3am to 1pm. So I have plenty of time to sit here and I was trying to think of something to occupy my time. I’m gonna try something new. A little dissection of music. We’ll see how this turns out. I make no promises. Keep in mind I’m starting this at nearly 5:30 in the morning after about 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I am surprisingly awake for the time though…
Ok, here’s how this is gonna work. I’ve included the lyrics of a song without the repeating chorus so it takes up less space. My favorite parts I’ve enclosed with superscript numbers. Below the lyrics, I’ll tell a little about what it means to me, how it makes me feel, what I think was intended, or pretty much whatever the hell I want 🙂
Currently Playing: Yellowcard – Back Home
1Don’t know what I was looking for when I went home, I found me alone1
2And sometimes I need someone to say, “You’ll be all right. What’s on your mind?”2
But the water’s shallow here and I am full of fear, and empty handed after two long years
Back home I always thought I wanted so much more, now I’m not too sure
3Cause sometimes I miss knowing someone’s there for me3 and feeling free
Free to stand beside the ocean in moonlight
And light myself a smoke beneath the dark Atlantic sky
4Everybody here is living life in fear of falling out of line
Tearing lives apart and breaking lots of hearts just to pass the time
And the eyes get red in the back of your head, this place will make you blind
Put it all behind me and I’ll be just fine4
5Another sunny day beneath this cloudless sky
Sometimes I wish that it would rain here
And wash away the west coast dreaming from my eyes
There’s nothing real for them to see here5
Another starry night in Californ-i-a
I’m sure back home they’d love to see it
But they don’t know that what you love is ripped away
Before you get a chance, before you get a chance to feel it
1This is only partially true for me. Going home is a great chance to spend time with my family, and I wouldn’t trade that for the world. Still, if my family has other things going on that don’t necessarily include me there is hardly anyone else at home that I can go hang out with. That part kinda sucks.
2I think everyone feels this way at least some of the time. I’ve got plenty of friends, but sometimes I feel like they don’t really notice when something is wrong. Then I have to wonder if they really care. And though I’m not exactly missing being in a relationship, this is one nice thing that gets taken care of automatically (or should) and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss that aspect. Anyone who knows me very well understands that if they actually say something like this to me they are likely to get a lengthy answer. I think that’s what I needed mid-semester.
3This goes right along with 2 in that sometimes I don’t feel like anyone is. And again, I know everyone has those moments where they feel that way, and it’s probably not true that no one is there. Sometimes it would be nice if people would show it a little more often, though.
4It seems like everyone is afraid of falling out of line. So many people live their lives the way other people want them to, and they walk around all the time afraid to step on other peoples’ toes. It’s just not cool. I’m not saying you should go out of your way to piss people off (or not care at all about anything others think), but it will happen. Not everyone will like you. It’s something you have to deal with and move on. Sometimes it really does seem like people mess with others’ lives just because they have nothing better to do. How messed up is that? Unfortunately, I’ve found that when most of what I see in the world is ugliness, I stop taking notice. I do become blind to it. This place, this society will make you blind. Think about how shocking it would have been 20 years ago to see some of the things that are on TV and in the media today. When’s the last time you saw something uplifting as a major story on the news? It’s all about war and crime and poverty and hunger and all of the other twisted things that people do…and after a while it just doesn’t have the same affect. Our senses have been dulled by it all and it kinda makes me sick to think about it. Put it all behind me and I’ll be just fine. Well…we shall see.
5So I don’t really feel like I’m in California and everything is all bright and sunny. Times aren’t really good or bad right now, but somewhere in the middle. However, I do think that when times are good that a little rain can be a good thing. A dose of reality if you will. And I’m not talking about the “reality” they show on TV. That stuff seems so manufactured now, I can’t believe they still call it Reality TV. I guess this line has a double meaning for me too…I just like the rain sometimes. Sitting and watching it falling outside (or around me) can be really peaceful. Sometimes it can wash away a bad mood like it was nothing. Everything seems so clean and fresh when it’s over and the sun comes out again. It makes you appreciate the good times (or nice weather) just that much more.
So I’m realizing that I probably could have done the entire song line by line, but I think this will do. Hope you enjoyed it. Let me know if I should do this more often by leaving comments.
Edit: I’m the kind of person who can like a song for several reasons. One is for lyrical content. Lyrics are usually just poetry, and while I don’t go looking for new poetry to read, I love it put to music. Another thing is for sound. Sometimes it doesn’t matter what the words are, it just sounds appealing. When the two go together, I’m gonna love it. Yellowcard has managed to do both in almost all of their songs, and this is no exception. I absolutely love the electric violin. At the very least, I highly recommend their latest album Ocean Avenue.