Drinking Alone

I wrote this right after moving back to Michigan from California. It was a dark time.

Tonight I want to go drinking alone;
Pop in an old cassette to the half-broken car radio
Entitled "NOLA mix" from my trip to New Orleans -
God, when was that?
Tonight I want to drive forever,
Maybe to the Lake and back.
But what would I do when I got there?
Instead I drive to a bar in a bowling alley across town,
Order a rum and Coke and have someone ask,
"What is a polite way of saying I'm angry at you?"
What is a polite way of saying I really don't care?
So I sip my rum and Coke and tap my leg
While the card game behind me drowns out the rock music from the karaoke stage.
The two black straws in my glass make an X;
We all know what X means.
The ice makes me cold so I pull up my hood,
Sit, write, and brood.
I'm not interested in your anger -
I came to drink alone tonight.