Been staring at my ceiling
Trying to find a reason
Why picking up this guitar
Has gotten to be so hard
There was a time the sound of these strings
Would fix just about anything
Maybe I was naive
Maybe I was thirteen

When I sang just to sing
Instead of living large
Sometimes I'd rather be

Catching fireflies than lovebugs
Telling stories instead of lies
Skipping stones instead of getting stoned
To try to find some peace of mind
Hopping ditches instead of planes
Pulling wagons instead of these chains
Sometimes instead of keeping this up
I'd rather be somewhere, nowhere in Carolina

When smoking and drinking
Was just every other weekend
Sneaking out late at night
Too young for the neon lights
The smell of wintergreen and cologne
Was my uncle's '79 Bronco
When the road was a friend
I'd give anything to live that again
Gotta get back to

When I sang just to sing
I thought it'd do me good
To write a song just for me
So I'd rather be

Catching fireflies than lovebugs
Telling stories instead of lies
Skipping stones instead of getting stoned
To try to find some peace of mind
Hopping ditches instead of planes
Pulling wagons instead of these chains
Sometimes instead of keeping this up
I'd rather be somewhere, nowhere in Carolina
Carolina

Maybe this city
Is getting to my head
But I'll confess if the music's dead
And home is all I have left
It'd be a pity
But I think I'd be just fine
I'd have the clear blue sky
And plenty of time to hide and remember why