Track Number 8

I cross the highways like I did as a child
 On my way to the movies I pet cats and smiled
 I walked the back alleys, their John Steinbeck calm
 Fig trees, lemon trees, tall shady palms
 Big empty churches, old antique stores
 Peeling Victorians, they used to house whores
 I take the back streets back to my digs
 And look up at skies as I did as a kid
 My bedroom window I'd look out and dream
 Of a life close to what I'm living
 A traveling singer who plays good guitar
 At outdoor festivals, theaters and bars
 And I got a nice girl, she's beautiful too
 Were destined to be this I know to be true
 Sure there were others but nothing this nice
 She set the bait and I took the bite
 The streets of Martinez, I love them so
 I walk around thinking the sun always glows
 The cats of Martinez I love them so
 I feed them at night they run off and go
 Four kitty cats, gave them their names
 Monster Fluff, Half Fluff, No Fluff and Samhain
 They're the highlights of my song writing days
 They're happy to see me we sit and we play
 These are some words I wrote down last night
 I've beat 'em to death and I can't get 'em right
 Song writing's lonely, song writing hurts
 A relentless itching, a bed bug curse
 Songwriting costs it doesn't come free
 Ask Elliot Smith, ask Richie Lee
 Ask Mark Linkous, ask Shannon Hoon
 To get up on stage and sing you a tune
 This business is troubling, a big nagging cyst
 You get on this plane; I'll sit at your desk
 And I'll leave at 8 and be home by 5
 Call me from Warsaw if you have time
 Ever wonder why there aren't more
 Than ten songs on most albums?
 'Cause it's a chore
 To write half a dozen some guys laid back
 And rest on their laurels like lazy old hacks
 Well I wrote this one and I know it ain't great
 We'll probably sequence it track number eight
 And pick up some water at 7-Eleven
 On my way to the mastering session
 The streets of Martinez I love them so
 I walk out the door and the sun always glows
 The cats of Martinez I love them so
 They help me forget my songwriting woes