Deja Vu, Deja Vu, Deja Vu...

Déjà Vu, Déjà Vu, Déjà Vu....

or...

NOT AGAIN!!!!

Well, she almost made it a full year without hitting anything. 

Bunny has not had the best track record when it comes to her car. 

Not too long after getting her car (January 2014) she backed into a friend. Springtime had a school acquaintance sideswiping her.  September 2014 she was run off the road and spun the Hummer.  December 2014 she backed into another school mate. But mostly since then she has been good. Over the summer in Texas she did have someone back end her but she was stopped at a light. It wasn't her fault. 

Because we have the most awesome body shop in Salida, Bunny waited until she got back here to get her back bumper repaired. She had it fixed mid October. Had just gotten it back all shiny and new.

And then. And then. 

Last Thursday night Bunny stayed in town to visit with a friend.  No school on Fridays here so she texted me at midnight and said she was on her way home.  Ten minutes later the phone rang. 

"I hit a deer."  

Are you ok? 

Yes.

Is the deer ok?

I don't think so.

Is the car ok?

I haven't looked. O! Here's the sheriff. Thank goodness. 

As she hung up on me I yelled to call if she needed me to come get her.   About five minutes later I got a text. 

"Come get me." 

22º out. Almost 1am by the time I got to her.

Car was not ok.

Just "superficial" damage. 

Deer was definitely not ok. The nice sheriff had to put him out of his misery.

Buck "sleeping" peacefully.

Bunny was shaken but unhurt.

$7000 worth of damage or, as the body shop says "not significant damage, mostly superficial". Huh? Seven thousand dollars is superficial?

Bunny is driving my car, I am in a rental.  Repair time is scheduled to be two to three weeks once the parts arrive. 

So now we are sweating repair time. Because three weeks puts us right at our scheduled departure time for Christmas. 

Yikes. 

And...

Apparently if you hit a deer here you can ask for a permit to keep it. Unless it is a trophy deer. Which is exactly what Bunny hit.  A 10 point buck. (In Texas. Or 5x5 buck here. 5x4½ after she hit it.)  Not allowed to keep it then. One of Bunny's friends tried to pick it up but the game warden showed and took it away. O well. 

Broken antler, 

definite gouge on the car from where it hit.

I was surprised how many people warned me to keep an eye on Bunny for PTSD since she hit and killed an animal.   I guess what with having hunter relatives and also being around soooo many people that have hit soooo many deer, it's pretty much been a non issue. She hasn't been nervous driving at night and is only angry that her car is going to take so long to be repaired. 

Wish some of those people had thought to mention that last year when she was run off the road. She is still anxious driving down our main road and practically freaks if I drive down faster than 10 mph. Definitely  PTSD from that accident although had I never really thought about it like that, until now.

The other surprise? How many people were more  concerned about the deer than the daughter. 

Deja Vu All Over Again

O! NO! It's Deja Vu All Over Again...

Last Fall was just a comedy of errors when it came to the cars. 

We started with a lightning bolt, went on to electrical issues, check engine lights, dead batteries, and low tires.

The beginning of the car fun...

I drove a rental for more weeks last Fall than I drove the cars that we own.

So of course, I was feeling really positive about this Fall and then Bunny had her altercation with the neighbor which left the baby Hummer in the shop for two weeks.

Possibly this car is jinxed.

But the Hummer is fixed and I was really hoping that would be IT.

A week after getting the Hummer back, the low air pressure light came on. It came and went and finally I took it to the wonderful Chaffee Tire Company and they added air and said "keep an eye on it." I think we both  figured it was just not filled correctly when it was replaced during the repairs. 

Then Bunny calls me on a Friday night on her way to work saying her low air pressure light is on in her car.   She dashes off to Chaffee Tire where they manage to diagnose a nail, repair the tire and have her ready to go in less than 30 minutes. That would be 30 minutes before their closing. Wow. 

Next week, the low air light is back on in the Hummer. Really? So last Friday I take the Hummer back to Chaffee Tire, my new best friends. They pop the tire off and discover the valve stem was installed poorly when the tire was replaced from the accident. Fixed for free and on my way. 

Except Bunny's car needs tires. We knew that was coming. Since the snow and ice are also coming, we figured we better get those tires sooner rather than later. 

So we scheduled a trip to the Springs to get new tires on Friday.  (Friday seems to be the magical day for tires!)

