Hall Tom T: Ode to a half a pound of ground round

This is the song about the time I nearly starved to death in Roanoke VirginiaI woke up Wednesday morning in my little motel bedKnowing I would die the minute that I move my headI felt around to make sure I was in my bed aloneI meet some friendly people when I'm stonedMy payday was on Friday I had two more days to goEven in my agony I knew that I was brokeLemme pay the check I said and keep the change my friendShe wiggled out of sight with my last tenAt noon I realized there wasn't any way to eatFor lunch I just went out and shuffled up and down the streetAt four o'clock I had a funny feeling in my chestHow long's it take to starve a man to deathI found some pennies in my junk and bought a candy barDivided it in pieces and I ate one every hourI just rolled into town and didn't know a single soulThere wasn't any way to make a loan[ dobro ]Thursday morning I was nearly panicked on the jobI heard my stomach growlin' and my head began to throbI contemplated murder of the folks that brought their lunchThe sudden smell of food would make me jumpThursday night they run all food commercials on TVI slept till nine or ten and then I walked the floor to threeFriday morning I looked for some ketchup on my shirtsMy mind was gone my legs began to hurtThe last few minutes up to payin' time were all the worstThe minutes were the years it took to build the universeFinally it came I got my check and made a dash yes I said the man will eat at lastRunning down the sidewalk I could see the words so sweetThe sign was flashin' on and on Eat Eat EatA half o'pound of ground round ma'm and please don't cook it longThe frizzle of the grill was like a songI've traveled this world over and I ain't been hungry muchI've been down in my thinking and I've been down on my luckBut the sweetest meal I've ever had in anybody's townWas a half a pound of plain ground round ground round