p.o. box 500

dear robert

i heard you was back in the slammer

you should have known better than to try it a second time

in the state of alabama

i'm gonna miss your midnight shows

and miss your early mornin' tokes

your big buddha face smilin' out across the ocean

you were a good thief

you taught me what to steal

i guess you know by now how much i took from you for real

i'll give it all back to you next parole for sure and we can visit crazy mary up in camarillo

dear robert

i heard you was back under the hammer

should have known better than to keep the badge you found from the police on the beach last summer

but while you're freshly shaved and down in weight we'll take that cevrolet and blaze all the way down to mexico

we'll find that long lost valley we talked about so much

we'll disappear in smoke

then we'll emerge from the desert dust

and enter that golden city

with restaurants

running water

and women

oh

so pretty

dear robert

when they took you last time i remember

the police light show was bright like the 4th. of july right in the middle of december

as i strolled by your place

unnoticed in the crowd

who stood by in the red lights as they took you down

as you got into the police car

chrome bracelets on your wrist

which everybody knows can be painful with just a twist

but you just smiled at everybody

the police knew for sure this was not their territory

p.s. robert

i found the supermarket bag you left me

i'll smoke a little every day

and as the smoke clears away

you come right back into my memory

yea

robert

you should have known better.