Elliot once cited the lyrics to this as an example of how he tries to chronicle the lives of other people and especially his mother's.
The lyrics "She appears composed, so she is, I suppose. Who can really tell? She shows no emotion at all, stares into space like a dead china doll" were written about the experience of watching his mother and stepfather in a karaoke bar singing and getting progressively drunk when Elliot was a child. (thanks, Shannon - Kathleen, GA, for above 2)
