Our Lady of San Francisco
So I'm finally freed from the physical bonds, at least, of that precariously balanced city down there by the oily bay, and it can rot for all I care. The emotional repercussions and the lingering sinus infection will remain for quite some time still, I am sure, but that which does not kill us leaves us with post-nasal drip and a lasting distrust of people, I guess. As I was clearing out my apartment, I tossed my things in garbage bags and crudely taped together boxes as quickly as possible. I wanted to escape under cloak of darkness before the city awoke like the many-fanged monster it is, thirsting yet again for what was left of my self-respect and shaky sanity. I took my mommy and my cat and got the hell out of there, and the only reason I can think of to ever return is the Cartoon Art Museum. If you people haven't checked that out yet, what's your excuse?
Things Learned on My Trip:
1) My cat is a heck of a traveller, a regular Ferdinand Magellan
2) Don't let mommies out alone on wet sidewalks to get Arby's sandwiches~they WILL fall down and get a black eye
3) Snow rarely remains white for very long
4) People named Earl are always, always competent
5) Sometimes, when you get lost, you end up at the Zoo
And in closing, "Our Lady of San Francisco," the song:
"I met a woman in San Francisco
Who was lyin' in the street
I walked on past her in a hurry
I didn't want her at my feet
Am I just numb or overloaded
Or have I lost all sense of worth
This lady beggin' for survival
Doomed by a twist of fate from birth
i met this woman in San Francisco
She only had one shoe
Have we all gone crazy
How can this happen
Is there nothin' we can do
I don't believe that for a fuckin minute
No system's comin' to her rescue
While she lay crying
I felt helpless
Where are these cracks
That she fell through
The times we live in have less value
Than Bob Dole's useless arm
There are no fires burning brightly
What's even worse
There's no alarm
I met this lady in San Francisco
She was dyin' at my feet
People passed her like she was nothin'
Less than garbage in the street
The times we live in must have value
We can't all turn away
'cos that woman who had nothin'
Might be me or you
Some day
Some day
Some day
Some day..."
Sing it, Cher. I see you've been to San Francisco.