We Used to Vacation

alcohol ruins families :)

very poignant writing. a song about a man looking back on his childhood and his father's alcohol addiction, but seeing the situation from his father's perspective in an attempt to jusitfy his behavior. in the same vein as death cab's "styrofoam plates", but with less animosity and more empathy on the part of the singer.

I have the album version and it's definety mix a gin.

and, nate [the singer] is telling a story here. he is not the father character.

The song does seems to me to be written in the first person perspective of the father. Whether or not the person who wrote (and/or sings the song) is the person in question is really irrelavant isn't it? Novelists write stories from the perspective of other people all the time - it makes sense that a songwriter might do the same, no?

"left everyone a little shook up but at the meetings I felt so empty"

My interpretation: From what I gather he was in a drunk driving accident for which joined AA (or some other supportive organization).

"best recital I had to ruin missed my son's graduation"

During his vacation he began drinking again - and showed up late/drunk to his sons graduation where his lapse was exposed to his family.

"I'm just an honest man provide for me and mine I give a check to tax deductable charity organizations two weks paid vacation won't heal the damage done I need another one"

He believes he is a good man, and does his best, and hopes that his family will forgive him. I think the last line 'I need another one' might actually refer to another drink - instead of another weeks vacation.

This is a moving song - and probably my favorite on this album.

To help clarify: there is an early (pre-album) version of the song that has the lyrics "to mix a drink", which then got changed to "mix a gin". I have that earlier song, and so can confirm this.

I'm sorry, I know that songs mean different things to different people, blah blah blah, but this is definitely NOT from the perspective of the son. This is about an alcoholic father, wallowing in guilt and denial. There is absolutely nothing to indicate otherwise.

It's a great song, at any rate.

the song title alone is great.

he drinks to escape from whatever daily struggles he endeers. He makes excuses for his drinking, continues to make false promises to his family, and even though he does ok for awhile he will eventually let it get out of hand.

Definitely think it's about a dad/husband struggling with a serious drinking problem. As for the lyrics mentioning the "Nichol's boy"

"...missed my son's graduation punched the Nichols boy for taking his seat he gets all that anger from me..."

As far as him missing his son's graduation, I think he was there but his was plastered and mentally missed it.

I think this is another example of how his drinking problem has effed up a family event. When he went to his son's graduation, this Nichol's kid either took his son's literal seat (a chair) or took his son's rank in school and he punched him b/c of it. As for the next line, his son has pretty much "inhereted" his father's short temper as well.

I was giving Bob Dylan's "Highway 61 Revisited" a listen for the first time, and one of the lyrics that stood out to me was a line from the song "Ballad of a Thin Man";

Anyway they already expect you To just give a check To tax-deductible charity organizations.

It sounded eerily familiar. I finally figured out I'd heard it first in this song. I think the choice of words is way too similar to simply pass of as coincidence. Also, a little later in that same verse of Dylan's song is the line:

You've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books You're very well read

Which I thought was kind of interesting considering considering @cryinpoet's comment, though I haven't read that novel.