

Or do a little less

But don’t forget--

It’s ticking time

It’s time to listen

To the time

Running out