Because that was going to be a four hour round trip drive, I called the Colorado Springs Discount Tire store to make sure they actually had the tires and I could get them installed. I very clearly explained to the salesman that I was making a long drive, I could not get there early because I wanted the sun to dry up the snow and ice and there was a tiny possibility I wouldn't make it at all if the roads were bad- but I would call if that was the case. 

I was really clear about the fact that this was a long trip just to get tires and that I had limited time. 

Please. Just four of these and I'll be on my way.

Imagine my surprise when I got to the tire store and the line to check in was OUT THE DOOR. When I got to the counter, I was cheerily told that yes, indeed, my tires were in stock and they could get to them in about SIX hours. So my car would be ready about 9:00pm, maybe 9:30pm.  And then all I would have to do is drive an icy mountain road home in the dark. 

O wait? That doesn't work for you? Just come back tomorrow and we'll get you an appointment.

Well, why the Hell didn't someone suggest an appointment in the first place??

Long story long, I complained, wrote an email and got a nice phone call.  Tires will be replaced on Wednesday. Yes, I still have to make the 4 hour round trip but they are compensating me for gas. And I have been assured that they will have me "in and out" in no time. 

And let's cross our fingers this is IT. 

No more car problems.

No more tire problems. 

How about just no more problems, period?

Now there's something I could be thankful for.

In the meantime, I've been working on No. 24, Organize all those Photos.  Not very successfully. 

It's tedious. Two years of pics down, only 8 more to go.  And that's just the digital stuff.  On the bright side, the colder and snowier the weather gets, the more likely I will actually finish this project.

I was hoping I would have it done by Thanksgiving.   Now I'm feeling more realistic.  Let's shoot for Valentine's Day, shall we? 

Doing It Like I Mean It...

Doing it like I mean it...or at least trying to.

Back at the beginning of summer I did a recap of our time in Colorado before we headed back to  Texas for a bit of the summer. There was one thing I wish I had done but didn't. One little regret.

So now that I am here for another year, maybe longer,  let's see how I am doing on rectifying that regret.

The one thing I regretted? 

Not getting a job. 

Not doing it like I meant it.

Originally our plan was to come here for the 2013 Fall semester of school. Obviously, we stayed longer. Then the plan was to go to Texas and Florida for the Summer, get everyone settled and be back in Texas for the Fall semester of school for Bunny. 

That didn't pan out either. 

We were back in Colorado before the bags got unpacked from the Spring.

The Twin Sisters.

Just couldn't stay away.

So I have been looking for a job. 

I've filled out online applications. 

One application, I felt like they should have given me the job just for slogging through all the questions. 

I have dropped off applications.

I have interviewed. 

So frustrating. 

Nada. Nothing. Zip.

Apparently being a stay at home mom has made me capable of anything, qualified for nothing.

There has been an article floating around the web about the luxury of being a stay at home mom.  Not that it is a luxury for the mom but that it is a luxury for the spouse. And the kids. And also a boon to the other working moms. A person at home holds everything together.
Hell, every mom I know would like to have their own stay at home mom.

As a mom I have gotten three kids to school, baseball games, soccer practice, piano and guitar lessons, driver's ed classes, friend's houses, etc. etc. etc. 

I haven't lost a kid yet. 

I've managed all the finances and handled two houses in two different states- insurance, bills, repairs, maintenance, improvements. 

I'm in charge of keeping FIVE cars running. Buying them, trading them in, maintaining them. (I am a ruthless bargainer when it comes to a car purchase.) See here and here for just some of what I have dealt with.

Jump starting the car. Again and again and again.

I've planned trips both domestic and international. Gotten passports, rental cars, and hotels. Packed bags for five people. Did laundry for five people upon return.

I know more about plumbing than I ever ever ever thought I would.

Fixing the plumbing. Again and again and again.

Been a room mom, worked on the school festivals, volunteered at the front desk of the middle school. 

And guess what?

None of that matters.
I am not qualified for any job opening.

BUT!

I am still trying to do it like I mean it.

I've volunteered. A morning was spent at the Colorado Farm to Table fields harvesting acorn squash and tiny pumpkins.

About 15 of us picked THOUSANDS of these in one morning.

I signed up for a work day at Shedfest, a celebration of the last day of the farmers market for the season.

A scene from Shedfest 2014.

Photo from the Mountain Mail by J.D. Thomas.

For one day I "bantered with customers and took money" while a lovely young man made fabulous egg sandwiches for the crowds. It was so much fun and I loved being in the crowd of farmer's market people. Made me wish I had gotten involved with the farmer's market last spring.
Maybe this coming spring.

So, we will see.
Still trying to do it like I mean it.

