[Verse 1] I know which window sticks in June, which socket sparks, which tap complains. I turn up with the proper screw, then leave before the talk gets strange. Your spare key rubs against my thigh; I like the weight, the little proof. There's always something I can try. There's always work beneath your roof. [Chorus] Give me something I can do, something with an end in sight. Let me make it work for you. Then I can stay a while tonight. I can get a stubborn hinge to carry what it ought to bear. Ask me how I've really been; I'll move the ladder, shift a chair. [Verse 2] You called me on a Saturday. I let it ring, then counted three. A broken shelf, I hoped you'd say. You said you'd saved a place for me. I asked what I should bring along. You said, "Yourself. Come round at six. " I packed the tools. It felt all wrong to cross your door with nothing to fix. [Chorus] Give me something I can do, something with an end in sight. Let me make it work for you. Then I can stay a while tonight. I can get a stubborn hinge to carry what it ought to bear. Ask me how I've really been; I'll move the ladder, shift a chair. [Bridge] The shelf was leaning when I came. You put my toolbox in the hall. You asked again. I said your name, then found no useful words at all. [Outro] The plates came out. You let me sit. The shelf could wait. I watched it tilt. "So, how've you been?" I talked a bit.
