Waterloo, Iowa
August 17, 2021
I like to ask Siri to play “He Went To Paris” after I visit each Paris. Each time it reminds me why I am on this walkabout. Today the lines that caught my attention were:
And all of the answers And all of the questions Locked in his attic one day He liked the quiet Clean country living And twenty more years slipped away
What these words meant to me today was he stopped looking for answers because he became comfortable — he was enjoying his situation.
That happens to most of us I guess. We are “young and ambitious” and then we become middle aged and comfortable. I’m not judging whether that’s bad or good, just making an observation.
Here are the complete lyrics. I’m sure glad Lucian snd I went to the Buffett concert at JPJ. 😁
He went to Paris Looking for answers To questions that bothered him so
He was impressive, Young and aggressive, Saving the world on his own Warm summer breezes And french wines and cheeses Put his ambitions at bay
Summers and winters Scattered like splinters And four or five years slipped away
He went to England Played the piano And married an actress named Kim They had a fine life She was a good wife And bore him a young son named Jim
And all of the answers And all of the questions Locked in his attic one day He liked the quiet Clean country living And twenty more years slipped away
Well, the war took his baby Bombs killed his lady And left him with only one eye His body was battered His whole world was shattered And all he could do was just cry
While the tears were a' fallin' He was recallin' The answers he never found So he hopped on a freighter Skidded the ocean And left England without a sound
Now he lives in the islands Fishes the pylons And drinks his green label each day He's writing his memoirs And losing his hearing But he don't care what most people say
"Through eighty six years Of perpetual motion, " If he likes you, he'll smile and he'll say, "Some of it's magic, And some of it's tragic, But I had a good life all the way"
He went to Paris Looking for answers To questions that bothered him so