Time and tide...

I got up this morning to the sound of the wind howling around the eaves. The tide was in, and the breakers were a good twenty to thirty feet high when they hit the harbour wall. Later, after I had dropped Tracy at the shop, I was in the kitchen making breakfast when I heard the sirens. I thought nothing of it; it's a common sound even out here in the northern hinterland. I have just found out that two men have been pulled out of the Solway; one of them was taking photographs of the tide and fell in. The other jumped in to save the first one. The photographer is ok; the man that jumped in to save him is dead.

I suppose sometimes it's better to mind your own business, but sometimes you just have to help. The song lyrics, below, have been going round in my head for a little while. To me, they are about nosey neighbours and the conclusions they jump to. But sometimes you have to be nosey; sometimes you just have to help !

Tom Waits - What's he building ?

What's he building in there?
What the hell is he building In there?
He has subscriptions to those
Magazines... He never
Waves when he goes by
He's hiding something from
The rest of us... He's all
To himself... I think I know
Why... He took down the
Tire swing from the Peppertree
He has no children of his
Own you see... He has no dog
And he has no friends and
His lawn is dying... and
What about all those packages
He sends. What's he building in there?
With that hook light
On the stairs. What's he building
In there... I'll tell you one thing
He's not building a playhouse for
The children what's he building
In there?

Now what's that sound from under the door?
He's pounding nails into a
Hardwood floor... and I
Swear to god I heard someone
Moaning low... and I keep
Seeing the blue light of a
T.V. show...
He has a router
And a table saw... and you
Won't believe what Mr. Sticha saw
There's poison underneath the sink
Of course... But there's also
Enough formaldehyde to choke
A horse... What's he building
In there. What the hell is he
Building in there? I heard he
Has an ex-wife in some place
Called Mayors Income, Tennessee
And he used to have a
consulting business in Indonesia...
but what is he building in there?
What the hell is building in there?

He has no friends
But he gets a lot of mail
I'll bet he spent a little
Time in jail...
I heard he was up on the
Roof last night
Signaling with a flashlight
And what's that tune he's
Always whistling...
What's he building in there?
What's he building in there?

We have a right to know...