Tom Waits For No Man....

I hope you all had a very happy Christmas. I spent much of my - scarce - quiet time reading a review copy of a new biography of Tom Waits, called Lowside of the Road. Towards the end, this none-more Waitsian explanation of why he finds himself writing more and more about death popped off the page:

"How do you avoid it? We're decomposing as we go. We're the dead on vacation. It's not a theme I need to pursue. It pursues me."

Ah, happy holidays indeed! A good excuse, nevertheless, to hear Tom's most beautiful, most quietly spiritual rumination on what truly matters as we gradually decompose. And yes, you're allowed to cry.