Based on an Ancestry chart Family History 1. We sailed away from Ireland We were troubled by the wars The Catholics hated Protestants And I know well what for They watched us farm on stolen ground While they got hedge and rocks Then the king’s men filled those fields with flax And robbed us at the docks 2. You beg to feed your family It’s none but tater stew You canna find a loaf of bread, nor Grab a pint ‘ o brew To board a ship was priceless And we not worth a damn We give ten years of service for the Promise of some land Like my father’s father’s father And the father before him Are we cursed to build our homes upon the souls that might have been The green seas are so restless The windy waves are cruel The ocean never gave a care As we were sailing through 3. The voyage gave us agony We stuck down in the hold The water tasted black. And there was slime upon the mold I’ve never been so sick of sea And dreaming of hard ground And someone yells Virginia And we dropped that anchor down 4. Then ten years of tobacco We were doe with servitude And we took a stand on slavery The laws of man exclude We rode to Indiana Declaring ourselves free And thanks to those old Quakers They was thou and I was thee Like my father’s father’s father And the father before him We have struck out for a foreign land To build our lives again The green fields are so restless The rocky slopes are cruel The mountains never gave a care As we were passing through 5. The settlers struck for Iowa In 1844 The French had sold the lot of it I know well what for We’d run off all the Indians And some were just struck down And once again we found ourselves A farming stolen ground Like my father’s father’s father And the father before him Are we cursed to build our homes upon the souls that might have been The green fields are so restless The rocky slopes are cruel The mountains never a damn As we were passing through

As my mother slipped into dementia she asked me to write this song about her Mother’s Tea (Me Dear Old English Mother ) 1. On my first day of grade school The whole class laughed at me For I arrive at half past nine And not so fashionably My teacher led me by the ear Down to the principal I had to give accounting For I had no note at all (so here is what I said..) Chorus: It Twas my dear old English mother and her tea Well, first she pours some milk in A spoon or two of sugar “a spoon or three of sugar…” “a spoon or four of sugar…” “and a canister of sugar…” Then a tiny taste determines temperature And if I’ve let it steep too long The tea is way to strong Then I have to start again And do it over 2. On the first day of high school Well, I was way too late And a teacher caught me in the hall And she left no debate She had made it very clear That tardiness was bad So I blubbered and I stammered And this is what I said… 3. Oh the first month of college My papers were quite late My advisor sat to counsel me And then discuss my fate And he asked me for a reason I work improperly I looked at him sincerely And answered honestly…. 4. On the first day at Starbucks My bus was very late My old alarm had failed me My pants ripped on the gate And the boss who met me at the door Just pointed at the line Where the customers all frowned at me As I began to chime… 5. On the first day of marriage I jumped out of bed quite late I forgot to make the latte’, two shots, sugar free vanilla, Grande for my mate…. And she asked me quite directly Why my snoozing was so great (I answered) I dreamt that I was making tea And then I had to do it over I dreamt that I was making tea And then I had to start again I dreamt that I was making tea for dear old mother!

Journalist Jacob Margolis tweeted some final words (if it could talk) for the Rover “Opportunity” now buried in dust on Mars I’m a Rover on Mars 1. I’m a rover on Mars Dodging potholes and boulders Roaming craters and hills, and testing rocks for the presence of water But the atmosphere’s bad And the temperature’s cold And there’s no place to hide My weary frame On this perilous road Chorus: It’s growing dark And my wheels won’t roll Mired in the dust And my batteries low Can’t raise my arm Can’t read my dial Buried by the storm At the 28th mile 2. There’s a face on the moon Staring out through the stars As for me I am just one tiny spec On the surface of Mars Like those faces of stone Looking out through the night As an asteroid passed and waved goodbye on a desolate flight 3. They might send a command Well, I cannot respond Since The dust storm has covered all my shields All my power is gone If I just had a heart If I had half a brain Sending photographs through space Of this hostile terrain Chorus: It’s growing dark And my wheels won’t roll Mired in the dust And my batteries low Flagstaff farewell I rest this while You will find me here At the 28th mile Chorus wth: Flagstaff farewell I rest this while You will find me here At the 28th mile

