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the sweater song

i'm lying in bed listening to music through headphones. pretty much every cd of the approximately two hundred i own, except for coldplay and collective soul, is of a 'Christian band' (were there such a thing), because I'm a good Christian.

i'll admit, just now i skipped 'be thou my vision' in my playlist in order to hear illegally downloaded afi, whose poetically depressing lyrics are smoothly integrated into complex guitar compositions. but i deleted the one song that has the f-word (the only profanity, as far as i know), probably because i'm a good Christian.

today i was wearing my favourite black zip-up hoodie. it is good, except the bottom-front part kind of bunches up and makes me look like i have a beer belly, even though i have never had a sip of beer (because i'm a good Christian?).

also, the sleeves are a little short. were my hands to suddenly become legs, my hoodie would be high-water pants. a truly Good sweater wouldn't be like this. however, this is my favourite, probably because i've never had a perfect sweater - or seen one, in fact. i guess i'll have to settle for this one. but if i had a perfect sweater it would not bunch up and the sleeves would fit better (were there such thing as a perfect sweater), because it would be a truly Good sweater.

hypothetically, were i to come across the perfect sweater, i would no longer think my zip-up hoodie was so good. in fact, there would be only one favourite sweater for me. if that were the case, i should probably completely forget about this hoodie and do everything i can to get the perfect one (were there such a thing), because it would be a Good sweater.

but, for now, I'll listen to my good songs in my good sweater, and be content to be a good Christian (were there such a thing).

Comments

Michelle said…
i was always personally amazed that you could pick up dirty clothes off the floor or out of a basket, and wear them, and they always looked fine.
Anonymous said…
yeah I echo Michelle's amazement.
And due to social activities that I have partaken in and devil's music that I have grown accustomed to, it seems that your best friend is a very bad Christian, irregardless of the very nice sweater that I am wearing today.

PS. I like the fact that this post actually sounded like you talking rather than a philosophy textbook.
That's... some pretty zen stuff there Keith. It's like you were talking about your sweater, but you weren't. I tell ya I'm on the ball with this one.

Oh and I don't know jodi, and I mean no offense, but irregardless isn't a word. Unless... it's like your sweater, you know, a word that's not perfect (or doesn't exist) but we cherish it anyway because it is a picture of our own imperfections and inadequacies.

I can play at this too!
Keith Dow said…
thanks, Jeremy, for correcting my friend Jodi. generally that's my job, but if i were to do it properly it would most likely consume my life. she certainly is a cherished imperfection.
dan carlson said…
keith, next time you are at my house i will show you the perfect sweater. it is blue, with a white inside, a fantastic zipper, and was purchased at value village in late 2002. if you promise to be careful i might even let you try it on.

with all of this talk of goodness and perfectness methinks you have been reading a bit too much greek philosophy. maybe you should take it easy for a while...
Anonymous said…
Thank you for the helpful hints about my use of a word that apparently does not exist. I'm glad Keithy has someone to help him point out my shortcomings. We all know that my life is lacking individuals who are so willing to encourage me in such a way.
Here's a question to ponder:
Would you rather have an incredibly moist left foot or have a friendly midget permanently strapped to you, papoose style?
Anonymous said…
keith, did you know weezer has a song called "the sweater song"? i love that this particular blog has so much personality...
Gareth said…
So, are you saying because I listen to music with profanity I'm a bad Christian? Huh? Is that it? I've lost all interest in "Christian" bands and I listen to mostly secular music these days.

Even still, most of my music doesn't have profanity, just some of it ... but I like it. Do you think this is bad Keith? I even sometimes (gasp) use profanity myself. But you know this.

P.S. It looks like it's going to rain outside and I don't have an umbrella.
Keith Dow said…
jodi: i'm going to have to go with the midget. this may be because i am a bit short-sighted (especially when my back goes or i want to get married), or perhaps i just like migets. it was a very good question, though.

gareth: yes, i am saying you are a bad Christian. is listening to music with profanity a part of this? perhaps. maybe i will write a blog on profanity sometime soon. however, for now i'd suggest re-reading the post; its intention is quite different than perhaps you at first thought. i don't think any of us are good Christians. the point is that we need to stop dwelling in our imperfections and seek after Christ, who is our perfection.
Gareth said…
Keith,

I agree with you one hundred percent. I was just being sarcastic and having some fun.

In Christ,

Gareth

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