[Verse 1] She caresses the cue stick through a smoky cleft in the palm of her hand. And sizing her shot she gets better with each sip of her scotch. [Chorus] No one knows her name and she likes it that way just another shadow caught in the game... On cloud nine again where we hit pause as real life calls [Bridge] We all can relate— this is our escape a pool hall shielded from the daze forgotten where the hustle’s always on through what life’s dealing… [Verse 2] Her hand balanced across the felt top a quiet indentation beneath her ring finger. A steady stroke demonstrates her mastery of perfect trigonometry. [Chorus] No one knows her name and she likes it that way just another shadow caught in the game... On cloud nine again where we hit pause as real life calls [Verse 3] She sinks the nine ball in while dancing to the song in her head. Her cell phone rings, and she knows it's now the end... until the window opens once again... [Final Chorus] No one knows her name and she likes it that way just another shadow —until real life resumes— she slips away... [Outro] Many more like her out there hiding in plain sight— but not all have a place to disappear at night. (Music inspired by a 1990 4-track demo by Eddie Mac, used with permission. Lyrics inspired by a poem I wrote in 1999 of the same name. It came together years later, when life gave the distance needed to understand what was always there: the escape, the pause, and the call back to real life.)
