Tuesday, November 2, 2010

laundry (warning: explicit lyrics)

Here's a song I wrote last October (2009). It's called "laundry."

sometimes i like to put his laundry away
it's the least, it's the least, it's the least
to hold his socks, his undershirts
sometimes it's the closest i get to his heart,
his heart
i fold it over my hands, the warmth
nestle it away
when sex isn't enough
his shoes in all their places lined up,
lined up
in his shoes i see all their faces
what he wants
when he tried, when he tried, when he tried
all around

and those girls, some may have loved him and he them
like a man, a man could love whiskey or hate gin
but the clothes he's wearing these days
when a sleeve, tie brushes his face
he's a married man to me

sometimes i put my heels on
just to see what it's like, what it's like
sometimes it's the closest i get to his head,
his head
all i want is his stare
his eyes down my hair
when hope isn't enough
the look of a man who's won,
i'm carried away
and his arms, and his arms, and his arms
in a circle closed in

and those girls some may have loved him, and he them
like a man, a man could love whiskey or hate gin
but he's charmed on talent and poise
and this charm disarms all the noise
he's a married man to me

all the apple pie in the world
can't put me inside, though i've tried
so i make, and i make, and i make
he's the other---man,
i pour some milk
the sweetest there is
toss in some salt
i'm walking away
taking off heels
i'm walking away

but those girls some may have loved him, and he them
like a man, a man could love whiskey or hate gin
but when he goes to bed every night
feeling warm and satisfied
he's a married man to me

- Virginia, 10/12/09

I was listening to a lot of Patty Griffin last fall so this one's pretty raw—acoustic guitar and voice is all. I'm still trying to figure out the musical placement of parts of the verses because they're asymmetrical. I like the way certain songwriters (like Patty) are able to set uneven lines, so I'd rather work on that than make any cuts in the lyrics. But the chorus was settled pretty quickly with no problems.

2 comments:

  1. Sara, this is great! Really great. A very honest view into it all. Would love to hear it when you get it all synched up.

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  2. Thanks, Angela! (Which Angela is this, btw? I'm so curious...) I'm determined to hash this song out for sharing, and even more so if there's someone on the other side who wants to hear it! - VBK

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