Song Meaning
The lyrics paint a picture of a woman embracing a quiet, almost dormant phase of life, likening her descent into middle age to sinking into deep, still waters. She finds comfort in simple pleasures, like food and giving up exercise, which she states "did me good." This period of personal retreat is marked by solitary pursuits: painting famous landmarks she'd always dreamed of seeing, creating watercolors of them all. It's a deliberate turning inward, a settling into a new rhythm.
The central tension arises from the narrator's stated contentment with leaving behind a significant aspect of intimacy. The "none-too-fond farewell to sex" suggests a conscious, perhaps even relieved, decision to move past it. This self-imposed quietude is presented as a positive choice, a liberation from a past desire or obligation. The narrator seems to have found peace in this detachment, curating her own experiences and dreams.
The sharpest turn comes with the final image: the narrator returning with a "pastel of Niagara," only to find her partner "sitting up in bed rattling Viagra." This jarring juxtaposition shatters the carefully constructed peace. The domestic scene, previously implied to be one of quiet coexistence, is suddenly charged with an unexpected, and perhaps unwelcome, resurgence of sexual energy from the partner, directly confronting the narrator's own farewell to it.
This lyrical snapshot is effective because of its understated delivery of profound shifts. The initial acceptance of aging and the subsequent embrace of solitary hobbies create a sense of calm before the storm. The casual mention of giving up sex, presented as a simple fact, makes the final image of the partner's Viagra-fueled awakening all the more potent and disruptive. It highlights the unexpected ways life can intrude upon our carefully curated peace, forcing a confrontation with desires we thought we'd left behind.
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