Song Story - The Pretender by Jackson Browne

[glenmered]

This one comes courtesy of mrua7, and it looks like great inspiration for a variety of story ideas.  Posting is open for the entire weekend, so put on your earphones and hook up your internal vision master for some MFU story writing fun.  Remember, when posting include the tag Song Story.

Songwriters: BROWNE, JACKSON

I'm going to rent myself a house 
In the shade of the freeway 
I'm going to pack my lunch in the morning 
And go to work each day 
And when the evening rolls around 
I'll go on home and lay my body down 
And when the morning light comes streaming in 
I'll get up and do it again 
Amen 
Say it again 
Amen 

I want to know what became of the changes 
We waited for love to bring 
Were they only the fitful dreams 
Of some greater awakening 
I've been aware of the time going by 
They say in the end it's the wink of an eye 
And when the morning light comes streaming in 
You'll get up and do it again 
Amen 

Caught between the longing for love 
And the struggle for the legal tender 
Where the sirens sing and the church bells ring 
And the junk man pounds his fender 
Where the veterans dream of the fight 
Fast asleep at the traffic light 
And the children solemnly wait 
For the ice cream vendor 
Out into the cool of the evening 
Strolls the pretender 
He knows that all his hopes and dreams 
Begin and end there 

Ah the laughter of the lovers 
As they run through the night 
Leaving nothing for the others 
But to choose off and fight 
And tear at the world with all their might 
While the ships bearing their dreams 
Sail out of sight 

I'm going to find myself a girl 
Who can show me what laughter means 
And we'll fill in the missing colors 
In each other's paint-by-number dreams 
And then we'll put out dark glasses on 
And we'll make love until our strength is gone 
And when the morning light comes streaming in 
We'll get up and do it again 
Get it up again 

I'm going to be a happy idiot 
And struggle for the legal tender 
Where the ads take aim and lay their claim 
To the heart and the soul of the spender 
And believe in whatever may lie 
In those things that money can buy 
Thought true love could have been a contender 
Are you there? 
Say a prayer for the pretender 
Who started out so young and strong 
Only to surrender