Spoken Word / You Can't give Superheroes DUIs

I am driving under the influence

Daring reality to give me a speeding ticket

See, I am high on love.

 

I never could just sip in its smoke and simper

Batting my eyes and looking coy was never my thing

I can’t let myself play into cat and mouse flirtationships

I always try to say what I mean

Always needing someone to turn my mind on to keep me interested

I’m not going to simplify myself down to one flicked up switch

I won’t just be some inflated superhero’s distressed damsel or girlfriend

I aim to equalize heroes with heroines

 

Now, don’t just smile and nod

Don’t patronize me with pats on the head or epithets of cuteness

I moved on from Hello Kitty a long time ago.

I’m not some trophy and I won’t dress up for you—I dress up for me

Barbies always creeped me out with their stiff joints

Too-large eyes and heads so tiny and hollow

Even dust bunnies avoided gathering in them

 

You may be capable of moving me chemically—I mean, I’m not blind—

But catching my attention doesn’t deserve a round of applause

I tend to get momentarily distracted by lots of shiny, pretty things.

You can’t hold my attention for more than a handful of moments

With a projected ego inflated with hot air

Propped up with your notion of others’ inferiority

Fleeting moments of kindness don’t excuse your sense of superiority

And they are constantly overtaken by waves of indifference

Making me apathetic to your existence

Because you chill every vertebrae in my spine with your shallowness

And you must think me a fool to hope that I’ll let that near my heart

 

So if you want to stand by me, I dare you to challenge me

Don’t just play to be on my court and thoughtlessly agree

I don’t deal in monotony

So I pinky promise I’ll appreciate the discord

 

Why not fly high?

I’ll float up with you but I won’t depend on just you

I’ll live, laugh, and light up, my love.