Advice for school kids The BEAR 1. I was down in the woods the other night Looking for a possum with my flashlight I shined my light upon his knees But a 6 foot possum I’ve never seen It was a big bear I climbed a sapling It was a tall bear I climbed a fir tree It was an angry bear so I sprouted wings And I didn’t come down till morning 2. I was down in the woods the very next night Armed to the teeth with a gun and knife Ready for the bear and I heard a thunk Got ready to aim, but was a skunk It was the wrong end I had to sleep outside He was a good shot I had to burn my clothes He was an frightened skunk with an awful smell And it lingered on all summer 3. I went down in the woods in the daylight Yelled for the bear, “Come Out and Fight” (like the cowardly lion) I slowly crept out through the trees I heard a noise, it was a swarm of bees It was a big swarm I started running It was like 1,000 needles I kept on running I did a swan dive into the pond I got all 9’s and stuck the landing 4. So I’m down in the fish pond covered with mud Yelled for help and I heard a thud Then came a sproing, crash and a boom Beaver dropped a tree In his front room It was a big tree Busy beaver Split that pond Just like a cleaver When the tidal wave washed over me Something in that pond sure tasted nasty 5. Don’t go down in the woods neither day or night The critters there will pick a fight Big sharp teeth and ready to bite You be looking left when you shoulda looked right Something sneaky It’s like a bad dream Frogs with big eyes Coyotes on steroids Rabbits with gang tactics Weasels with long spikey tails Sssss snakes with roomy stomachs And you won’t be coming home anytime soon You might die Have to miss school You’ll need a good excuse… So, Write this down It was a big bear I climbed a sapling It was a tall bear I climbed a fir tree It was an angry bear and I sprouted wings and I didn’t come home till morning.

Jazz poetry Never Blessed 1. I never was blessed with a clean mind Always had to sleep alone Never was blessed with a woman Wouldn’t run off on her own I never had me no new car The old ones always broke down I met free love on the subway She knocked to the ground 2. Never had us a clean war Always sent bodies home Oil washed up on a clean shore The corporation’s never wrong And it never seemed like I trusted Anything in sight Why I never even trusted the president (sometimes I think I’m the President) The wife said “That’s alright” 3. I never had me a good dog Wouldn’t bite me on the leg And I never had me a good job Didn’t leave times to beg Never had no good friend Never ever let you down Long as got my sidearm I’ll never get screwed again 4. Never had a good meal Always wanted something more Never had me a good shirt The pockets always tore Never had me no shelter To lay my weary head But I once slept on the park bench Where the New York Times was read 5. Never had me a full moon Mine was always half I never told me a good joke Could make somebody laugh And I never wrote me a good poem Or drew me a decent line But I can dance with the railroad gang and drink that turpentine 6. Now I come to the moral Of a strange and painful song Think of this as a dead end road The GPS was wrong The gas gauge says I’m empty The compass says I’m low Hurricane took my property Wall Street stole my soul

Some ferry history which started with a headline in the Everett Herald, story by Scott North Steel Electric Days 1. Started in the year of ‘51 The Ferry System in Washington Mosquito fleet From the Black Ball Line Built of wood and good design But wood can rot and wood can wear And soon these hulls would need repair Need repair Need repair And soon these hulls would need repair 2. The other hulls were made of steel From the captain’s post down to the keel The Hiyu and The Klickitat And even stranger names than that But steel is strong and steel is good Soon the steel replaced the wood Replaced the wood Replaced the wood Soon the steel replaced the wood 3. Eighty-one years on the Puget Sound The steel-electrics sailed around Trusted on The Keystone Run We all thought they’d carry on Fighting wind and courting waves But steel can slowly rust away Rust away Rust away Steel can slowly rust away 4. Forty-one years on the Puget Sound The tiny Hiyu sailed around Men like me We turned her wheel Trusted God we trusted steel But then we heard that awful sound The shipwright brought his hammer down Hammer down Hammer down The shipwright brought his hammer Down 5. Steel Electric auld lang syne Highway thru the Maritime The hammer tore A hole in one The steel had rusted down to none The hammer stuck and did betray The steel electrics cast away Castaway Castaway The steel electrics castaway 6. Some newer boats were built askew From Stem to stern, from wheel to screw And some would list And some were slow And some required a lengthy tow But none could last as well as those For whom the hammer struck its blows Struck its blow Struck its blow For whom the hammer struck its blows

