It has been brought to my attention that it is national poetry month. I shall follow
wordsofastory's lead and post a poem every day. One of my favorite English teachers had a unit within his Writing Fiction and Poetry class dedicated to song lyrics, so song lyrics will be included in this endeavor.
Another Maggie Estep poem. I was introduced to it while on the Speech Team in high school. A teammate used it as part of her poetry program*, along with Emotional Idiot. I can't read it without hearing it in her voice, and I lament the fact I can't share her awesome interp for you.
The Stupid Jerk That I'm Obsessed With
Maggie Estep
The stupid jerk I'm obsessed with
stands so close to me
I can feel his breath
on my neck
and smell
the way he would smell
if we slept together
because he is the stupid jerk I'm obsessed with
and that is his primary function in life
to be a stupid jerk I can obsess over
and to talk to that dingy bimbette blonde
as if he really wanted to hear about her
manicures and
pedicures and
New Age ritualistic enema cures and
truth be known, he probably does wanna hear about it
because he is the stupid jerk I'm obsessed with
and he's obsessed with doing anything he can
to lend fuel to my fire
he makes a point of standing
looking over my shoulder
when I'm talking to the guy who adores me
and would bark like a dog
and wave to strangers
if I asked him to bark like a dog
and wave to strangers
but I can't ask him to bark like a dog
or impersonate any kind of animal at all
cause I'm too busy
looking at the way the stupid jerk I'm obsessed with
has pants on that perfectly define his well-shaped ass
to the point where I'm thoroughly frantic
I'm just gonna go home
and stick my head in the oven
overdose on nutmeg and aspirin
and sit in the bathtub reading The Executioner's Song
and being completely confounded by the fact
that I can see
the stupid jerk I'm obsessed with's face
defining itself in the peeling plaster of the wall
grinning and winking
and I start to yell,
Get the hell out of there
You're just a figment of my imagination
Just get a life and get out of my plaster
and pass me the next painful situation please
but he just keeps on
grinning and winking
he's the stupid jerk I'm obsessed with
and he's mine
in my plaster
And frankly, I couldn't be happier.
*The program also included parts of her poem FUCK ME during late night practices. We also gave our Impromptu speakers dirty prompts like "double ended dildos" at the practices too. We had to do *something* to get through our 4+ hour practices before big tournaments. :P