(On a related note, if someone wants to hire me to write for them, let me know.
I could kill No.11: Get Something Published and accomplish the job thing all in one fell swoop!)

Well....

Well.....
That didn't go so well...


Re-entry to Texas has been - ahem- a challenge.

Things went from bad to worse to beyond belief and back, all in one week..

On the last leg of the trip in from Colorado Bunny called me with one of those "My Air Conditioner in my car isn't working right" freak outs.  My windshield got a(nother) ding.

The house wasn't dirty, per se, but there were lots of piles of things just set down. And left.
Empty boxes stacked in corners, awaiting disposal.
Bank statements piled on the desk.
The hubs likes everything out on the counters in the kitchen so that cabinet doors do not have to be opened. I don't.
Stuff seems to have multiplied.
(Just try leaving two men alone in a house after years of having a mommy to take care of everything. They did a pretty good job on the basics, but no actual organizing or cleaning out was done in that time.)
And then, of course, we brought a bunch of stuff back with us.
So I have my work cut out for me.
This is my office. It's a bit overwhelming.

Ugh.

 The desk. Normally everything is in its place. 

The floor next to my computer. 

I step around this to write my blog. 

Soon.

Soon it will be handled. 

Monday I was supposed to bring horses in at the barn. Just eight or nine of them. No big deal. Until it started storming. The rain poured in buckets. Lightning flashed.
I do. not. like. lightning.  Not one bit.
I had gotten three horses in, another horse owner showed up and got a couple in, then the sky opened up. We both got soaked. The remaining horses got soaked.   I know, I know, these are horses. They won't shrink. They can get wet. But if the fields get muddy, and the horses get frisky, then shoes can be lost and backs can be thrown out. So we waited in the barn for over an hour until the rain let up and we could get the stragglers in.  Oddly, I thought that was going to be the fiasco for the day.

Me and Jacinda. 

Soaking wet selfie.

But we got our job done!!

But no.

On the way home from the barn, the Big Guy calls me.  He had driven my parents (his grandparents) to the doctor and then was heading to the other grandma's house to feed her cat. (The other grandma, my mother-in-law, is in rehab after falling and breaking her shoulder and leg back in April.) It was pouring rain, remember? A flooded intersection and the grandparents' car did not mix. The car stalled.

Not too worried, I picked up the kid and later we went back for the car. Oops. Clouds of white smoke billowing out of the tailpipe. Shudders and groans from the car. None of this seemed right.

Tuesday the repair shop confirms that this isn't right. The engine is blown on the grandparents' car.

A family friend died. Fifty six years young. Cancer. So very very sad.

The hub's uncle died. He lived a long, full life, but again. Cancer.  So very very sad.

Since my parents are now without a car, some last minute driving errands have been thrown in.

Wednesday Carlos slashed his paw. Three places. Very deep. Lots and lots and lots of blood.
He had surgery on Thursday and came home on Friday. Not sure how many stitches $500 buys you, but apparently a lot.  He wore the embarrassing party hat for about thirty minutes before I took pity on him and  removed it.

So mortified.

He is such a smart dog. Not once has he even looked at that paw, much less tried to remove the bandage or tear out the stitches.

Part of the reason he is being so very good 

might be that he is also very sedated. 

Stitches come out (on purpose) next Monday. We may go in for a bandage change this Thursday.
He is pretty depressed. Poor puppy went from running 10+ acres with deer and bunnies to a backyard with at least a pool to play in ... to being confined to a small patch of yard and no walks at all.

Life pretty much sucks for Carlos.

O! And if we want him to do without his "cone of shame" then we have to be with him all the time. So Carlos has not been left alone since last Friday morning. Not one minute.

Saturday was the friend's funeral. People spoke eloquently, tears flowed freely. It was all just a bit too gut-wrenching.

And Sunday we went to an adorable little great niece's birthday party.

Sweet baby girl turned three.

And had a blast doing it.

Belle and I both noticed that relatives were asking "How long are you home for?" and "When do y'all go back to Colorado?".

Huh?  We weren't expected to come home? People expect us to go back??

WHY didn't someone tell me sooner???


This week has started off better.

The grandparent's car is not totaled. Just needs a new engine.

I'm hoping it's all good from here on out.


Please.

A Wrap Up: One Thing I Should Have Done

A Wrap Up: The One Thing I Should Have Done 
(and maybe one that would have been a good idea)

For the most part I have got to say "No regrets" about the almost year spent in Colorado.
Even though I was away from most of my family and friends, missed my horse and cats (and the chinchilla, turtles and fish), and endured more than my share of car problems and plumbing fiascos, I loved the entire time there. Loved the weather. Loved being out in the country. Loved the mountains.

