Clark Gable by The Postal Service

I was waiting for a cross-town train in the london underground
When it struck me that i've been waiting since birth to find
A love that would look and sound like a movie so i changed
My plans and rented a camera and a van and then i called you
"i need you to pretend that we are in love again" and you agreed to

I want so badly to believe that "there is truth, that love is real"
And i want life in every word to the extent that it's absurd
I greased the lens and framed the shot using a friend as my stand-in
The script it called for rain but it was clear that day so we faked it
The marker snapped and i yelled "quiet on the set"
And then called "action!"
And i kissed you in a stye that clark gable would have admired
(i thought it classic)

I want so badly to believe that "there is truth, that love is real"
And i want life in every word to the extent that it's absurd
I know you're wise beyond your years, but do you ever get the fear
That your perfect verse is just a lie you tell yourself to help you get by?

Jump

I used to have a little park behind my house. I used to curse the noisy daycare kids that frolicked around all day while I had to leave to go to work or school; curse the kids because I couldn’t let my dogs out because they just made them bark. Now my back yard is a public parking lot and the memories I have of children playing and greenery seem to be growing more rosey each day.

I don’t wish to make the case that memories are always skewed, because they are. I just wonder what role memories play in our lives. Do we buy cars because we used to own one of the same type, that one that “never had problems” that one that you “should have never sold” ? Do we live in a place that reminds us of our childhood? Do we really seek to wed people like our parents? Why?
Life is a cold place, much warmer than it once was, but still full of the turmoil and savagery that we read about from centuries past. Perhaps we need to recede to the familiar from time to time. Perhaps our lives are determined by just how far away you’re willing to get from the things you already know; from the comfort of the familiar.

What happens though if you have no familiar to grasp? What happens if everything seems just as familiar as the last thing? What happens if you don’t like the past and going back to it seems just as absurd as dealing with the here and now? I suppose it’s times like those that you have to jump. Any direction, any distance. Just jump and see where you land.

Throwback Thursday: A Sonnet Without Meter

Throwback from:
Apr 27, 2009 12:40AM

A Sonnet Without Meter

Baby let's run away. Run away and be free
Let's go to Colorado for the weather or the trees
Or maybe North Car'lina for the mountains and the beach.
We can go anywhere as long as it's away from here.

I'll burn a CD that'll last us all the way,
with all the songs that connect us.
We'll be there before you know it
and you'll always want to stay.

I'm sick of this old town and I know you're sick of yours
these people and faces get old and what's more
you've been able to live without me
but how much longer can you go
can you live with me on your mind still years down the road

You say you'd pay a lot, for the musings on my mind
but we don't need money, just trade straight down the line
I'll take a little time out of each and every day,
and write about your smile and everything you say.

We'll write a book by living and each day we'll turn the page
Just promise you'll be by my side to tell me what to say.

I feel so good when you're next to me
and so empty when we're apart
It's only 9 million inches if you meet me half-way
But you have to have the courage to start.

Believe in me and i'll believe in you
I want to feel you flowing through my veins
Just give me one shot and I promise
I'll never let you watch a sunrise alone again.

Quicksand

I can feel the pressure from the grime and grit surrounding me. It happens fast, that unexpected step into the puddle you didn't know was there. The first feeling is annoyance. It starts small, at first its only that foot. You square up to try to free yourself and suddenly you're in with both feet.

"Why didn't I see this coming?"

Eventually you feel it all the time, constant twinges of the inevitable. You're up to your knees.

"Its not so bad, just make a plan."

Wriggle as you might, you only seem to sink deeper. Panic spreads over your body. Your plan doesn't work and anxiety takes over. You reach down to dig out your feet; wildly clawing your way out. You stand up again and you're up to your thighs.

"Should I just give up?"

Your plan wasn't good enough. You didn't think hard enough. You didn't think long enough. You didn't see far enough ahead. Ponder it all because when you look down again, you're up to your waist.

"What do I do?"

Feel the crushing pressure against you. The weight has you paralyzed; you can't move your legs anymore. You're terrified to move. You're not going anywhere. As the thin layer of silt crusts against your arms you realize the fallacy in it all. You actually thought you could dig yourself out? The undersides of your fingernails are caked in drying clumps of desperation. Elbows crusted over making every movement feel robotic; and for good reason. You did exactly as you were supposed to. You gave in and now you're stuck.

"So hopeless..."

The grit fills your belly button and begins climbing toward your chest. The force cramps your stomach and shortens your breath. You fight it so hard but Fate is your only companion on this trip. You see faint glimmers of hope. With every breath you open up a tiny gap between your chest and the hopelessness that surrounds you, only to be sealed in a moment later.

"I can still make it."

Its now or never. Maybe positivity will help. Look up, think about rising out. Move gently, don't disturb your surroundings, that was your mistake before. Take deep breaths and maybe you'll get out of this... Nope.

"Oh no..."

You're up to your armpits, only head and shoulders remain. Go ahead, fight. What do you think you'll see next time you look down?