In regards to the meaning of this song:
Before a live performance on the EP Five Stories Falling, Geoff states “It’s about the last time I went to visit my grandmother in Columbus, and I saw that she was dying and it was the last time I was going to see her. It is about realizing how young you are, but how quickly you can go.”
That’s the thing about Geoff and his sublime poetry, you think it’s about one thing, but really it’s about something entirely different. But the lyrics are still universal and omnipresent, ubiquitous, even. So relatable. That’s one thing I love about this band. I also love their live performances, raw energy and Geoff’s beautiful, imperfectly perfect vocals. His voice soothes my aching soul.
My telephone, it doesn't have a camera
If it did I'd take a picture of myself
If it did I'd take a picture of the water
And the man on the offramp
Holding up the sign that's asking me for help
I got a job and I'll work here for the summer
I fold the towels and set them by the pool
Everyone looks happy with each other
'Til they step away and say the thing they really meant
They always sound so cruel
I didn't know what I was in for
When I signed up for that run
There's no way I'm curing cancer
But I'll sweat it out
I feel so proud now for all the good I've done
I know a girl who owns a boutique in the city
Selling clothes to the fashionably late
Says she cries at the news but doesn't really
'Cause it's too much fun, it's too much time
And too much plastic money to be made
I didn't know what I was in for
When they took my belt and strings
They told me I'd gone crazy
My arms are strapped in a straight jacket
So I couldn't save those TV refugees
When they're on their backs
In a bloody bath
Full of sarin gas
On a screen
I didn't know what I was in for
When I laid out in the sun
We get burned for being honest
I've really never done anything, for anyone
To fall asleep I need white noise to distract me
Otherwise I have to listen to me think
Otherwise I pace around, hold my breath, let it out
Sit on the couch and think about
How living's just a promise that I made
If it did I'd take a picture of myself
If it did I'd take a picture of the water
And the man on the offramp
Holding up the sign that's asking me for help
I got a job and I'll work here for the summer
I fold the towels and set them by the pool
Everyone looks happy with each other
'Til they step away and say the thing they really meant
They always sound so cruel
I didn't know what I was in for
When I signed up for that run
There's no way I'm curing cancer
But I'll sweat it out
I feel so proud now for all the good I've done
I know a girl who owns a boutique in the city
Selling clothes to the fashionably late
Says she cries at the news but doesn't really
'Cause it's too much fun, it's too much time
And too much plastic money to be made
I didn't know what I was in for
When they took my belt and strings
They told me I'd gone crazy
My arms are strapped in a straight jacket
So I couldn't save those TV refugees
When they're on their backs
In a bloody bath
Full of sarin gas
On a screen
I didn't know what I was in for
When I laid out in the sun
We get burned for being honest
I've really never done anything, for anyone
To fall asleep I need white noise to distract me
Otherwise I have to listen to me think
Otherwise I pace around, hold my breath, let it out
Sit on the couch and think about
How living's just a promise that I made
Lyrics submitted by yellowbird999, edited by iandclxvi
Didn't Know What I Was in For Lyrics as written by Phoebe Bridgers Conor Oberst
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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