River Like Me (also known as We Aint Got) 1. We don’t have that much in common, but I sure do, Yes, I sure do like you. Like all the rest, I am afraid, I have broken all my fingers And there’s no holding on. Chorus: Then there’s times that I wonder If a river like me could stand, If an airplane like me could land. I seen a thousand endless highways In the palm of my own hand. 2. Yes, I know your expectations, But I sure can’t, yes, I sure can’t help it, Is it love, is it fear, I have seen it, In your green eyes, And there’s no simple way Chorus: Then there’s times that I wonder If a river like me could stand, If an airplane like me could land I held one in a million In the palm of my own hand. 3. oh, I know it’s not forever, not for never, Not for no how. In the night there’s still a rainbow I can feel it, in the shadows And it leads me on Chorus: Then there’s times that I wonder, If a river like me could stand, If an airplane like me could land. I held one in a million In the palm of my own hand. 4. If the white bird calls me home I must go, way up yonder Till that time something tells me I will travel, I must wander Yes, I’m leaving today ©J.W. McClure

Based on a story from my dad Old Antoine 1. They found old Antoine’s body He was frozen to the ice His chin was resting on his knees Like he was resting nice His arms arounds his legs His fingers white with frost About a mile out on the tundra Old Antoine’s life was lost Chorus Antoine won’t you read From the book in your hands Won’t you read and take away my pain Pretend it’s a book of the things you said Won’t you read those passages again? 2. They chipped him from the snow bank He was solid as a rock His mustache broke right off him When they rolled him on his back Froze in that position His knees stuck to his chin They had bought the best of coffins But they could not put him in 3. So they built a great big bonfire To try to help him thaw They put weights upon his knees Sapling spring upon his jaw In the middle of his wake The frozen knees gave way The sapling snapped his head up And the whole town ran away 4. They never buried Antoine ‘cause He never did lie flat I drug him to the place he died And that is where he sat Still upright in his coffin So this is what I did I put a good book in his hands Because I could not close the lid 5. And when I think of Antoine I can see him everywhere The raven got his eyeball The porcupine his hair The otter got his attitude The wolverine his look There’s a bear out on the tundra Still reading Antoine’s book

Birthday Poem Circle Round the Sun 1. As you circle round the sun And you gain another year Will your footprints remain? In the warm biosphere Tread so lightly Breathe so the birds cannot hear 2. As you circle round the stream To the place you were born In the safety of shade And your gravel bed home Dying, spawning New life will rise when you’re gone 3. As you fly among the flowers Gathering the dust of gods Will you visit the trees? Bearing fruit for the choir Pollen falling Bees are the blossoms’ desire 4. As you circle round the sun May your lonely heart keep time? With the wings of the grouse As he drums through the pines Flushed when startled Beautiful feathered designs 5. As you circle round the sun May the spirits sing to you In the voice of the trees In the call of the loon Scattered lightly Stealing the light of the moon 6. As you fly among the stars And you float above the clouds Did you think you would fall All the way to the ground Holes in ozone Circling a merry go round