BUT.


The one thing I should have done is the one thing my expat friend has said about moving to any new place.

"No matter how long you think you will be staying, you should approach ANY move as if it is for the rest of your life."

Think about that.

Another friend's motto is "Do it like you mean it."

Basically I think both friends are saying the same thing.

And what did I not do?

Get a job.

Fortunately the hubs financed this expedition. I've pretty much been a Stay-at Home mom since the Big Guy was born. Twenty two years now. In that time I've volunteered at the schools some. And then a couple of years ago I got a part-time job.   Loved working again. Loved the people, the mental challenge, the routine. But I left that little job to go to Colorado.


I thought about getting a job once we got settled and school had started.  But I felt bad.  What if someone hired me and then I left three months later? Even if it was part time, that wouldn't be fair. Besides, the Fall was busy with friends coming to visit and weddings and holidays and the girls were cheering. So it just seemed easier to NOT get a job.  And I was going to be leaving mid-December.

Well, if you've been reading this blog then you know what happened. The girls decided to stay in Colorado for the entire school year.

And when January rolled around, the routine of a place to go would have been nice.  Because there were no more visiting friends or holidays or excursions planned. Just the day to day snow and cold.

Once it looks like this outside, a little diversion is welcome.

Even if it is work. 

If I had gotten a job (even a volunteer one- this really isn't about money but about becoming part of a community-although the money would have been nice) then I would have felt more connected. Would have met more people. Would have put down some roots.

Yes, it would have made it harder to leave. But it also would have opened up more opportunities.

So there's my regret. Not working somewhere.


And another little "maybe we should have".

Gotten a place in town. Just a little apartment or loft or tiny house. We talked about it but it seemed silly. And expensive.  But considering that it ran about  $7.00-$8.00 round trip every time one of the cars went into town...and we had three cars... and many days those cars went round trip twice and sometimes three times. One really bad day I even made that trip four times. Well, it all added up. I think for the three of us our gas bills ran about $700-$800 a month. Maybe more. (Some things you just don't want to know for sure.) The mileage on the cars certainly added up.
Definitely if we had been in town we would have felt more a part of the community.
And probably those girls would not have gotten away with as much as I suspect they did.
(Because really...when you are fairly certain they aren't where they say they are, but it requires a 30 mile round trip drive to check, things tend to slide.)

A little loft along F Street would have been nice. 

(Photo via here.)

So.... some things to think about. Do it like you mean it. Do it like it's forever.

Good advice no matter what.


And.

Everyone think some happy thoughts for poor Carlos.
He managed to survive ten months of running wild through the woods, avoiding the bears and mountain lions and gun-toting neighbors unscathed only to come home and slice his paw on a piece of metal in the back yard. I went outside this morning and he was covered in blood and licking his hind paw.
A panicked trip to the vet got him bandaged him and sedated.

Carlos's big adventure. 

Love Dr. Knox and First Colony Vet. 

Thursday morning he gets stitches.
Then he gets to wear one of those big party hats for a bit. How embarrassing.

Bunny gets the award for being the calm mommy of the day. She sat in the back of the car with Carlos on the way to the vet, talking sweetly to him. She sounded just like me.
"It's okay, Buddy, we're just going to have the doctor look at that foot. He'll probably put a Band Aid on it. No big deal. You'll be fine. You may need a tetanus shot. It's okay. Just sit down. Everything will be fine." No panic. No squeamish-ness. Just calm in the face of pools of blood. Seriously. It looked like there had been a murder. On the back porch. In my car. At the vets.
So proud.
Can't wait for the big dog to be home tomorrow. The house is too lonesome without him.

A Wrap Up: Things We Have Learned

A Wrap Up   or
Five Things We Have Learned in the Last Ten Months


Goodness!

Back in Texas and Man! Is it hot and steamy and pretty much miserable.
I have Michelle Duggar hair. (But not, thank goodness, 19 children.)

Not me, but maybe my hair ??

I feel like I am being punished.  Made it all the way through a cold and snowy Colorado winter and now I have to be here for a Texas summer?

The Gods are not smiling upon me.


BUT!

I have been reviewing in my tiny little brain all of the things that the girls and I have learned, managed, dealt with over the last ten months and thought I would share.

Let this be a lesson to anyone and everyone who thinks "I can't".  Because guess what? You can.


