The Decemberists Record Year lyrics

I read in the paper today
It's been a record year for rainfall
And you were leaning against the bathroom wall
In your lonely dress, was your only dress

Stand accusing across
I got a temper set for tender
And you were shrugging it off like a feather
Saying, "Oh, would you look at this weather?"

What's the use of all of this?
It's to remember you in the entire 'cause I'm watching it slip away
And in the annals of the Empire
Did it look this gray before the fall, before the fall?


So rake your thumbnail across
The stretch of the patina
Revealing a Proserpina
In a low recline, in a steep decline

What's the use of all of this?
It's to remember you in the entire 'cause I'm watching it slip away
And in the annals of the Empire
Did it look this gray, does it look so gray?
Does it always look so gray before the fall, before the fall?