Missing Person

I am lipsticked like a tart
in the cherry red of Côtes-du-Rhône
Prodding at the little fire of my phone.
The lights behind the bar
twinkle like they’ve always known
Only desperate little men ever drink alone.

But as long as I’m here, I ain’t drinking beer
I’m vanishing
I’m a missing person doing my thing.

As midnight strikes
I slip into this queen of dives
And quietly oblivion like sleep arrives
But I couldn’t live without
this sewer of a place to be
Alone with my one obsession - me, me, me
Yeh, I can hear her remonstrate
you fool, that’s three.

What I’m doing here, it ain’t drinking beer
It’s vanishing
I’m a missing person doing my thing.

Missing the time I threw your crutch away
And ruined a perfect day
Now it’s all ruins from here to daybreak.

So I hang on to my chair
in this fish tank of sinking stars
Pickling their memories in Mason jars
I head out for a smoke
leave your ghost there to hold my place
And line up with the other cheaters
in disgrace
Like runners in exile
From the human race.

But as long as I’m here, this last brutal year
Is vanishing
I’m a missing person doing my thing.