[Intro, spoken, guitar riff slowly fades in] I think everybody’s pretending a little bit. Not in a bad way. I mean, you meet somebody, they’ve got a job, a car, a favorite brand of toothpaste. Looks like they’ve got a system. Then you talk to ’em for five minutes. And you realize… this whole thing is held together with receipts and guesswork. And one guy who knows how to fix the printer. [Verse 1, conversational spoken word] Everybody’s got advice they never follow, big plans for today, same plans tomorrow. Boss says hustle, bank says no, car makes a noise but you still gotta go. Got a guy on the internet explaining success, he’s selling you a course from his parents’ address. And I’m not judging, man, I’m right there too, I Googled how to live like an adult at twenty-two. I got a drawer full of cables I refuse to throw away, might need one of ‘em on some very important day. Don’t know what they go to, don’t know what they do, but I’m pretty sure one of them belongs to something I once knew. [Refrain, relaxed spoken delivery] We’re all just making it up, calling it a plan when we get out of luck. Everybody’s lost, just dressed up enough, we’re all, we’re all just making it up. We’re all just making it up, trying to look calm when the road gets rough. Nobody knows, but we act so tough, we’re all, we’re all just making it up. [Verse 2, spoken word] I bought a notebook to organize my brain, wrote one list, then I lost it again. Got five unread texts I should probably answer, and a fridge full of things that don’t make a dinner. There’s mustard, some pickles, half a lemon in a cup, and something in the back that I ain’t opening up. I pay for a subscription I forgot I even had, then cancel it and somehow still feel bad. I make a little budget, feel responsible and grown, then spend twenty bucks on snacks on the way back home. I keep saying next week I’m gonna get my life together, been saying that since I started checking the weather. [Refrain, spoken, slightly more emphasis] We’re all just making it up, calling it a plan when we get out of luck. Everybody’s lost, just dressed up enough, we’re all, we’re all just making it up. [Verse 3, slower, reflective spoken word] But there’s this old guy I see down at the store, looks like he’s been through a hundred wars. He takes his time counting change in his hand, says the world’s gone strange, but it always has, man. He laughs at something nobody else can hear, buys his coffee, disappears. And I thought about that on the drive back home, how everybody’s carrying something of their own. The lady at the counter, the kid at the light, the neighbor who waves but never gets it quite right. Everybody’s got a story behind that face, somewhere they’re going, or stuck in one place. And maybe we’re not failing just because we’re unsure, maybe nobody ever got handed the cure. [Instrumental break, 8 bars, drums and warm electric guitar] [Verse 4, conversational, wry] So I called up a friend just to see how he’s been, he said he’s doing great, then started laughing again. Turns out he’s got problems stacked up to the ceiling, but he learned how to cook, so he’s calling that healing. He bought a new plant, says he’s turning things around, forgot to water it, now it’s leaning to the ground. I told him that’s progress, at least you gave it a shot, then looked at my own life and laughed at what I’ve got. We’re two grown men talking like we cracked some code, trying to make sense of this weird little road. Neither one knows what we’re doing next, but we both said we’re good, so I guess that’s a success. [Final refrain, laid-back spoken word] We’re all just making it up, calling it a plan when we get out of luck. Everybody’s lost, just dressed up enough, we’re all, we’re all just making it up. We’re all just making it up, trying to look calm when the road gets rough. Nobody knows, but we act so tough, we’re all, we’re all just making it up. [Outro, spoken, drums fade, electric guitar solo] Maybe that’s the secret. Nobody knows. Some people just panic with better clothes. Some people buy planners. Some people buy boats. Some people write books about how everybody else should live. And the rest of us are just trying to keep the groceries cold. Anyway, I’ve got things I should probably get done. I’ll make a list tomorrow. That’s usually how I get started. [Extended slow electric guitar solo, 16 bars, warm overdriven tone, gradual fade out]
