guc 2

You Don't

I just stepped on a plane, my bags on the shelf
I find my seat in the middle and plan to keep to myself
The pilot comes on, says: "there's been a delay"
and I sigh, buckle up, and prepare for the wait
There's a middle aged woman on my right by the window
no ring on her finger, maybe divorced or widow?
She's drafting an email and from where I am seated
I can side-eye that shit, so of course I'm gon' read it.

it said:

Dear McCracken... this is already great
dude's got a pen pal and a killer last name
she opens with an inside joke and she's hoping
to set a casual tone, her words carefully chosen
she was sure that her week spent in Houston would drag
but then a face from her past quickly changed all of that
the trip was for business, she's used to the travel
but this time she's not ready to head back to Seattle

Dear McCracken, I'd rather be off this plane
I can't admit the half of it that I want to say
Do I pretend, do I push you away?
I'm jet-laggin mcCracken and I'll give you, I'll give you your space

I can tell by the abuse of the backspace key
there's a heart balanced on how her words are perceived
she's retyped that fourth paragraph four times
swinging the tone back and forth until she's so satisfied
that he knows that even though their paths have diverged
there's an air of regret but not enough to reverse
and I am stunned, there I sit, completely convinced
that once you grow old you stop dealing with this
the uncertain, the hurtin', the feelin like dirt when
things don't work out by the fall of the curtain
she hits send, powers off, and we're ready to go
and I am sad for the passion that McCracken, he might never know

Dear McCracken, I'd rather be off this plane
I can't admit the half of it that I want to say
Do I pretend, do I push you away?
I'm jet-laggin mcCracken and I'll give you, I'll give you your space

Dear McCracken, I'm keepin this on my chest
I've said a lot of things but none of them what I meant
Do I pretend, do I try to forget?
I'm jet-laggin mcCracken and I wish you, I wish you the best

and I thought, I thought by that age
our broken hearts had seen their worst
and I thought that kind of heartache
was meant for the young but we're never too old to hurt

and I thought, I thought by that age
our broken hearts had seen their worst
and I thought that kind of heartache
was meant for the young but we're never too old to hurt

I just stepped off a plane, I've got one regret
I know I'll never get closure or ever see how it ends
I won't know his answer, what happens between them
why she kept her cards so close even she couldn't see them
what gave her such pause when she so clearly wanted
to tell you all the emotions she tried so hard to bottle
and I'll never know why she kept the honest truth from you
but Oh Dear McCracken... in the rough draft...

in the rough draft...

In the Rough Draft She Loved You.

Dear McCracken

Making Up Words

Who I'm Singin' To

The Key To Being Lonely

This is The Rough Draft, the newest album from Bug Hunter

The Gulf Coast (Bonus Track)

Listen To Your Mom

Point To Prove (I Was An Ugly Kid)

Hide and Seek, By Bug Hunter. This is the 4th song on their 3rd album, Bigger Than Myself


Again and again
Start over from scratch
Build up from the ground
The new kid in class

I tell them my name
Again and again
I try to be kind
and hope for a friend

And hope for a friend

It's like a game of hide and seek, they count to ten and look for me
but it's been half an hour, I'm still crouched behind the couch and think
That maybe they've forgotten me, gave up, gone to watch T.V.
but I’ll be hiding quietly in case they circle back for me

The childhood I had
An outsider in my head
Again and again

Again and again
We pack up and move
I skip like a stone
New school to new school

Unable to float
and holding my breath
Afraid to approach
Will you be my friend?

Will you be my friend?

It's like a game of hide and seek, 
they count to ten and look for me
but it's been several hours
I'm still crouched behind the couch and think
That I'm the piece they'd rather lose, 
the seed you plant that never blooms
A new kid much too nervous to stand up, 
step out or leave his room

The childhood I had, an outsider in my head
Again and again

Class we have a new student
He's a little withdrawn
He just moved here from Texas or Nashville or Mars
He'll be gone before long
So he's not worth the trouble
He's a novelty when
all the cliques are connected
The ephemeral friend

It's like a game of hide and seek
They count to ten and look for me
but it's been twenty years and I'm
still crouched behind the couch and think

That I'd be different had I known
that birthday cakes and milestones
wouldn't mark my progress growing up
like years of eating lunch alone

The childhood I had, an outsider in my head
I ask myself: without it, would I be the Bug I am?
Again and Again

It's like a game of hide and seek
but it's my turn to search and, see, 
I still know all the hiding spots
to check to find the lost and thank

The childhood I had, an outsider in my head
but never again

Hide And Seek

Safe Word, By Bug Hunter. This is the 1st song on their 3rd album, Bigger Than Myself

A broken clock's right twice a day
but mine spins in reverse and may
have doubled odds and better luck
Now it's twice as good as worthless junk

My heart's as healthy as a horse
but my hard hat's lookin' hardly worn
That other steel toed boot'll drop
but I don't know when, or how to stop

I wish I had a secret code
to signal me to take it slow
I need a sin like calculus
'cos my limit does, in fact, exist!

So slow down, focus, do yoga poses and
learn to love the lull and just breathe...
Breathe… breathe…

Alright I'm good!

I think I'm smiling and nodding, but surveillance cameras caught me laugh maniacally 
headbutting every obstacle, I've got to turn it off... and pick back up when I am calm
Even with an invitation, boy, you gotta learn to knock (Oh knock it off!)
... And do me one favor: Remember the safe word

I get that passion motivates
and crashes down like ocean waves
but tunnel vision's toxic man,
you're not John Henry, take a breath

That might sound harsh when you are used
to head rubs, praise, and sugar cubes
I just hate to see you racing towards
behaviors that we shouldn't reward

So slow down, focus, do yoga poses and
learn to love the lull and just
Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. (Alright!)

I think I'm smiling and nodding,
blending in and getting on
but no, I haven't fooled the cameras
in my camel camouflage
I'll take it off!

...and I won't spit on anyone
Even with an invitation, boy,
you gotta learn to knock
(Oh knock it off!)
And do me one favor:
Remember the safe word

And I have no construction crew
to build this introduction tune but it's sound and under budget, too...
The chords work, the beat works, the verse and melody works
and these words, they each work, have purpose versus knee-jerk
Safety first, let's be sure our neon PPE works
Now the only thing that needs work is the last bit of the bridge!

I think I'm smiling and nodding, mild-mannered, nodding off
It's just my neck is getting tired, so much nonsense to hold up
Just take a pause... but don't give up the dream
If they change the locks behind you, you can find another key
and hope a smile and a nod's the only signal they have seen
You're no machine but there's no shame
in blowing off a little steam, so hear me knock!
Hear me hammer, hear me yell
and don't knock it 'till you've tried it,
tried to knock or tried the bell (Ah, let me in!)
The trip has been paid for and you have a way forth
so don't waste the day or delay it for later

But do me one favor: Remember the safe word

guc 2

Sam Stevenson