Back when I was 30-years old I had a marriage ceremony. Not a marriage, though. Just a ceremony. That’s because my marriage was never official.

In a a nutshell here’s what happened.

In September 1993, I was living in Chicago and I was all set to marry my then girlfriend. All hell broke loose the day before our wedding between my girlfriend, me and her family. My girlfriend was hesitant to go through with the marriage and she felt there were unresolved issues that needed to be addressed. Our original idea was to sign the official papers the day before the ceremony and then the actual ceremony would play out like a play without an officiant. So with all that was swirling around, we decided to go through with the ceremony and then sign the wedding license when we got back to Chicago.

What could go wrong?

When we got back to Chicago after our honeymoon, my girlfriend said she couldn’t live with me anymore. Okay, that could go wrong. It turns out, and I found this out after a while, that she had had an affair before our wedding. Okay.

So by mid-Oct I was looking for an apartment and by Thanksgiving I had moved out of chilly Chicago and was living in sunny Orlando, FL. That year I had Thanksgiving dinner in my car. I know, right?

Needless to say I was quite devastated. But what was the best way for me to deal with devastation? Besides alcohol or a 10-inch knife to my wrists? Write something. Create something. And hell, who am I kidding, drink something.

So I sat down one night and wrote a song called “The Rain.” Armed with an acoustic guitar, a harmonica, a 4-track recorder, and a limited knowledge of music or how to play those instruments, I began recording the first song of what would become part of my imaginary demo album The Ghosts That Haunt Me.

So here, many years later, is that first song.

The Rain

There’s a howling wind blowing through this town

Blowing everything away that ain’t been nailed down

Screen door slams and shutters fly away

Ah Jesus here comes the rain again

Martha dear I’m soaked to the bone

And I’m afraid we’re losing our home

Wind came along and tore it apart

Wind came along ripped away my heart

Lightening all around us

Thunder rolling ‘cross the plains

This house we built together

Is gonna wash away in the rain

A wedding dress ad a picture frame

The old oak tree where I carved your name

Are scattered now across the lawn

Everything is gone

Lightening all around us

Thunder rolling ‘cross the plains

This house we built together

Is gonna wash away in the rain

I see the truth tonight in your eyes

We’ve been sleeping in a bed of lies

I’m going down to the railroad tracks

I’m heading west, never coming back