Rivenrock Gardens Cactus Blog

Photo in my ’study’ of some old friends, 1982
Yep, some years have gone by.

~James McMurtry~
‘Just Us Kids’

“I’ve had enough of this small town bullshit
I’m not stayin’ in school
I’m makin’ good dough workin’ with my brother
Cleanin’ out pools
I’m going out to California
And man it won’t be long
As soon as I get my license
Color me gone”

“Oh knock it off Johnny
Man, your livin’ in your head
You ain’t even got a car
And those chicks don’t believe a word ya said”
But you’re doin’ all the talkin’
So I just keep quiet
And this’ll probably go no where
But I can’t blame ya for tryin’

It’s just us kids hangin’ round the park at night
Hangin’ round ‘neath the vapor light
We got no drugs and we got no guns
Not even botherin’ anyone

I” don’t have to wear a necktie
I don’t have to punch a clock
I started up a dot com company
And man it rocks
Won’t you come with me down to Mexico
In the winter with some friends?
My divorce will be final
Along about then
Meanwhile I got a gram and a real good ride”
And don’t you know I hurt way down inside?

Just us kids in the parking lot
Out here givin’ it all we got
We don’t want to get old and die
And there ain’t nothing we wouldn’t try

Ya know we could really have it all
Our kid’s gonna graduate next fall
I could take retirement in 10 years
It’s a damn short movie
How’d we ever get here?

Just us kids hangin’ out today
Watchin’ our long hair turnin’ gray
Not so skinny maybe not so free
Not so many as we used to be

 

Red Steagal
‘Dear Mama, I’m a Cowboy’

There’s nothin’ left, but ashes
The fire is gone for good
I’m trapped here in this cabin
Too cold to go for wood
I thought I’d write a letter
Let you know that I’m ok
Though my leg still hurts a little
From a bad spill yesterday

Dear Mama, I’m a cowboy
And I know that breaks your heart
All the things they wrote about me
Must’a torn your world apart
So Mama please, forgive me
Though I drove you near insane
I never killed nobody
‘n’ I never robbed that train

We found him in the springtime
At the table where he died
Tears had stained the paper
When he bowed his head and cried
We all just bawled like babies
As we read it one by one
And thought of our own Mammas
And all the things we left undone

Then we rolled him in his blanket
And as the boys all gathered round
I read his letter one more time
As we placed him in the ground

Dear Mama, I’m a cowboy
And I know that breakes your heart
All the things they wrote about me
Must have torn your world apart
So Mama please forgive me
Though I drove you near insane
I never killed nobody
‘n’ I never robbed that train

I never killed nobody
‘n’ I never robbed that train