[ssba]

michał kmiecik

blanket case

since this is supposed to be a five-minute piece, have it played along with laurie anderson’s “born, never asked,” the fifth track on “big science,” which lasts 4’58” – two seconds either way shouldn’t make much difference

starting point:

But the fact is: people with money are better than people without money.

People with money are better schooled, better fed, better trained, better cultured.

They’re the people who go to museums and opera and the theatre, and, you know,

they’re taking their kids there, and the kids get this culture and shit and it makes them smarter.

lucas hnath “red speedo”

finishing point:

convince me it isn’t so

so what?

Convince me people without money are just as good

o no no no no no

anything but money please

we’re not talking about money economics and the economy

not this time not here no and that’s final

do you understand the gravity of the situation?

yeah I thought you didn’t

let’s talk about something else

I’m tired

so awfully tired

I don’t want to talk about it got that?

Let’s talk about something simple please

something nice you can communicate

something I’ll be able to

something I can take a position on

like emotions or feelings or

and the unchanging human condition

that never fucking fails to move me a great deal

especially when it gives me a chance to feel sorry for myself

leave me alone I want to lie here don’t bother me

don’t bug me I’m working hard

and I really want to get under my blanket my pillow

finally switch some show on and watch a film all the way through

instead of dozing off fifteen minutes in

when the action finally gets going

and yes I am making money

this year it so happens

since the beginning of the year has been pretty awesome for a change

compared with say the year before

and the one before that and the one before that

which translates you got it

into zero love life into broken-off friendships

and yeah since you’re asking

my sex life is a monologue but

but such is the unchanging human condition

whoa there if that’s what this is about

I’ll have you know I’ve had other human conditions too

that’s not what I was

only that the unchanging human condition of people with money

compared to the human condition of people

who don’t have money for shit

especially in the situation that don’t butt in

that we’re in the bottom line is

how do I put this the standard of living of our parents’ generation

we’re not getting there anytime soon if ever

oh spare me the

I will spare no one

I have no intention

when will you get this get your head around this

dammit why don’t you finally realize

I have a mentality with twenty-five-years of mileage

a mentality with many a mile under its belt

down freeways and lack of freeways

and don’t tell me about getting there

I could give you lessons in getting there son

because I’ve gotten wherever I dreamed of getting

and all the ground I covered on my unmaintained mentality

down roads and missing freeways

has gotten to the brake-pads or lack thereof

and if it goes on like this then

from the height of my

I’m really working hard for all I got

and what it can get me in the future

it’s wearing down grinding down

the brake-pads of my patience

and if you start spouting off again

I’ll smack you see if I don’t

naturally putting an end to the discussion

jesus but that wasn’t what I

so what was I?

I need you to focus now

please

well?

so there’s the condition changing or unchanging

of people with and without money?

I’m sorry I can’t focus here

you’re rustling real bad from under this blanket

pestering me with your annoying

commentary you got off some dark corner of the internet

and the essentially right-minded bullshit shoveled my way under this blanket

I’m resting got that see?

I’m resting me a hard-working person

sundays I’m off in the afternoon

afternoon what am I saying night

the first night in ages

when no one’s blabbering

no one’s giving me shit mailing calling me

the first free truly free night for so long

and I’m not going to bother about what you’ve got to say

I’ll be lying I’ll be lying got that

I’ll be lying under a blanket

and you’re not convincing me this is

a bout of goodbye-cruel-world-I-gotta-go-now depression

because this fucking isn’t depression

this is me doing the keep the sabbath thing

anyway it’s sunday

and thinking about the state of the world

not to mention the aforementioned human condition

is not something you’re getting me to do bub

now I want you to get out of my head bub

and don’t come back until monday

not until my morning paper

of which I might not understand a thing

but that’s no longer your concern

as a hard-working person I coped

and I know what I managed to overcome

and I know you’re frustrated because

solely because unfortunately

it turned out this way unfortunately

unfortunately for you of course

but what can I do

from under my blanket and pillow well?

Well nothing

and unfortunately

nothing

oh and

nothing

nothing quite simply nothing

now I want you to get out of my head

and leave me here under the blanket

in my absence of and that’s relevant under this blanket depression

because this isn’t me feeling down

this is just a rest

I’m resting

I’ve worked hard for this worked hard

now I’m resting

get the fuck out from under my blanket

fuck off