1. Plumbing is not rocket science.  The reason those plumbers make a boat-load of money is that it can be gross and disgusting not to mention physical, but not because they are paying off their years of plumbing school.   Most of it is Part A goes into Part B, make sure to either lube or tape it and keep a bucket and some towels handy.  (Also, plumbing terminology is sexy. Male and female parts. Butts. Ballcocks. Lube. Cocks and cockholes.  Diaphragms. Couplers. Hardness leakage.  I could do a whole Fifty Shades of Plumbing book.) Anyway, you can learn a lot online.
(Plumbing adventures here  and here and here.)

Me, bonding with the potty.

Which brings me to  #2.

2.YouTube is a God-Send.  You can learn how to do most anything by watching a video. And there are usually many many videos with different teaching styles- all for the same process- so every teaching style is addressed.  Plumbing, car repair, high altitude cooking, most of life's daily requirements are covered.
( Read here, here and here for some examples  of YouTube magic!)

3. Snow is not constant in Colorado.   Prior to moving to Colorado, I had this vision of a Colorado winter starting with a snow in November and then it would snow EVERY DAY until May.  I know many other people who have never lived in a snowy area also believe the same because of the many questions I have gotten regarding snow. That isn't what happens.   It snows, maybe a whole bunch, for one or two days. The snow plow comes. You go out and shovel. The snow sits in the shady areas of the grass.  But for the most part, roads are clear and the snow is not EVERYWHERE. Then the next week it happens again. Or maybe two weeks later or maybe three days later.   But the snow is manageable.  And after typing this I am thinking "Maybe I shouldn't share this, because then more people will realize what a lovely place Colorado is even in the winter and then more people will move there." I don't want to share.

Snow. It comes, it goes.

And Carlos loved to play in it.

4. Colorado is VERY hard on cars. (Although we don't seem to be having any better luck here in Texas and I haven't even been home a week.)
In ten months we have had all the electrical replaced on one car, along with the radiator, battery and the transmission. New tires and most of the wiring on another car redone. New wiper blades, wheel well and back bumper on the third car which was purchased while there.
Three (four?) battery jumps for one reason or the other.
FIVE dings/cracks in the windshields repaired.
A couple of routine oil changes thrown in also.
I believe I had rental cars something like 12 weeks of our Colorado stay. (That would be three months of ten for those that are mathematically challenged.)
(Car mishaps galore: lightning, mishaps, tires and accidents.

 YouTube and some jumper cables saved the day this time.

AAA and a tow truck came in handy for this missed turn.

5. Teenagers are much more resourceful and capable than we give them credit for.
The girls have had to deal with many, many car issues. They have been stranded. My first instinct is to run to their sides and stand there and call AAA for them and handle it. But a couple of times things happened when I wasn't available. And guess what?  They dealt with it just fine.  Both of them know where the OnStar buttons are in their cars. They know which friends carry jumper cables and which friends know how to use them. They know they have AAA if OnStar can't handle it.
They also have learned to camp- if you call putting a real live mattress in the back of a car, piling on five thousand blankets and throwing in some crackers and water bottles actually camping. But they joined kids who really did know how to camp and learned the joys of bonfires and S'mores and being out in the middle of nowhere with 40 other kids and not a parent in sight. They all lived. 9-1-1 was never needed.
It's all good.   I am definitely stepping back and letting them handle more stuff on their own.  Free range children: it's a good thing.

Bunny changes her own windshield wipers. 

Because she's awesome like that. 

Belle documenting her amazing camping prep.

I am sure I've learned more but these are the big things.
Some things I would have done differently.
Maybe some things I wouldn't have done.
But maybe that's another post. Thursday.

No. 49: Make a New Friend (Part Two)

No. 49: Make a New Friend (Part Two)


Pulling out of our lane last fall, I encountered a big gray Cadillac with Texas plates.
What?
I seldom pass other cars and if I do, it's a Subaru (the National Car of Colorado) or a truck. Certainly there are no Cadillac sedans and definitely no other Texas license plates.   But there it was.

Of course, my curiosity got the best of me.

The next morning Carlos and I set out on our walk. I heard voices coming from the house across the street and up the way.  I had to go introduce myself.

And Voilà!  New friends.

Actually new friends for me and three new friends for Carlos. (Well, two new friends and an acquaintance...not everyone wanted to be friendly.)

And imagine.  The people who bought the cabin down the way are from Fort Worth. The wife worked with one of my sister-in-law's best friends. What are the odds?

They are part timers, this is a second home for them.   But like me, the wife is trying to figure out how she can stay longer.

