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Unsteady Things

by Alix Olson

on Independence Meal (2003)

We sailed past fancy people in their black pants and fancy bars
And we pointed out the gravestones and the flags on the cars
We were rebels released from this world for a time
We had our own way of watching
And in a one way window, you beamed right back at me
You said,"that's exactly what i don't want to be"
Your eyes were two hitchhikers, right then
Thumbing a cheap ride
And i'm a sucker for road travellers
Yeah, weary gets me every time
You are half a good idea
And i am half a good trip
We're a pyramid of unsteady things
And the trick is not to tip
The trick is not to tip
And i been told that i push it too much
Like how i never switch into fifth gear fast enough
I must just enjoy the strain
The groaning of the engine
As it moans, as it's grasping
And i guess i could just guess at what would make you mutter my name
But, i prefer to give to those who commit to the asking
Yeah, i prefer to give to those who commit to the asking
So ask me with your hands up
See, if one thing leads to another
Then another is way past due
Cause i would say that we have done a thing or two
Yes, i would say that we have done a little thing, or two
But nothing ever comes in quite the right dose
We are way too little, we could be way too much
No, nothing ever comes in quite the right dose
You are way too right, we could be way too close
So, now we're a couple of awkward stranges on the street
Doing that 'which way are you moving two-step dance"
But my coaches always taught me to ignore the shifty feet
It's the hips that will lead you where the ball is gonna land
So i'm watching your hips
I'm watching your hips
And i'm woozy, i'm getting woozy
My stomach's gone for a little spin around the block
And you tilt towards me and my pendulum swings
We are a glass pyramid of unsteady things
Unsteady things, unsteady
Like high school chearleaders mounting each other
And the bottom level is cringing
That's how you and i layer our words
With the subtext trembling
And i'm jumping on the shoulders of phrases
Our words are never lazy
But the base layer of gazes
Is just too much to hold up
These unsteady things, these unsteady things
And i've never claimed balance as a credential
I've never pretended to know how to climb
We're winding our way up this precarious hill
Let's make like jill and jill
And tumble down the waterslide
Of these unsteady things
So now we're slipping from the top
Drenched in the sweat of our attempts
And i am feeling stupid now
And you are feeling sheepish
But since that is what we do best
Let's just lie back and stare
I've never felt stars in my eyes like this
I feel like half of a cartoon pair
I've never been so pick-up line
Never been so bare
And you're unfurling your flag of breath, now
Into the bent crook of my arm
And i'm thinking "maybe i could love you
But i'm not sure we'd get along"
And then you unfold your tongue to show me your best
And i think "yes, okay,..........go on"
Because your best is impossibly beautiful
Your charm transcends unbearable
And i've got all this desire clutched behind my back
I will lay down my resistance
I will wait for you to crack
Like your smile splitting like my windshield
Stretching crooked and slow
Bearing the scar of an unseen roadside stone
I should beware, by now, of falling rocks
From the shifting cliffs of unsaid things
You know, earthquakes are measured
By the unsteady signs they bring
You're like water in the glass
And i'm shaking, i'm shaking
I'm shaking from these unsteady things
These unsteady things
You tickle me so pink now that i'm in the red
My blood shooting up like mercury
Heading up until it stings
And i know, you can't handcuff heat
Degrees rise when they please
All you can do is guess at the effects
And put your head between your knees
All you can do is hide from the ride of these
Unsteady things
All i can do is hide from the ride of these
Unsteady things, unsteady