Timed durations of sound and silence.
You could argue, she said,
that all music is simply this.
All recorded music at any rate because
here is your silence, here are your sounds.
They make trades and patterns,
acoustically, electronically,
and they help us (force us?) to understand ourselves.
You could further argue, she continues,
that this defines relationships.
But that's a little harder, because where do 5:00 AM alarm clocks
for morning sex bathtub-sharing breakfast-in-pajamas-on-couch ear-nibbling before work every day
fit into that explanation?
We understand the ringing in our ears, the slap of the snooze button,
the sound, the silence, they are there, but what do they explain?
One part you can't really argue though, she says
reclining back into a sigh into a cigarette
is that there's the potential for overwhelming beauty
when you choose your sounds and silences well.
I mean, if you can't even take that much for granted
then what's the use.