“Educated” - a song about speciousness
Specious - The claim or pretense of holding beliefs, feelings, standards, qualities, opinions, or virtues that one does not actually possess. The fact of being untrue, incorrect, or insincere
I’m trying to step up my title game so I don’t run out of words. Did I have to google this word? Yes. Does it fit perfectly? Also yes.
Story Pairing
In elementary school we had a thing called blacktop recess. When it had rained and the grass was too wet on the playground, you stayed on the asphalt and there were all these extra rules in the way of having fun. No running was the biggest one, you could gallop or skip, but nothing besides that. The other big one was that you couldn’t go past the cones. They would be laid out to create a giant rectangle, the north side was the wall of the school, the south side was the wet grass, the west was a few cones and then the road, and the east was a few cones to stop you from going into the rest of the parking lot.
So if you can picture that rectangle, in the northeast corner was a wooden structure that stuck off of the building. It was about the size of a small shed, and I think it covered up an exhaust fan if I remember correctly. It created a cubby of sorts, the only place where there was a interuption in the teachers line of site. It was a coveted spot. Kids would gallop/skip to it as fast as they could to snatch it for their little click. It only took 2-4 kids to hold it successfully. So the stage has now officially been set.
I loved a girl named Elisha in elementary school. I had no concept of love, but I was happy to say the words. I would draw her pictures, share the best parts of my lunch, and pester her to no end. Eventually all of my hard work paid off, and we became an item. This meant that on the playground she would hold my hand, and we would even hug sometimes, (that was only if we had both been drinking too many juice boxes).
I can remember the day she broke my heart.
It was a blacktop recess day, and she was dismissed outside before I had been. As soon as I made it outside I went straight to the “cubby”, as it was always the meeting spot for anyone who was anyone. As I turned the corner of the Cubby I found her hugging a classmate… a boy named Phillip. I stood there in shock. It was my first taste of betrayal. I don’t remember what I said, but I remember that I never wanted to see her again. So I skipped. I skipped like no one has ever skipped before… and the teacher on duty thought it was an awful lot like running. I got sent inside with a pink slip to go think about what I had done.
Love made a fool of me. I haven’t skipped since that day.
Song Structure
Chords: This is a droning open A string and I move a D7 shape down the neck.
Verse - Em6 / Ebm6 / Dm6 / A
Chorus - E7 / A
Voice Memos
Notebook Page
July 2024
Lyrics
I’m an educated man, kicking myself
Falling down in front of you
I’m an educated man, who don’t understand
I’m doing things I just shouldn’t do
Turns out love, it will make you a fool
I’m a well read chap, wide open eyes
Been that way since I was in school
A well read chap, stuck in a trap
No longer can I see what is true
Turns out love, it will make you a fool
I’m a keen young bloke, sharp as a tack
The last one you can ridicule
I’m a keen young bloke, starting to choke
You’re breaking down every rule
Turns out love, it will make you a fool
I’m as wise as I’m pretty, used to be a lot
Walking by and making em drool
Yes as wise as I’m pretty, now feeling shitty
Looking like an old rundown mule
Turns out love, it will make you a fool
Turns out love, it will make you a fool