I was a roofer for two weeks… Roofer 1. Started out working on the very first floor I framed in a window and I framed a door Raised the rafter and I nailed it down I started roofing And I went to town Chorus But when a roofer gets a raise When a roofer gets a raise When a roofer gets a raise They just raise him up one floor 2. Well, my family was starving I was feeling poor I was shaking a roof up on the 7th floor I went to the boss with a job well done Said, “Can I have a raise?” He said, “Listen son, 3. The rent went up And the bank came around And the roofer got a raise Right out of town Roofing in the city on the 21st floor Said, “I sure don’t need no raise no more” 4. I sure felt sorry for the guy upstairs Yea, his woman was crazy And his kids were weird I should’ve known it would get to me Cause I got me a raise And got his whole damn family

Some fun with Mother Mother Said (This is what my mother said) 1. When I was just a little lad My mother said to me Son, don’t go down to Everett Where life is very free But I went down there anyway She could not tell me ‘no’ If your mother says don’t do this The opposite you go One cold wintry morning While snow lay on the ground The trees were hung with icicles So festive all around The flag pole looked inviting With frosty icy flakes My mother said don’t lick it But I licked it anyway (say with tongue stuck out) Chorus: Oh mother dear I’m sorry Contrary as I be I’ve written down and memorized The things you said to me Don’t do this and don’t do that I might as well be dead Though I didn’t listen This is what my mother said 2. When I was just a young lad I went off to the fair My mother she had warned me To be so careful there I came upon a kissing booth I up and paid my dime I was on the road to ruin I was 8 times in the line The trouble at that kissing booth Has caused me awful grief My lips they felt like rubber I can’t get no relief I used to use my lips for good Not sealed up like a mime But now they’re good for nothing They’re puckered all the time Chorus: Oh mother dear I’m sorry Contrary as I be I’ve written down and memorized The things you said to me Don’t do this and don’t do that It’s underlined in red Though I didn’t listen This is what my mother said 3. My father warned me daily Son, get a proper dog A dog can hunt, a dog can warn If trouble comes around But the neighbor’s cat had kittens I thought that I was strong But when they climbed my pantleg I had to take them home At least I did not have a pig, A monkey or a snake A low down rhinoceros Would be a big mistake I could have had horse, of course, I would have tried to ride Instead, I bought a python And mother’s still inside Chorus: Oh father dear I’m sorry Contrary as I be I’ve written down and memorized The things you said to me Don’t do this and don’t do that It’s buzzing round my head Though I didn’t listen This is what my father said 4. Mom and dad both warned me Stay out of Johnson’s yard And don’t cut through their pasture The long way’s not so hard They’ve got a bull they’re breeding He’s trouble guaranteed Thank god there was a ladder In Johnson’s apple tree. If someone says they don’t believe These stories that I tell Just send them down to Johnson’s farm They’ll see I’m doing well I’m up here picking apples I’m up here for the view I’m waiting till that bovine Has better things to do Chorus: Oh mom and dad I’m sorry Contrary as I be I’ve written down and memorized The things you said to me Don’t do this and don’t do that Do something else instead Though I didn’t listen This is what my parents said

A plea for change in times of Covid I Saw Cowboys Going Home 1. I saw cowboys going home Riding backwards through the storm Silent movie, black and white I still wonder why they’re riding tonight And the time goes slow Waiting for your love to find them Far away from home Fighting shadows in the canyon I can hear the coyotes counting All the days without a meal I can hear the coyotes singing You must pay for what you steal As the sun sets in the West And their riding days are done I saw cowboys going home 2. I saw sailors going home Badly beaten by Cape Horn Big waves crashing On the main Dreaming of the day they see land again And the time goes slow Waiting for your love to find them Far away from home Running from the pirates’ cannon I can hear the seabirds crying To the oarsman in the scow I can hear the seabirds crying Save the sea and save it now And the sun burns like a light house As their sailing days are done I saw sailors going home 3. I saw soldiers going home Leaving fields without their guns Hearts are broken Damaged brains Dreaming of the day they see peace again And the time goes slow Waiting for your love to find them Far away from home Far beneath the clouds of mayhem I can hear the buzzards counting As the violin plays reels I can hear the buzzards counting All the graves down in the fields Still the sun stands like a beacon Though the days will not be long I saw soldiers going home

