I am of the world and out of the world
They caught me sailing without a coat
Without a compass or cigarette pack
Just a chain link fence around my moat
They tell me about the lands I've seen
About sunken ships and treasure troves
Aligned with Spanish silver and Dragon gold
All recovered by crabs in forgotten coves
Somebody will say, "Watch the waves!
Watch the water rising upon your soul"
And it'll hit you like a winter storm
Like a Trojan horse filled with holes
But at least I get to limp on home
I might even drink my weight in Thebes
Or at least until scratches line my throat
A descendent of jokers, a lover of thieves
They told me I once loved a beautiful Siren
Who wrote her name upon my chest
I bet she danced to the edge of the world
Twirling the sun in her summer dress
But a lifetime ago, I let her drift on
I staggered home without her ballads
Wondering why the world let me live
A hundred lifetimes in a trailer park palace
See, I know not which life I truly lived
Odysseus in exile felt real for awhile
Was I a young beggar in a world romanced
Or a foolish Pharaoh swimming the Nile?