States Of Transit - The Herd

…East Hills line

First stop Green Square, Mascot, Domestic Terminal, International Airport

…Sydenham, Marickville, Hurlstone Park, Canterbury, Campsie

and then all stations to Bankstown

Then Yagoona, Birrong, then all stations to Lidcombe

You smile to yourself as you ride past the panel beaters

New pieces last night, early morning on the bike

Eight hours in the shop most days of the week

Maintaining food on your plate and you’re place in the street

Keep one eye on the clock and so you’re ready to bail

Learnt long ago never to rely on CityRail

When you ride the Sydney system, you’re up there with the best

They’re all laughing out loud at that ridiculous nest

Past the park with the Tai Chi stretch and Yoga heads

And the people with the bottles and the benches for beds

Hell for leather down Crown, hold your breath at the lights

Keep monoxide form your lungs and keep it fresh for the mic

Band practice tonight to try and keep the set tight

But before then, spend time with the love of your life

Got priorities right, maintaining love with respect

There’s a thousand roads to travel but you know your direction

Same line, same day, all on the same track

We cross paths but barely interact

You got no time to chit chat, you’ve got a schedule to keep

Shooting straight across the city and your’re dodging the sheep

It’s the same line, same day, all on the same track

We cross paths but barely interact

One more 24 hour stretch from daylight to dusk and dusk down to desk

Waiting for the 4:28

Ragged old suit briefcase looks much older than his age

Like to catch the bus home

Not concerned by the traffic in the lights and ticket price hikes

Kinda like the bus, no one talks that much

Keep the conversation hush, the city’s pretty at dusk

And most places are expressionless, pressing the bell

While peak hour reeks perfume that you just can’t sell

From Central up to King Street, window washers hussle all the cars

The bus driver just looks and laughs

I pass fools in parks and pass people by He’s content, never meeting with no reason why

You have a cold yet?

Comfortable, welcome at home

a little bachelor pad, a gold fish and a phone

Where he’ll go back to sleep dream and wake up at eight

Get prepared, catch the bus back to work again… it’s like

Same line, same day, all on the same track

We cross paths but barely interact

One more 24 hour stretch from daylight to dusk and dusk down to desk

Same line, same day, all on the same track

We cross paths but barely interact

(It's all I ask of this complex town

Share a tale or two and watch the sun go down)

The sun set so fast I didn’t see it happen

Like I look back on days just to see the patterns

See the way the last rays of the day are scattered

in such a different way to when I first sat here

(Another beer?) You know the more some things change

the more some things are bound the stay the same

It’s a shame about those units across the street though

We used to get that much more light in the arvo

Still it’s a good place to sit for a while

Even if these days I don’t quite fit the style

It’s the people I come here for though not the decor

And they don’t seem to think of me as too much of an old bore

I used to live just round the corner

But then the rent got too dear so I moved from here

Still it’s not so far, and just to come for a beer

I’m not a local but I’m still a local here

Same line, same day, all on the same track

We cross paths but barely interact

You got no time to chit chat, you’ve got a schedule to keep

Shooting straight across the city and your’re dodging the sheep

Same line, same day, all on the same track

We cross paths but barely interact

(It's all I ask of this copmlex town

Share a tale or two and watch the sun go down)

…St Peters, Sydenham, Marickville, Dulwich Hill, Hurlstone Park

Canterbury, Campsie, then all stations to Bankstown

Then Yagoona, Birrong, then all stations to Lidcombe