Lyrics

The ink on the pink slip started bleeding in a drop of rain,
If I catch the drop before it hits the ground, maybe that'll hold off the pain
19 years on the assembly line, a line that's come to an end
The rumors said it was coming, but sometimes you need to pretend
As of today, I'm living in yesterday, and I'm fightin' back the fear
I'm on the other side of somehow, somewhere between nowhere & here

Betty, she took it well, at least that's what she showed
She said 'by the way, I gave the bank all our money, was exactly what we owed'
They offered me a job at the new place, said we'll pay you to pack up & go
but at half the wages; and I don't speak the language, down there in Mexico
And the kids used to ask for toys & such, but they stopped that suddenly
I'm on the other side of somehow, a workin-man wannabe

That giant sucking sound, the sound we were warned about
Is the sound of thousands of lives in the midst of a desperate shout
Hey, America, we had a deal, you can't just walk on out
We're on the other side of somehow, in a country that's cashed us out

It's a Corporation vacuum, suckin up lives like so much dust
Guess they gotta do what we all gotta do, to keep from going bust
But when the bag gets full, they just throw it all away, that's our factory legacy
You see, America, for all her greatness, never cleans up gracefully
And when we pass our friends in the street, they stop talking suddenly
I'm on the wrong side of somehow, but it's OK to look at me

And though our rose is faded, you still look at me lovingly,
Thru tears & fears & years of faith, thru eyes of resiliancy
Then I know life is meant for living beyond its warranty
And I won't be a statistic of a dying industry
And I'm lying on my back awake at night, and it hit me suddenly
I'm on the other side of somehow now, but it's only temporarily
I'm on the other side of somehow, and somehow is closer to me