[On the surface, these song lyrics are about pinball. I’m sure you won’t find it too hard to dredge up the real meaning.]
Flipped
6/4/08
Kenneth Burchfiel
Drop in a quarter, and out I roll
Captive in my own square meter world
Out comes the spring—with a ding I am free
A paralyzed ball, barely able to see
The bumpers score points just by knocking me ‘round
I only get dizzy trying to find solid ground
The lights and the music get stale in a flash
I ride by the walls just waiting to crash
I’m just a pinball in a pinball machine
Bouncing my way ‘round a table that leans
Wishing my life didn’t hang on the shots
Wishing that I knew more than extremes
You only go up if you get far below
The flipper returns me to the world I know
Forget the bonus, I’m just searching for life
Wishing I didn’t have to take a hit to survive
The glass ceiling knocks me to the metal below
It’s hard to get higher if you’re fighting the flow
I’m stuck in a pipe, yet I’m gaining speed
Hurtling down towards the fix I need
I’m just a pinball in a pinball machine
Bouncing my way past a table that leans
Wishing my life didn’t hang on the shots
Wishing that I knew more than extremes
I glance past the flipper, game over for me
The player walks off—he had his three.
I slouch in the dark, but the coin slot gives light
I’ll need another quarter just to get in the right
A half-empty beer can rests on the glass
Left by the flipper man back with his class
Some people know without ever being told
What it’s like to live in a pinball world
I’m just a pinball in a pinball machine
Bouncing my way ‘round a table that leans
Wishing my life didn’t hang on the shots
Wishing that I knew more than extremes