Fine with me. I love a playmate.

Funny how you can meet some people and immediately click.

The next day we were heading to the hot springs and to lunch.

And Carlos?   Two new Schnauzers that chase and play.
And one dachshund that is not so happy to have a large puppy romping in her yard.
Two out of three ain't bad.

Me and Sue on a visit to O'Haver Lake.

So another new friend. Someone happy to have company to stop by unannounced.
(Especially if there is a wine bottle in hand....)
Is that a Texas thing?
I seldom see the few Colorado neighbors that I have.
Whatever, I don't care.


No. 49 is done.


AND....

This weekend is FIBArk in Salida.

I'll post about it on Thursday.  One big party!

When FIBArk is over, we are all packing up and heading back to Texas.
So posts may be few and far between for the next couple of weeks.  I am more than overwhelmed by the thought of cramming all of these belongings into two cars and driving the thousand miles back to Houston.
And the cars....ugh.
Just replaced the transmission on the Baby Hummer and last week we noticed a radiator leak. Once we get it back from the shop, Bunny's car needs to go in.   Her tires need aligning and rotating before we drive it to Texas. It's always something.

But first, we party!

Ch-ch-changes

Changes are coming....


Yikes. 

School is almost over. 

Belle is about to graduate from high school.  (How can that be?)

My "full-time" time in Colorado is almost up. (How can that be?)

It's not like I won't be back. But I won't be back living here I imagine. (How can that be?)

Back to the heat, the humidity and the responsibility of Texas.  (How can that be?)

I look around the little cabin in the woods and wonder HOW we will gather up all the stuff that has made its way up here and get it stuffed into two cars and get it home. Do I have to drive home? I don't want to.  I. DO. NOT. WANT. TO. MAKE. THAT. DRIVE.  Please may I fly home and let someone else drive my car? Please?

I started washing and storing all the sweaters and hoodies and jackets that have accumulated at the front and back doors. Then we had another snow. Back to square one.  

Between Monday and Tuesday of THIS week we got a foot of snow.

All gone now. 

The freezer and pantry need emptying. Time to start eating what we've got whether it's what we crave or not. 

I look in the girls' rooms and think "no way". Thank goodness getting all their clothes together is THEIR problem, not mine. 

Honest. These are unretouched pictures of what their rooms look like on a daily basis.

Yes, they both have closets AND rolling hanging racks and dressers and yet...

their clothes are on the floor. 

Carlos hides his bones underneath the clothes piles.

My car needs tires and its service is due. Bunny's car needs an oil change. The Hummer needs an oil change, too, before it gets stored for...the summer?   For a few weeks? Belle is still lobbying to take it home with her but it needs to stay here.

And then what? 

Belle is bound and determined she is going to Florida in the fall for school. Community college.
NOT in Texas.  That's pretty much her only stipulation. That and near a beach. Preferably with tanned boys that have pretty eyes nearby.  Need to get that organized. (The school, not the boys.)

Both girlies will be leaving friend boys. Everyone has known it's coming from the beginning but I'm not sure that will make it easier. 

It's time to move on to the next stage. The next adventure. 

I'm not sure I'm ready. 

CHANGES: David Bowie

I still don't know what I was waiting for
And my time was running wild
A million dead-end streets
Every time I thought I'd got it made
It seemed the taste 
was not so sweet
So I turned myself to face me
But I've never caught a glimpse
Of how the others must see the faker
I'm much too fast to take that test

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
(Turn and face the stranger)
Ch-ch-Changes
Don't want to be a richer man
Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
(Turn and face the stranger)
Ch-ch-Changes
Just gonna have to be a different man
Time may change me
But I can't trace time

I watch the ripples change their size
But never leave the stream
Of warm impermanence and
So the days float through my eyes
But still the days seem the same
And these children that you spit on
As they try to change their worlds
Are immune to your consultations
They're quite aware 
of what they're going through

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
(Turn and face the stranger)
Ch-ch-Changes
Don't tell them to grow up and out of it
Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
(Turn and face the stranger)
Ch-ch-Changes
Where's your shame
You've left us up to our necks in it
Time may change me
But you can't trace time

Strange fascination, fascinating me
Changes are taking the pace
I'm going through

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
(Turn and face the stranger)
Ch-ch-Changes
Oh, look out you rock 'n rollers
Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
(Turn and face the stranger)
Ch-ch-Changes
Pretty soon you're gonna get
a little older
Time may change me
But I can't trace time
I said that time may change me
But I can't trace time