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Him: Don’t involve me in that ever again.
Me: Excuse me?
Him: You heard me. I don’t want to be part of your circus. I don’t care to sit there while you open a bank account, on a day when we’ve planned to meet for a picnic. You’ve been extremely passive agressive today and I don’t want to be part of whatever game it is you’re playing.
(long pause)
Me: Well… It’s a nice day, and we finally made it to the park. Eat your sandwich, maybe, and you won’t be hangry anymore?
(long pause. we eat. i start to play ukulele.)
Me: Hey, we wrote this song together. Do you remember writing this song?
Him: Yes.
(pause)
Me: Right. We wrote it. Where were we?
(pause)
Me: You don’t remember? We were at your apartment in Cobble Hill. I was complaining about your tendency to hoard things – it’s a real fire hazzard, and I’d twisted my ankle in the clothing/furniture/old paper maze to your bed. It was hot and you had rigged up a ‘fan contraption,’ remember?
Him: It was two fans working in tandem to circulate the air.
Me: That’s right! I was asking about American Hwangap at the Magic Theater. You said you’d written a chord progression for the end of the show, remember?
(pause)
Me: I said we owed it to Thin Skin Jonny to turn it into a song. Surely you remember?
(pause. i start singing.)
If I said more often,
How good you look…
In the morning time, boy
Wouldn’t that have been fine?
If I told you,
How good you cook
You make your own beef jerky.
Who makes their own beef jerky?
Would you let me stay?
Would you let me stay?
Hey hey hey.
Would you let me stay?
Ah haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa…..
And if I said I’m sorry,
For all the fighting last December,
Would you say, It’s okay –
As far as you remember
If I said I was a lonely boy
Who really really misses you
Can I be the only boy who
Gets to hug and kiss you…
I wanna be the only boy-
Would you let me st-
Him: That’s enough.
(pause)
Me: I’ll stop singing that song, but not because you told me to.
Him: Michael, I’ve moved beyond this. I have completed my grief cycle. I’ve come out the other side a better man.
Me: And I kept singing the songs that made us feel immortal. What’s your point?
Him: You can’t hold on to love for too long. It will burden you. It will anchor you down.
Me: Oh really? I was thinking the opposite. I was thinking that I’m a writer. I’m a songwriter. I’m a playwright. I write comedy for television and star in sketch shows. I was thinking I might keep singing my songs, because you know what? People are buying them now.
(pause)
Do you want writing credit for this, or no? Because I don’t want to deal with a lawsuit later on.
Him: You’re ridiculous and passive agressive to the nth degree and I’m not your boyfriend any longer. I don’t have to put up with it.
Me: Oh. No. You did not. Gurl, you better hold my gold.
Him: You have to let this go.
Me: No, I don’t. You’re not my boyfriend anymore and I don’t have to put up with you telling me what to do. I can love whomever I want. I can keep loving you, Norman. I can love Carson, too. I can love Andrew forever too, if I want to. I don’t have to do what you tell me to do. How’s that for passive aggressive? Or was that just agressive?
(pause. i play more uke.)
So if I do all the laundry…
If I go and buy all the paper towels,
Will you rent a hall?
Will you write some wedding vows?
If I pick up all my dirty socks.
If I go and put back the toothpaste cap,
When our kid has chicken pox
Will you pick up a midnight snack?
And would you let me stay?
Would you let me stay?
Hey hey hey? Hey.
Would you let me stay?
Ah Haaaaaaaaaaaa ah.
Maybe I’ll change?
Maybe I’ll change.
Maybe I’ll look at myself
I’ll re-arrange things when I change
Ah Haaaaaaaaaaaaa ah.
I just realized,
When I saw your eyes.
I don’t want to… Stay….
To Be Continued…
PIEFOLK 