How I Came To Own My Denim Jacket

She watched me tapping on the radiator
In the old assembly hall
She said, "Are you a drummer?"
I said, "No, I just sing and play guitar."
I was only fifteen
Feeling parachuted in-
To a little town in East Germany
Where I'd planned to integrate in
I was so naïve
And so sure I was in love
When the snow was sticking
The love was very good
I was so trusting
Quixotic and young
Everything was changing
And we were two silhouettes doing tongues
I got sick frequently
I got little hairs on my face
I cut my hair and bought a denim jacket
So I couldn't be traced
I started playing in a two-piece band
Funnily enough in the White Stripes' final days
Maybe I thought we'd make it
Like Jackie Chan in Chinese cinema's
Bruceploitation phase
I was so shy
A pale man-kid
I thought I knew women
Like Leonard Cohen did
Then she sobered me up
And we stopped like the snow
That's all, really
I think about it sometimes
It was so long ago
Just thought I'd let you know