She was changin' out of her fried-chicken red, gettin' into her hamburger blue
And the girl lookin' back from the mirror wasn't anyone she thought she knew
She looked older, and tired, and a little bit wired, drinkin' coffee just to get herself through
That long second shift that she'd sure like to skip, but the baby needs new shoes.
She's a minimum wager... just hangin' on
Minimum wager... standing on the bottom rung
The days are long but the years just fly... hush little baby, don't you cry
Oh, but it's hard when you're just gettin' by, everybody's got money but you
There's an old man ringin' the register and he's thinkin' 'bout 1943
The war was on, he was young and strong, and he fought for democracy
Now they send foreign aid and the cars are all made in the land of his old enemies
And wrong or right, he's too old to fight, and he feels like a refugee
He's a minimum wager... just hangin' on
A minimum wager... got a grip on the bottom rung
So you eat your soup and you say "amen"
Try not to think how it's all gonna end
You're better off than your homeless friends, but you're only a paycheck away
Now the stock market's up and it's all over town the buck has got to stop somewhere
If it leaves the top and it all trickles down, it don't hang around down here
Where every penny earned is a dollar spent, after the groceries and the rent
There's just enough for the government and a ticket in the lottery
There's a bus rollin' over the boulevard and it's picking up the fortunate few
Some shall ride and some must walk no matter what they do
When you make half as much you work twice as hard.... when you've been there, you'll know that it's true
Listen to the politicians talk, say they're savin' a seat for you
Minimum wager... what if they're wrong
Minimum wager... who's gonna catch you if you fall?
If the food is fast and the restroom's clean, the cars gets washed and the lawns stay green
The young and the old and the in-between makin' it all come true
© Chuck McCabe Scuppernong Music, ASCAP (408) 358-2427 woodshed@gte.net