A street singer in Washington D.C. Gospel Singer 1. The blind gospel singer On the corner Tapping on the curbstone with his cane Holds a little tin cup for the money Good God that tin cup never rusted Like a singer in the rain London Gin takes just a pint to freeze you Oh, Detroit takes a gallon to burn People walk these wooden streets With their concrete shoes Chorus Oh sing and pray Pray and sing Till the walls of this city begin to ring Can’t you feel it? Can’t you see? Oh, Do you always have to read it in a magazine? 2. Careful with your garbage in the city Some folks bound to eat the hand me downs Then I guess the kind of fool walks by me Speaking quite profanely Like a watch wound too tight Oh sometimes this old city’s Just my fortune Sometimes this old city gets me down Two hands on a beer mug Will not drive away the cold

At a bluegrass party in Siler City,N.C. the state patrol showed up to tell to get our wheels off the road or we would get towed Wheels (Get Your Wheels Off the Road) 1. Back on the highway again Like a mule behind a carrot Just can’t win Way out on the highway Shaking his head A white shirted Jesus turned to us and said Hey there, weary people Chorus Get your wheels off the road Get your hands off the wheel I don’t want you to get towed away or killed So damn easy just to stay right here 2. So good to see you my friend Put your face into the sunshine Your back to the wind Way out on the highway It’s dangerous to be I went to sleep one night on River Road Made connections with a tree Said ‘Hello Tree’ Bridge (or third verse) Those cathedral leaves are falling The sun is almost GONE Your eyes are like two headlights On a ship that’s going down Don’t go down.

Hard times Pig 1. The dentist sure made faces Raise another pig The poor kid’s gotta have braces We’ll raise another pig This shopping bag is lighter than air I bought the bus or they raised the fare Great big holes in my underwear We can almost make it to Wednesday If we raise another pig Chorus: Raise another pig Raise another pig We can almost make it to Wednesday If we raise another pig 2. The new car’s broke and we’ll give it back Put the pieces in a sack One month old and guaranteed More good parts on a centipede More damn fun than a pig to feed We can almost make it to Wednesday…. 3. Went to pay my mortgage The bank said there’s a shortage I sold the kids, and I sold the car, I kept the dog and old guitar The wife took off but she won’t get far 4. When it comes to health care Might as well not be here The doctor said it’s just your heart We’ll ‘off’ one pig and get the part Bring the pig in a shopping cart

My grandfather’s John Deere was a team of horses The Old Homestead Lay me down on the old homestead My feet below my pillowed head If I should die before I wake The bank my John Deer tractor take 1.Staked a claim And cleared a farm Built a cottage, then a barn A mighty dream, one humble sow Twelve laying hens They’re laying now Married me a clever wife And she brought crayons to my life She colored all the Holstein cows Black and white they’re Purple now Refrain: And everyday I’m farming With my eyes on the sky And every night I am singing The farmer’s lullabye Chorus: Lay me down on the old homestead Seems I never went to bed Sunburned neck and bones that ache My mind is playing patty-cake 2. To the barn to lock it tight Count the pigs and shut the light The old mare whinnied in her stall And the cow kissed me goodnight The moon was just a tiny spark And the frog said “it’s too dark” It’s cold and creepy in the pond We’ll sleep and sing out on the lawn Refrain Chorus_2: Lay me down before I die Cook me like an apple pie Roll me out and prop me up Put some coffee in my cup 3. Now I lay me down for keeps Kept awake by counting sheep And then I count the rows of corn And then the payments on the farm The pig gets beer and pizza pie The horse gets caviar and rye If cows could wish upon a star they’d have endless salad bar Refrain Chorus 3: Lay me down on the old homestead My feet below my pillowed head If I should die before I wake The bank my John Deer tractor take